In order to practice responsible digital citizenship it is important to understand the ethics of using and sharing information. In an online environment of memes, wikis and mashups it is easier than ever to reuse, re-purpose and remix. The internet has opened up a plethora of creative possibilities; deciphering the ethics of these open online spaces, however, is a more complicated issue.

Part of developing good information ethics, and ensuring that you are not plagiarizing someone else’s work, is understanding the copyright laws that protect one’s ownership of their intellectual property. Beyond your awareness of the legal implications, however, information ethics also involve careful consideration of what you believe is right or wrong when it comes to using someone else’s work.

Likewise, these considerations will guide you as you create and share your own intellectual work, whether it is a book, a photograph, an original piece of music or a video (All linked examples are openly licensed works in the Creative Commons, which you will learn more about in the Intellectual Property challenge).

Earning this content badge will help you leverage opportunities for mindfully sharing and creating in online spaces.

The overall themes for this content badge are power structures and equality. As evidence of successful completion of this content badge, you will analyze and discuss the information ethics of “net neutrality”. Depending on the source, “net neutrality” can be variously defined. One definition can be found on this website, the research project of an undergraduate student at Berkeley. For additional points of view, please review these the following resources. They present somewhat different – and sometimes competing — perspectives on this complex and complicated topic.

What Is Net Neutrality? Written by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

Am I The Only Techie Against Net Neutrality? by Josh Steimle

The FCC, Net Neutrality, and Corporate Power by Joseph A. Palermo

Voices for Internet Freedom FAQs by Center for Media Justice and Free Press

In previous steps, you have created original works. Some of you may have created a video, and remixed it with music, and are now positioned to share that creation on YouTube. Using this as an example, please write a reflection on the ethics of net neutrality. What are the ethical implications if the net remains neutral? What are the ethical considerations if the net moves towards a more tiered system? How do the concepts of open, sharable, and accessible impact your thoughts? How does net neutrality inform larger questions of education and knowledge sharing? What are the considerations of this sharing and learning in a tiered system? Who or what gets left out? Does it matter? Why or why not?