Ethics and Disclosures2

[RonButters at AOL.COM]

In a message dated 5/31/05 12:31:08 AM, nunberg at csli.stanford.edu writes:


> I did raise this issue with the LSA and the
> editor of Language at one point, but I dropped
> the ball for some reason. This might be a good
> time to raise the subject again, and I'd welcome
> Professor Butters' help.
>

I would be happy to join Dr. Nunberg in bringing this issue before the LSA. I
wish that he had consulted other people who work in the field of language and
law when he made his initial proposal to LSA. I have made some inquiries to
several members of the International Association of Forensic Linguists.
However, I do think that it is important that any policy recommendations should cover
both pro bono work and for-pay work, since both are susceptible to the same
kinds of psychological pressures.

In my own defense--since Dr. Nuinberg has in previous messages indicated that
he believes I have been involved here in an ethical breech (albeit of a
policy that only he has--so far as I know--sought to implement among linguists),
that my written commentary on the term REDSKIN has NOT been in any published
form, certainly not in any referreed journal. I have made comments on ADS-L about
it, and I did read a paper at the DSNA a number of years ago in which, so far
as I recall, I did not mention that the source of my paper was, in part,
material that originally was compiled for a law firm in Harjo. It simply did not
occur to me that the source of the data would be relevant to the understanding
of the data itself. I am still not convinced that it is, but certainly, in a
published article in a refereed linguistics journal it would be easy enough to
add the same sort of footnote that one adds when research has been supported
by NSF, NEH, and the like.

It would be useful to all of us, I'm sure, if Dr. Nunberg would direct us to
some of the writings on this ethical issue that he indicated in a previous
posting.

In a message dated 5/31/05 12:31:08 AM, nunberg at csli.stanford.edu writes:


> I did raise this issue with the LSA and the
> editor of Language at one point, but I dropped
> the ball for some reason. This might be a good
> time to raise the subject again, and I'd welcome
> Professor Butters' help.
>