Tracing the traces: The critical role of metadata within networked communications
本文基于斯诺登揭露的NSA情报文件，提出元数据在网络通信中具有5个关键社会技术特征，呼吁信息科学加强对其的理论与实证研究，以帮助理解数字痕迹并制定明智的政策。
The information sciences have traditionally been at the center of metadata‐focused research. The US National Security Agency (NSA) intelligence documents revealed by Edward Snowden in June of 2013 brought the term “metadata” into the public consciousness. Surprisingly little discussion in the information sciences has since occurred on the nature and importance of metadata within networked communication systems. The collection of digital metadata impacts the ways that people experience social and technical communication. Without such metadata, networked communication cannot exist. The NSA leaks, and numerous recent hacks of corporate and government communications, point to metadata as objects of new scholarly inquiry. If we are to engage in meaningful discussions about our digital traces, or make informed decisions about new policies and technologies, it is essential to develop theoretical and empirical frameworks that account for digital metadata. This opinion paper presents 5 key sociotechnical characteristics of metadata within digital networks that would benefit from stronger engagement by the information sciences.