Work Ethics and General Morality

趙玲玲

【Abstract】“The Starving Sudan” is a photographic work awarded with South Africa Pulitzer Prize， which also arouses the warm discussion about work ethics and general morality. This paper aims to give comments from an objective perspective.

【Key words】The Starving Sudan； Work Ethics； General Morality

Many people have probably seen the picture “The Starving Sudan”. Owing to this picture， news reporter Kevin Carter was awarded with South Africa Pulitzer Prize in 1994. It is a Sudanese girl， kneeling down on the earth because of severe starvation. Not far away behind her is a condor， eying her covetously. Just using one picture which hit upon all the audiences hearts， Kevin Carter showed us the desperation of the whole African Continent. However， this picture， which shaked the entire world， caused so many criticisms and questions. Lots of people raised the same question： why didnt he save the girl immediately？ Finally， Kevin Carter can not stand public opinion as well as the moral perplexity coming from himself. The heavier and heavier mental pressure at last made him kill himself， only several months later after he had been awarded. Thus， we fix our attention on this point： how to balance between work ethics of a news reporter and general morality.

The news reporter whom we need nowadays should be an impartial and adiaphorous observer. He also shoulders the same responsibility as other common people and should have the basic general morality. We discuss how to balance between work ethics and general morality when a news reporter undertakes his job. In fact， this is a scale which can not be mediated and even has no balance point. There must be incline between these two according to different news reporters of different characters. However， this incline has its own law and principle.

News reports must be object and true. But it does not mean news has no humanity and human emotions； it does not mean news replaces general morality with responsibility and even obliterates it. Maybe the times we have always been pursuing is coming when the valuable news and the strongly effective picture disappear from our views. However， even in this kind of times， the work of a news reporter is also indispensable. Work righteousness is the base of a news reporters credit standing. The window of minds should never be blinded by some so-called responsibilities. General morality and work ethics of a news reporter is inseparable. It all depends on how the news reporter views it and grasps it.

Take the picture “The Starving Sudan” for example. The photographer seized this so precious and rare scene with his keen insight. For it， the whole world was warned once again. We saw exactly the poverty in Africa and millions of refugees with hopeless look. If there had not been the visual and lively report and photo， how could we who live in the comfort perceive the desperation in Africa and how to arouse the attention and help of people around all over the world？ Isnt the function and importance of this picture much larger than to save one person who is among millions of people that face the same fate？ The key is that only this kind of picture can make us see the true and also the severe fact of the whole world. Furthermore， there are concrete dividing jobs in the modern society. There are administrant departments and even international and territorial aid organizations in every country and even in every city. What and where are their responsibilities？ No person accuses them of the happening and going-on of this tragic scene. On the contrary， they pour their accusations upon a news reporter whose responsibility is to supervise and report with truth and objectivity. A really valuable news works is able to reveal the ponderance of problems and by it to urge the relative organizations to do something useful， consequently， make them exert the functions effectively under the news supervision. This enlists the larger interests for general morality as well. One persons starvation and helplessness is not terrible， what is terrible is the going-on of this situation and facing it the relative organizations do nothing and even accept its existence. It is this phenomenon that is the most terrible thing that is against general morality.