A Matter of Perception

A lawsuit was brought up in Washington a few years ago debating whether libraries could restrict and limit the sites people were allowed to visit on their computers. The court deemed that these limitations were not only allowed but also did not violate the first amendment. Many argue each library institution has the right to moderate sites its visitors can visit just as it can regulate the books that can be loaned. Others would argue a public library should offer free and open access to the Internet for all. In situations like this, people turn to the five ethical guidelines. However, two of these guidelines, in particular, can argue both for and against free and open access to the Internet at a library: Kant’s Categorical Imperative and Islam’s Divine Commands.

Together, these two principles make up the second of five main principles because they are similar in meaning with only a few differences. Kant’s Categorical Imperative says “what is right for one is right for all.” And Islam’s Divine Commands teaches that justice for all should be valued.

Both of these can be argued in favor of free and open access because in a public library, the public should be able to mingle in all its forms and that the fair thing to do to ensure justice among Internet users is to allow that free and open access within the library.

On the contrary, people can look at these principles and say it’s unethical to allow access to things that are generally seen as harmful to society such as pornographic material. Looking at this, one could derive that public places have no need for material like this, so it should be eradicated because it would be right for all.

But which one is correct? It’s a matter of perception.

References
Christians, C., Fackler, M., Richardson, K., Kreshel, P., & Woods, R. (2012). Media Ethics: Cases and Moral Reasoning (9th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Schwartz, M. (2012, April 12). Washington Library Allowed to Filter, Court Holds. Retrieved April 24, 2015, from http://lj.libraryjournal.com/2012/04/industry-news/washington-library-allowed-to-filter-court-holds/#_

Should we keep the current textbook for future online classes?
No.