Ethical Probe
Shiri Yamhanya Nerekeni - Ethical Dilemmas of Indigenous Language Content Creation on Facebook in Zimbabwe
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Memory Mabika
"Shiri Yamhanya Nerekeni" (Has the bird escaped with the trap) explores the complex interplay between digital media use, cultural preservation, the desire to earn incentives vs ethical responsibility in the context of indigenous language content sharing on social media. The study investigates whether the increased visibility of Zimbabwean indigenous language content on social media platforms like Facebook represents true linguistic and cultural empowerment (Has the bird escaped from its trap?) or is it a paradoxical form of cultural freedom (Has the bird stolen the trap?). Though social media offers unprecedented opportunities to revitalise indigenous languages and cultures, unchecked digital misuse, low social media literacy, and the desire to eke out a living through creator incentives may inadvertently distort and undermine progressive efforts. The study proposes an ethical digital content creation framework, balancing innovation with accountability to preserve the socio-cultural integrity of Zimbabweans online.
Constructing Disinfection Narratives - AI Responses to UV-C in Respiratory Infection Control: A Cross-Platform Analysis of Accuracy, Framing, and Environmental Health Literacy in Digital Risk Communication
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Young Yun
Artificial intelligence systems are now embedded in how individuals access public health information, including guidance on respiratory infection control. This study investigates how large language models (LLMs)—ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot—respond to prompts concerning UV-C disinfection in indoor environments. The analysis focuses on how these systems construct narratives about disinfection, frame environmental risk, and present evidence within the context of respiratory disease prevention. A structured set of prompts was used to collect responses related to airborne transmission and the use of UV-C light in schools, healthcare settings, and public buildings. Responses were evaluated using a standardized codebook across three dimensions: scientific accuracy, expression of uncertainty or limitations, and relevance to environmental health literacy (EHL). Variation was observed across platforms in source attribution, technical clarity, and inclusion of contextual safety information. Some responses aligned with evidence-based public health guidance, while others omitted critical risk details or presented generalized claims without citation. Differences in risk framing and information completeness suggest that LLMs mediate not only access to knowledge but also shape public perception of health technologies. This study contributes to environmental health science and digital media theory by providing an empirical framework to evaluate AI-generated health communication. It highlights how algorithmic systems participate in the construction of authority and meaning in digitally mediated risk discourse. The findings offer insight into the epistemic role of AI in public health and its implications for equitable, evidence-based communication in digital culture.
History and Memory in Social Media in the Age of AI from Commemoration, through Modification, to Confabulation: Ways in Which Public Profiles Appropriate Content Posted by the Auschwitz Museum on Facebook
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Agnieszka Całek
Since 2012, the Auschwitz Museum has been conducting a project focused on the individual commemoration of victims of the Holocaust. It publishes several to over a dozen such posts daily across various social media platforms (including the most popular ones: Facebook, Instagram, and X). These posts most often take the form of a short note published on the victim’s birthday, accompanied by a photograph (if available). During an individualized interview with Paweł Sawicki, the coordinator of the project at the Auschwitz Museum, it was revealed that content from these commemorative posts is increasingly being appropriated by various public profiles for purposes that are inconsistent with the original sender’s intent. This information became the inspiration for a research project aimed at identifying the ways in which such content is used by public profiles unaffiliated with the Museum on the Facebook platform. The research findings were obtained through several months of non-participatory, covert netnographic observation, as well as in-depth research aimed at identifying how public, unaffiliated profiles utilize content published by the Auschwitz Museum. The paper outlines three identified models of engagement with the original content: 1. Sharing for commemoration, 2. Modification for enhancement, 3. Confabulation for reach. In the second and third models, the role of AI in processing the original content is discussed. The conclusions address the broader ethical context of this phenomenon and its consequences for the process of commemoration, as well as for historical education and the popularization of historical knowledge.
