School of Information and Library Science
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

INLS 584, Information Ethics
Fall 2013

Schedule

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Syllabus / Schedule / Assignments / Sakai site

Introduction to Ethical Reasoning

Session 1: August 20, Overview of the course; An exercise in ethical reasoning (Arson case)

Session 2: August 22, Cultural relativism; Subjectivism; Emotions

• Rachels, Chapter 1, What is morality? (key: sections 1.5 & 1.6)
• Rachels, Chapter 2, The challenge of cultural relativism (key: sections 2.2, 2.4, 2.8, & 2.9)
• Rachels, Chapter 3, Subjectivism in ethics (key: sections 3.1-3.4)
• Artz, J. M. (2000). The role of emotion in reason, and its implications for computer ethics. Computers and Society, 30(1), 14-16. [Sakai resources]

Session 3: August 27, Morality and religion; Egoism

• Rachels, Chapter 4, Does morality depend on religion? (key: sections 4.2 & 4.3)
• Rachels, Chapter 5, Ethical egoism (key: sections 5.2-5.4)

Session 4: August 29, Social contracts

• Rachels, Chapter 6, The idea of a social contract (key: sections 6.1, 6.3, & 6.5)

Session 5: September 3, Utilitarianism

• Rachels, Chapter 7, The utilitarian approach (key: section 7.1)
• Rachels, Chapter 8, The debate over utilitarianism (key: sections 8.1, 8.3, & 8.4)

Session 6: September 5, Absolute moral rules and Kant

• Rachels, Chapter 9, Are there absolute moral rules? (key: sections 9.2, 9.4, & 9.5)
• Rachels, Chapter 10, Kant and respect for persons (key: section 10.1)

Session 7: September 10, Kant, continued; Alternative ethical approaches; Selection of issues to consider during course

• Rachels, Chapter 11, Feminism and the ethics of care (key: sections 11.1 & 11.2)
• Optional: Adam, A. (2008). The gender agenda in computer ethics. In Himma, K.E., & Tavani, H.T. (eds.), The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics. Wiley, 589-619. [Sakai resources]

Session 8: September 12, Alternative ethical approaches

• Rachels, Chapter 12, The ethics of virtue (key: sections 12.1 & 12.2)
• Rachels, Chapter 13, What would a satisfactory moral theory be like? (key: section 13.4)

Session 9: September 17, Values clarification

• Smith, M. (1977). A Practical Guide to Value Clarification. Lajolla, CA: University Associates.
• Chapter 1, The need for exploring values, p3-18 [Sakai resources]

Session 10: September 19, Applying moral theories as information professionals

• Smith, H. J., & Hasnas, J. (1999). Ethics and information systems: the corporate domain. MIS Quarterly, 23(1), 109-127. (Read pages 109-119 only.) [UNC libraries]
• Fallis, D. (2007). Information ethics for twenty-first century library professionals. Library Hi Tech, 25(1), 23-36. (Skim entire article; focus on two sections: The theories, and Limitations of the theories) [UNC libraries]
• Kizza, J.M. (2007). Ethics and the professions. In Ethical and Social Issues in the Information Age. London: Springer, 65-96. (Read sections 4.1, 4.2, and 4.4.1.) [Sakai resources]
• Optional: Floridi, L. (2008). Foundations of information ethics. In Himma, K.E., & Tavani, H.T. (eds.), The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics. Wiley, 3-23. [Sakai resources]

• Literature review: Topic/question due
• Review of court cases: List of cases due
• Book review: Citation due

Session 11: September 24, Professional codes of conduct (Additional codes and other resources)

• ALA Code of Ethics. (1995, June 28). American Library Association. http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/proethics/codeofethics/codeethics.cfm.
• Mathiesen, K., & Fallis, D. (2008). Information ethics and the library profession. In Himma, K.E., & Tavani, H.T. (eds.), The Handbook of Information and Computer Ethics. Wiley, 221-244. (Focus on sections 9.1 and 9.2; read other sections as interested.) [Sakai resources]
• ACM code of ethics and professional conduct. (1992, October 16). Association for Computing Machinery. http://www.acm.org/constitution/code.html.
• Huff, C. (1996). Unintentional power in the development of computer systems. Computers & Society, 26(4), 6-9. [Sakai resources]
• ASIS&T professional guidelines. Adopted 5/30/92. http://www.asis.org/AboutASIS/professional-guidelines.html.

Issues in Information Ethics

The remainder of the course will be devoted to reasoning about moral issues of relevance to information professionals. The specific issues to be considered in the course will be selected and presented by the course participants. Key issues and possible readings are listed here:

• Information/data and software as intellectual property (copyright, moral rights of authors, open source content and software, legal mechanisms for software protection)
• Information/software integrity/accuracy (professional responsibility for correct information/programs)
• Privacy (government surveillance, commercial surveillance, computer-mediated communication, exoinformation)
• Access to information/censorship (equitable access to information, censorship, freedom to read)
• Access to information technology (equitable access to computers and the internet, discrimination)
• Effects of computerization on the work environment (job displacement, deskilling, ergonomic issues, electronic monitoring)
• Effects of computer-mediated communication on understandings of identity and relationships
• Effects of computerization on democracy and government

Session 12: September 26, Let us hack our primary law (Aaron)

• Introductory readings
  • Copyright basics. (2012, May). U.S. Copyright Office, Library of Congress. (Read pages 1-3 (through "What is not protected by copyright?"), skipping the section on "Copyright and National Origin of the Work" [http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ01.pdf]
  • Glassmeyer, S. (n.d.) Why do we delegate the reporting and indexing of the American legal information system to commericial vendors using a proprietary system? SarahGlassmeyer (dot) com. [http://sarahglassmeyer.com/?p=230]
• Copyrights and government wrongs
  • What are some problems with the copyrighting of legal materials?
    • Walters, E. (n.d.). Who owns the law? ReInvent Law Channel. [http://reinventlawchannel.com/ed-walters-who-owns-the-law/]
    • Walters, E. (2011, July 15). Tear down this (pay)wall: The end of private copyright in public statutes. Legal Information Institute, Cornell University Law School. [http://blog.law.cornell.edu/voxpop/2011/07/15/tear-down-this-paywall]
  • When activists get in trouble with state legislatures, this happens
  • McKoon, J. (2013, July 25). Letter to Carl Malamud. (Example "cease and desist" letter.) [https://law.resource.org/pub/us/code/ga/ga.gov.20130725.pdf]
  • Are our court systems underfunded?
  • McCloskey, S. (2013, Jan. 23). Courting trouble - Budget cuts push Wake County courts back in time. NC Policy Watch. [http://www.ncpolicywatch.com/2013/01/23/courting-trouble-budget-cuts-push-wake-county-courts-back-in-time/]
  • RECAP is PACER spelled backwards - so what's the big deal?
    • Nazer, D., & Schoen, S. (2013, Sep. 11). Federal courts still scaremongering about RECAP and spooky "open source" software. Electronic Frontier Foundation. [https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2013/09/federal-courts-still-scaremongering-about-recap-and-spooky-open-source-software]
• Optional: Explore legal hacking
  • Unlocking the DC code: openlawdc. [http://dccode.org/]
  • The state decoded. [http://www.statedecoded.com/about/]
  • Court listener. [https://www.courtlistener.com/about/]

Session 13: October 1, Sharing my shows: First sale doctrine applied to digital media (Allison)

• Asay, C.D. (2013, May 7). Kirtsaeng and the first-sale doctrine's digital problem. SLR Online (Stanford Law Review). http://www.stanfordlawreview.org/online/kirtsaeng-and-first-sale-doctrines-digital-problem.
• Davis, W.N. (2013, Aug.). Good copy, bad copy: Record industry tussles over whether a resale market for online music violates the Copyright Act. ABA Journal, 14-18. [UNC libraries, via EBSCOhost]
• About studies of the effects of file sharing on sales:
  • Catalano, M. (2013, March 25). Music piracy: Major studies conflicted over recording industry impact. Forbes (subscriber blog). http://www.forbes.com/sites/michelecatalano/2013/03/25/music-piracy-major-studies-conflicted-over-recording-industry-impact/. (Note that the blog posting links to both studies discussed.)
• Basic introduction to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and DRM
  • Digital Millennium Copyright Act. (Last updated Se. 14, 2013). Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Millennium_Copyright_Act.
  • Digital rights management. (Last updated Sep. 16, 2013). Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_rights_management.
    

Session 14: October 3, Intellectual property rights associated with fan fiction (Nicole)

• Some preliminary copyright law to highlight
  • 17 USC § 102 - Subject matter of copyright: In general (Read to see the idea/expression dichotomy.) [http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/102]
  • 17 USC § 101 - Definitions (Read definition for “derivative works”.) [http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/101]
  • Berne Convention [http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/berne_convention]
    • Article 6bis (on Moral Rights) [http://www.law.cornell.edu/treaties/berne/6bis.html]
• Schwabach, A. (2008-2009). The Harry Potter lexicon and the world of fandom: Fan fiction, outsider works, and copyright. University of Pittsburgh Law Review, 70(3), 387-434. (Read Part I, Part II, and the Introduction to Part III (387- 403). Part III includes three different examples: Sections A, B, and C. Choose one section/example to read closely; skim the others if you are interested. You don’t have to read the footnotes; however, they may provide further detail on the law or ideas being discussed if you would like more clarification.) [UNC libraries, via HeinOnline]

Session 15: October 8, The case FOR censorship, using hate speech and child pornography as examples (Barbara)

• Warburton, N., & Franco, J. (2013). Should there be limits on hate speech? Index on Censorship, 42(2), 150-152. [UNC libraries]
• Harris, C., Rowbotham, J., & Stevenson, K. (2009). Truth, law and hate in the virtual marketplace of ideas: Perspectives on the regulation of internet content. Information & Communications Technology Law, 18(2), 155-184. (Skim the article, paying special attention to pages 155-157, 163-165, and 176-178.) [UNC libraries]
• In preparation for class discussion, review section II.C.1.k.-l. of the UNC-CH Instrument of Student Judicial Governance (http://studentconduct.unc.edu/instrument) and sections I and VI of the UNC-CH Policy on Prohibited Harassment, Including Sexual Misconduct, and Discrimination (http://policies.unc.edu/files/2013/04/PPHISMD.pdf).
• Li, J.H.-S. (2000). Cyberporn: The controversy. first Monday, 5(8). http://dx.doi.org/10.5210/fm.v5i8.777. (Read the following sections: Introduction, Definitions, Issues Surrounding the Availability of Cyberporn on Public-Access Computers in Libraries, and Library & Information Science Perspectives.)
• Depken, C.A., II. (2006). Who supports Internet censorship? First Monday, 11(9). http://dx.doi.org/10.5210/fm.v11i9.1390. (Don't worry too much about the statistics and formulas; do try to get a sense of their main findings.)

• Literature review: Annotated bibliography due
• Review of court cases: Annotated bibliography due

Session 16: October 10, Providing information to people who plan to break the law (B)

• Means, B. (2002). Criminal speech and the First Amendment. Marquette Law Review, 86(3) 501-539. (Read pages 501-505.) [http://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1286&context=mulr]
• Doyle, T. (2004). Should Web sites for bomb-making be legal? Journal of Information Ethics, 34-37. [Sakai resources]
• Review: ALA Code of Ethics. (1995, June 28). American Library Association. http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/proethics/codeofethics/codeethics.cfm.
• Dowd, R.C. (1990). I want to find out how to freebase cocaine or yet another unobtrusive test of reference performance. The Reference Librarian, 11(25-26), 483-493. [UNC libraries]
• Liebler, R. (2004). Institutions of learning or havens for illegal activities: How the Supreme Court views libraries. Northern Illinois University Law Review, 25, 1-74. (Read the following sections: Introduction (p2-4), Distinction between acquisition and removal (p25-27), and Role of the public library and other alternative sources of information (p29-32).) [UNC libraries, via HeinOnline]
• Branum, C. (n.d.). The myth of library neutrality[Blog post]. http://candisebranum.wordpress.com/papers/the-myth-of-library-neutrality/.
• Review the items on this list, in preparation for a class exercise: Materials to Review.

Session 17: October 15, Information Access for LGBTQIA Patrons (Meaghan)

• Lutes, M.A., & Montgomery, M.A. (1998). Out in the stacks: Opening academic library collections to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students. In Sanlo, R.L. (ed.), Working with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Students: A Handbook for Faculty and Administrators.Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 105-113. [Sakai resources]
• Rothbauer, P. (2007). Locating the library as place among lesbian, gay, bisexual and queer patrons. In Buschman, J.E., & Leckie, G.J. (eds.), The Library as Place: History, Community and Culture. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited, 101-115. [Sakai resources]
• Ciszek, M.P. (2011). Out on the web: The relationships between campus climate and GLBT-related web-based resources in academic libraries. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 37(5), 430-436. [UNC libraries]
• Additional reading mentioned during class: Mestre, L.S. (2010). Librarians working with diverse populations: What impact does cultural competency training have on their efforts? Journal of Academic Librarianship, 36(6), 479-468. [UNC libraries]
• Also of interest: Glossary. (n.d.) Translabyrinth: A Lesbian Transsexual Blog. http://translabyrinth.com/glossary/.

October 17: No class; Fall Break

Session 18: October 22, Limiting access to information based on user age (S)

• Turner, J.S. III. (1987).  Assessing the constitutionality of North Carolina’s new obscenity law. North Carolina Law Review, 65, 400-416. (Read this article loosely as it is older. Don’t read it for the legal or procedural information, but rather as an example of how obscenity, harm to minors, sexual conduct, literary and artistic merit, etc. are often defined.) [UNC libraries]
• Ybarra, M.L. & Mitchell, K.J. (2005). Exposure to Internet Pornography Among Children and Adolescents: A National Survey. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 8(5), 473-486. (SKIM the introduction and discussion sections only.) [UNC libraries]
• Funk, J.B.,  et. al. (2003). Playing violent video games, desensitization, and moral evaluation in children. Applied Developmental Psychology, 24 413-436. SKIM the introduction and discussion sections only. [UNC libraries]
• Kids and libraries: What you should know. (2013). American Library Association. http://www.ala.org/bbooks/challengedmaterials/preparation/coping.

Session 19: October 24, Selection vs. censorship by library staff (MB)

• Klinefelter, A. (2010). First Amendment limits on library collection management. Law Library Journal, 102(3), 343-374. (Read pages 343-348 only.) [UNC libraries]
• Van Kampen, D. J., & Spino, R. (2007). Issues in the retention and selection of materials: Censorship and self-selection. Catholic Library World, 77(3), 222-225. [UNC libraries]
• Kidd, K. (2009). "Not censorship but selection”: Censorship and/as prizing. Children's Literature in Education, 40(3), 197-216. [UNC libraries]
• Whelan, D.L. (2009). A dirty little secret. School Library Journal, 55(2), 26-30. [UNC libraries]
• Items/examples to review prior to class (e.g., library catalog and/or Amazon description):
  • Alexie, S. (2009). The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. [SILS Juvenile, SILS Reserves, UL Reserves - J Alexie]
  • Bronte, E. (1847, original). Wuthering Heights. [Multiple copies in UNC libraries, e.g., Davis - PR4172 .W7 2007]
  • Green, J. (2005). Looking for Alaska. New York: Dutton Books. [SILS Reserve - J Green]
  • ALA Policy Manual, Section B.2, Intellectual Freedom. (Review sections B.2.1.1, B.2.1.2, B.2.1.5, B.2.1.6, B.2.1.11, and B.2.1.12.) http://www.ala.org/aboutala/governance/policymanual/updatedpolicymanual/section2/53intellfreedom.
• Optional: Rubin, R., & Froelich, T.J. (2011). Ethical aspects of library and information science. In Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences. Third ed. New York: Taylor & Francis, 1743-1757. [Sakai resources]
• Optional: Asheim, L. (1953). Not censorship but selection. Wilson Library Bulletin, 28(1), 63-67. [Sakai resources]

• Book review: Outline of book due

Session 20: October 29, The global digital divide (Barbara)

• James, J. (2008). Digital divide complacency: Misconceptions and dangers. The Information Society, 24, 54-61. [UNC libraries]
• Hudson, D. (2012). Unpacking "information inequality": Toward a critical discourse of global justice in library and information science. Canadian Journal of Information and Library Science, 36(3/4), 69-87. [UNC libraries]
• Optional:Çilan, Ç.A., Bolat, B.A., & Coskun, E. (2009). Analyzing digital divide within and between member and candidate countries of European Union.Government Information Quarterly, 26, 98-105. (Check the tables, just to get a sense of the kinds of statistics that are used to define the digital divide.) [UNC libraries]
• Optional: Yu, L. (2006). Understanding information inequality: Making sense of the literature of the information and digital divides. (If you enjoyed the Hudson article, read this one for another view of the same issues.) Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, 38(4), 229-252. [UNC libraries]
• Optional: Patel, F. (2012). Reframing the diffusion of innovation and international development within a socially responsible, just, and sustainable development perspective. In Patel, F., Sooknanan, P., Rampersad, G., & Mundkur, A. (eds.), Information Technology, Development, and Social Change. New York: Routledge, 16-23. [Sakai resources]

Session 21: October 31, Access to IT in urban contexts (Danny)

• Ellison, R. (1995). Prologue. In Invisible Man. Vintage, 3-14. [Sakai resources]
• Cass, S. (2007, June). How much does the internet weigh? Discover, 28, 42-43. http://discovermagazine.com/2007/jun/how-much-does-the-internet-weigh.
• Miner, E.A., & Missen, C. (2005). "Internet in a box": Augmenting bandwidth with the eGranary Digital Library. Africa Today, 52(2), 21-37. (Read pages 23-26.) [UNC libraries]
• Mossberger, K., Tolbert, C.J., & Gilbert, M. (2006). Race, place, and information technology. Urban Affairs Review, 20(10), 1-38. (Read pages 5-11; the results later in the article are interesting, but they are not necessary for this class session.) [UNC libraries]
• Urban renewal and Durham's Hayti community. Lawrence Ridgle interviewed by Alicia Rouverol, June 3, 1999. Interview K-0143. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007). (This is an interview from someone in the Hayti community living during the Urban renewal project in Durham during the 1960s.) http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/nchist-recent/6242.

November 5: No Class; ASIST meeting

Session 22: November 7, Privacy issues associated with cloud computing (Patrick)

• Timmermans, J., Stahl, B.C., Ikonen, V., & Bozdag, E. (2010). The ethics of cloud computing: A conceptual review. Proceedings of the IEEE Second International Conference on Cloud Computing Technology and Science (CloudCom), 614–620. [UNC libraries]
• Pearson, S. (2011). Toward accountability in the cloud. IEEE Internet Computing, 15(4), 64–69. [UNC libraries]
• Greenwald, G., MacAskill, E., Poitras, L., Ackerman, S., & Rushe, D. (2013, July 11). Microsoft handed the NSA access to encrypted messages. The Guardian. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/11/microsoft-nsa-collaboration-user-data.
• Stallman, R. (2010). Who does that server really serve? GNU Operating System. http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/who-does-that-server-really-serve.html.
• Optional: Morozov, E. (2013, Oct. 22). The real privacy problem. MIT Technology Review (online). http://www.technologyreview.com/featuredstory/520426/the-real-privacy-problem/.

Session 23: November 12, Corporate use of exoinformation (Stefanie)

• Introna, L. D. (1997). Privacy and the computer: Why we need privacy in the information society. Metaphilosophy, 28(3), 259-275. (Read at least the first two sections. This is the article that got a rave review from Patrick, so you may want to read it all.) [UNC libraries]
• Skim these two pages. Make sure you understand the background/inner workings of Facebook as well as the lingo used to describe privacy.
  • Facebook Terms and Conditions: https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms
  • Facebook's Use Policy: https://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/your-info
• Online photos can reveal our private data say experts. (2011, Aug. 3). BBC News: Technology. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-14386514. (If you want to see the full set of slides from a Black Hat Webinar for this talk, see: Acquisti, A., Gross, R., & Stutzman, F. (2012). Faces of Facebook: Privacy in the age of augmented reality. Black Hat Webcast Series. http://blackhat.com/docs/webcast/acquisti-face-BH-Webinar-2012-out.pdf.)
• Blumberg, A.J., & Eckersley, P. (2009, August). On locational privacy, and how to avoid losing it forever. Electronic Frontier Foundation. (Read the following sections: Intro, What is 'locational privacy'?, Threats and opportunity, Location based services that don't know where you are (only the subsection, "Automated tolling and stoplight enforcement"), Isn't there an easier/different alternative. On the pdf, you'll be reading pages 1-3 and 5-7.) https://www.eff.org/wp/locational-privacy.
• Palmer, J. (2013, March 25). Mobile locate data 'present anonymity risk'. BBC News: Science & Environment. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21923360

• Literature review: Outline due
• Review of court cases: Outline due

Session 24: November 14, Electronic monitoring/surveillance at work (K)

• Your rights: Computer privacy. (2013, March 15). Workplace Fairness. http://www.workplacefairness.org/computerprivacy.
• Your rights: Surveillance at work. (2013, March 13). Workplace Fairness. http://www.workplacefairness.org/surveillance.
• Garrett, R.K., & Danziger, J.N. (2008). Disaffection or expected outcomes: Understanding personal Internet use during work. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(4), 937-958. (Read pages 937-942 and 949-953 only.) [UNC libraries]
• Riedy, M.K., & Wen, J.H. (2010). Electronic surveillance of Internet access in the American workplace: Implications for management. Information & Communications Technology Law, 19(1), 87-99. [UNC libraries]

Session 25: November 19, Cyber-bullying (Marli)

• Willard, N.W. (2007). Overview of cyberbullying and cyberthreats. In Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Agression, Threats, and Distress. Champaign, IL: Research Press, 5-15. [Sakai resources]
• Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J.W. (2009). Responding to cyberbullying: Top ten tips for educators. Cyberbullying Research Center. http://www.cyberbullying.us/Top_Ten_Tips_Educators_Cyberbullying_Response.pdf.
• Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J.W. (2009). Responding to cyberbullying: Top ten tips for parents. Cyberbullying Research Center. http://www.cyberbullying.us/Top_Ten_Tips_Parents_Cyberbullying_Response.pdf.
• Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J.W. (2009). Preventing cyberbullying: Top ten tips for educators. Cyberbullying Research Center. http://www.cyberbullying.us/Top_Ten_Tips_Educators_Cyberbullying_Prevention.pdf.
• Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J.W. (2009). Preventing cyberbullying: Top ten tips for parents. Cyberbullying Research Center. http://www.cyberbullying.us/Top_Ten_Tips_Parents_Cyberbullying_Prevention.pdf.
• Hinduja, S., & Patchin, J.W. (2013, July). State cyberbullying laws: A brief review of state cyberbullyihng laws and policies. Cyberbullying Research Center. Check the table row for North Carolina, and read the policies section on North Carolina, pages 11-12. http://www.cyberbullying.us/Bullying_and_Cyberbullying_Laws.pdf.
• Article 60. Computer-related crime. NC General Statutes. (Read paragraph 14-458.1, pages 5-6. ftp://ftp.legislature.state.nc.us/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/PDF/ByArticle/Chapter_14/Article_60.PDF.
• Smith, P.K., Mahdavi, J., Carvalho, M., Fisher, S., Russell, S., & Tippett, N. (2008). Cyberbullying: Its nature and impact in secondary school pupils. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 49(4), 376-385. [UNC libraries]

Session 26: November 21, Anonymity and the question of accountability in online communication (Erin)

• Johnson, D. (1997). Ethics online. Communications of the ACM, 40(1), 60-65. [UNC libraries]
• Scott, C. R. (2004). Benefits and drawbacks of anonymous online communication: Legal challenges and communicative recommendations. Free Speech Yearbook, 41(1),127-141. (Read pages 127-133 and 136-139.) [UNC libraries]
• Rosenberry, J. (2011). Users support online anonymity despite increasing negativity. Newspaper Research Journal, 32(2), 6-19. (Read pages 6-9 and 16-17.) [UNC libraries; via Communication & Mass Media Complete]
• Anderson, A.A., Brossard, D., Scheufele, D.A., Xenos, M.A., & Ladwig, P. (2013). The "nasty effect": Online incivility and risk perceptions of emerging technologies. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, Early View. (Skim pages 1-5 and 8-12.) http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcc4.12009/abstract.
• LaBarre, S. (2013, 09). Why we’re shutting off our comments. Popular Science. http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-09/why-were-shutting-our-comments.
• SKIM these Popular Science articles and their accompanying comments:
  • Lecher, C. (2013, Sep. 24). 10 of the most amazing textiles of the future. Popular Science. http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2013-08/10-amazing-high-tech-materials-projects.
  • Diep, F. (2013, Sep. 23). Air pollution deaths around the world [Infographic]. Popular Science. http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-09/big-pic-air-pollution-deaths-around-world.
  • Birbrair, L. (2013, Sep. 20). Have modern scientist made any advancements in alchemy? Popular Science. http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-09/have-modern-scientists-made-any-advancements-alchemy.
  • Diep, F. (2013, Sep. 19). Mars is probably not home to life, according to sad new study. Popular Science. http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2013-09/curiosity-still-finding-little-methane-mars.

• Book review: Outline of review due
  

Session 27: November 26, More direct democratic access to government (JVR)

• Böhle, K., & Riehm, U. (2013). E-petition systems and political participation: About institutional challenges and democratic opportunities. First Monday, 18(7). (Read Sections 1-3, skim the rest of the article and read the brief conclusion). http://dx.doi.org/10.5210%2Ffm.v18i7.4220.
• Dahlberg, L. (2011). Re-constructing digital democracy: An outline of four 'positions'. New Media & Society, 13(6), 855-872. (Read pages 855-864). [UNC libraries]
• Ergazakis, K., Metaxiotis, K., & Tsitsanis, T. (2011). A state-of-the-art review of applied forms and areas, tools and technologies for e-participation. International Journal of Electronic Government Research (IJEGR), 7(1), 1-19. (Read pages 1-8, down to section 4, then skim section 4 and 5 while making sure to read “ePetitions” under section 4, and then read sections 6 and 7).doi:10.4018/jegr.2011010101.  [UNC libraries, via Academic OneFile; must access through the library catalog]  
• Millard, P.,  Millard, K., Adams, C., & McMillan,S. (2012). Transforming Government through e-Participation: Challenges for e-Democracy. In:  12thEuropean Conference on e-Government (ECEG 2012),14-15 June 2012, Barcelona, Spain. [Online]
• Le Dantec, C.A. (2012). Considering the rights (and wrongs) of community technology. interactions, 19(4), 24-27. [UNC libraries]

November 28: No Class; Thanksgiving Break

Session 28: December 3, Course wrap-up/review (Arson case reprise); Carolina Course Evaluation

• Introna, L.D. (2007). Maintaining the reversibility of foldings: Making the ethics (politics) of information technology visible. Ethics and Information Technology, 9(1), 11-25. [UNC libraries]
• Optional: Buchanan, E. (2008). On theory, practice, and responsibilities: A conversation with Robert Hauptman. Library & Information Science Research, 30(4), 250-256. [UNC libraries]

December 10, 12pm: Major paper due (literature review, review of court cases, book review)

Syllabus / Schedule / Assignments / Sakai site

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This page was last modified on November 20, 2013, by Barbara M. Wildemuth.