Conclusion


Consider this interesting observation by Blanchette and Johnson (2002) concerning a characteristic of the Information Society:

"The nature of public/institutional memory is dramatically changing due to the evolving character of information technologies. While preserving the opportunity for a second chance might have been easily achieved in the past, it has become increasingly difficult today. The ongoing balancing of 'discard and forget' and 'preserve and evaluate' has been skewed in favor of the latter. Unless data retention issues are addressed explicitly as part of a comprehensive policy approach to personal privacy, we will gradually move to a panoptic society in which there is little social forgetfulness and little, if any, opportunity to move on beyond one's past and start afresh."

IT systems have never been designed to forget; this has never been on the development agenda. But perhaps in the future it should be for the sake of individuals living in the Information Society. Overall, the Information Society must be based on fundamental assumptions about information and human information rights, access, privacy, self-determination, personal control, and not privilege, power, special interest. Those involved in the planning, development, and implementation of the systems that turn the Information Society into a reality are the custodians of the greatest change agent yet devised. They must recognize their social responsibilities and act accordingly for the benefit of society and its citizens.

This chapter has discussed some of the important aspects of social responsibility in the Information Society. It serves as an illustration of what types of issues need to be addressed, who must address them, and how they might be addressed.




Social and Economic Transformation in the Digital Era
Social and Economic Transformation in the Digital Era
ISBN: 1591402670
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 198

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