Privacy – How a lack of media competence is threatening our future
The right of the individual to be protected against intrusion into his personal life or affairs, or those of his family, by direct physical means or by publication of information.
- Report of the Committee on Privacy and Related Matters, Chairman David Calcutt QC, 1990, Cmnd.
1102, London: HMSO, at 7.
Privacy is a human right. The need for a personal space, protected and hidden from those we don‘t trust has been part of our life even since birth of humanity. In the modern life protected by law, we still see privacy as something holy, a basic human right. Since the triumphal march of modern communication and the internet, privacy of information and communication has moved into focus of our society. Therefore it is no surprise that topics about this basic right lead to excitement. But how can we protect our own personal space in times where information about everything is freely available and easy to access? Where can the line be drawn between what is private and what we want to share with others? And how does our changing live has an impact on our definition of privacy itself?