Opinions on lying in a youtube video

[Rokk]

Originally Posted by Albert

It's not something we can explain; it's another part of the magician's code if you think about it. There's just a general understanding that fellow magicians shouldn't lie to another fellow magician.

It can be true that there is an unwritten law that says so, but that doesn't mean you have to agree with that law. It is your own decission if you want to obey that law and you will face the consequences of your decission.

Maybe you have a less strict ethical approach, so that's why you think that lying is composed of in a broader sense, while I like to really narrow it down.

Well, I think I am quite liberal about ethics so that's propably true. That might sound like I am some kind of douchebag that does whatever I want, but thats not true. It is more like I let other people do whatever they want to do as long as they don't hurt others with their actions.

If the lie is part of the patter meant to one-up himself to making it seem like he has an ability he does not, then that's a bad lie, although the spectators won't be able to tell most of the time.

This kind of behavior is quite similar to bragging or boasting. And while that sure can be an annoying behaviour, I wouldn't go so far as to call it unethical. It is their decission if they want to try to annoy other people, as well as it is ultimatly the other peoples decission if they want to be annoyed by it.

Originally Posted by Mark

@Rokk, I think you forget or don't realize that marketing (and thus advertising) is much more than making money. To get known may as well be the biggest aspect of it. People who lie outside of performances wish to get known, and only once they are known (in the broadest sense of the word) they wish to sell products and services (performances and lectures). There really are no exceptions to this.

True. I have never thought about it that way...