Attention-grabbing Headline from Japan about an Alleged Virtual Killing
The startling title reads, “Woman Jailed for ‘Killing’ Virtual Spouse.” When I first read that, I said, “Hmm…” A few seconds later, I concluded, “Nah. No way.” You can read the details here.
Of course, the woman went to jail on suspicion of having committed a crime, but there was no real killing in this case. (Or was there? Some might argue that I am displaying here some sort of prejudice against non-carbon-based life forms.)
However, this story raises a number of legal, journalistic, philosophical, social, ethical, and logical questions that one could discuss. It is a fascinating story in some ways.
What disturbs me, though, is the headline. Yes, I see that “Killing” appears in quotation marks. It’s a special use of a word that might not have the meaning it does in everyday language. Still, the suspect is being held for an alleged unauthorized access to a computer and unlawfully “manipulating electronic data.” Would I even know about this case if the alleged unlawful manipulation of the digital persona had been something more mundane like changing his virtual clothing? I doubt it.
At least the headline didn’t refer to a “murder.” However, the article itself did call the act a “virtual murder.”
Because this case appears to be an investigation into a fairly straightforward alleged computer crime, I’ll be surprised if I see much more coverage of it. On the other hand, I am now pondering what this news story and its headline say about us as human beings.
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