Should local entertainment firm have promoted 50 Cent’s Toronto Concert?
TORONTO, September 27, 2007 -- The Canadian Business Ethics Research Network (CBERN) is using the case of a controversial 2005 hip hop concert as the basis for an interactive public forum examining the ethical decisions made by a Toronto company that promoted the event. The forum will be held on Friday at York University’s Schulich School of Business.
In December of 2005, American hip hop artist 50 Cent was on tour when his proposed Toronto concert raised a storm of controversy. That year, Toronto had already had 48 gun-related deaths, and a public debate occurred about whether or not 50 Cent, a convicted criminal whose song lyrics are controversial, should be permitted to perform in Toronto.
“CBERN is focused on raising the profile of business ethics in Canada and this particular case will present a variety of elements for our multi-disciplinary panel and audience to consider in both a passionate and interactive environment,” said Schulich School of Business professor emeritus Wesley Cragg, director of CBERN and former George R. Gardiner Professor of Business Ethics. “We are excited by the participation of business scholars from across the country that will help shape this event and similar ones in the future.”
50 CENT: THE ETHICAL QUESTION will be debated at York University’s Schulich School of Business, in the Robert R. McEwen Auditorium on Friday, Sept. 28 at 7:30 pm. A limited number of public seats are still available and the media is welcome to attend. The event will offer audience members the ability to provide electronic feedback at each stage of the discussion.
“The interactive nature of the case will allow us to track the views of audience members and determine if the discussion influences individuals to change their minds on the issues presented as the evening progresses,” said Cragg.
Earlier this year, CBERN received $2.1 million from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) to mobilize Canada’s rich pool of business expertise by engaging university researchers in dialogue with leaders and researchers in business, government and the voluntary sector.
Over 57 research teams competed for funding in the rigorous peer-reviewed competition. CBERN, under Cragg’s leadership in The Schulich School of Business, was one of only seven proposed networks to receive a share of the $14.7 million earmarked by SSHRC to synthesize research on a diversity of issues addressing Canadians’ quality of life. The national networks will intensify and broaden the impact of Canadian research in the social sciences and humanities across the nation and around the world.
The forum will feature a live blog during the event on the CBERN website: www.cbern.ca. Following the event, discussion, academic commentary and public discussion will be continued through the CBERN website.
York University is the leading interdisciplinary research and teaching university in Canada. York offers a modern, academic experience at the undergraduate and graduate level in Toronto, Canada’s most international city. The third largest university in the country, York is host to a dynamic academic community of 50,000 students and 7,000 faculty and staff, as well as 200,000 alumni worldwide. York’s 11 faculties and 24 research centres conduct ambitious, groundbreaking research that is interdisciplinary, cutting across traditional academic boundaries. This distinctive and collaborative approach is preparing students for the future and bringing fresh insights and solutions to real-world challenges. York University is an autonomous, not-for-profit corporation.
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Contact:
Keith Marnoch
Media Relations
York University
(416) 736-2100 ext. 22091
Breanne Whitwell
Canadian Business Ethics Research Network
416-736-5809
