Moral rights and information content in published works

Purpose - To explore moral rights laws in Europe and their effects on publication contents. Design/methodology/approach - Conceptual analysis of legislation, cases and information resources which illustrate effects of law. Findings - There are three main types of moral right. They effect: authorship and reputation concerning correction of errors and history of ideas; elucidation of ideas through parody: is a reputation being unduly attacked?; the creative extension of cultural content by its readership/audience: when is this legitimate? Practical implications - These features link the property concept of knowledge with a human-rights construct of content defined via personality. Originality/value - Choices of regulation affect the balance between property and personality approaches which determine access to knowledge and culture. The IS community needs awareness of its choices.