Now that cyberbullying is being widely discussed in the blogosphere, I'm reading a lot about the notion that online anonymity is a bad thing. It can undermine accountability, and anonymous folks sometimes feel freer to be abusive and destructive.
I'm against cyberbullying, but I'm not categorically against online anonymity. I think the latter is a tool that can be used both constructively and destructively.
When I think about the constructive uses of anonymity, here are some examples that come to mind:
The Tor Project, which provides tools for online anonymity, allowing citizen journalists to publish political and social commentary in settings where political expression can leave the speaker open to reprisals.
Organizations such as Alcoholics Anonymous, whose members practice anonymity in order to protect those who might otherwise not seek help, and also in order to "place principles before personalities."
Various bloggers in the nonprofit sector, who publish their articles anonymously in order to tell truths that might otherwise cost them their jobs.
Once we develop the technology that protects us from reprisals, we extend that protection to both the good guys and the bad guys. As Shava Nerad, executive director of the Tor Project points out, the tool that makes free speech possible online can also be exploited by child pornographers.Organizations such as Alcoholics Anonymous, whose members practice anonymity in order to protect those who might otherwise not seek help, and also in order to "place principles before personalities."
Various bloggers in the nonprofit sector, who publish their articles anonymously in order to tell truths that might otherwise cost them their jobs.
However, I don't think that we should blame - or suppress - every technology that can be used for ends that are harmful, unethical, or illegal. We need a more nuanced approach.
