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Category: Business and Industry
Date Submitted: 02/12/2011 05:52 PM
Business Ethics Case
Stephanie M. Smith
BUS 415
February 1, 2011
Rachel Compton
Business Ethics Case
“Ethics is the discipline dealing with what is good and bad with a moral duty obligation” ("Ethic," 2011). To some ethics is simply doing the right thing. In the area of business, moral rules and standards guide the way organizations handle business. This applies to the business of law, health, and surprisingly it applies to the newspaper and entertainment business. In the case of Calder v. Jones, ethics, and jurisdiction are in question. The case involves entertainer, Shirley Jones who resides in California, Iain Calder the president and editor and John South, a reporter for The National Enquirer, a publication set in the state of Florida (Calder v. Jones, 1984). “The California lawsuit sought damages for alleged defamation, invasion of privacy, and intentional infliction of emotional distress” (Cheeseman, 2010, p. 49).
The National Enquirer, Inc., an organization in Florida, publishes a national weekly paper, The National Enquirer. The stories in this newspaper focus mainly on celebrities and other people who may be in the public eye. This paper is commonly known as a tabloid, and is seen in supermarkets nationwide. Circulation for the newspaper is more than five million with more than half a million circulating in California. The publication is popular for the sometimes slanderous and exaggerated news about many celebrities.
The National Enquirer, in 1979, releases a story about entertainer Shirley Jones that can ultimately ruin her career. She then files a libel suit in the state of California where she is a resident. The petitioners in this case did not feel as if they were responsible for circulation of such an article and the effects the article may have since The National Enquirer is a company whose home is in Florida. The case became a question of personal jurisdiction because of residency in two different state. The Supreme Court...