Ethical Issues Faced by Online Museum Exhibition and Their Solutions

The Ethical Issues Faced by Online Museum Exhibition and Their Solutions
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The Ethical Issues Faced by Online Museum Exhibition and Their Solutions
With the emergence of digital technology, many museums have established online exhibitions that allow individuals to access from different parts of the world. Moreover, the outbreak has forced many museums across the world to adopt proper and effective strategies to ensure they continue operating and service their clients. Curators in many museums are developing alternative approaches, especially utilizing digital platforms to ensure that they organize online exhibitions. The aim is to ensure that the public is able to access collections and people can undergo virtual tours without the need of physically travelling to the specific museum site. Moreover, the audience is becoming tech-savvy and people prefer things associated with technology. Many people across the world are insanely addicted to use technological implements to experience different aspects related to technology and how it should be applied in the business settings. In this paper, we will highlight the ethical issues related to race, ethnicity, class, and historical representation in museums, especially online exhibitions. The paper will also argue about important aspects that can be considered in order to address these issues and ensure that everything is handled appropriately.
There are any museums across the world that have created numerous online archives and exhibitions. This implies that people from different parts of the world are able to undertake digital tours while on their bed. Through virtual tours, individuals can learn about diverse issues such as Parisian Impressionist works and exhibitions about ancient Greece. There are many exhibitions that can be accessed at a single click. This offers people opportunities to explore and gain knowledge about diverse issues related to culture, race, ethnicity, class, art, and history. All these are elements that online platforms have aided museums to accomplish. There are minimal barriers to experience art and the diverse elements associated with museum exhibitions.
While these benefits have been acknowledged, there are many ethical issues arising from online museum exhibitions. Museums are institution that are established to preserve people’s culture, history, and important elements regarding the origin of certain values within the society. In this regard, museums are mandated to transmit knowledge, history, culture, and other essential elements about the past, present, and future. Notably, in the hierarchy of importance, museums remain important pillars to guide and establish measures that ensure nations and local communities’ benefits. Moreover, they are positioned to present historical challenges and make individuals understand the experiences of people within a specific region. Therefore, it is expected that museums can make effective ethical decisions and ensure that issues arising are addressed amicably. This is essential to ensure that the institution maintains trust and challenges associated with class, ethnicity, and maintenance of historical accuracy are eliminated.
There is a standard code of ethics that govern the operations of museums and how they ought to organize exhibitions. This includes their presentation of history, and how they must be placed in a unique position to reveal the ills through history and how they can be addressed. The challenges that must be addressed include issues related to class, ethnicity, and maintenance of historical accuracy. Reflecting proper ethical standards is mandated in the operations of museums. Without maintaining ethics on the issues or race, class, ethnicity, and representation of history, people will not be able to understand the challenges bedeviling people, and how they ought to be addressed. With the emergence of technology, there are several loopholes that have been highlighted to cause ethical misconduct in museums. There are certain actions that are more pronounced, while others remain anonymous and can never be understood easily. Through the process of addressing the ethical problems, there is a need to have effective measures in place. Administrators, curators, and other stakeholders involved must develop a process for careful reflection, consultation, and guidance to ensure that there are no biases associated with online exhibitions.
Ethical Issues in Online Exhibitions
In museum ethics, the focus is usually placed on the value of exhibitions. This is centered on how important issues affecting the society are presented. When making decisions about the online exhibition, and what themes to focus on, curators are expected to make judgements and ensure that there are no misrepresentations related to race, ethnicity, class, or history. This is essential to ensure that individual, although not visiting the place physically, can gain a better understanding of the theme or subject being exhibited. As noted earlier, it is important to understand that this is essential to ensure that every aspect of the museum work, including the collection of artifacts and conservation priorities align with the code of ethics in the profession.[ADDIN CSL_CITATION {"citationItems":[{"id":"ITEM-1","itemData":{"ISSN":"2380-8845","author":[{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Manžuch","given":"Zinaida","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""}],"container-title":"Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies","id":"ITEM-1","issue":"2","issued":{"date-parts":[["2017"]]},"page":"4","title":"Ethical issues in digitization of cultural heritage","type":"article-journal","volume":"4"},"uris":["/documents/?uuid=eced391e-5598-4892-a1c1-5ecf00f84c00"]}],"mendeley":{"formattedCitation":"Zinaida Manžuch, “Ethical Issues in Digitization of Cultural Heritage,” Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies 4, no. 2 (2017): 4.","plainTextFormattedCitation":"Zinaida Manžuch, “Ethical Issues in Digitization of Cultural Heritage,” Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies 4, no. 2 (2017): 4.","previouslyFormattedCitation":"Zinaida Manžuch, “Ethical Issues in Digitization of Cultural Heritage,” Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies 4, no. 2 (2017): 4."},"properties":{"noteIndex":1},"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"}Zinaida Manžuch, “Ethical Issues in Digitization of Cultural Heritage,” Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies 4, no. 2 (2017): 4.]
In the recent years, people have highlighted concerns related to museum ethics. There are important cultural issues within museum exhibition as well as lack of social responsiveness in many organizations. The code of ethics guiding museum work, especially how they plan and present exhibitions, require museums to consider the implications of any information, themes, or materials presented to people. When exhibitions address sensitive issues, such as those related to race, class, ethnicity, and historical representation, there is a need to be tactful and ensure that people’s values are respected. Moreover, the information or themes must also be true and maintain the dignity of the people. This requires museum to present materials in a way that addresses or show the disadvantages related to problems of race, class, and ethnicity.
Historical information must be presented in a way that shows the dangers and diverse challenges associated with the existence of these problems. It is important to note that the online exhibitions are avenues through which knowledge is constructed and can influence people’s perception of others. Therefore, the curators must be keen to formulate exhibitions that relate to the people’s needs and addresses any form of historical injustices arising from their past experiences.
Since online exhibition are essential in the process of knowledge construction, it is essential for curators to be selective during the planning of the presentation. The main ethical problem related to knowledge construction arises from poor selection of exhibition materials. This is usually done to the sheer disregard of people past experiences, especially injustices based on race, ethnicity, and class. Therefore, the decision on what to include and exclude determine how effective the museum exhibition is in constructing knowledge about race, class, ethnicity, and people’s history. The means of presentation is also important, which includes the design, space, language, and what features are perceived to be valued more by the curators. In this regard, this can create ethical problems associated with both race, ethnicity, and class in the exhibition.[ADDIN CSL_CITATION {"citationItems":[{"id":"ITEM-1","itemData":{"ISSN":"1050-8422","author":[{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Huang","given":"Ching-Yuan","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""},{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Chiang","given":"Lichun","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""}],"container-title":"Ethics & Behavior","id":"ITEM-1","issue":"4","issued":{"date-parts":[["2007"]]},"page":"367-386","publisher":"Taylor & Francis","title":"Learning ethics from museum exhibitions: Possible or impossible?","type":"article-journal","volume":"17"},"uris":["/documents/?uuid=dc06082b-7e59-433a-89e7-df4c6b30b844"]}],"mendeley":{"formattedCitation":"Ching-Yuan Huang and Lichun Chiang, “Learning Ethics from Museum Exhibitions: Possible or Impossible?,” Ethics & Behavior 17, no. 4 (2007): 367–86.","plainTextFormattedCitation":"Ching-Yuan Huang and Lichun Chiang, “Learning Ethics from Museum Exhibitions: Possible or Impossible?,” Ethics & Behavior 17, no. 4 (2007): 367–86.","previouslyFormattedCitation":"Ching-Yuan Huang and Lichun Chiang, “Learning Ethics from Museum Exhibitions: Possible or Impossible?,” Ethics & Behavior 17, no. 4 (2007): 367–86."},"properties":{"noteIndex":2},"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"}Ching-Yuan Huang and Lichun Chiang, “Learning Ethics from Museum Exhibitions: Possible or Impossible?,” Ethics & Behavior 17, no. 4 (2007): 367–86.] [ADDIN CSL_CITATION {"citationItems":[{"id":"ITEM-1","itemData":{"URL":"https://panmemic.hypotheses.org/778","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2021","5","5"]]},"author":[{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Papaioannou","given":"Sophia Diamantopoulou; Sofia Paschou; Georgios","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""}],"id":"ITEM-1","issued":{"date-parts":[["0"]]},"title":"Experiencing the digital museum at the time of the pandemic: The ethics of multimodal communication with the visitors","type":"webpage"},"uris":["/documents/?uuid=b70d0615-8dcc-4729-a9af-d887f9500c27"]}],"mendeley":{"formattedCitation":"Sophia Diamantopoulou; Sofia Paschou; Georgios Papaioannou, “Experiencing the Digital Museum at the Time of the Pandemic: The Ethics of Multimodal Communication with the Visitors,” accessed May 5, 2021, https://panmemic.hypotheses.org/778.","plainTextFormattedCitation":"Sophia Diamantopoulou; Sofia Paschou; Georgios Papaioannou, “Experiencing the Digital Museum at the Time of the Pandemic: The Ethics of Multimodal Communication with the Visitors,” accessed May 5, 2021, https://panmemic.hypotheses.org/778.","previouslyFormattedCitation":"Sophia Diamantopoulou; Sofia Paschou; Georgios Papaioannou, “Experiencing the Digital Museum at the Time of the Pandemic: The Ethics of Multimodal Communication with the Visitors,” accessed May 5, 2021, https://panmemic.hypotheses.org/778."},"properties":{"noteIndex":3},"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"}Sophia Diamantopoulou; Sofia Paschou; Georgios Papaioannou, “Experiencing the Digital Museum at the Time of the Pandemic: The Ethics of Multimodal Communication with the Visitors,” accessed May 5, 2021, https://panmemic.hypotheses.org/778.] [ADDIN CSL_CITATION {"citationItems":[{"id":"ITEM-1","itemData":{"ISBN":"0838908179","author":[{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Kalfatovic","given":"Martin R","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""}],"id":"ITEM-1","issued":{"date-parts":[["2002"]]},"publisher":"American Library Association","title":"Creating a winning online exhibition: A guide for libraries, archives, and museums","type":"book"},"uris":["/documents/?uuid=3cd8bbcf-f6dc-4854-9287-81b6aa87e2f6"]}],"mendeley":{"formattedCitation":"Martin R Kalfatovic, Creating a Winning Online Exhibition: A Guide for Libraries, Archives, and Museums (American Library Association, 2002).","plainTextFormattedCitation":"Martin R Kalfatovic, Creating a Winning Online Exhibition: A Guide for Libraries, Archives, and Museums (American Library Association, 2002).","previouslyFormattedCitation":"Martin R Kalfatovic, Creating a Winning Online Exhibition: A Guide for Libraries, Archives, and Museums (American Library Association, 2002)."},"properties":{"noteIndex":4},"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"}Martin R Kalfatovic, Creating a Winning Online Exhibition: A Guide for Libraries, Archives, and Museums (American Library Association, 2002).]
Another essential ethical problem commonly arising from online exhibition is usually the approach or tact in the presentation. This includes appropriate explanation of themes, objects, and how the exhibition shapes people’s perceptions about important issues related to race, ethnicity, and class. In most instances, visitors in virtual exhibitions perceive the information being presented to be true or authentic. There is a cultural authority associated with museums, and hence their central role in shaping people values and attitudes regarding important issues in society. Therefore, it is unethical for museums to present information that is never authentic and disregards important aspects related to race and culture. Even during instances when they make claims regarding scientific information, it is still appropriate to respect the ideological stance of the audience, as well as other people not represented within the audience. The aim is ensuring that there is never bias or stereotypes encouraged through the online exhibitions. Moreover, because of the unique and influential role played by museums, there is also a need to have proactive participation in the development of different issues related to race, ethnicity, class, and historical representation. Therefore, truth should never be disregarded in order to appease individuals of a particular race. There is a need to have a strong foundation associated with the people and how values are shaped in society.[ADDIN CSL_CITATION {"citationItems":[{"id":"ITEM-1","itemData":{"URL":"/ethical-issues-collections-management/","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2021","5","5"]]},"id":"ITEM-1","issued":{"date-parts":[["0"]]},"title":"Ethical Issues in Collections Management","type":"webpage"},"uris":["/documents/?uuid=5c62dc84-3120-4986-88bf-29ebd96cf89d"]}],"mendeley":{"formattedCitation":"“Ethical Issues in Collections Management,” accessed May 5, 2021, /ethical-issues-collections-management/.","plainTextFormattedCitation":"“Ethical Issues in Collections Management,” accessed May 5, 2021, /ethical-issues-collections-management/.","previouslyFormattedCitation":"“Ethical Issues in Collections Management,” accessed May 5, 2021, /ethical-issues-collections-management/."},"properties":{"noteIndex":5},"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"}“Ethical Issues in Collections Management,” accessed May 5, 2021, /ethical-issues-collections-management/.] [ADDIN CSL_CITATION {"citationItems":[{"id":"ITEM-1","itemData":{"ISSN":"0964-7775","author":[{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Wong","given":"Amelia S","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""}],"container-title":"Museum Management and Curatorship","id":"ITEM-1","issue":"2","issued":{"date-parts":[["2011"]]},"page":"97-112","publisher":"Taylor & Francis","title":"Ethical issues of social media in museums: a case study","type":"article-journal","volume":"26"},"uris":["/documents/?uuid=90d2c422-c2ee-418c-a3d5-fc7046276276"]}],"mendeley":{"formattedCitation":"Amelia S Wong, “Ethical Issues of Social Media in Museums: A Case Study,” Museum Management and Curatorship 26, no. 2 (2011): 97–112.","plainTextFormattedCitation":"Amelia S Wong, “Ethical Issues of Social Media in Museums: A Case Study,” Museum Management and Curatorship 26, no. 2 (2011): 97–112.","previouslyFormattedCitation":"Amelia S Wong, “Ethical Issues of Social Media in Museums: A Case Study,” Museum Management and Curatorship 26, no. 2 (2011): 97–112."},"properties":{"noteIndex":6},"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"}Amelia S Wong, “Ethical Issues of Social Media in Museums: A Case Study,” Museum Management and Curatorship 26, no. 2 (2011): 97–112.]
There is also a need to make the audience understand that the material being presented is usually filtered through interests, politics, tastes, and knowledge condition of the presenters as well as influential people during the time. Moreover, the visitors should be able to understand that museums have a certain perspective that they aim to instill in the audience. It is unethical for the curators when they fail to follow the established standard and inform the audience the nature of information, and how it should be interpreted. Moreover, when the presenter utilizes their ideological inclination to influence how the information is perceived can also lead to adverse harm. Therefore, it is essential to protect the audience and ensure that any form of stereotypical representation in people’s history, especially those related class, race, and ethnicity are eliminated. This is foundational in safeguarding the interests of individuals and harnessing the common goals or objectives of people.[ADDIN CSL_CITATION {"citationItems":[{"id":"ITEM-1","itemData":{"author":[{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Fouseki","given":"Kalliopi","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""},{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Vacharopoulou","given":"Kalliopi","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""}],"container-title":"Journal of Conservation and Museum Studies","id":"ITEM-1","issue":"1","issued":{"date-parts":[["2013"]]},"publisher":"Journal of Conservation and Museum Studies","title":"Digital museum collections and social media: Ethical considerations of ownership and use","type":"article-journal","volume":"11"},"uris":["/documents/?uuid=986158fa-3589-4238-bb33-083a4ecb61ea"]}],"mendeley":{"formattedCitation":"Kalliopi Fouseki and Kalliopi Vacharopoulou, “Digital Museum Collections and Social Media: Ethical Considerations of Ownership and Use,” Journal of Conservation and Museum Studies 11, no. 1 (2013).","plainTextFormattedCitation":"Kalliopi Fouseki and Kalliopi Vacharopoulou, “Digital Museum Collections and Social Media: Ethical Considerations of Ownership and Use,” Journal of Conservation and Museum Studies 11, no. 1 (2013).","previouslyFormattedCitation":"Kalliopi Fouseki and Kalliopi Vacharopoulou, “Digital Museum Collections and Social Media: Ethical Considerations of Ownership and Use,” Journal of Conservation and Museum Studies 11, no. 1 (2013)."},"properties":{"noteIndex":7},"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"}Kalliopi Fouseki and Kalliopi Vacharopoulou, “Digital Museum Collections and Social Media: Ethical Considerations of Ownership and Use,” Journal of Conservation and Museum Studies 11, no. 1 (2013).] [ADDIN CSL_CITATION {"citationItems":[{"id":"ITEM-1","itemData":{"ISBN":"1136715266","author":[{"dropping-particle":"","family":"Marstine","given":"Janet","non-dropping-particle":"","parse-names":false,"suffix":""}],"id":"ITEM-1","issued":{"date-parts":[["2012"]]},"publisher":"Routledge","title":"The Routledge companion to museum ethics: Redefining ethics for the twenty-first century museum","type":"book"},"uris":["/documents/?uuid=5665a0f0-d693-48a8-a956-dd347fc850b8"]}],"mendeley":{"formattedCitation":"Janet Marstine, The Routledge Companion to Museum Ethics: Redefining Ethics for the Twenty-F...