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Markkula Center for Applied Ethics

Media Mentions


A selection of articles, op-eds, TV segments, and other media featuring Ethics Center staff and programs.

The Markkula Center for Applied Ethics does not advocate for any product, company, or organization. Our engagements are intended to provide training, customized materials, and other resources. The Markkula Center does not offer certifications or seals of approval.

The moon in a night sky.
Who Owns the Moon? The Race for Lunar Real Estate is an Impending Ethical Nightmare

“Every culture on Earth has conceptions about the Moon, there are lots of groups on Earth who have thoughts on how the Moon should be treated. This is why we need to have a larger conversation."

"Ultimately, the people who get to make the decisions are the ones who are there,” says Green, so you hope that the people who are making the decisions and who are there are going to be ethical and actually considerate of other people's opinions.”

 

Brian Green, director, technology ethics, quoted by Inverse.

How AI and Election Misinformation go Hand in Hand

It's an election year and fake political news once again will dominate the news cycle. The availability of artificial intelligence tools will increase the speed and volume by which falsified information is produced and distributed.

And since more engagement leads to more advertising dollars, these (social media) firms have an obvious incentive to promote viral content, said Green. Though these companies don’t have a legal obligation to regulate misinformation, “(Social media firms) have a social obligation and cultural obligation,” Green said. “If we’re creating a future where we can’t tell what’s real and what’s fake, then we’re really endangering ourselves.” 

Brian Green, director, technology ethics, quoted by The Daily Upside.

A picture of a meeting cube with chairs inside
Stressed at Work? Your Office Phone Booth Could Tell Your Boss

As remote and hybrid workers return to working in the office, privacy pods and booth-like work spaces are becoming more commonplace.

Now, one maker of these workspace modules is testing sensors that can track biometrics such as heart rate and breathing patterns of workers, helping companies to detect employee stress and anxiety levels, without consent from the workers themselves, and raising questions about data privacy and in possible violation of health privacy laws.

Ann Skeet, senior director of leadership ethics weighs in. “I am very leery of anyone’s promise that they can protect data. Who’s to say there won’t be a bad actor? The goal can seem reasonable, but there are unintended consequences.”

Ann Skeet, senior director, leadership ethics, quoted by Bloomberg.

Photo by: SilentLab / Pixabay

KRCG 13 Logo
University of Missouri Athletic Director Search Faces Possible Conflict of Interest

University of Missouri leaders started a national search for a new athletic director by hiring a search firm with connections to the wife of MU Men’s Basketball Coach Dennis Gates.

Don Heider, Ethics Center executive director, argued there could be a potential conflict of interest even if Jocelyn Gates was not a part of the search.

“If somebody is unhappy with something the new athletic director does, especially in regards to the men’s basketball program, they’re going to point to this as an issue," said Heider. "When you hire somebody as important as an athletic director, you want them to come in and have a great start. To have this cloud on the horizon is not what I consider to be a great start,” and suggested that MU officials should appoint someone outside of the University on the search committee as an observer as a safeguard.

Don Heider, executive director, quoted by CBS KRCG 13.

Excelsior Logo
It is Urgent to Avoid Misuse of AI

Brian Patrick Green, director, technology ethics, stated that this technology should not be thought of only as a tool with some serious effects, but that global regulation should be sought to guarantee its proper use.

“There are many ways we can also try to do good, but end up not doing it. There are side effects, for example, in terms of bias or environmental degradation or in terms of inequality and unemployment and those kinds of things that could come from AI. We need to think about how AI interacts with society and how society can make sure it uses it in a way that is really useful to people.”

Brian Patrick Green, director, technology ethics, quoted by Excelsior.

Forbes Logo: A white capital
Mirror Indy Or IndyStar? Why Journalistic Sourcing Matters More

"American news media, including and particularly local news outlets, have a long history of elitist sourcing. This means the exclusion of everyday and particularly marginalized voices that often convey truths through hope and pain, with an authenticity that expert sources and official authorities do not offer."

Subramaniam Vincent, director, journalism and media ethics, published by Forbes.

Black background with the letters F O R T U N E.
The Recent Debacles at Boeing and Meta Highlight the Dangers of Shrugging off Employee Concerns

Ann Skeet, senior director, leadership ethics, spoke with Lila MacLellan at Fortune about parents managing Facebook pages to help their children become influencers. Skeet characterizes this as another "sad example of Facebook misuse and limited response from Meta."

"Meta has stood accused of minimizing or dismissing worker complaints about safety in the past, signaling that it has missed a foundational lesson of moral leadership," Skeet, told Fortune.

“When people bring things to your attention, it’s an opportunity to reset expectations and to clarify culture,” said Skeet.

Ann Skeet, senior director, leadership ethics, quoted by Fortune (paywall), and republished by Yahoo! Finance.

ABC 7 WXYZ Detroit Logo
Would This Fool you? A.I. Voice Clone Calls can Spread Election Misinformation

Across the world voters are starting to be targeted by more and more of these clones and more citizens than ever will likely be tested this election cycle.

"We are in a situation now which is kind of a perfect storm; we have a year in which 60 countries are having elections," said Raicu.

"We have the social media platforms that have been totally inadequate at preventing the spread and then we have all the users, all of us, who are not educated enough who fall for them and who have this sort of trigger reaction sometimes to share things that shock us," she said.

Irina Raicu, director, Internet ethics, quoted by ABC News/WXYZ, Detriot.

San Francisco Standard logo.
San Francisco City Workers Rally, Opposing Billions Spent on Outside Contractors

There’s nothing inherently bad about cities contracting services out to third parties, according Pelissero. The movement toward contracting out work began in the 1970s, and research has shown that third parties can provide more efficient services in some cases and help cities and their taxpayers save money on payroll and post-retirement benefits, such as pensions, he said. 

John Pelissero, director, government ethics, quoted by The San Francisco Standard.

Built In company logo
The Importance of Workplace Ethics

"Employees have a higher degree of trust in leaders they believe are ethical, which in turn strengthens their ability to lead and influence their workforce," said Skeet. "Employees typically mirror that behavior, which creates a culture where ethical standards are upheld and toxic behavior is called out."

 

Ann Skeet, senior director, leadership ethics, quoted by Built In.

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