The Conversation - The problem with virtue signaling

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Virtue signaling is quite common today – yard signs calling for inclusivity and hanging flags in support of the police are examples of signaling a moral stance or position. Americans of both sides of the partisan divide use virtue signaling to express their views and political leanings.

But virtue signaling isn’t about virtues, nor is it about having a conversation regarding different opinions, writes Penn State scholar of ethics and politics Christopher Beem. Rather, he writes, the “signal” in virtue signaling is about communicating one specific group’s moral superiority over others who don’t hold the same views. For an already divided United States, that’s a problem.

Also today:

Kalpana Jain

Senior Religion + Ethics Editor

A sign in a yard listing many virtues – an example of virtue signaling. davelogan/iStock via Getty images

Why virtue signaling isn’t the same as virtue – it actually furthers the partisan divide

Christopher Beem, Penn State

Virtue signaling is designed to communicate specifically to one partisan tribe and to affirm its moral superiority. A scholar of ethics and politics explains why that is unwelcome in a divided US.

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