Additional Videos

These are additional to the Video Activities contained in the book. They are mostly short clips that can be introduced into lectures to provide variety and to stimulate reflection and discussion. An overview of each video’s content and where it might be used is included. Suggestions of where these video activities might be used also appear on the notes pages of the PowerPoint slides.

Introduction

Lecture 0.1 Introduction

www.youtube.com/watch?v=zI5hrcwU7Dk

A four-minute video of the ‘Network - Money speech’, which offers some apposite thoughts on the power of major corporations to shape our lives. It also suggests that money has its own undeniable logic, implying that financial considerations push corporations down paths from which ideological and ethical considerations cannot move them.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2EXbOcb_QE 

A 48-minute video, in which Mark Thomas takes a critical look at various aspects of Coca-Cola’s operation. Sections of this could be used to support ‘Theory in Practice: Corporate Impact: Considering Coca-Cola’.

1. Rights Theory

Lecture 1.2 Rights and Stakeholders

www.youtube.com/watch?v=17hnaKFjDU8

A two-minute video in which R. Edward Freeman defines stakeholders. Interestingly, having defined stakeholders as people who can affect or be affected by a business’ purpose Freeman defends against criticism by focusing primarily on those who can help business to create value – i.e. influential stakeholders. He thus seems to undermine the comprehensiveness of his definition in an effort to defend its instrumentalist ‘strategic’ legitimacy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6rSBifsvwg

A three-minute video entitled ‘Glencore: Trading Away Life's Essentials’, which offers a critical overview of Glencore’s history and the way it uses its power. Could be used to support ‘Theory in Practice: Glencore and Stakeholder Rights’.

Lecture 1.3 Property Rights

www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6J730PqBik

This three-minute video, ‘The Philosophy of Liberty: Property’, is a libertarian outline of Locke’s rationale. Note that it summarily dismisses common ownership as a viable alternative to private property on the basis of its impracticality.

2.Utilitarianism

Lecture 2.1 Maximizing the Good

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FYUBLBDuXc

This seven-minute video shows a short TV debate on CNN, involving Dr Gail Dines and Stormy Daniels, about the pros and cons of soft-pornography videos. It could be used to augment or to replace the discussion of Spearmint Rhino, which appears in the text.

Lecture 2.3 Utilitarianism and Management

www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRF7dTafPu0

A one-minute anti-landmines commercial. Quite shocking. Could be used to support reflection on the impact of business activity (i.e. the production of landmines by ‘defence’ contractors) on non-dependent stakeholders.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmI3xjZk_y0

A two-minute Al Jazeera report about oil spills in Ogomiland, which could be used to support the Theory in Practice on this topic. There are plenty of other videos on YouTube about this issue.

3. Kantian Theory

Lecture 3.1 Kant’s Moral Philosophy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLsAd-hA2Po

In this three-minute video, Ben Heineman, General Electric's former general counsel, talks about the ethics of global sourcing. He offers three reasons (three intentions) for ensuring that his company’s suppliers meet certain ethical standards, rather than simply buying on price. The first two reasons are quite instrumental in character; the third resonates with Kant’s advocacy of acting out of a rational sense of duty, thus illustrating how Kant’s injunction might be applied to business.

6. Ethical Relativism

Lecture 6.3 Existentialism: Endorsing Personal, Ethical Conviction

www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLz4yO8xmhE

This three-minute video, featuring Batman and the Joker, is from The Dark Knight movie. It might be used as an illustration of ethical nihilism. In this scene, the Joker reflects on the morality of the people of Gotham City. He offers a Nietzschean account, suggesting that their so-called morality is just a façade, assumed for as long as it serves their own interests, and that this façade will be dropped as soon as it is in their interests to do so. The Joker implies that his own morality, which legitimizes the application of whatever power he can grasp in order to serve his own ends, regardless of the consequences for anybody else, is a more honest one.  He makes no pretence to conform to the common morality of Gotham City. He seems to be suggesting that Batman should adopt a similar approach and cease being the servant of Gotham City’s hypocritical morality of convenience.

7. Discourse Ethics

Lecture 7.2 Some Criteria for the Practical Application of Discourse Ethics to Employment Relations

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9oXylmKxuo
A three-minute video entitled ‘Productivity and participation - SEM case study’, which shows how encouraging employee participation in an Australian company has enabled the company to increase productivity. The video demonstrates some instrumental benefits of employee participation. It could also be used as a basis for considering the nature of participation that is encouraged in this firm and the extent to which employees are able to contribute to significant corporate decisions. 

8. Feminine Ethics

Lecture 8.3 Business Activity and Notions of Femininity

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtC8A2Gb1jw

A two-minute video, in which Doc Brown raps on the impact that female nudity in tabloid newspapers may have on respect for women.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=lD5XwzOT6DU

This four-minute video, entitled ‘A Photoshop beauty bombshell!’ raises some points that are relevant to the creation of unrealistic aspirations of gender normality and desirability.  

9. Environmentalism

Lecture 9.2 Wilderness/Wildlife Preservation and Environmental Justice

www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mGKifby3l8

A five-minute Aljazeera video, which reports on the environmental cost of gold mining in Chile.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=TALfaLOhO1Q,

A two-minute Trafigura video in which a Trafigura trader talks of his work. The comfortable, self-satisfied manner of the trader offers a nice contrast to the alleged impact of trading activities on the people of Abidjan, so could be used to support the Theory in Practice activity on that topic.

Lecture 9.3 Some Comprehensive Approaches to Environmental Sustainability

www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4KP54JHOFY

Although the hamburger connection remains relevant today, other forms of industrial agricultural production also drive deforestation. This three-minute video mentions the impact of palm oil and eucalyptus oil plantations. There are also quite a few longer documentaries available on this topic.

10. The Responsibilities of Business Executives

Lecture 10.1 Shareholder Theory Rationales

www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7HtZtwyn_c

A two-minute video in which Ronald Regan pays homage to Friedman’s advocacy of his particular version of freedom.

Lecture 10.2 Specifying Normative Stakeholder Theory

www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EIvJVKGfZ8

This one-minute video also appears in the book and lecture slides as Video Activity 2.3, where it is used to illustrate rule-utilitarian approach to business. However, it is also relevant here since it illustrates tacit conflation of enlightened shareholder theory and normative stakeholder theory.

11. Some Closing Thoughts

Lecture 11.2 Responding to Powerlessness and the Co-optation of Business Ethics

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvClhYqFpTU

An explicit, youth-oriented, three-minute video in which comedian Lee Camp advises people to ‘stop buying so much crap’ if they do not like what corporations are doing. This is relevant to the discussion of leveraging stakeholder influence.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=zciWUOrIUqo

A four-minute video showing spoof media conference in which a ‘Shell executive’ apologises for his company’s activities, especially the Niger Delta. A satire on insincere CSR.