Is It Wrong to Withhold Information?

Is withholding the truth tantamount to telling a lie? Is it wrong to withhold information just because someone doesn´t ask you for it? Some people would say the answer to both of these questions is yes. I say not necessarily. It depends on the nature of the information. No one should be expected to tell everything they know.

If is it information that someone has a right to know – something that affects them – then you do not have a moral or ethical right to withhold it from them, even if they never specifically ask you for it. On the other hand, you are under no obligation to volunteer information that is private to you or some third party and/or that is inconsequential to the would-be receiver. In fact, revealing such information, some of which can be classified as gossip, often does more harm than good.

But even some information that directly affects a person shouldn´t necessarily be revealed to him or her. We´ve all heard that "the truth hurts." Very often, it does. And there are situations when we must confront someone with it just the same. However, we not required to present someone with a painful fact if doesn´t have any kind of redeeming purpose. Inflicting hurt on someone just because it´s the truth (frequently out of spite) is both unethical and immoral.