THE ROLE OF ETHICS AS A COMPONENT OF PHILOSOPHY IN HISTORY-THEMED DOCUMENTARIES

This article examines ethics and philosophical considerations in media and communication within the context of historical documentary filmmaking. The main aim is to speak to the reason for which history-themed documentaries as a form of film that deals with factual representation of history, is not without the application of ethics as a component of philosophy. History is a fascinating subject for any creative endeavor. This article projects the interconnection between historical accuracy and ethical consideration in every historic researcher’s quest to achieve objectivity and to represent reality. Moreover, as much as historic researchers are aware that ethical adherence to background evidential values of materials goes a long way to determine the credibility attached to such documentaries (when considered for practical use in an educational, academic, and social setting), there is need to correlate the roles of ethics to the methodology, communication, subjectivity, and interpretation of any historic research endeavor. The study considers ethics vis-à-vis the new historicism theory, the value theory, Aristotle’s golden mean to show how cardinal ethics is to the making of historic-themed documentaries.