Toward new guardrails for the information society

Increasing interdependencies and deepening uncertainty change how the information society can be governed sustainably. In response, policy approaches worldwide are being reconsidered and new approaches developed that are more appropriate to these conditions. This article explores the conditions under which policies that worked in the past remain appropriate and when they will likely fail. It explores the role of dynamic analytical frames and a reconsideration of the normative principles of information society policies in overcoming these weaknesses. New instruments and policy arrangements that are considered include the establishment of boundary conditions (“guardrails”) for players, reliance on adaptive forms of policy, and reliance on ethics across all layers of governance. Driven by the global heterogeneity of values and the diversity of historical, economic, political, and cultural conditions, national and global governance arrangements will likely become more multi-centric. To avoid regulatory drift and fragmentation, policy must strive to create dynamic learning systems that help to continuously improve information society governance.