Information ethics in the design and use of metadata

Just as information contains the explicit and implicit values of its creators, so does the metadata that describes, summarizes, or represents that information. Consequently, issues arise in the planned design of metadata; in the creation of surrogates that represent data, text, or objects; as well as in the use and ownership of the metadata content in electronic environments. The intent here is to be illustrative, rather than prescriptive, when discussing issues raised.