My Three Laws at 6:46 PM

Picture source: 15MB of fame

If anyone has read the book series I, Robot by Isaac Asimov or seen the 2004 movie of the same name, then you might remember the "Three Laws of Robotics." They were a set of principles that all robots had to follow in order to properly and safely function in society. In summary, the first law declared that a robot cannot directly or indirectly harm humans. The second said that a robot must obey human orders unless it conflicts with the first law and the third said that robots must protect their own existence as long as them doing so doesn't violate the other two laws. Similarly, I have come up with the Three Laws of Blogging that I will follow.

1. My blog and its posts will not be created to insinuate harm to any individual or group and if changes or corrections are necessary to minimize harm then they will be made and noted as such.
2. I will post with integrity and respect along with giving credit where credit is due, except when this would conflict with the First Law.
3. My blog and its posts will contain anything I want, within the confines of U.S. law and under the requirements of COMM 439, presented in a classy, academic style as long as such freedom does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

Of course, if you're truly familiar with the I, Robot books or movie then you would know that these laws aren't perfect. Just like CyberJournalist's Bloggers' Code of Ethics and the Society of Professional Journalists's Code of Ethics, no set of ethics covers every rule well. These three laws are just my personal code of ethics to make my blog credible. Perhaps these Three Laws of Blogging need a zeroth law or a fourth law just like in I, Robot, but for now my blog and all of its content must obey these guidelines.