Unethical Behavior in Accounting free essay sample

Accounting could best be described as a type of mechanism or language put in place in order to provide information with regards to the financial position of an organization or business. This type of information is critical to investors as it provides them with important and detailed information that could turn out to be the determining factor as to their decisions to invest or not to invest in a particular organization. Therefore, it is not uncommon to find unethical behavior in accounting as unethical practices come in different forms. Different situations that might lead to unethical practices in accounting include: †¢Misleading financial analysis in order to obtain personal gains †¢Misuse of funds †¢Exaggerating revenue †¢Purposely providing erroneous information in regards to expenses †¢Exaggerating the value of corporate assets †¢Purposely providing erroneous information in regards to liabilities †¢Securities fraud †¢Bribery Manipulation of financial markets †¢Inside trading Two examples of unethical practices in accounting are those of the 2002 Enron / Andersen and the WorldCom scandal. We will write a custom essay sample on Unethical Behavior in Accounting or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Both of these companies were involved in unethical accounting practices. While Enron was accused of a vast number of shady dealings that included concealing debts in order keep them from being reflected on the company’s accounts, WorldCom’s accounting practices were so fraudulent that the company was led into the largest bankruptcy in history. Unethical accounting practices and scandals of the caliber of the Enron / Andersen and the WorldCom scandals is what led the U. S. government to get involved and at the same time contributed to the government’s creation of the Sarbanes – Oxley Act of 2002. The Sarbanes – Oxley Act was created by the government with the intention to bring to an end unethical behavior by implementing strict auditing rules in accounting. However, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 addresses problems in the private sector; it does not address concerns in the public sector. The act has a noticeable impact on financial statements and it is to the benefit of investors, as the Sarbanes – Oxley act helps protect investors by forcing firms to disclose accurate information in regards to corporate disclosure, specifically that of financial statements.

Analysis of US in Vietnam essays

Analysis of US in Vietnam essays Eugene Joseph McCarthy served his country in a wide variety of ways. Although not his most historically remebered achievement, McCarthy was in attendance in the foreign relations committee that would decide the fate of several thousand America soldiers. He voted like most of his colleges, in an almost unanimous decision, in favor of the Golf of Tokin Resolution. Eugene McCarthy was born in Watkins, Minnesota. After a rather uneventful childhood, McCarthy was taught at the College of St. Thomas in St. Paul in his home state. McCarthy entered politics as a Democrat. He served five terms in the US House of Representatives from 1949 to 1959. In 1959 he left the house and became a Senator. It was not long before he had gained a reputation for being an intense liberal. In 1964 McCarthy voted in favor of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution but in 1966 he began a series of speeches in opposition to President Johnson's policy in Vietnam. The next year, he became a candidate for the Democratic Presidential nomination. He ran on a platform of supporting a negotiated peace in Vietnam. His campaign was well received among college student which lead to him doing very well in the primaries. McCarthy lost the nomination to Hubert Humphrey. After the crushing defeat McCarthy retired from the Senate in 1971. He then returned to his first love, teaching. Attempt ing to reenter politics, he ran independently for President in 1976 and ran in a Senate primary in 1982, but was unsuccessful in both attempts. America has been struck a terrible blow from the communists in North Vietnam. Only a few days ago the USS was struck by North Vietnamese torpedos. Americas position in Vietnam began shortly after the second world war. Vietnam was a French colony until the war began. It was subsequently taken by the Japanese when the fighting began. Before the war ended the Veitminh had formed, under the command of Ho Chi Minh, in Vietnam and even helped the Americans...

Benetton Speech or Presentation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Benetton - Speech or Presentation Example Their usage of technology and the media is the greatest, bearing in mind that Benetton’s main tool of advertisement is the media; it will be easy to sell the Group’s products to them. In order to maintain Benetton’s competitive edge, the company has to make important strategic positioning changes. Europe is Benetton’s biggest market, however, the cost of running business in Europe is quite high, and the profit margins are minimal. Thus, it would be wise to cut the expenses in Europe. The Asian market provides Benetton with a large population to which it can sell its products. In spite of the Asian countries providing varying characteristics and regulations, the market shows expansive development in the retail sector that Benetton can take advantage of and sell more of its products. (Suh & Howard, 2013). The developing aspect of the Asian market presents a favourable offering that Benetton can occupy with the help of the funds it saves from the spending reduction in Europe. Moreover, the competition in Asian markets is not as harsh as that in Europe where Benetton’s competitors have established themselves. The Benetton Group has to improve its standing with more utilisation of the green strategy. One thing for sure is that it has to develop products that are environmental friendly and show dedication to the green strategy. Thus, it has to remodel the strategy around its products by signing with recognised labels. These labels have to show the company’s eco-friendliness. As noted by Garcia (2015) there number of eco-labels globally stands at 437. Using recognised labels like Energy Star in the U.S. will help Benetton to improve believability to its advertisements especially the benefits its products have on the environment. Especially at such a time when people are more aware of the importance of the environment in their lives with the effects of global warming and climate change. With the continued digitalisation of nearly every aspect of day-to-day

Library Information Studies-Management of Information Agencies Assignment

Library Information Studies-Management of Information Agencies (Subject name)-Case study organisational culture - Assignment Example Currently, the organization faces challenges in technological and service delivery. There are hitches in communication with users. Furthermore, a majority of employees are about to retire. Additionally, poor management seems to be a concern from the previous management. There are several elements that denote the culture present in an organization. According to Daft (2007), beliefs, values, assumptions, language, rituals, physical structures and stories are the elements of organizational culture. These elements speak volumes about what an organization deems relevant as it runs its daily activities (Stueart, & Moran, 2007). Beliefs and values indicate what an organization guides its activities along. Furthermore, assumptions indicate what an organization takes to be critical in relation to its existence. Language, rituals, stories and physical structures refer to the artifacts of organizational culture. This means that there are routines and activities that denote an organization. Artifacts highlight the ability to attain the goals and objectives of an organization (Stueart, & Moran, 2007). In the context of the public library, in question, there are several elements that are clear. The elements are clear in the team and employee aspects of the organization. Additionally, the library seems to have been relying on an aging workforce. This is an element of organization culture that indicates the beliefs and values in relation to the workforce. However, the element of language comes out properly in relation to communication. The public library faces issues with meeting and communicating with user groups. The dwindling levels of communication indicate an issue with the culture of the organization at the moment. Additionally, the public library has issues relating with its physical structures. Physical structures denote the general outlook of an organization and the impact on performance. In this scenario, the library has many

Business Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

Business Law - Essay Example This also helps to provide a clear indication about the intention or willingness of acceptance of certain rules and regulations by both the parties through a mutual understanding. If any misinterpretation occurs within the agreement then it might hamper both the parties resulting in uncertainty and misinterpretation of the law3. In addition to agreement, capacity is also the other significant element of a contract. It is referred as the capability of both the parties to come into a legally requisite contract. Other than this, intention of both the parties also offers a considerable role in the contract. This part mainly describes the key purposes of both the parties present within the contract5. Formalities are another considerable component of a contract which mainly describes that a contract may be created either in written or in oral form. Besides, the written form is more efficient as it helps to reduce the activities of frauds5. This can be reduced only when both the parties wit hin a contract are mutually in accord with one–another leading to concurrence of will. ... All the above constituents are equally important for making a contract legitimate and breach of one of these factors may result in a void agreement5. Application of the Law to the Case The case study presented in the assignment does not follow all the elements of a contract in an effective way. The case study mainly highlights a contract of selling a refurbished bicycle within Australia and so it needs to conform to various rules and regulations of Australian Contract Law. It was a transpiring business understanding between a university student named Peter and owner of ‘tourbikes’, Sally. Both the parties were well capable to enter into a mutual agreement. Besides, the intention of both the parties was entirely different from one another. The purpose of Peter was to purchase a bicycle in order to retain the part-time job as a courier, which might prove highly beneficial for him to pay for the fees of his university. In addition, the main consideration of Peter was that h e wished to purchase a bicycle within an amount of AU$5000. He desired to purchase a bicycle model named as Cadel Evans ‘GF’ only to fulfill his inclinations whereas Sally’s key perception was to sell off the bicycle at any cost. On the other hand, the intention of Sally was to sell the bike in order to pay off the amount taken as a credit. In the provided scenario, a proper offer as well as acceptance was not made from either of the interested parties i.e. Peter or Burt. Moreover, there was no proper agreement reached between the interested parties and the seller Sally. Sally also did not make a proper communication to Peter before delivering the bike to his house, which depicts certain lack of consideration on behalf of Sally as Peter did

Impact Of Internet Journalism In West Africa Media Essay

Impact Of Internet Journalism In West Africa Media Essay Communication studies, according to Wikipedia(2011),is an  academic field  that deals with the processes of  communication commonly defined as the sharing of  symbols  over distances in space and time. Hence, a communication study encompasses a wide range of topics and contexts ranging from face-to-face conversation  to speeches to mass media outlets such as  television broadcasting. Communication studies, as a discipline, are also often interested in how audiences interpret information and the political, cultural, economic, and social dimensions of speech and language in context. Journalism is one of the branches of communication studies which have to do with proper or in depth investigating and reporting of events and issues to a large (broad) audience. Journalism like other discipline is guided by some ethics; the idea behind journalism is to accurately inform the masses or citizenry on an event or issue that concerns them. According to Wikipedia (2011), in modern society, news media has become the chief purveyor of information and opinion about public affairs; but the role and status of journalism, along with other forms of mass media, are undergoing changes resulting from the Internet, especially Web 2.0. Still on the Wikipedia (2011), the Internet carries a vast range of information resources and services, such as the inter-linked hypertext documents of the World Wide Web (WWW) and the infrastructure to support electronic mail. Most traditional communications media including telephone, music, film, and television are reshaped or redefined by the Internet, giving birth to new services such as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and IPTV. Newspaper, book and other print publishing are adapting to Web site technology, or are reshaped into blogging and web feeds. Although, internet journalism was practiced by some journalists which made little or no impact on the audience, but the September 11 attack on the US world trade centre brought it to limelight. Thus, this made internet journalism the most effective in the communication industries. According to Allan (2002), Journalism after September 11 examines how the traumatic attacks of that day continue to transform the nature of journalism, particularly in the United States and Britain. In Nigeria, it brings together an internationally respected group of scholars and media commentators to explore journalisms present and future by engaging with such pressing issues as trauma, free speech, censorship, patriotism, impartiality and celebrity. Journalism after September 11  raises vitally important questions regarding what journalism can and should look like today. In providing answers, it addresses topics such as: journalism and public life at a time of crisis; the role of sources in shaping the news; reporting by global news media, such as CNN; current affairs broadcasting; news photography and trauma; the emotional well-being of reporters; as well as a host of pertinent issues around news, democracy and citizenship. In her article, Bunz (2009), said journalists are coming to terms with the internet changing the way they research, organise their workflow and distribute their content. The biggest publications all over Europe have, for example, Twitter channels, led by the UK with nearly 70% and followed by nearly 40% in the Netherlands. 35% use blogs to research stories and 13.5% even have their own independent blog. In Nigeria, Some media organizations have already established a strong presence in the internet. For example, The Guardian Newspapers (www.ngrguardiannews.com), The Thisday Newspaper group (www.thisdayonline.com), The Independent Newspaper group (www.independentng.com), New Age Newspaper (www.newage-online.com) and so on have continued to be veritable sources of news and information to both Nigerians at home and abroad. However, the speed and spread of internet network in Nigeria are still not in comparable to that of the developed countries. The unstable state of the internet in Nigeria is another great challenge facing the masses which makes it difficult for an average Nigerian to log in the above websites in search of news. The Nigeria internet providers like mtn, glo, celtel, starcomm etc continue to maintain or work on their net to make sure they satisfy their customers in terms of making it more efficient and faster. Though these internet providers work hard to maintain their network, it can be said that they are not there yet. With this inefficiency in the internet, the journalists will find it difficult to communicate through. Few people who can afford a laptop or computer will be reluctant to pay their monthly subscription from the internet providers, then an average Nigerian who pay an exorbitant amount in a cyber cafe for an airtime to browse the internet will be disappointed because of the slow or inconsistency of the network. The media were and are still facing a lot of challenges which will definitely take years to overcome. In his book, Agbese (2006), said the commonest forms of communication technologies in the 1990s were fax machine, pagers, personal computer and Telephone. These technologies helped with communication and production. However these technologies were not readily available to everyone in Nigerian media houses. Most times only top staffs and owners had access to or owned form of communication technology. In the early to mid-1990s, computers were not available to all members of the staff. Most media had just one computer which only the typist had access to, to prepare stories for the publication. Lately, according to Nworah (2011), it can be said therefore that the Nigerian media are measuring up with their counterparts in other parts of the world by maintaining strategic presence on the information super highway. But any such attempt at rubbing shoulders with the western media stops just with the internet sites which some Nigerian media organisations have managed to set up as other facilities and resources are still largely unavailable to Nigerian journalists. For example, company sponsored laptop computers with mobile internet access, digital recording devices, open access mobile telephones and salaries that take into consideration global trends, market prices and national inflation rates. Again, for internet journalism to sway or be successful in Nigeria, the concepts of the popularised FAN (free readers association of Nigeria) need to be eradicated. The acronym is used to refer to the practice where people cluster around newspaper vendors stand to read newspapers and maga zines without actually buying any one. This in a sense show or reflect the socio-economic situation which an average Nigerian finds himself or herself into. An average Nigerian cannot afford a laptop and going to the cyber cafe to pay for an air time to listen or read news amidst the huge amount paid for the air time and the inconsistency of the internet is unthinkable. This in a large extent affects internet journalism among the media organization in Nigeria. Nworah (2011), also opined that The matter of indifference among the Nigerian masses is largely compounded by the fact that Nigerian advertisers have not yet started taking advantage of the opportunities presented by the internet, to advertise their products and services in the websites of some of these media organisations, only a few advertisers are doing this at the moment, it was hoped that such advertisements may actually increase to a height so that the free news now readily available on the internet can be subscribed for and also to make up for the shortfall from the hard copy sales. Nevertheless, the advent of internet may permit readers to log on to the websites and then freely read any newspaper or magazine of their choice, but this obviously will have a huge negative impact on revenues as less hard copies will be bought and the great lost will be on the media organization. The fear definitely deters media organization from using internet journalism as the lost from hard copy will negatively affect them. Looking at the way internet journalism has affected communication and the masses of the developing country like Nigeria, can this be said of other countries in West Africa? This research proposal will explore the impact of internet journalism so far in Nigeria and the effects on the media organizations and the masses. RESEARCH AIM: The aim of this research proposal is to evaluate the effects and impacts of internet journalism in West Africa, thus using Nigeria as the country to be studied. RESEARCH QUESTIONS: This research proposal will base its questions on the following: How effective has internet journalism proven among the journalists in Nigeria? What impacts have internet journalism on the masses (audience) of Nigeria? Has the non stability of internet helped the Nigerian journalists in accessing stories efficiently? How often an average Nigerian does has access to the internet? RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS: (a)(i).This research will consider the null that Internet journalism has proven effective among the journalists in Nigeria. (a)(ii).The alternative hypothesis is that the internet journalism has not proven effective among the journalists in Nigeria. (b)(i).This research will consider the null that the internet journalism has impacts on the masses (audience) of Nigeria. (b)(ii).The alternative hypothesis is that the internet journalism has no impacts on the masses (audience) of Nigeria. (c)(i).The research will consider the null that the non stability of the internet has not helped the journalists to access stories efficiently. (c)(ii).The alternative hypothesis is that the non stability of the internet has helped the journalists to access stories efficiently. (d)(i).The research will consider the null that an average Nigerian does not have access to the internet. (d)(ii).The alternative hypothesis is that an average Nigerian does have access to the internet. Deliverables: As it has been described in the objectives of the research project, the main purpose of this study is to evaluate the effects and impacts of internet journalism in Nigeria, West Africa. The final product of this research project will be a report, containing the effects of Internet Journalism in Nigeria, West Africa. Research Methodology: Different 150 internet news readers in Nigeria will be approached to collect the data. There are two kinds of data. Primary data Secondary data Primary data includes the information from the respondents. This also includes responses by the different age groups and geographical locations in the country. Secondary data will tell about the impact of Internet journalism in Nigeria. To collect the data, different newspaper companies will be contacted. Similarly, to assess the changes in internet journalism, their website users views will also be found out. The tools to collect this data will be the surveys. For this, website users and newspaper customers will be interviewed, where as to know the views of customers, different questionnaires will be prepared to ask them different questions. To analyze the collected data, different statistical techniques will be used. Resources: The most important thing to carry out any research project is to know the background, research objectives, and research methodology of the research project. For this literature is searched out. The University Library will be the primary source to review the literature. Books in hard and soft form will be obtained from the library. Similarly, different research journals and articles in the library will be valuable assets to prepare a comprehensive research report. To prepare the questionnaires, surveys done by the newspaper companies to know views of customers, will be used. Similarly new questionnaires, depending on the situation, will also be prepared. Project Plan: The project is divided into three stages. Literature review Interviews of newspaper customers Report writing Literature Review: To carry out any research project, a research must be able to review the literature. This makes researcher aware of work, done by other people in the respective field. The main source of literature is the journals, in which different researchers publish their findings of problems. Interviews of newspaper customers: In order to know the effects and impacts of internet journalism in Nigeria, West Africa, the users of different newspaper websites will be interviewed. They will be asked about the positive and negative points of internet journalism. Similarly, customer views will be taken through the interviews. Considering all these views, suggestion to improve the internet journalism will be advised. Report writing: The final product of the research project will be a written report. The structure of my report will be divided in following categories, Introduction: In the introduction, history of internet journalism will be discussed and how different newspapers implement internet journalism will be discussed. Aims and objectives: In this part of report, purpose of the research project will be stated very clearly; what are the aims of the study and what are the problems, which will be discussed in the report. Research methodology: This is the core part of the report. After stating the problem, different research methodologies will be explained to gather the data. The primary source will be the interviews of the customers and internet news readers. From these interviews, impact of internet journalism in Nigeria, West Africa will be assessed. The questions asked to customers will be provided in the appendix of report. Conclusions: After describing the problems and research methods, suggestion will be advised to eliminate or solve the highlighted problems. Risk: In order to carry out any research project, it is very important to study all the aspects of the project. One of the main aspects regarding any project is the risks involved. There are also some risks involved, regarding the research project under consideration. One risk can be privacy. Newspaper companies employees can be duty-bound and show reluctance to give information about their websites. Impact and Beneficiaries of Research: The main objective of this research activity is to investigate the effects and impacts of internet journalism in Nigeria, West Africa. This research can be very helpful for the information sector

Cuban Missle Crisis Essay -- essays research papers

Cuban Missile Crisis Nikita Khrushchev and the Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 was the closest the world ever came to full-scale nuclear war. When the Soviet Union placed offensive nuclear missiles in Cuba, President Kennedy interpreted the act as one of hostility that would not be tolerated. However, the situation was blown way out or proportion by the president, American media, and ultimately the citizens of the United States. The Soviet Premier, Nikita Khrushchev, was reacting to the Bay of Pigs Invasion of Cuba, US Missile installations along the Turkey/Soviet border, and the clear anti-Communist policy of the United States. Khrushchev was born in Kalinovka in southwestern Russia. He was raised in a poor family whose income depended solely on the coal mining job of his father. In 1918 he joined the Bolsheviks and attended a Communist school the following year. He moved to Moscow in 1929 and began working for the Communist government. He gained much praise and advanced quickly. B y 1939, he was a member of the Politburo. He became Secretary of the of the Central Committee in 1951. After Stalin died in 1953, the USSR went through two more premiers before Khrushchev came to power in 1958. As Premier, Khrushchev publicly condemned the terror filled reign of Stalin. Stalin continually pushed for domination. Several Eastern European countries united with the USSR under Stalin’s reign and millions of innocent people were slain. Stalin also restricted Soviet citizens personal liberties to previously unheard of measures. Khrushchev was a completely different ruler. He acridly criticized Stalin’s crimes against humanity and began a rapid process known as destalinization. This entailed destroying statues, pictures, or images of Stalin and renaming most things previously named for Stalin. Khrushchev also restored many of the personal liberties that Stalin had taken away. He let political prisoners free, restored much freedom of thought, and restored freed om of the press. He increased production in factories and placed a strong emphasis on the Soviet space program. Although he had little pity for small, weak Europe and Asian countries, he worked to avoid war with Western nations. He even called for a â€Å"peaceful coexistence† with the United States. Khrushchev, despite being communist, was concerned for the welfare of his country and did no... ...ve the missiles if the US missiles were also removed. This created intense public opposition to the Soviet leader as he was made out to be much more militant than he actually was. He was simply fighting fire with fire, but the government and media prevented the public from having the truth. It looks almost like a blatant attempt to manipulate the American public by over-dramatizing a situation for which US government was predominately responsible. Kennedy threatened invasion and he would have had support of the entire nation if he had proceeded with this plan. Khrushchev obviously didn’t want war as he eventually agreed to remove the missiles and allow the US to have a nuclear advantage. Why would Khrushchev agree to remove the missiles without any US promise to remove their missiles or not to invade Cuba? The answer is obvious. Khrushchev did not want war with the United States. He was a vast improvement over Stalin as a Premier and had restored much freedom to his countr y. He wasn’t a mad killer like Stalin and simply wanted to protect the citizens of his country, unlike Stalin had. The US government, however, wanted the media and public to think otherwise. They succeeded.