The privacy factor

Below is a letter to the MediaGuardian by me that was published in response to Jeff Jarvis's column on the publicness of his cancer.

While I wish Jeff Jarvis the best, his belief in the benefits of publicness should not blind him to those of privacy (Transparency benefits us all – even when it hurts, 17 August). He says it will one day be considered selfish not to disclose cancer and that he thinks he has become as transparent as a man can. Social pressure to reveal and share everything because of its potential benefits to others cannot admit that any area of life should be private. That sort of pressure would undermine your control of self-publicity.

I think Jeff is brave rather than attention-seeking. But there are far more difficult and embarrassing things affecting both the body and the mind suffered by many, and their disclosure could not be justified by the benefits of publicness. The ethics of transparency as they apply to companies and governments do not apply to all relations between people. People, if not all the collaborations they may form, need a little privacy.
Sean Bell Brighton