The ethics of using social media as a source

Popular social networking websites such as Facebook have certainly made finding information about some people significantly easier for not just journalists, but the public as a whole. However, given that 78 percent of people in a recent survey would change the content that appeared on their accounts if they knew that the mainstream media would use it clearly indicates that using this information is a very relevant ethical issue.

On the other side of the coin, if the people who did not want media outlets to use the content available on their profiles, they could easily change the privacy settings so that that information would be much more difficult for someone to find without the user’s consent. If people were more aware of this then the ethical issue would be far less pronounced because people who allowed their accounts to remain public would be knowingly allowing the content that they post to be exposed to anyone.

If one were to change their account settings to prevent everyone with access to the internet from seeing what they post, then the issue of using information on these sites becomes afar negative issue given that the user have purposefully chosen not to share their account with everyone. Using deceptive means to access this information would be no different from stealing someone’s personal journal taping a private conversation without consent, which are both unethical tactics.

The biggest issue facing user is that many do not think before they begin posting whatever comes to mind onto the internet. There needs to be a better understanding for users that what they post on the internet can be found and used against them if its content is questionable or condemning.

However, whenever I encounter a story that has referenced something that appeared on someone’s page, it always gives the impression that the reporter has not done a good job of trying to use human sources as a means of breaking stories. The only time that writing about what people post onto their accounts would be if a public figure made an announcement via this medium or in the case of a criminal investigation where the authorities had used content posted on someone’s account to solve a crime.