Introduction

Social media, a powerful medium of communication and mobilisation, fosters expression, transparency, and connectivity, but also poses ethical challenges of privacy, misinformation, and responsibility. These concerns highlight the key ethical dilemmas that must be critically examined in the digital age

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Key Ethical Dilemmas in the Age of Social Media

• Privacy vs Publicity: Constant data collection challenges the right to privacy, a fundamental right under Justice K.S. Puttaswamy vs Union of India (2017).
  • Eg: The Cambridge Analytica scandal, where personal data was misused for political propaganda.
• Freedom of Expression vs Hate Speech: Balancing John Stuart Mill’s Harm Principle (freedom until it harms others) with the need to regulate hate content.
  • Eg: Communal misinformation on WhatsApp has triggered violence in the Muzaffarnagar riots (2013).
• Profit Motive vs Social Responsibility: Platforms prioritise algorithmic amplification of sensational content for profit, raising questions of utilitarian ethics vs corporate responsibility.
  • Eg: YouTube’s recommendation algorithms sometimes promote extremist content for higher engagement.
• Equality vs Digital Divide: While social media democratizes information, unequal access deepens exclusion, violating Rawls’ principle of justice (fair equality of opportunity).
  • Eg: Only 43% of rural households in India have internet access (NFHS-5), limiting participation.
• Authenticity vs Manipulation: Fake news and deepfakes challenge truthfulness, eroding trust in institutions.
  • Eg: Misinformation during COVID-19 vaccine drives spread fear among vulnerable groups.
• Individual Autonomy vs Algorithmic Control: Personalized feeds shape opinions, creating filter bubbles and reducing autonomy in decision-making.
  • Eg: Social media’s role in influencing voter behaviour during the 2019 General Elections.
• Accountability vs Anonymity: While anonymity protects whistleblowers, it also enables cyberbullying and trolling, raising questions of Kantian ethics (duty and respect for persons).
  

Conclusion

Social media embodies both opportunities and dilemmas. It is not technology itself but its use and regulation that determine outcomes. As Aristotle’s idea of the “golden mean” suggests, the ethical path lies in balancing rights with responsibilities, ensuring that social media strengthens democracy, inclusivity, and human dignity in the digital age.

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