I like one or two other Stack Exchange websites but they have really low user participation. I want to promote those websites by mentioning their names with a link in my User's Profile about me section. I have seen some users doing this on our site on their profiles.
Is it ethical to do such thing? Doesn't it conflict Academia's website policies?
related question, but not a duplicate: Why no link in the header of the main site to our 'About' page?
From the help center:
Your user page belongs to you — fill it with information about your interests, links to stuff you’ve worked on, or whatever else you like!
To me, the question is this: where is the line between appropriate promotion and spam / single-purpose-accounts? I have noticed that when an account is centered on a link in its user profile, that can be considered evidence of inappropriate promotion. If the promotion is just a small part of an otherwise well-rounded account, however, I see no issue at all. For example, in your own case, you are a well-established contributor to this site who is known for doing a lot of different constructive work. Adding clear, transparent lines in your profile that say, "I like this stuff, and think you should check it out too" seems to me to be no problem at all.
Is it ethical to promote another Stack Exchange website in about me section of the users' profiles?
It doesn't trigger an ethical question. It's fine.
