Sooooo, I'm turning the question around to you: at what point do people have a responsibility to "intervene" in something they see online and if that point comes, what form should their reaction take?
Nice question! This is a significant issue specifically in Internet Research Ethics, especially for those researching adolescent / young adult websites. Our very own Susannah Stern has written two insightful and helpful articles on this, based in part on her own experience with encountering a mention of suicidal thoughts on a young woman's website, and then discovering a few months later that the young woman had in fact killed herself. Stern, S. R. (2003). Encountering distressing information in online research: a consideration of legal and ethical responsibilities. new media and society, 5 (2), 249-266. Stern, S. R. (2004). Studying adolescents online: A consideration of ethical issues. In Elizabeth Buchanan (Ed.), Readings in virtual research ethics: Issues and controversies. Hershey, Pennsylvania: Information Science. 274-287. In the U.S., as I understand it, social workers and other professionals are required by law to report such communications if they seem genuine. Of course, there are important caveats to be made about the differences between online and offline - but are the differences (I'm asking: genuine question) so great that the moral responsibilities are any less / different? Offhand - if the threat seems more than play and show (goth culture and all that), then what can it hurt to inquire with the author? (Yes, the researcher risks exposing himself / herself and thereby corrupting / ruining his/her research data: but if human lives are potentially at stake, which trumps? Human life, it would seem.) Depending on the response - it _may_ be possible to contact local authorities (psychological-social services, law enforcement ...) Just "feeling with my feet" in the effort to start crossing this particular ethical river (as a Japanese proverb would suggest) - a discussion-starter intended to invite critical comments, further insights and suggestions for more extensive and helpful guidelines. thanks for asking, Jonathan! - c. Distinguished Research Professor Interdisciplinary Studies <http://www.drury.edu/gp21> Drury University 900 N. Benton Ave. Voice: 417-873-7230 Springfield, MO 65802 USA FAX: 417-873-7435 Home page: http://www.drury.edu/ess/ess.html Information Ethics Fellow, 2006-07, Center for Information Policy Research, School of Information Studies, UW-Milwaukee Co-chair, CATaC conferences <www.catacconference.org> Vice-President, Association of Internet Researchers <www.aoir.org> Professor II, Globalization and Applied Ethics Programmes <http://www.anvendtetikk.ntnu.no/pres/bridgingcultures.php> Exemplary persons seek harmony, not sameness. -- Analects 13.23