Running head: ETHICS AND THE PRACTICE OF ANTHROPOLOGY 1

Ethics and the Practice of Anthropology in the Digital Culture

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 ETHICS AND THE PRACTICE OF ANTHROPOLOGY 2

Ethics and the Practice of Anthropology in the Digital Culture

i. Introduction

The world has witnessed a massive shift with the current state of technological disruption

and the rigid classical ethical concerns and legal ramification for personal privacy and individual

liberties in self-expression and media has shifted. Intersectionality issues between local and

global forces have permeated every facet of individual life through social media and disrupted

global systems of acculturation. While ethical concerns demand the assertion of judgements

between right and wrong, much heightened ambiguity and uncertainty exists in the very nature of

work of the anthropologist because it has to embed the altruisms that the society produces in

terms of material culture and the ubiquitous influences from without. Burr cites the notion that

“informants should be more equal partners in the construction of ethnography,” which would

justify the necessity to share the anthropological findings openly beyond the academic

community so that anthropological knowledge is instrumental to the process of change and

adaptation. Ethical concerns have become central to the very livelihoods of people and

communal life which justifies a radical reflection including Marxist considerations to openly

debate social distinctions that solicit new ways of revealing personhood and communalism to the

shared discourses of life.

ii. Overview of Burr’s Fieldwork

Burr’s work in Vietnam depicts an academic irresponsibility for failing to offer technical

knowhow on the issue of the spread of HIV/Aids because a disease as HIV virus is a matter of

global health concern beyond all excuses of cultural and administrative scapegoating. She

proceeds to assert that “Practitioners and academics are often suspicious of each other,” which

she uses to qualify her neglect of a horrible realization. Applied anthropology like any other
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social sciences is not isolated form the common concern that all knowledge should help man

improve his conditions, particularly if there is no material cost called for in giving advice. It can

only be tarried to an ethical position that Burr asserts “government officially denies that HIV-

positive people are being discriminated against.” Ethics cannot be a shifting goal-post if it is

meant to embody a valuable body of knowledge relevant for professional and institutional

discourses. Burr admits to her lack of confidence and asserts she “floundered” in the face of the

uncertainty that engulfed her research experience, which exonerates her wrong doings.

iii. Reflections and Experience

Anthropologists should be more indulgent with society throughout their work particularly

in the face of human suffering and disease as the world witnesses more intense cultural

alignments to commercialism and western free market systems (Burr, 2002). Commodification

of human welfare and the plight of the unrepresented and marginalized groups like the Hanoi’s

youth delinquents is a pertinent case to justify radical and critical appraisal of professional work

and academic apprenticeships. Current technology offers a highly advanced access to diverse

platforms for collaboration and multi-stakeholder participatory approaches in addressing

grassroots issues. The diverse social media platforms enable people to engage in multiple ways

that may not solicit social rebuttal if conducted intelligently. Taking photos and videos while in

the field and sharing links with relevant institutions can be an effective way of attaining redress

without the risk of a backlash. Nonetheless, one should not be involved in espionage, which

might attract ethical and criminal ramifications. Social media alone have revolutionized

anthropological practice because people post all manner of their experiences and use social

media platforms to communicate all manner of health concerns and private lifestyle issues with

total disregard for privacy.

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References

Burr, R. (2002). View of shaming of the anthropologist: Ethical dilemmas during and in the

aftermath of the fieldwork process: Anthropology Matters. Retrieved February 18, 2023,

from https://www.anthropologymatters.com/index.php/anth_matters/article/view/133/260