I love TV. And even the dumbest shows sometimes pose interesting ethics questions. I've decided to start posing some of them on the blog, when topical.
First one. Was watching some reality show this morning, for about five minutes. Some South African boy band trying to make it in Southern California. One band member is gay and wants to come out publicly. Band is just on the cusp of making it big. His friend on the band thinks he needs to think of the band, and tells him that Ricky Martin and other young male singers came out AFTER they were successful, so he should do the same.
Who has the greater responsibility here: the band member to the band, or the band to the band member?
Or let me phrase this another way. Should it be relevant to this discussion how coming out will affect the band's success? If it is relevant, then how is that not the old "morale and cohesion" argument from DADT - I mean, you're worried about a band's success but not the success of our military?
Then again, if you're in a band and you do something that affects the entire band - though it's arguable whether this will affect the band's success - then isn't there some obligation to take their concerns into account?
And if you say yes, then let's try a hypothetical. A female member of a girl band finds out she's pregnant. The other band members fear it's going to hurt their goody-two-shoes image. Let's say they're a Christian pop band, just to make it more fun. The girl is unsure about whether to keep the baby or not. Is it relevant what the other band members think about it, their concerns about how her pregnancy could ruin the band's image and success?
And is that example different than a boy band member coming out?
Thoughts?
