The co-creation of Afrocentric ethical guidelines for digital content creators producing indigenous knowledge-based content

Abstract

The rise of the digital age has seen an increase in the production of Indigenous Knowledge (IK)-based content by digital content creators. However, Afrocentric digital content creation ethical guidelines for producing IK-based content are barely covered in the literature and are not popularised. Thus, this study’s aim was to co-create Afrocentric ethical guidelines for digital content creators producing IK-based content. The Afrocentric ethical guidelines that do exist in the literature are for research and are not fully applicable to digital content creation. I have followed the work of Smith (1999), Wilson (2008), Chilisa (2012), Kovach (2013), and Shokane and Masoga (2020), in building this study’s foundation and in preparation for the co-creation of Afrocentric digital content creation ethical guidelines. The data generated was analysed through a thematic analysis technique. Key findings in this study include that stakeholders have experienced a violation of their knowledge’s boundaries and sacredness, its ownership often challenged after its shared with creators and the lack of long-term partnerships from the creators’ end. The co-created Afrocentric ethical guidelines have also been documented in this study’s findings and have included a three-step process as follows: (i) Preparing to engage with an indigenous community, (ii) The process of engaging and, (iii) Presenting/posting IK-based content on digital/social media platforms. The study also found that IK Holders are often not involved in the process of telling stories about their knowledge. This study’s recommendations include the inclusion and involvement of Indigenous Knowledge Holders (IKHs) in the presentation of IK-based content on digital/social media platforms. The content should be presented by IK Holders or at least through their lens. This recommendation is based on the idea that their involvement will ensure an emancipatory digital content creation process.