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35: Finite Responsibility and Infinite Hope with Joel Reynolds

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A group of people raise a wall together, each one performing a different role.
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34: Roles and Responsibilities with Robin Zheng

We’re facing some pretty big problems these days. And whether they’re things like climate change, racism or poverty, these problems are all bigger than we are as individuals. So big, in fact, it can be tempting to give up responsibility for social change altogether. Today’s guest, the philosopher Robin Zheng, says that’s a mistake. She’s come up with a way of thinking about social responsibility called the Role Ideal Model. It's a fascinating theory about the relationship between individual responsibility and structural injustice. Read More
November 28, 2018
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33: Identity Matters: Standpoint Epistemology with Briana Toole

How do we obtain knowledge? Is it a purely objective, abstract process that has nothing to do with identity? Or does who we are, and where we sit on the social spectrum matter when it comes to how we form beliefs? On today’s show, we’re talking to Briana Toole, a philosopher who defends an idea known as standpoint epistemology. It’s the view that your identity has the power to help influence the kinds of knowledge you have access to. Read More
October 31, 2018
Interior shot of the Parthenon of Books, a reconstruction of the Parthenon made from banned books
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32: Busting Myths about Banning Books with Emily J. Knox

It's Banned Books Week, and so on today’s show, we’re looking at some of the unquestioned assumptions that tend to go hand-in-hand with the idea of banned books. A lot of people assume that book challengers are just a bunch of ignorant prudes, or that banning books really isn’t a problem--it’s just a marketing ploy trumped up by the American Library Association. However, after talking to Emily J. Knox, a professor of information science and an expert on censorship and information ethics, we realized this issue is a lot more complicated than it looks on the surface. Let us know what you think of today’s show. Did we help shift the way you think about banning books? Have you ever challenged or defended a library book? Record a voice memo on your phone and email it to us at examiningethics@gmail.com. Be sure to include your first name and where you’re from. Or, if you’re shy about recording your voice, send us an email with your thoughts and we’ll read it. Read More
September 26, 2018
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31: Exploring Intellectual Property Rights with Adam Moore

We all interact with intellectual property on a daily basis, and you probably already have some general idea of what intellectual property is and why it might be an important thing to think about. But if you’re anything like us, you’ve never really thought beyond the surface. On this episode, we talk to intellectual property expert and philosopher Adam Moore to learn about some of the most important ethical issues related to intellectual property. Then, independent producer Sandra Bertin brings us the fascinating story of a fight for collective intellectual property rights in Guatemala. And we want to hear from you! Do you think we got intellectual property completely wrong? Do you have something to add to our discussion? Let us know! We're going to start producing bonus episodes featuring your responses to the show. Just send a voice memo to us at examiningethics@gmail.com. If you're shy about the sound of your voice, you can just send your thoughts in an old-fashioned email and we'll read it on-air. However you share your thoughts, don't forget to include your first name and where you're from. Read More
June 27, 2018
1898 Map of Underground Railroad routes to Canada
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30: Learning from History with Elizabeth Anderson

Slavery is immoral. There’s no debate about it these days. But Americans didn’t always think that way. The morality of slavery was a hotly contested issue in the 18th and 19th centuries. So how did we get from the point where preachers praised slavery in their sermons to today when no one would ever publicly question the wrongness of slavery? Shifts in moral thinking like this come about during a process called moral inquiry. On today's show, we hear from the philosopher Elizabeth Anderson, who argues that the way people went about moral inquiry over two hundred years ago holds important lessons for how we ought to face questions of morality today. Read More
May 30, 2018
Image of interconnected strings spelling the words "we know where you are"
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The Ethics of Privacy Online with Andy Cullison

We've long considered privacy on the internet to be a privilege we can freely give up, at no harm to ourselves. But in light of the recent Cambridge Analytic scandal, that perspective is beginning to change. Examining Ethics resident ethics expert Andy Cullison explains why we should all protect our privacy online -- for our own sakes as well as for others. Read More
May 24, 2018
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29: A Dungeon Crawl Through Moral Alignments

Can necromancers be good people? Can dragons be feminist care ethicists? Why are we asking? In this episode, producer Eleanor Price asks resident ethics expert (and fellow role-playing game enthusiast) Andy Cullison about the moral theories behind games like Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder. They guide producer Christiane Wisehart through the game mechanic called moral alignment -- an attribute that shows how good or evil you are in the game --  and how closely these imagined ideas align with real-world philosophy. Read More
April 25, 2018
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28: Philosophy and #MeToo with Emily McWilliams

In late 2017, women’s stories of sexual assault, abuse and harassment took the center stage on social media with the hashtag MeToo. But this isn't the first time people have shared these stories--tales of these experiences have been around for hundreds of years. The MeToo movement itself has been around since 2006. But last fall, the MeToo hashtag went so viral that mainstream media couldn’t ignore it. Today’s guest, the philosopher and the Prindle Institute's Schaenen scholar Emily McWilliams, explains the connections between the MeToo movement and the philosophical concept known as hermeneutical injustice. Examining Ethics producers Eleanor Price and Christiane Wisehart join Emily for a discussion of the ways movements like MeToo might address the problem of epistemic injustice around sexual violence and harassment. Read More
March 28, 2018
Drawing of eye anatomy from 19th century anatomy textbook
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27: Perceiving Morality with Preston Werner

Can you see goodness with your eyes or feel immorality in your heart? The philosopher Preston Werner thinks so. He defends an idea called moral perception, which means that just like you are able to see or feel things like the color of an orange or the softness of a sweater, you’re also able to perceive, or feel, morality. Some philosophers argue that perceiving morality is a key part of how we make moral judgments about situations. There are a lot of people who are skeptical of this idea. And as you’ll hear in this conversation with Preston Werner, our producer Christiane Wisehart also needs some convincing to believe that moral perception might be true. Preston explains what moral perception is, and also explains why it's an idea worth defending. Read More
February 28, 2018
Two people framed by two arched windows
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Forgiveness and More: Bonus Material with Myisha Cherry

In Episode 26, producer Christiane Wisehart spoke to philosopher Myisha Cherry about her work on forgiveness and moral exemplars (people who exemplify excellent forgiveness practices -- for better or for worse). They had a great conversation, so much so that producer Eleanor Price put together this bonus episode to showcase more of Myisha's wisdom. Myisha explains who might have stake in someone's forgiveness, and whether a person should ask for forgiveness. Read More
February 16, 2018
Billboard with the word "Forgive" illuminated by floodlights
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26: Forgiveness and Moral Exemplars with Myisha Cherry

Forgiveness is a big, complicated topic. We often see stories about forgiveness play out in the media, and it probably plays a large role in our personal lives as well. That's why we wanted to talk about it with philosopher and host of the UnMute Podcast, Myisha Cherry, who’s put a lot of thought into the ethics of forgiveness. On today’s show you'll hear about a fascinating facet of her work: the ethics of convincing victims--particularly victims who are marginalized--to forgive. When people try to persuade victims to forgive, they often resort to using “moral exemplars of forgiveness” or models of forgiveness like Martin Luther King Jr. or Nelson Mandela. Myisha claims that when people try to persuade victims to forgive, using moral exemplars alone to convince them is wrong. Read More
January 31, 2018
Image of old-fashioned trolley in street
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25: What’s the Deal with Philosophers?

We're talking about the culture and quirks of the world of moral philosophy on this episode. Specifically, we're asking questions about the parts of the field of ethics and philosophy that confuse us the most. First, independent producer Sandra Bertin roams the streets of New York City, looking for people who can correctly define moral philosophy jargon. Then, producer Christiane Wisehart sits down with our resident ethics expert Andy Cullison and another ethicist, Emily McWilliams, to ask them some questions she's always had about the world of ethics and philosophy. Read More
December 27, 2017
Blurred image of two people conversing on a ledge
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24: The Art of Listening with Krista Tippett

Deep, meaningful conversations require active listeners. It’s obvious that part of what makes a good discussion is listening. But as it turns out, being an ethical listener requires effort. Krista Tippett joins us to share her insight into what makes a good listener. She's the host of a public radio show and podcast called On Being. She’s been on the radio for almost two decades, and in that time, she’s become one of the best interviewers on the air. And it’s not because she asks hard-hitting, clever questions or goads people into saying something controversial. It’s because she is so clearly present, and has so clearly cultivated a kind of listening superpower. We'll also hear an essay by the philosopher and ethicist Bob Fischer, who explores what it means to do this real work of being present for one another and for the causes we believe in. Read More
November 29, 2017
Illustration from 19th century medical textbook showing two doctors working over a body
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23: Frankenstein and His Creation: Who’s the Real Monster?

Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein introduced the world to archetypes we’re still familiar with: the mad scientist and his terrifying creation. But the novel is more than just a horror classic. It also asks questions about the ethics of scientific and technological innovation--questions that we still struggle with today. On this episode, we explore one of these questions: is it wrong for scientists and innovators to work or create in isolation? First, we introduce you to “sociability,” an important, behavior-shaping idea in the scientific community of the nineteenth century. Then, we discuss whether scientists and innovators working today have similar ethical obligations. We cover things like the importance of transparency in the ethics of scientific and technological innovation. We also explore the value of democratic oversight to the world of science and technology. Read More
October 25, 2017
Photograph of a broken glass plate
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22: Gaslighting, PTSD and Testimonial Injustice with Rachel McKinnon

Trans people are vulnerable to many types of harms. And unfortunately, some of these harms can come from their “allies”-- people who claim to want to help them. On today’s episode, Andy and Christiane talk to the philosopher Rachel McKinnon, who writes about allies and their relationship to the trans community. She tells us that one of the bad behaviors that allies can be guilty of is something called gaslighting. Rachel describes for us two of the major problems with gaslighting: it’s a particularly harmful form of epistemic injustice and it can lead to a type of post traumatic stress disorder. Read More
September 27, 2017
Two female clay figures
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Bonus: White Talk

Ethics On My Mind is our special bonus series for quick discussions of timely ethics issues. Earlier this month, large groups of white supremacists held rallies in Charlottesville, Virginia that erupted in violence, killing one person and injuring at least 19 others. These rallies are just the latest manifestations of a growing white supremacist movement in the United States. It can be easy for well-meaning white people to try to distance themselves from the hateful actions of a small number of self-identified supremacists. But as we’ll hear from the philosopher Alison Bailey and women’s studies scholar Tamara Beauboeuf, white oppression can take many forms. A behavior known as "white talk" is just one of these forms of oppression. For this episode of Ethics on My Mind, we're re-releasing a segment about the behavior known as "white talk" from episode 6: The "Burden" of Whiteness. Read More
August 25, 2017
Aerial view of a road going through a green field
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21: Layered Landscapes

What is a layered landscape? How should we restore places with complex social and cultural legacies? Producer Christiane Wisehart traveled to Big Oaks National Wildlife Refuge in Madison, Indiana to explore how the former military site was restored into a landscape that is now home to many endangered species. She unpacks the concept of "layered landscapes" with scholars Marion Hourdequin and David Havlick, editors of Restoring Layered Landscapes. This idea is helping to re-shape how restorationists ought to approach their work.  Read More
June 28, 2017
A group of senior citizens protesting along a chain fence
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20: Ethics of Protest, Part Two

Are protests productive? Should they be? And if they should be productive, what does that productivity look like? In part two of our ethics of protest series, we interview Tabitha St. Bernard, the youth and family coordinator for the Women's March. We also hear from Derek Ford, a DePauw professor and long-time protest organizer. Read More
May 31, 2017
Wild grass with cliff and forest in the distance
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19: Climate Justice

Happy Earth Month! Many people think of climate change as something that will affect the world equally sometime in the distant future. But that's not true. Some communities are already experiencing the effects. Join special guest host Jen Everett and producers Christiane Wisehart and Sandra Bertin as we learn how to challenge our thinking about the environment with scholar Kyle Whyte. Read More
April 26, 2017
Black and white photograph of people in uniform standing in a line on pavement
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18: Ethics of Protest, Part One

On this episode, producer Sandra Bertin tells the story of the Freeman Field Mutiny, a protest that led to the desegregation of the United States military. Even though the men who participated in the protest were peaceful and nonviolent, they were still criticized for their methods of protest. This got us thinking, is it ever okay to criticize a protester's methods? Or should we be focusing on something else? Read More
March 30, 2017
Black and white photograph of the finish line of a men’s race
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17: Achievement Matters

What are achievements and how should we think about them? How should we talk about them? Philosopher Gwen Bradford's work on the nature of achievement inspired us to talk about the ethics of naming achievements for other people. Can you tell someone they have achieved something if they don't think they have? What do you think? Send us a comment or a voice memo to: examiningethics@gmail.com. Follow us on Twitter @ExaminingEthics. You can also find us on Facebook. Show Notes: Read More
February 22, 2017
Woman standing next to museum exhibit of dinosaurs
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16: Skepticism and the Skeptical Skeptics Who Use It

A recent trip to the Creation Museum caused producer Sandra Bertin to be very skeptical of, well, skepticism. Sandra returned to the studio to interrogate the idea of skepticism with host of the show Andy Cullison and our other producer, Christiane Wisehart. We turn skepticism inside out and upside down with philosopher Barry Lam and geologist Jeane Pope. Do you have thoughts about skepticism? Send us a comment or a voice memo to: examiningethics@gmail.com. Read More
January 25, 2017
Colorful confetti on a hard surface
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15: New Year’s Resolutions

This month, we bring you our New Year's resolutions. But we're not talking about things like eating less sugar--we're discussing our ethics-related resolutions. Listen in as we talk about implicit bias prevention walls, effective altruism and fast fashion. And hey--we'd love to hear what your New Year's resolutions are. Send a voice memo recording of your resolutions to us at examiningethics@gmail.com. Read More
December 28, 2016
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