LEGAL, ETHICAL, ANDC SOCIETAL ISSUE IN

MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY

NETIQUETTE
 THE CORE
RULES OF
NETIQUETTE.
SHEA, V.
(1994).
Rule 1. Remember the human.

Never forget that the person reading

your mail or posting is, indeed, a
person, with feelings that can be hurt.
Corollary 1 to Rule #1: It's not nice to hurt other people's feelings.
Corollary 2: Never mail or post anything you wouldn't say to your reader's
face.
Corollary 3: Notify your readers when flaming
 Through the technology, it is no longer necessary to be
physically present to initiate interaction. As convenient as it
is, it also creates a barrier between people that makes
communication tricky. Even with emoticon and emojis,
electronic devices still can’t quite convey messages the way
face-to-face conversation does. Without facial expressions,
the tone of voice, gestures, and body language, it is easy to
forget that those at the receiving end of communication and
actual human beings. Putting oneself to others’ shoes can put
everything in the right perspective. Remembering that the
receiver on the other side of your computer or phone screen
is another person is vital to avoiding hurting other people’s
feelings. Empathy is one of the most powerful motivations for
some basic decency online.
Rule 2. Adhere to the same standards of behavior
online that you follow in real life.

Corollary 1: Be ethical.
Corollary 2: Breaking the law is bad Netiquette.
While it can be argued that standards
of behavior may be different in the
virtual world, they certainly should not
be lower. You should do your best to
act within the laws and ethical
manners of society whenever you
inhabit "cyberspace." Would you
behave rudely to someone face-to-
face? On most occasions, no. Neither
should you behave this way in the
virtual world.
Rule 3. Know where you are
in cyberspace.

Corollary 1: Netiquette varies

from domain to domain.
Corollary 2: Lurk before you
leap.
The cyberspace may be as vast as the
actual outer space. With the amount of
information and the wide array of users
online, divisions are bound to come up
depending on domains. Acceptable
behaviour varies on the domain you are on.
If posting daily accounts of your life is
acceptable on blogging domain, it is
improper on academic ones. Knowing where
you are in cyberspace helps in practicing
good netiquette.
Rule 4. Respect other people's time and bandwidth.

Corollary 1: It's OK to think that what you're doing at the

moment is the most important thing in the universe, but don't
expect anyone else to agree with you.
Corollary 2: Post messages to the appropriate discussion
group.
Corollary 3: Try not to ask stupid questions on discussion
groups.
Corollary 4: Read the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
document.
Corollary 5: When appropriate, use private email instead of
posting to the group.
Corollary 6: Don't post subscribe, unsubscribe, or FAQ
requests.
Corollary 7: Don't waste expert readers' time by posting basic
information.
Between school and works, social life, chores,
errands to run, and safeguarding one’s health, 24
hours no longer seem enough. It is important to
ensure that one is not wasting it by delivering
nonsense or unsolicited information. Bandwidth is the
information-carrying capacity of the wires and
channels that connect everyone in cyberspace.
There’s a limit to the amount of data that any piece
of wiring can carry at any given moment—even a
state-of-the-art fiber-optic cable. (Shea, 1997) This is
why spamming, other than being frowned upon is
bad netiquette.
Rule 5. Make yourself look good
online.

Corollary 1: Check grammar and

spelling before you post.
Corollary 2: Know what you're talking
about and make sense.
Corollary 3: Don't post flame-bait.
People, in general, have a natural desire to
be linked. Even on social media platforms,
getting several likes on posts, or hearts on
photos, can definitely make anyone’s day.
Making oneself look good online means
appearing as a decent, smart, and well-
rounded individual, through what one
writes. Look good, by being a responsible
contributor in the age of media
information.
Rule 6. Share expert knowledge.

Corollary 1: Offer answers and help

to people who ask questions on
discussion groups.
Corollary 2: If you've received email
answers to a posted question,
summarize them and post the
summary to the discussion group.
Both the great and terrible beauty of new
media lies in its information crowd sourcing.
Anyone with access to the internet can share
data and information to the world. While this
raises credibility issues among many data
found online, it also increases the number of
accurate facts contributed by experts. Experts
contributing valuable information, and making
them available to many, is indeed a positive
effect of the media and information age.
Rule 7. Help keep flame wars
under control.
Corollary 1: Don't respond to
flame-bait.
Corollary 2: Don't post spelling or
grammar flames.
Corollary 3: If you've posted flame-
bait or perpetuated a flame war,
apologize.
Flaming is what people do when they express a
strongly held opinion without holding back any
emotions. (Shea, 1997) One good example would be
sharing strong political views through social media
platforms. Since not everyone shares the same beliefs
and supports the same parties, the conflict between
differing groups arises. This is called the flame wars.
Keep in mind that having the right to speech and
expression does not give anyone the right to crucify
others with a different view. Opinions are always
allowed to be voiced online but at the end of the day,
everyone just has to agree to disagree.’
Rule 8. Respect other
people's privacy.

Don't read other people's

private email.
People dependence on social media has put
everyone’s lives under a microscope. Even so,
privacy still remains a right that needs to be
asserted. Personal emails should be treated as
regular mails, only to be read by whom it was
addressed to. No one should access social
media profiles of others without their consent.
Let anyone choose what information to share
and who to share them with online. Respecting
other people’s privacy is not just good
netiquette, it is everyone’s responsibility.
Rule 9. Don't abuse your
power.

The more power you have, the

more important it is that you use it
well.
Just like in face-to-face situations, there are
people in cyberspace who have more "power"
than others. They have more expertise in
technology or they have years of experience
in a particular skill or subject matter. Maybe
it's you who posesses all of this knowledge
and power! Just remember: knowing more
than others do or having more power than
others may have does not give you the right
to take advantage of anyone. Think of Rule 1:
Remember the human.
Rule 10. Be forgiving of
other people's mistakes.

You were a network newbie

once too!
Not everyone has the same amount of
experience working in the virtual world. And
not everyone knows the rules of netiquette. At
some point, you will see a stupid question,
read an unnecessarily long response, or
encounter misspelled words; when this
happens, practice kindness and forgiveness as
you would hope someone would do if you had
committed the same offense. If it's a minor
"offense," you might want to let it slide. If you
feel compelled to respond to a mistake, do so
in a private email rather than a public forum.