Quote
“Knowledge is power” – attributed to Francis Bacon;
“Knowledge is power” – attributed to Francis Bacon;
“A
little knowledge is a dangerous thing” – attributed to Alexander Pope.
News
The
US Ambassador to Syria was pelted with tomatoes and eggs yesterday as he met
with an opposition leader in Damascus. Pro-government supporters
expressed anger towards the US Administration for comments which “encouraged
armed groups to attack the Syrian security forces”.
Earlier
this week a BBC reporter was one of the few foreign journalists to be allowed
into Syria since the protests began 6 months ago. She has not found any
members of the public willing to speak critically of the government on
camera. However, other Syrians are secretly filming incidents and
uploading them to the internet. “Our weapon is the camera” declared a
young protester, “Our revolution must be live, on-line.”
International
reaction to the Syrian pro-democracy movement has been relatively muted, in
part due to the complexity of Middle East politics. However, the more
that human rights abuses are exposed in Syria, the stronger the moral argument
for intervention.
The
question is, how are moral judgments – and therefore relationships – influenced
by information? Control of the media is a vital strategy used by many
authoritarian regimes in the Middle East and elsewhere, both to hide injustices
and to silence opposition voices. But that doesn’t mean that all
unofficial videos are true and accurate either, for propaganda may be used by
both sides; critical awareness is vital.
Moral
judgments are easier the more black and white a situation appears, but people
in public office must be careful to obtain accurate information before making
judgments – even if it complicates the issue – as their decisions can have
profound consequences on relationships. Thus the news media have a
tremendous responsibility to be accurate and impartial in their reporting, so
people can make right judgments, and leaders conduct international relations
with justice.
Read
on
A
New York Times blog weaves together a variety of national and international
news sources, including videos posted on the internet, to provide a more
complete picture of what is happening around and behind news stories. The
entry about yesterday’s egg throwing incident can be read here.
Walk
the talk
We
often make moral judgments based on information from third parties. Are
there any situations where you would be wiser to gather more accurate and
impartial information before making a decision, in order to reduce the risk of
treating someone unjustly?
The
last word
From the Bible, Proverbs 18:17 “The first to present his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him.”
From the Bible, Proverbs 18:17 “The first to present his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him.”