Free to air tv and radio are considered the most ethical media business sectors, followed by podcasts, according to this year’s Ethics Index, published by the Governance Institute of Australia.
Social media platforms are considered to be the most unethical business sector, but media should not take heart at that, media is ranked second worst in the unethical business sector chart. This was the first year that social media was included in the survey questions.
TikTok, Twitter (X), Facebook and Instagram are the bottom 5 on the ethical list, along with pay-day lenders.
The health, education and non-profit sectors are viewed as the most ethical sectors in the survey.
For trust and ethical behaviour consult your local coffee shop owner or friendly farmer, they are the top two business sectors recognised for ethical behaviour.
The increasing use of AI is the fastest rising ethical issue and one of the top 3 challenges for society in 2025, according to the study.
Disclosure of data leaks is also an important ethical priority, according to the study. 72% of respondents said companies who hold customer data should notify customers of ALL data breaches, at present the data laws only requires disclosure of “serious breaches.”
Accountability, transparency and whistleblower protection are the top 3 ethical principles in society this year.
The Ethics Index “shows many Australians have a strong understanding of ethics and its main definitions, with 98% agreeing with one of the three ethics definitions provided in the survey. Ethics continues to be seen as important to a well-functioning society, with 93% rating ethics as either important or very important.”
Ethics across the generations. The report says:
“Gen X and Millenials see very little movement between the importance they place on ethical behaviour and their assessment of societal performance – however the other age groups are showing some changes.
“Gen Z lead the way with the importance they place on ethics in society, and this has significantly grown since 2024 (up 20 points to 93) – however, their assessment of Ethics in society (Ethics Index score) has grown and is the strongest perception across the generations, but the growth does not keep up with the change seen in Importance, leading to a larger deficit between importance and perception than 2024.
“Baby Boomers have seen similar growth in importance (up 13 points to 91) whilst the Ethics Index score grows 5 points to 43. This change grows the perceived deficit to now match the largest deficits seen (amongst Gen X/ Millennials)…
“Attitudes toward tech vary across generations, and not always as expected. Baby Boomers are least positive about social and tech platforms, but positivity increases with age, except in the case of AI. Gen Z is more critical of AI than Millennials, especially in corporate contexts.
“The top ethical concern for Australians is preventing AI platforms from being used for deception. This is closely followed by a strong call for transparency, with public demand for clear disclosure when generative AI is used to create content.”
The Ethics Index survey was conducted online by IPSOS, with a representative sample of 1000 people, weighted according to age, gender and location so that it closely represents demographic makeup of the Australian adult population.
This year’s survey was conducted in July/August 2025. It has been conducted for ten years.