Ethically Digital: Contested Cultural Heritage in Digital Context

Over the past century, our understanding of cultural heritage has evolved, and now, heritage is seen more as a process than a product. Although the advancement of digital technologies has significantly aided in the research, protection, management, interpretation, and education of cultural heritage...

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Main Author: Bijan Rouhani
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Indiana University Office of Scholarly Publishing 2023-09-01
Series:Studies in Digital Heritage
Subjects:
Online Access:https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/sdh/article/view/35741
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author Bijan Rouhani
author_facet Bijan Rouhani
author_sort Bijan Rouhani
collection DOAJ
description Over the past century, our understanding of cultural heritage has evolved, and now, heritage is seen more as a process than a product. Although the advancement of digital technologies has significantly aided in the research, protection, management, interpretation, and education of cultural heritage, it also raises the question of how far this technology works in accordance with our current understanding of heritage as a process and is not taking a reductionist approach, in which heritage is cut off from its community and context. Ethical risks are higher for contested heritage, when meaning and values are questioned, or when people's ability to access and enjoy heritage is threatened. This paper discusses potential ethical risks regarding access, control, dissemination, and the digital economy by looking at existing approaches, guidelines, and principles in this field and a few digital heritage projects about contested heritage, and it questions whether the lack of an inclusive ethical framework could lead to a new kind of digital colonisation.    
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spelling doaj.art-bfaefa30d8d54af891727439b2355fd52023-10-07T02:49:10ZengIndiana University Office of Scholarly PublishingStudies in Digital Heritage2574-17482023-09-0171Ethically Digital: Contested Cultural Heritage in Digital ContextBijan Rouhani0University of Oxford, UK Over the past century, our understanding of cultural heritage has evolved, and now, heritage is seen more as a process than a product. Although the advancement of digital technologies has significantly aided in the research, protection, management, interpretation, and education of cultural heritage, it also raises the question of how far this technology works in accordance with our current understanding of heritage as a process and is not taking a reductionist approach, in which heritage is cut off from its community and context. Ethical risks are higher for contested heritage, when meaning and values are questioned, or when people's ability to access and enjoy heritage is threatened. This paper discusses potential ethical risks regarding access, control, dissemination, and the digital economy by looking at existing approaches, guidelines, and principles in this field and a few digital heritage projects about contested heritage, and it questions whether the lack of an inclusive ethical framework could lead to a new kind of digital colonisation.     https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/sdh/article/view/35741Digital Cultural HeritageContested Cultural HeritageDigital Ethics3D ReconstructionsDigital Colonialism
spellingShingle Bijan Rouhani
Ethically Digital: Contested Cultural Heritage in Digital Context
Studies in Digital Heritage
Digital Cultural Heritage
Contested Cultural Heritage
Digital Ethics
3D Reconstructions
Digital Colonialism
title Ethically Digital: Contested Cultural Heritage in Digital Context
title_full Ethically Digital: Contested Cultural Heritage in Digital Context
title_fullStr Ethically Digital: Contested Cultural Heritage in Digital Context
title_full_unstemmed Ethically Digital: Contested Cultural Heritage in Digital Context
title_short Ethically Digital: Contested Cultural Heritage in Digital Context
title_sort ethically digital contested cultural heritage in digital context
topic Digital Cultural Heritage
Contested Cultural Heritage
Digital Ethics
3D Reconstructions
Digital Colonialism
url https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/sdh/article/view/35741
work_keys_str_mv AT bijanrouhani ethicallydigitalcontestedculturalheritageindigitalcontext