Viewpoint: at the intersections of information, computing and internet research
| Date | 03 February 2020 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JICES-01-2020-0001 |
| Pages | 1-9 |
| Published date | 03 February 2020 |
| Author | Charles M. Ess |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Information management & governance,Information & communications technology |
Viewpoint: at the intersections of
information, computing and
internet research
Charles M. Ess
Department of Media and Communication, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
Abstract
Purpose –The purposeof this paper is to introduce a new collaborationbetween the Association of Internet
Researchers(AoIR) and the Journal of Information, Communication and Ethicsin Society (JICES).
Design/methodology/approach –The paper useshistorical, comparative and ethics-based approaches.
Findings –The collaboration iscatalyzed by central interests shared between AoIR and JICES,namely, in
the ethical and social impacts of the internet. The collaboration accordingly aims to bring research and
reflectiondeveloped for the AoIR conferences to theJICES’readership.
Originality/value –The value of this collaboration is considerable, as it promises extensive new cross-
fertilization betweenthe two communities. The viewpoint begins with a brief overviewof the collaboration’s
initiation by Prof Simon Rogerson and its logistics over the next two years. Following a general review of
Information and Computing Ethics and Intercultural Information Ethics, an overview of ethical
considerations fostered by AoIR is offered, focusing on the development of internet research ethics (IRE),
especiallyits most recent expression in an IRE 3.0.
Keywords Utilitarianism, Social media, Big data, Deontology, Virtue ethics, Care ethics,
Ethical pluralism, Internet research ethics (IRE), Cross-cultural ethics, Ethics review boards, AI
Paper type Viewpoint
Introduction
Prof Simon Rogerson has initiated a new collaboration between Journal of Information,
Communication and Ethics in Society (JICES) and the Association of Internet Researchers
(AoIR). Now 20years on, AoIR has included attention to the ethical dimensions of internet-
facilitated technologies and communication from its beginnings. In particular, AoIR has
established three ethics working groups (EWGs) charged with developing guidelines and
resources for internet research ethics (IRE) in both the humanities and the social sciences.
The most recent of these –denoted as IRE 3.0 –built and expanded on the previous two
documents and was approved by the AoIR membership on October 6, 2019, during the
annual conference in Brisbane, Australia. Additional ethics panels and presentations
continued the AoIR tradition of examining other pressing ethical challenges affiliated with
specific forms of internet research. In both ways, AoIR thus fosters reflection on and
resolution of the ethical and social impacts of the internet: as Prof. Rogerson has observed,
these resonate well withthe aims of JICES, namely, to:
[...] promote thoughtful dialogue regarding the wider social and ethical issues related to the
planning, development, implementation and use of new media and information and
communication technologies. Drawing from a wide authorship it provides necessary
interdisciplinary, culturally and geographically diverse works essential to understanding the
impacts of the pervasive new media and information and communication technologies. (Rogerson,
personal communication, 2019)
Information,
computing and
internet
research
1
Received2 January 2020
Revised2 January 2020
Accepted2 January 2020
Journalof Information,
Communicationand Ethics in
Society
Vol.18 No. 1, 2020
pp. 1-9
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1477-996X
DOI 10.1108/JICES-01-2020-0001
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/1477-996X.htm
To continue reading
Request your trial