Mike Godwin, The Los Angeles Times; A Facebook request: Write a code of tech ethics
"The question isn’t just what rules should a reformed Facebook follow.
The bigger question is what all the big tech companies’ relationships
with users should look like. The framework needed can’t be created out
of whole cloth just by new government regulation; it has to be grounded
in professional ethics.
Doctors and lawyers, as they became increasingly professionalized in the
19th century, developed formal ethical codes that became the seeds of
modern-day professional practice. Tech-company professionals should
follow their example. An industry-wide code of ethics could guide
companies through the big questions of privacy and harmful content.
Drawing on Yale law professor Jack Balkin’s concept of “information fiduciaries,” I have proposed
that the tech companies develop an industry-wide code of ethics that
they can unite behind in implementing their censorship and privacy
policies — as well as any other information policies that may affect
individuals."
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