Foundations of Information Ethics

Questions about privacy, access, data, intellectual property, and digital participation are also questions about ethics. Foundations of Information Ethics brings these connected issues into focus in a twelve-chapter collection edited by John T. F. Burgess and Emily J. M. Knox.

Rather than treating information ethics as an abstract debate, the collection connects its ideas to the responsibilities and choices faced by information professionals and the wider public. Its range makes it useful for readers seeking a structured introduction to the field and for those who want a framework for considering specific challenges.

From ethical principles to everyday information questions

The opening chapters introduce key concepts and the history of ethics in the information professions. From there, the book considers human rights and information access, privacy, ethical discourse, and the difficult balance between intellectual property and competing rights.

Later chapters turn to data ethics and cybersecurity, then broaden the discussion to cognitive justice, intercultural information ethics, and global digital citizenship. Amelia Gibson’s concluding chapter examines emerging concerns, including algorithmic bias, social media, artificial intelligence, and health data ownership.

A wide-ranging collection, with room for discussion

The chapters offer both conceptual foundations and practical points of engagement. Where included, case studies help make ethical questions more concrete, while references and further-reading lists point toward continued study. The collection’s breadth also makes it possible to see how issues such as privacy, access, fairness, and responsibility intersect across professional and public settings.

For students, educators, and information professionals

This collection is especially relevant to library and information science students, instructors, and practitioners. It may also interest readers exploring the ethical dimensions of information systems, digital life, and the ways information is created, shared, governed, and accessed.

For a course, a reading group, or individual study, Foundations of Information Ethics offers a carefully organized starting point for examining questions that rarely have simple answers.