Ethics is the process of determining your values, examining why they feel right, and using those examinations to justify your decisions. Earlier in this course, I described values as the ideas we prioritize as desirable or worthwhile, while morals are the everyday sense of right and wrong we live by. I still see those ideas as connected: people may hold many values, but ethical reasoning is what helps them understand those values and turn them into justified decisions. In that sense, ethics is not just instinct or emotion. It is an intentional way of thinking through what matters, why it matters, and how those priorities should guide behavior.
A personal code of ethics grows out of that process. Rather than being a simple list of traits, a personal code of ethics is a practical framework for navigating life and work. It develops from a person’s values, beliefs, work ethic, background, and experiences, then becomes a guide for handling challenging situations. One helpful way for me to think about it is as a moral blueprint: a set of standards that helps a person act consistently when pressure, uncertainty, or competing loyalties make the “right” choice less obvious. Thrive Global’s guidance on building a personal code of ethics makes a similar point, arguing that creating one begins with knowing yourself and understanding what makes you unique (Ioannides, 2020).
The area of mass communication I hope to pursue is sports communication, especially in motorsports media and public relations. This field requires quick thinking, strong judgment, and communication that is both accurate and responsible. In sports and motorsports, communication often happens in real time and can involve public image, safety, fan trust, organizational reputation, and emotional moments all at once. Because of that, my personal code of ethics must do more than sound admirable on paper. It needs to give me standards I can actually follow when situations become fast, public, and complicated.
My personal code of ethics is a commitment to truthful, responsible, people-centered, and well-prepared communication. It requires me to communicate honestly, act with integrity, respect the people affected by my work, and prepare thoroughly enough to make strong ethical decisions under pressure. This code is built around five values that I believe are essential to my future in sports communication: authenticity, adaptability, leadership, professionalism, and preparation. These are not the code itself, but the values that shape how I will live it out.
Authenticity is the first value at the center of my code because ethical communication begins with honesty, both in the work itself and in the person delivering it. I want my work to reflect reality fairly rather than simply what is most dramatic or convenient. Authenticity also requires me to show up as a genuine person in my professional relationships. In sports media, trust is essential. The people who allow communicators access to their thoughts, emotions, and experiences—whether athletes, drivers, or team members—can often recognize insincerity immediately. Because being in the public eye can make genuine interaction more difficult, I want to be the kind of communicator who gives others the freedom to be authentic by being authentic myself. To me, that means showing up each day true to who I am, true to my work, and worthy of the trust others place in me.
Adaptability is another value that matters deeply to me because sports communication is rarely static. Information changes quickly, unexpected developments happen, and communicators often have to respond in real time. However, adaptability should never mean abandoning ethical standards in the name of speed. To me, ethical adaptability means adjusting to changing circumstances while still protecting truth, fairness, and responsibility. It also means being willing to learn, accept feedback, and improve. In a field that moves as quickly as motorsports, adaptability allows me to remain effective without becoming careless.
Leadership is an important part of my code of ethics because I do not believe leadership depends on a title or formal authority. To me, leadership is rooted in accountability: taking responsibility for what is in front of you and choosing to act with integrity whether or not you are the person in charge. From How to Lead When You’re Not in Charge, I have learned that leadership can be practiced through consistency, initiative, and character long before I am given authority (Scroggins, 2017). My work at Chick-fil-A has helped me understand this as stewardship, or the daily practice of caring for what has been entrusted to me even when no one explicitly handed me power. In mass communication, this kind of leadership matters because ethical workplaces are shaped not only by leaders with titles, but also by professionals who take ownership, model integrity, and influence others through their actions.
Professionalism is essential to my code of ethics because I no longer see it as something as simple as looking the part or fitting a dress code. To me, professionalism is how people experience working with you over time. It is built through consistency, reliability, and the way a person communicates when situations are both routine and difficult. I believe professionalism means doing what you say you will do, communicating clearly, respectfully, and in a timely manner, and treating others with care even when circumstances are stressful or disappointing. In mass communication, where relationships and reputation matter deeply, professionalism becomes part of ethical conduct. Sports is a small industry, and reputations travel quickly. In many cases, a person’s reputation arrives before they do. Because of that, I want my professionalism to reflect not only competence, but character.
Preparation may be the value that connects all the others most strongly. I strongly believe the quote that says, “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.” In communication, poor preparation can lead to misinformation, rushed judgment, preventable mistakes, and avoidable harm. Preparation means understanding the facts, knowing the context, anticipating possible outcomes, and being ready to respond responsibly when pressure increases. The importance of preparation also connects to something I learned through sports broadcasting advice: having notes matters, but true effectiveness comes from knowing the material well enough to work quickly and clearly. Preparation is what allows a communicator to act ethically in real time rather than simply hoping to react well once the moment arrives.
When I face an ethical dilemma, the Potter Box provides a useful framework for applying this code. The first step is defining the situation, which requires gathering the facts as fully and accurately as possible. That step matters to me because ethical decisions become weaker when they are based on assumptions, incomplete information, or emotional reactions. In motorsports and sports media, where stories can develop quickly and publicly, slowing down long enough to define the situation clearly is, itself, an ethical responsibility.
The second step is identifying the values at stake. My reflection from earlier in the semester already clarified many of the values that matter most to me, including independence, integrity, empathy, self-awareness, authenticity, family, work-life balance, and adaptability. For the purpose of my professional code, the values I want to foreground are authenticity, adaptability, leadership, professionalism, and preparation. These values help me decide not only what matters in a situation, but what kind of communicator I want to be while responding to it.
The third step is applying ethical principles. The two principles I connect with most strongly are agape ethics and Kant’s duty ethics. Agape ethics appeals to me because it prioritizes compassion, empathy, and human connection, while Kant’s ethics appeals to me because of its emphasis on integrity, honesty, structure, and consistency. I still believe those two approaches balance each other well. Agape ethics reminds me not to treat people as a means to an end, while duty ethics reminds me that ethical conduct also requires standards, accountability, and a willingness to do what is right even when it is difficult.
The final step in the Potter Box is identifying loyalties, and this is often where mass communication becomes most complicated. In sports communication and public relations, a communicator may feel loyalty to an employer, a team, an organization, a source, an audience, or the sport itself. My goal would be to balance those loyalties carefully without allowing convenience or favoritism to take over. First and foremost, I would try to remain loyal to truth, fairness, the audience, and the integrity of the profession. In motorsports communication, I would also place a high value on loyalty to safety, because communication choices can shape how people understand serious incidents and responsibilities.
My code is also informed by professional standards already established in mass communication. The Society of Professional Journalists describes its Code of Ethics as a guide for everyone engaged in journalism and emphasizes four foundational principles: seek truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently, and be accountable and transparent. Those principles align closely with the kind of communicator I want to be. Even though I may work in spaces that blend journalism, storytelling, and public relations, the expectation to pursue truth, reduce harm, and remain accountable remains essential.
The Public Relations Society of America offers another important model for my field. PRSA explains that its Code of Ethics exists to inspire ethical behavior and identify improper public relations practices, and it grounds the profession in values such as advocacy, honesty, expertise, independence, loyalty, and fairness. That framework fits especially well with sports communication because the work often involves representing organizations and people publicly while still maintaining credibility. PRSA’s values reinforce the idea that loyalty to a client or organization should never excuse dishonesty or unethical communication.
Taken together, these sources help reinforce what I want my own code to accomplish. Thrive Global’s article is useful because it frames a personal code of ethics as something that grows from self-knowledge and lived experience. SPJ provides a strong model for truth, accountability, and minimizing harm, while PRSA helps define the responsibilities that come with public-facing advocacy and representation. My own code builds on those ideas, but it is also shaped by my experiences, values, and the kind of communicator I hope to become.
Ultimately, my personal code of ethics reflects the standards I want to carry into sports communication and motorsports media: communicate truthfully, prepare thoroughly, act professionally, lead with integrity, and adapt responsibly without losing sight of the people affected by my work. Ethical dilemmas are unavoidable in mass communication, especially in fast-paced environments where information and pressure move quickly. However, I believe a strong personal code provides direction when decisions become difficult. By grounding my communication in authenticity, adaptability, leadership, professionalism, and preparation, I hope to make choices that protect truth, respect others, and strengthen the integrity of the profession I am entering.
References
Ioannides, T. (2020, November 16). How to identify your own personal code of ethics. Thrive Global. https://community.thriveglobal.com/how-to-identify-your-own-personal-code-of-ethics/
Public Relations Society of America. (n.d.). PRSA code of ethics. https://www.prsa.org/professional-development/prsa-resources/ethics
Scroggins, C. (2017). How to Lead When You’re Not in Charge: Leveraging Influence When You Lack Authority. Zondervan.
Society of Professional Journalists. (2014, September 6). SPJ code of ethics. https://www.spj.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/spj-code-of-ethics.pdf
