About

Join the IE/IP SIG!

This is the shared website for the Information Policy (IP) and Information Ethics (IE) Special Interest Groups (SIGs) of the Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE).

A Short History

The original ALISE Information Ethics (IE) SIG charter was written by Toni Samek in consultation with Sam Trosow and Kendra Albright, the co-chairs of the Information Policy SIG in 2005. The charter was approved in 2005 and the IE SIG launched in 2006 at the ALISE Annual Conference in San Antonio, TX. The IE SIG was established as a forum for LIS educators to advocate for the inclusion of information ethics in LIS curriculum. Specifically, Samek (2012) explained that “The idea behind the proposed SIG on Information Ethics is to give critical attention to ‘ethical reflection’ in the context of LIS education” (p. 34). It is believed that the ALISE Information Policy SIG was formed in 2004 by Sam Trosow and Kendra Albright.

In Spring, 2019, the chairs of the IE SIG (Kyle Jones) and the IP SIG (Nicole Alemanne and Jenna Kammer) collaborated to offer a joint session at the 2019 Annual ALISE Conference. The joint session was called, “More Data, More Problems: Strategically Addressing Data Ethics and Policy Issues in LIS Curricula and Courses.” In addition, the IP and IE SIG shared a business meeting where attendees began discussing the possibility of merging the SIGs. The discussion suggested there is a significant overlap in the interests and membership of each SIG. In Spring, 2020, the IE and IP SIGs collaborated to construct this website as a forum to collaborate and connect with like-minded educators and scholars of policy and information ethics (PIE).

SIG Mission Statements

The mission of ALISE’s membership is to “promote innovation and excellence in research, teaching, and service for educators and scholars in Library and Information Science and cognate disciplines internationally through leadership, collaboration, advocacy, and dissemination of research.”

  • The Information Ethics SIG advocates for and discusses information ethics, data ethics, related policy issues, and emerging ethical concerns.
  • The Information Policy SIG promotes and supports research on, and teaching about, information policy in the field of library and information science and the implementation and advocacy of information policy in library and information organizations and institutions. Information policy encompasses laws and policies related to the creation, use, storage, access, and dissemination of information.

Resources