Avoid Offensive Speech
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To be an ethical speaker, you must scrupulously avoid expressions of ethnocentrism, stereotypes, or outright prejudice. Hate speech is any offensive communication—verbal or nonverbal—that is directed against people’s racial, ethnic, religious, gender, or other characteristics. This kind of speech is never acceptable.
Checklist: An Ethical Inventory
Have you distorted any information to make your point?
Have you acknowledged each of your sources?
Does your speech focus on issues rather than on personalities?
Have you tried to foster a sense of inclusion?
Is your topic socially constructive?
Do any of your arguments contain fallacies of reasoning? (see pp. 199–201)
Is the content of your message as accurate as you can make it?
Do you avoid speech that demeans those with whom you disagree?