right to reality
harm to memory; Right to Memory Integrity
#author/Anderson Prompt: In discussions of the ethics of virtual reality and augmented reality, as well as in enhancement of images (“photoshopping”) and deep fakes, some have begun to speak of a “right to reality”. What would such a right involve?
The concept of a "right to reality" as it pertains to virtual reality, augmented reality, image enhancement, and deep fakes is quite complex and could encompass a variety of factors. As a starting point, the "right to reality" could be understood as the right to perceive the world as it truly is without unnecessary digital manipulation, misinformation, or deceit. This could involve several sub-rights or components:
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Right to Authentic Information: This would be a right to receive authentic, unmanipulated information. For example, deep fakes that alter video or audio to depict events that didn't happen or to make people say things they didn't could be viewed as an infringement on this right.
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Right to autonomy Regarding Personal Identity: With the rise of technology capable of altering one's appearance or identity, individuals could have a right to control their own digital representation. This could apply to unauthorized uses of someone's likeness in AR/VR environments or the creation of convincing deep fakes. This is related to rights to integrity.
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Right to Unaltered Perception: This would entail the right to experience the physical world without augmented layers of digital content, especially if those layers could misrepresent reality or obscure truths. It would also imply a right to opt out of augmented reality systems that might distort personal perceptions of the real world.
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Right to Privacy: This right could involve protecting individuals from intrusive AR/VR systems that may collect personal data or violate privacy in other ways.
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Right to Consent: A right to be fully informed about how augmented or virtual reality systems operate, what data they collect, how that data is used, and to be able to refuse such usage.
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Right to digital literacy: A right to education or resources to understand the impacts of these technologies, how they can be manipulated, and how to identify and critically evaluate altered content.
As you can see, the "right to reality" could encompass a variety of principles, all aiming to protect individuals from the potential harms of deep fakes, AR, VR, and other advanced digital technologies. However, it's a complex and emerging issue with many challenges, both ethically and legally, and societies are still grappling with the best ways to address these concerns.
Right to Memory Integrity
#author/Anderson As it becomes possible to alter memories, for example, as part of a prophylactic intervention to avoid Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder by inhibiting the formation of long-term episodic memory, the right to decide for oneself whether one's memories are altered. A particularly complicated issue arises when it becomes clear how much one person's confidence in their own memories and their ability to recall past episode is strongly dependent on what others believer. In this sense, one person's altered memories could cause harm to memory of other people.
- See: gaslighting