Neo-Rawlsian Co-ordinates: Notes on A Theory of Justice for the Information Age.

Duff, Alistair

Abstract

The ideas of philosopher John Rawls should be appropriated for the information age. A literature review
identifies previous contributions in fields such as communication and library and information science. The
article postulates the following neo-Rawlsian propositions as co-ordinates for the development of a normative
theory of the information society: that political philosophy should be incorporated into information society
studies; that social and technological circumstances define the limits of progressive politics; that the right is
prior to the good in social morality; that the nation state should remain in sharp focus, despite globalization;
that liberty, the first principle of social justice, requires updating to deal with the growth of surveillance and
other challenges; that social wellbeing is a function of equal opportunities plus limited inequalities of outcome,
in information as well as material resources; and that political stability depends upon an overlapping
consensus accommodating both religion and secularism. Although incomplete, such co-ordinates can help to
guide policy-makers in the twenty-first century.

Citation

Duff, A. (2006). Neo-Rawlsian Co-ordinates: Notes on A Theory of Justice for the Information Age. International journal of information ethics, 6, 17-22

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 9, 1999
• Publication Date: 2006-12
• Deposit Date: May 16, 2016
• Print ISSN: 1614-1687
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 6
• Pages: 17-22
• Keywords: John Rawls; information age; communication; Information science studies
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/id/eprint/9957