GODWIN: TRUTH EMERGES FROM OPEN DISCOURSE

~Correction: NAME SHOULD BE DR. FRED GOODWIN

Talk show programs have an ethical responsibility to allow all sides of issues to be heard, Dr. Fred Godwin told members of the River City Business and Professional Women Tuesday.

Godwin, dean emeritus at the College of Humanities of Southeast Missouri State University, also is teaching a basic speech course this fall.

The principle of free speech established by this country's founding fathers is intended to serve both the listeners and those who are speaking, Godwin said. In that way ideas are evaluated and the best ones adopted by the public.

Godwin quoted John Milton, who believed that all ideas should be expressed. Milton thought the truth would emerge from any fair debate.

Godwin said Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes also believed that idea, which is consistent with the theory behind the U.S. Constitution.

Applying ethical rules to a discussion will help Americans enjoy their access to free speech without slipping into the divisiveness that can pit one person against another, Godwin said.

Some talk show programs promote confrontational talk, he added, which can divide a nation along the lines of race, economic circumstances, ethnic groups, even sex and age.

And some program build a sense of hatred that simmers below the surface, Godwin said.

Also, some hosts aren't tolerant to other viewpoints. They seem to want to reduce discussions to a narrow viewpoint rather than expand it. When that happens, discord can build, which can lead to agitation and eventually hate, Godwin said.

The hard part then is applying some ethical rules to the discussion, Godwin said. Making sure that another's viewpoint isn't distorted is part of that approach.

As an example, Godwin mentioned the discussion in this country several years ago about burning the flag -- whether it was protected speech under the Constitution.

Godwin said unethical behavior arose during the discussion when callers to talk shows lied about those with opposing views or attributed things to them that were never said.

The antidote to bad ideas is not to suppress them, Godwin said, but to invite more opinions and ideas to bring out the truth.