Technical Communication Quarterly Jan 1992

Down the slippery slope: Ethics and the technical writer as marketer

John Bryan

Abstract

This article discusses some of the ethical dilemmas faced by writers who prepare marketing materials in engineering organizations; such writers include traditional technical writers whose documents are influenced by the marketing interests of the company and “boundary spanners” who write both technical and promotional materials. The article describes social, political, economic, and legal changes in the professions during the last 30 years and the growing influence of market‐driven decisions on ethical decision‐making. It briefly surveys the marketing literature that engineering marketers are reading. Finally, it suggests a question that marketing writers should ask themselves in examining rhetorical choices.

Journal
Technical Communication Quarterly
Published
1992-01-01
DOI
10.1080/10572259209359492
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Open Access
Closed
Topics
rhetorical criticism
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Citation Context

Cited by in this index (7)

  1. Mogull (2021)
    Technical content marketing along the technology adoption lifecycle: experience…
    Communication Design Quarterly
  2. Amare et al. (2009)
    Examining Editor-Author Ethics: Real-World Scenarios from Interviews with Three…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  3. Dombrowski (2000)
    Ethics and Technical Communication: The Past Quarter Century
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  4. Dragga (1997)
    A Question of Ethics: Lessons from Technical Communicators on the Job
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  5. Markel (1997)
    Ethics and technical communication: a case for foundational approaches
    IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
Show all 7 →
  1. Henson (1996)
    Why and How to Advance Technical Copywriting
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  2. Bryan (1995)
    Seven Types of Distortion: A Taxonomy of Manipulative Techniques used in Charts…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication

References (21) · 2 in this index

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  3. Coxe Weld (1983)
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  4. Coxe Weld (1987)
    Success Strategies for Design Professionals: SuperPositioning for Architectural & Enginee…
  5. DeGeorge Richard (1981)
    10.5840/bpej1981118
    Business and Professional Ethics Journal  ↗
Show all 21 →
  1. Durkheim Emile (1957)
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  2. Freidson Eliot (1984)
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  3. Friedman Lee (1988)
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  4. Fueroghne Dean (1989)
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     ↗
  6. Head George (1988)
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     ↗
  8. Johnson Eugene (1986)
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  12. Malley Adrienne (1988)
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CrossRef global citation count: 10 View in citation network → Build reading path →

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