Ethics has been on my mind this week, particularly after discovering that Facebook has used a pirated copy of my co-authored textbook (Human Relations 4th Ed.) to train its’ Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) without my authorization. The pirated copy is on LibGen, and the site claims that, as of March 22, 2025, it has 33,569,200 books and 84,844,242 articles. My brother, a professor of chemical engineering, has twenty-two articles on the site.
MY ETHICS INDOCTRINATION
My father instilled in me the importance of behaving ethically. He worked for Humble Oil, which morphed into Esso and then Exxon. He had a mechanical pencil with a Tony the Tiger mascot (slogan: put a tiger in your tank). I asked for one. The answer—no. It belonged to the company. You didn’t eat grapes while shopping, and if you found something of value, you attempted to find the owner.
While a federal employee, I took ethics training yearly and was called out if I did something that was perceived as unethical. I was divorced at the time and my ex-husband controlled our minor children’s investments that included Exxon stock. I signed off as “no discrimination” on an Exxon case while working at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Soon, the ethics office at headquarters called, wanting to know why I had not recused myself. In all honesty, I forgot this was an issue. I pointed out to the ethics watchdog that the Exxon Valdez oil spill did not move the stock market (Exxon lost 3.9% (vs. S&P up 2.8%), and after four weeks, they recouped all their losses (vs. S&P 500 up 7.1%)). For this reason, I did not think my action on one individual case would enrich my children.
ETHICS VIEWPOINT ONE
The End does not justify the MEANS. This is the philosophy I have grown up with. According to this viewpoint, Facebook use of pirated copies of other people’s work is unethical.
ETHICS VIEWPOINT TWO
The End justifies the Means. This suggests that the goal is so important that any method, even a morally bad one, may be employed to achieve it.
This type of thinking appears to be in vogue today. According to Meazure Learning, between 50 to 70% of students admit to cheating during their academic career. This carries over to the work world. Forbes reported that, in 2023, 70% of workers lied on resumes.
Facebook falls into this camp as does the federal government. Agencies such as the Department of Education are being dismantled without regard to law, and this is apparently justified by the imperative to stop waste, fraud, and abuse.
ETHICS VIEWPOINT THREE
Peter Singer, moral philosopher and professor of bioethics at Princeton, suggests that actions are right or wrong based on the extent to which they prevent pain or promote happiness.
He posed the following scenario to NPR: A woman has been attacked by someone of a different race, and a mob goes after those who look like the accused. They round up six men and plan to kill them all. The sheriff cannot stop them. Does he allow all six to die, or does he tell the mob he knows who the killer is and then picks someone, who may well be innocent to save the other five? Then, who do you choose?
A.I. is currently being used to pinpoint old medicines prescribed for other purposes that are saving patients’ lives. This viewpoint would support using stolen documents to train A.I.
MY FINAL THOUGHTS ON ETHICS
I believe we can accomplish most of our goals within the rules. Learning how to communicate and look for alternatives with others is the key to a well-lived life. Winning isn’t everything.
If your works have been pirated, please visit The Author’s Guild for more information.
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