Freedom of Expression and Socio-Moral Debate: the Convergence and Divergence of Journalistic Ethics and Islamic Etiquettes

Abstract

In the recent history, many sacred concepts and ideologies, especially Islamic, are either directly attacked or mocked through cartoons by the Western media of Mass Communication especially the print media. Freedom of Expression has always been the argument of the apologists of this trend of offending billions of human beings around the world. This paper uses social responsibility to argue in favour of self-censorship in dealing with concepts and ideologies in journalism. In comparison with the Islamic etiquettes, the paper argues that journalistic ethical values, lack the power to provide the willpower to exercise self-restraint while practicing. While Islamic etiquettes seem potential to do the magic, the set of values relating to the profession of Mass Communication remains as some generic principles that need to be developed and codified by the Islamic jurist for proper application.