Topics in Digital Media: Contextual Integrity: Technology, Philosophy & Policy*
MCC-GE 2130-001
Thursdays 2:00-4:10 PM
Fall 2015
Helen Nissenbaum, Department of Media, Culture, and Communication
*Course developed with generous funding from the Intel University Program Office

Prerequisites

This graduate level course welcomes students with varied backgrounds and skills but prior coursework in either computing (e.g. programming, website creation, data science, etc.) or social, political, and ethical analysis is required.

Intended Learning Outcomes

Familiarity with the contemporary landscape of privacy threats from digital and information technologies, landmark cases, and literatures
Deep knowledge of the selected case areas
Appreciation of philosophical and ethical concepts relating to privacy
Insight into legal, policy, and business issues at stake in privacy threats and proposed solutions
Thorough grasp of the theory of contextual integrity
Working knowledge of key technologies and sociotechnical systems, particularly those relating to the selected cases

Overview

The course will be conducted in seminar style with the professor initiating discussion topics and students contributing actively. Because privacy is an active issue in the public sphere, students and professor will engage with unfolding and ongoing questions. Students in this course are expected to engage actively in individual research into topics of interest, sometimes going beyond the materials given in the syllabus.
This course is about privacy in its relation to technology. Its approach to the topic is through the deep study of a handful of cases selected from a domain of contemporary areas in which the interplay of technology with politics, policy, ethics, and society have yielded conflicts over privacy that have been difficult to resolve. The cases are distinctive because they pose equally difficult challenges to technologists, policy makers, and ethicists who -- the course will demonstrate --must understand the mutual impacts of these diverse arenas in order to make progress. Cases to be studied in Fall 2015 are online tracking, big data, Internet of Things (including quantified self), and biometrics. Four modules, each devoted to one of these cases will include a session devoted to relevant technologies in addition to a session devoted to ethical, social, and policy analysis. When considering the origins of respective threats to privacy, as well as possible answers, or ways to address them, the course will evaluate a range of possibilities, including technology, policy, ethics, all three, and in what measure.
The theory of contextual integrity will form the analytic framework for our analyses of the four case areas. To establish common ground and gain familiarity with the theory, the first three sessions will be devoted to learning basic concepts, the analytic framework, and design heuristic.

Requirements

Students are expected to attend all class meetings and complete reading assignments beforehand. Students should take notes and bring these to class. Readings from disciplinary sources will vary in difficulty particularly in relation to students' backgrounds. Don't be surprised if you have to read some of the articles slowly, or even multiple times. Participation is an important element of the course, both in-class and online; careful reading contributes significantly to the quality of your contributions. You will be also be evaluated on the basis of written, oral, and practical assignments, a collaborative project, and a term paper based on your project.

Grading

Participation (in-class and online): 20%
Miscellaneous homework: 20%
Group project and presentation: 30%
Term paper/project write up: 30%