This is the fourth year that EBU will participate in TEDxTransmedia, taking place in Rome. EBU asks Head of Media Strategy and TEDxTransmedia Event Curator Nicoletta Iacobacci about this year's "Dangerously Ethical" theme.

What do you mean by "Dangerously Ethical"?

Let me begin by unpacking the phrase. We study ethics in order to improve our lives: the principal concern is the nature of human wellbeing, or as Aristotle conceived – eudemonia – a lasting state that embraces all aspects of life. The inclusion of the word ‘dangerously’ focuses attention on the pace and the direction of the current technological (r)evolution and its power to shape humanity.

Every action has a consequence: experiments to prolong life, drugs that enhance memory, the means to alter our appearance, modifications to the genetics of future generations. We are entering a transhuman era, where biology can be manipulated to meet personal interests and not just for health reasons.

Head of Media Strategy and TEDx Transmedia Event
Curator Nicoletta Iacbatti (EBU)

Will these advances improve the quality of our lives? How do we choose which technologies to pursue? And how wise are our choices to date? While financial resources may in part determine the agenda, so too do personal ethics. How do we ultimately assess the quality and value of new technologies?

As we craft our future, as we make scientific, social and technological advancements, we require a framework that acknowledges cross-disciplinary collaboration. 

These potentially powerful technologies raise questions about what our media future will be like. How far can we go using technology? What are the ethical implications? Should ethics focus simply on which technology we allow, or on the quality of how new technologies help shape humanity?

Why should Members of the EBU community participate in a broader philosophical discussion?

One of the major challenges public service broadcasters face is the question of how media ethics relate to the fast-evolving, multi-platformed, non-regulated global environment that exists. 

"Dangerously Ethical" will explore questions of shared interest and relevance to the EBU community as it reflects on its values and its contribution to society.

The need has never been more imperative, particularly following the agreement of Members to establish a scheme to carry out self assessments and/or peer reviews to evaluate their performance based on the Core Values of Public Service Media.

Is the world in need of a global code of ethics? Has government regulation gone a step too far? What is the right balance for public service media? 

There is a need to deconstruct our ethical values and create new ones suitable for now and the future – to be more proactive and less reactive in our ethical response.  

Why is it imperative that this conversation take place now?

At the present time, we risk losing what we value – our capacity for compassion, creativity, wonder and reflection. We need a code to help steer our evolution away from the dead end of self-centeredness and addictive interests, towards self awareness, reason, and greater social interaction.

There is no need to fear emerging technologies. However, we must be mindful of what is possible and take control.

What will EBU Members be able to take away from TEDxTransmedia?

They will be enriched by ideas, projects, experiments and theories about the future and how public service media can contribute to these.

Convergent technologies raise a myriad of ethical questions. Public service media provide the natural platform through which society can engage in debate, be infused with a new set of ethical values, and regain a voice in determining the direction we take.

Also, on the eve of the event (26 September), university students will be drawing up a manifesto on ethical, digital storytelling. The student manifesto will be presented to participants by moderator Hans Laroes, who also leads the EBU Publice Service Media Values Project.