Vital Importance of Information Literacy and Critical Thinking

Stanley Fish  opens his New York Times article Anonymity and the Dark Side of the Internet by challenging the basis for  Justice Paul Stevens’ majority opinion on the Supreme Court’s1995  decision to overrule a statute that required the assignment of authority in the promotion of a political candidate or issue.  Stevens based his opinion on an earlier case that essentially supported the idea that the identity of the information source is not germaine to, nor does it affect the interpretation of, the information.  Fish goes on to support his opinion, based largely on a new collection of essays published under the title The Offensive Internet:  Speech, Privacy, and Reputation, that Justice Stevens’ reasoning was flawed and that the protection of individuals’ anonymity has particularly negative implications in the internet age.  The authors of these essays, Fish points out, while legal scholars who are strong advocates for free speech, nonetheless take positions that qualify their advocacy in light of the disturbing realities of a free-for-all  internet environment.  The reader commentary associated with this article  is voluminous and fascinating.  As an information specialist, my first reaction after taking all of this in was that now, more than ever before, a commitment in education to information literacy and the development of critical thinking skills is essential to upholding  freedom of speech.

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