The legal and ethical environment in which organizations have been operating has changed significantly due to the introduction of technology. The new media has changed the world of business and other agencies in various industries, including the law enforcement agencies (Jennings, 2018). The social media has altered the way people interact and conduct their business. Facebook is one of the commonly used social media tools that has transformed communications and other interactive mechanisms. People freely post information on Facebook because its content is user-generated. As a result, questions arise regarding the possibility of controlling whatever is posted on Facebook. Regardless of the potential benefits of Facebook, it has grown in controversy regarding the nature and amount of information and content posted on this media. One of the debates is whether Facebook can be used legally or ethically in rescuing a crime victim.
Facebook’s Legal or Ethical Duty to Rescue a Crime Victim
The question of whether Facebook has a legal or ethical duty to rescue a crime victim is one of the controversial topics relating to the use of social media tool. The legal and moral obligation to rescue crime victims rests with trained and law enforcement officials and not individuals who are potentially ignorant of crime. Facebook is merely a social networking platform, and users are not first responders or law enforcement officials. Furthermore, they lack the power to perform policing duties. Therefore, Facebook or its users do not have the legal or ethical authority to rescue crime victims. Nonetheless, the Facebook community becomes aware of major crime and law violation occurrences because of the recordings posted on the media.
By its very nature, Facebook has become a central tool in posting information on crime, especially in real-time. For example, in the case of Robert Godwin Sr.’s murder by Steve Stephens, the Facebook community must have been the first to know about the crime. Therefore, the law enforcement officials after using such information would respond to the crime and potentially rescue the victim. Assuming that it is possible for users who become aware of the crime to report in real-time, the law enforcement can respond promptly to save the subject. However, the nature of Facebook as a social media tool might not facilitate real-time reporting of crime to save the victim. For example, between the time of the recording and the response, the offense might already have occurred. However, in other situations, such as a person being held hostage with live recording on Facebook, the law enforcement officials might be notified and have enough time to respond and possibly rescue the victim.
Recommendations to Review the Types of Content that Appear on Social Media Sites
Facebook and other social media sites can be more responsible and proactive in reviewing their content. One of the ways to achieve the objective is adhering to a code of conduct that should guide ethical practice in business and other interactions (Jennings, 2018). If such a law is not already in place, it should be established and communicated to all social media users. Furthermore, there should be consequences for failure to follow the code, including removal of the adverse content or blocking the user responsible for the content. Therefore, such initiatives should discourage the Facebook community and other social media users from posting unacceptable content.
Monitoring social media use is another approach of ensuring that users are responsible when sharing any content or information. Social media sites, such as Facebook should develop and implement a policy to carefully evaluate people creating profiles (Polonetsky, Tene, & Jerome, 2015). They should request specific information before accepting new profiles, such as names and other identifying information. Where such information is lacking, such a person should not be allowed to create a profile. Besides, the policy should include conditions for immediate removal of a person from the site for any violation, such as posting unacceptable content. The method will discourage posting malicious and criminal content on the social media sites.
The social media control mechanisms should include the means of reviewing content posted on those platforms and immediately pull down anything that is unacceptable. Alternatively, they should have a body responsible for the review of information or content before it is posted on the platforms. Any information that does not meet security standards according to the control mechanisms should be barred from getting posted (Polonetsky, Tene, & Jerome, 2015). The tool should especially work for posts that become public and can be detrimental to a vast audience. For example, videos of heinous crimes should be barred and instead reported to the relevant authorities for timely response. The approach will help the social media administrators to protect their users.
Safeguards to Help Prevent Acts of Violence
One of the safety measures is to create a proactive policy for reporting any acts of violence posted on the social media. Most of the content is viewed by other users who should immediately report to Facebook to have the information pulled down instantly. Information on social media is posted in real-time, and an audience is always available to view it within seconds (Polonetsky, Tene, & Jerome, 2015). Therefore, the social media sites’ administrators should empower users by making it easy to report the content instantly. Such a process will allow them to remove the content as soon as it is posted.
Another safeguard is to create a policy and software to enable Facebook and other social media administrators to evaluate content before being posted on the platforms. The social media sites will be more effective in controlling violent instances from being published if they can examine it long before the user makes it public (Lipschultz, 2014). Given that technology is developing, it is possible to create software or programs that can restrict any information that does not meet the standards of safe content for the social media sites. The program will make it easier for the administrators to control social media use in general.
Debate about Facebook’s Ethics Officer or Oversight Committee
In the wake of major controversies surrounding Facebook, including its role in political campaigns and violence in society, the debate about the role of an Ethics Officer or Oversight Committee to oversee responsible and ethical working of the social media is on the rise. Facebook does not have any Ethics Officer or Oversight Committee; hence, many individuals, including its users, feel that the company needs to do more to ensure ethics and responsibility in its use. Facebook and other social media agencies should hire chief ethical officers to improve the ethical standards and conduct of their users (Polonetsky, Tene, & Jerome, 2015). The sites are in a complex world, bringing together different people and technologies that regularly interact with both ethical and unethical outcomes. Creating such a role will communicate the message to users and policymakers that the social media companies are committed to their role as epicenters of political, economic, and social activities.
Users should support the need for the Ethics Officer to police the use of social media due to the increase in unethical practice and activities. Facebook and other social media companies need to initiate more efforts to make their user communities accountable for their content and information they post (Polonetsky, Tene, & Jerome, 2015). Such a position will play an essential role in informing internal conversations around political and social matters. The officer will help the company to navigate the complex world of technology and to avoid any legal and ethical violations from the social media usage. Absence of an ethical police in social media continues to create loopholes for unethical use and posting of content damaging to the moral fabric of society (Lipschultz, 2014). Potentially, the current environment creates gaps that even criminals use to post content and go unpunished. Therefore, the role of an Ethics Officer is not only necessary but also urgent.
Changes Facebook should Adopt to Encourage Ethical Use of their Platform
One of the necessary changes that Facebook can adopt in enhancing ethics in its use is to encourage users to adapt to the code of conduct. Facebook should not only create a guideline but also ensure that its users sign and follow it when using their accounts. The law should state the rules and regulations for the participation in the social media (Lipschultz, 2014). Consequently, the standards should explain what the users should post and what to avoid in observing ethics. The Facebook community will avoid any content that is not outlined in the code of conduct.
The second change that Facebook can make to improve ethical use is to evaluate all accounts and eliminate those that are deemed unethical. Besides assessing the Facebook accounts when users are signing in, they should also perform regular appraisals to cancel any platform that does not meet ethical standards. The evaluations of Facebook accounts should be part of moral policing on social media and conducted by the newly created Ethics Office following the ethical code of conduct. Facebook management should become strict regarding all content posted on the site to improve ethical and legal behavior amongst the users (Lipschultz, 2014). Consequently, the Facebook community will adapt to the ethical culture during communication and as a business tool.
Conclusion
Facebook and other social media sites are important sources of information and communication platforms for individuals and businesses. The tools are beneficial in promoting social, political, and economic discussions through posting of meaningful content. However, Facebook and general social media use have been criticized for violation of ethical practice regarding the content posted by users. Some of the materials violate ethical and legal standards because of violence, obscenity, and fraudulent among other information that users post for the public to see. While Facebook can play a positive role in promoting social justice and enhancing law enforcement, the platform, by its nature, is prone to major violations. Therefore, Facebook and other social media platforms should implement a code of ethics and establish an office to enhance ethical and responsible use.
References
Jennings, M. (2018). Business: Its Legal, Ethical, and Global Environment (11th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
Lipschultz, J. H. (2014). Social media communication: Concepts, practices, data, law and ethics. New York, NY: Routledge.
Polonetsky, J., Tene, O., & Jerome, J. (2015). Beyond the common rule: Ethical structures for data research in non-academic settings. J. on Telecomm. & High Tech. L., 13, 333.
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