Dr Merten Reglitz

Department of Philosophy
Associate Professor of Philosophy

Contact details

Telephone: +44 (0) 121 41 45919
Email: m.reglitz@bham.ac.uk

Address: ERI Building
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

I’m a political philosopher/theorist and my main research interests are in distributive justice, global justice and ethics, and normative approaches to the internet.

Qualifications

PhD University of Warwick (2011)
MA Linköpings Universitet and Universiteit Utrecht (2007)
Magister Artium, TU and FU Berlin (2007)
Postgraduate Diploma in Arts, University of Auckland (2005)

Teaching

Ethics and Global Ethics
Ethics and Global Ethics (DL)
Human Rights
Human Rights (DL)
Social Justice

Postgraduate supervision

I am happy to supervise students working on topics in global ethics, political philosophy, and normative approaches to the internet.

Find out more - our PhD Philosophy page has information about doctoral research at the University of Birmingham.

See also this College Graduate School page for information on how to write a research proposal, which is an essential part of all applications for PhD supervision.

Research

Global justice
Egalitarianism
Internet ethics
Political authority
Intergenerational justice
Kant's practical philosophy

Publications

Recent publications

Book

Reglitz, M 2024, Free Internet Access as a Human Right. Cambridge University Press. <https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/free-internet-access-as-a-human-right/B34F7618F9794B5F983314442E5C53F0>

Article

Reglitz, M 2023, 'The Socio-Economic Argument for the Human Right to Internet Access', Politics, Philosophy & Economics, vol. 22, no. 4, pp. 441–469. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470594X231167597

Reglitz, M 2022, 'Fake news and democracy', Journal of Ethics & Social Philosophy, vol. 22, no. 2, pp. 162-187. <https://doi.org/10.26556/jesp.v22i2.1258 >

Reglitz, M & Rudnick, A 2020, 'Internet access as a right for realizing the human right to adequate mental (and other) health care', International Journal of Mental Health, vol. 49, no. 1, pp. 97-103. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207411.2020.1727019

Reglitz, M 2020, 'The human right to free Internet access', Journal of Applied Philosophy, vol. 37, no. 2, pp. 314-331. https://doi.org/10.1111/japp.12395

Reglitz, M 2019, 'A Kantian argument against world poverty', European Journal of Political Theory, vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 489-507. https://doi.org/10.1177/1474885116662566

Reglitz, M 2017, 'Fairness to non-participants: a case for a practice-independent egalitarian baseline', Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 466-485. https://doi.org/10.1080/13698230.2015.1037575

Reglitz, M 2016, 'The Practice-Independence of Intergenerational Justice', Utilitas, vol. 28, no. 4, pp. 415-440. https://doi.org/10.1017/S095382081600008X

Reglitz, M 2015, 'Political legitimacy without a (claim-) right to rule', Res Publica, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 291-307. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11158-015-9267-0

Chapter (peer-reviewed)

Reglitz, M 2025, Internet and Communications. in J Tomalty & K Woods (eds), Routledge Handbook for the Philosophy of Human Rights. Routledge, Taylor & Francis, London.

Digital or Visual Products

Reglitz, M & Bortolotti, L, The Tortoise and the Hare: The importance of being connected, 2024, Digital or Visual Products, The Philosophy Garden, Online. <https://youtu.be/EK-MT8a-Y0Q?si=rTgJKP3Ni4gV7fkr>

Special issue

Reglitz, M 2016, 'Medical Brain Drain: Free-Riding, Exploitation, and Global Justice', Moral Philosophy and Politics, vol. 3, no. 1, pp. 67-81. https://doi.org/10.1515/mopp-2015-0021

View all publications in research portal

Expertise

Social and political philosophy, human right to Internet access

Articles discussing my research

E. Ralls, Internet access should be a basic human right, Earth.com, April 2023. Article reporting on my publication on Internet access as a human right.
A. Reich, Internet access must be recognized as a human right – expert, The Jerusalem Post, April 2023. Article reporting on my publication on Internet access as a human right.
Editors’ Notes, Internet access must become a human right or we risk ever-widening inequality, argues researcher, Phys.Org, April 2023. Reprint of UoB press release on my publication on Internet access as a human right.
IANS, Internet access must be a basic human right in developing nations: Study, The Economic Times, April 2023. Article reporting on my publication on Internet access as a human right.
E. Craig, Understanding Mis-, Dis-, and Malinformation, OTHSolutions, November 2022. Article referring to my research on the effects of fake news on democracy.
D. Masterson, Phony info. Fake news on social media platforms undermines trust in democracies, new data reveals, The Irish Sun, July 2022. Article reporting on my research on fake news and its effects on democracy.
S. Baker, 1 in 3 people around the globe – 2.9 billion – have never used the Internet, Mail Online, December 2021. Article on global Internet use referring to my research
S. Bell, Data mustn’t create a new league of haves and have-nots for a digital world, Gulf News, March 2021. Article on barriers to digital transformation citing my research.
H. Syed, Article 370: A year on, how Internet restriction affects Kashmiri youth, Kashmir Observer, August 2020. Article discussing the effects of Internet shutdown imposed by the Indian government on Kashmir referencing my research.
S. Bocetta, Coronavirus and the right to online participation, OpenGlobalRights, June 2020. Article discussing the increased importance of Internet access for political rights during Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns referencing my research.
T. Macaulay, The Coronavirus is strengthening the case for free Internet Access, The Next Web, March 2020. Article highlighting the increased importance of Internet access during Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns referencing my research.
R. Haridy, How governments shut down the Internet to suppress dissent, New Atlas, February 2020. Article discussing Access Now’s ‘Keep It On Report 2019’ featuring my research.
S. Dharmadhikari, Internet a fundamental right? The contrasting stands of Centre and Kerala govt, The News Minute, February 2020. Article discussing the disagreement about the status of Internet access in India featuring my research.
S. Smillie, Sky-high price of South African cellular services has life-threatening consequences, Daily Maverick, December 2019. Article referring to my research in arguing for cheaper cost of mobile data in South Africa.
K. Bode, The case for Internet access as a human right, Vice, November 2019. Article referencing my research in arguing against broadband provision as an exploitable resource.
D. Nield, Should free Internet be a basic human right? There’s a strong case for it, Science Alert, November 2019. Article reporting on my argument for a human right to free Internet access.
M. Vincent, Internet access should be a human right along with food and water because people ‘don’t have free speech or political power without it’, Mail Online, November 2019. Article reporting on my argument for a human right to free Internet access.
V. Tangermann, Professor claims Internet access should be a human right, Futurism, November 2019. Article reporting on my argument for a human right to free Internet access.
K. Dalli, Everyone should be entitled to free Internet access, researchers argue, Consumer Affairs, November 2019. Article reporting on my argument for a human right to free Internet access.
Press Trust of India, Internet access no longer a luxury: Experts call it a ‘basic human right’,The Economic Times, 2019. Article reporting on my argument for a human right to free Internet access.
‘Free broadband: Internet access is now a human right, no matter who pays the bills’, The Conversation, November 2019.

Press releases

Birmingham Brief: Hidden savings affect human rights of low-income households, 27 April 2023.
Internet access must be a human right or we risk ever-widening inequalities, 06 April 2023.
Fake news poses corrosive existential threat to democracy – study, 27 July 2022.
Internet access is a necessity not a luxury – it should be a basic right, 03 June 2020.
Free Internet access should be a basic human right – study, 11 November 2019.

Media experience

Press interviews

Internet access as a human right, The Chronicle of Higher Education, October 2023.
T. Waite, Ask an expert: Should internet access be a basic human right? Dazed, May 2023.
H. Sedouramane, Recognising internet access as a human right: An interview with Merten Reglitz, Orange – Hello Future, May 2023.
L. Villadiego, Internet access: A new human right? Equal Times, January 2022.

Radio interviews

Interviewed by Grace Galante for Viewpoints Radio, American Urban Radio Networks, December 2022.
Interviewed by Maj Valerij for Frekvenca X, Radio VAL 202 (Slovenia), June 2020.
Interviewed for the World Business Report, BBC World Service, November 2019.
Interviewed by Eddie Mair for LBC Radio, November 2019.
Interviewed by Manfred Kloiber for Computer und Kommunikation, Deutschlandfunk (Germany), November 2019.

Podcast

‘Should Internet access be declared a human right?’ Beyond the Headlines (The National, United Arab Emirates, 25 June 2020).
Interviewed by Andrew Pierce for the Daily Show Podcast (Daily Mail, 15 November 2019).

Blog

‘Philosophers’ Rundown on the Coronavirus Crisis’, Justice Everywhere (20 April 2020)

Expertise

Global justice
Egalitarianism
Internet ethics
Political authority
Intergenerational justice
Socio-economic inequality

Policy experience

Research featured in:

UN Environment Programme: Global Waste Management Outlook 2024. Beyond the Age of Waste: Turning Rubbish into a Resource, January 2024.
European Parliament Reflection Paper: Proposal for a sovereign and democratic digitalisation of Europe, January 2022.
European Parliamentary Research Service, Internet access as a fundamental right: Exploring aspects of connectivity, July 2021.
United Kingdom’s House of Lords Covid-19 Committee’s Report ‘Beyond Digital: Planning for a Hybrid World’.
City of Toronto, Canada, commissioned report on digital exclusion: ‘Dimensions of Digital Inclusion: A Review of Research and Practice’.
Republic of Slovenia, Institute of Macroeconomic Analysis and Development’s ‘Productivity Report 2020’.