In the present digital age, social media has revolutionised our way of communication and interaction.…

Question

In the present digital age, social media has revolutionised our way of communication and interaction. However, it has raised several ethical issues and challenges. Describe the key ethical dilemmas in this regard.

Ghissu Editorial · Accepted Answer

Social media pits free speech against dignity, connection against well-being, anonymity against accountability, personalisation against privacy and online safety against free expression. Shreya Singhal (2015) striking down Section 66A shows how hard the state's line between curbing harm and chilling speech is.

**Introduction**

With 886 million active internet users in 2024 (IAMAI-Kantar), social media has given every Indian a voice, but it also amplifies falsehood, hatred and surveillance, so genuine goods now collide.

**Dilemmas Facing Users and Society**

1. **Free speech vs dignity**: Expression under Article 19(1)(a) is vital, yet trolling and AI deepfakes aimed at women attack the dignity that Article 21 protects.
2. **Connection vs well-being**: Platforms link families, but engagement-driven design breeds addiction among adolescents, which is why Australia has barred accounts for children under 16.
3. **Anonymity vs accountability**: Anonymity shields whistle-blowers, yet untraceable WhatsApp forwards also hid those whose rumours led to the Dhule lynching of 2018.
4. **Virality vs truth**: Algorithms reward outrage, so users must weigh easy forwarding against **epistemic responsibility**, the duty to verify first.

**Dilemmas Facing Platforms and the State**

1. **Personalisation vs privacy**: Tailored content rests on data harvesting, and Cambridge Analytica (2018) showed its use to manipulate voters; Puttaswamy (2017) made privacy a fundamental right.
2. **Profit vs duty of care**: An engagement-based business model pulls platforms away from protecting users, raising the question of whether they are neutral pipes or responsible publishers.
3. **Safety vs free expression**: The IT Rules, 2021 curb harmful content, yet Shreya Singhal (2015) struck down Section 66A for chilling speech, so every takedown walks a narrow line.

SKETCH: spectrum | Regulating Social Media
left: Unregulated platforms
right: State censorship
- Self-regulation
- Co-regulation
- Statutory oversight

**Conclusion**

The ethical course is co-regulation with transparent public standards, data protection under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, transparent algorithms and digital literacy, keeping social media a public square where liberty and dignity are protected together.

In the present digital age, social media has revolutionised our way of communication and interaction. However, it has raised several ethical issues and challenges. Describe the key ethical dilemmas in this regard.

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