Abstract

The teaching of ethics in professional communication courses for non-English majors is problematic because teachers of those courses are usually trained in literary studies, a profession that has traditionally viewed with suspicion the ethical orientation of science, technology, and business professions. This article examines the history of this problematic, focusing on the “Engineering Publicity” program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the 1920s. The article suggests that students may be empowered to enter and transform their professions more through examining ethical critiques of science, technology, and business carried on within and among the professions they will enter than by examining ethical critiques from the profession of literary studies.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
1993-01-01
DOI
10.1177/1050651993007001005
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Cited by in this index (9)

  1. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  2. Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  3. Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  4. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  5. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
Show all 9 →
  1. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  2. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
  3. Technical Communication Quarterly
  4. IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication

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