HAVE WE BECOME A SOCIETY?
Soon enough everyone will be a Digital Native, a person born within the digital era. This documents what lately we’ve been exposed to all sorts opinions about this subject, it is said that there is a generational gap. But, can we predict how this will affect our future or are we being sceptical new things and fearful to face the future as a digital world. All voices need to be represented in this subject, understanding is key. It is time to put different views together and understand how this could affect different communities in the future. Digitalized is an exploration on how digital technologies have changed our culture, values and communication.
This document shapes around the Digital Manifesto produced by Robert D端rhager and Timo Heuer, 2009.
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Manifesto Sec.
We are the Used by a speaker to refer to himself or herself and one or more other people considered together.
‘Generation A global computer network providing a variety of information and communication facilities, consisting of interconnected networks using standardized communication protocols.
Internet’ All of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively.
We are the evolution of the television generation whose collective fate of passivity even now still marks culture and society. Because the lives of viewers take place behind closed doors, they develop their own individuality in opposition to the herd. Yet whilst the television generation still hides behind pseudonyms in its excursions into the interactive Internet and never drops the role of the passive visitor, consuming content merely in a new way, we are the ones who truly live out interactivity as pro-active users. This makes us individuals in the differentiation of our
networks, ubiquitously and pervasively online, as peers in constant touch with our networks. The exchange of culture in the net is our mission; an open society is our goal.
THE HISTORY OF COMMUNICATION THROUGH THE AGES
14
Manifesto Sec. 1
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By Tim Lambert
Communication in Ancient Times
Communication 1500-1800
The first means of communication was, of course, the human voice but in 3,300 BC in Iraq writing was invented. It was invented slightly later (about 3,100 BC) in Egypt and about 1,500 BC in China. However the only American civilization to invent a true system of writing were the Mayans. The next big step was the invention of the alphabet in what is now Israel and Lebanon about 1,600 BC. In the Ancient World many civilizations including Egypt, Assyria, Persia, Rome and China had efficient postal systems to deliver messages to parts of their empires using relays of horses. In the ancient world people wrote on papyrus or parchment. However the Chinese invented paper about 200 BC. The knowledge of how to make paper passed to the Arabs and in the Middle Ages it reached Europe.
The next major improvement in communication was the invention of printing. The Chinese invented printing with blocks in the 6th century AD but the first known printed book was the Diamond Sutra of 686. In Europe in the mid-15th century Johannes Gutenburg invented the printing press, which made books much cheaper and allowed newspapers to be invented. William Caxton introduced the printing press into England in 1476. The first newspapers were printed in the 17th century. The first newspaper in England was printed in 1641. (However the word newspaper was not recorded until 1670). The first successful daily newspaper in Britain was printed in 1702. Meanwhile European monarchs set up postal services to carry their messages. In France Louis XI founded one in 1477 and in England Henry VIII created the Royal Mail in 1512. In 1635 to raise money Charles I allowed private citizens to send messages by Royal Mail, for a fee. Meanwhile the pencil was invented. It was first described in 1565.
Communication continued to improve in the 20th century. In 1901 Marconi sent a radio message across the Atlantic. Radio broadcasting began in Britain in 1922 when the BBC was formed. By 1933 half the households in Britain had a radio. Following the 1972 Sound Broadcasting Act independent radio stations were formed. In the 1990s new radio stations included Radio 5 Live (1990) and Classic FM (1991). Television was invented in 1925 by John Logie Baird and the BBC began regular, high definition broadcasting in 1936. TV was suspended in Britain during World War II but it began again in 1946. TV first became common in the 1950s. A lot of people bought a TV set to watch the coronation of Elizabeth II and a survey at the end of the that year showed that about one quarter of households had one. By 1959 about two thirds of homes had a TV. By 1964 the figure had reached 90% and TV had become the main form of entertainment - at the expense of cinema, which declined in popularity. At first there was only one TV channel in Britain but between 1955 and 1957 the ITV companies began broadcasting. BBC2 began in 1964 and Channel 4 began in 1982. Channel 5 began in 1997. In Britain BBC 2 began broadcasting in color in 1967, BBC 1 and ITV followed in 1969. Satellite television began in Britain in 1989. Meanwhile commercial TV began in the USA in 1941. TV began in Australia in 1956 and in New Zealand in 1960. In 1960 the first communications satellite, Echo was launched. The laser printer was invented by Gary Starkweather in 1969. Meanwhile in Britain telephones became common in peoples homes in the 1970s. In 1969 only 40% of British households had a phone but by 1979 the figure had reached 69%. Dr Martin Cooper made the first cell phone call in the USA in 1973. The first mobile phone call in Britain was made in 1985. The first commercial text was sent in 1992. In Britain smartphones were introduced in 1996.
Digitalized
Communication became far more efficient in the 19th century. In the early 19th century the recipient of a letter had to pay the postage, not the sender. Then in 1840 Rowland Hill invented the Penny Post. From then on the sender of a letter paid. Cheap mail made it much easier for people to keep in touch with loved ones who lived a long way off. Meanwhile Ralph Wedgwood invented carbon paper in 1806. The telegraph was invented in 1837. A cable was laid across the Channel in 1850 and after 1866 it was possible to send messages across the Atlantic. Meanwhile the first fax machine was invented in 1843. A Scot, Alexander Graham Bell, invented the telephone in 1876. The first telephone exchange in Britain opened in 1879. The first telephone directory in London was published in 1880. The first telephone line from London to Paris opened in 1891. The first transatlantic telephone line opened in 1927. Meanwhile the first successful typewriter went on sale in 1874 and the first successful fountain pen was made in 1884. In 1829 Louis Braille invented an embossed typeface for the blind and in 1837 Isaac Pitman invented shorthand.
Manifesto Sec. 1
Communication in The 20th Century
16
Communication in the 19th Century
Communication in The 21st Century
In the early 21st century the internet became an important form of communication. Today email has become one of the most popular methods of communication. In the 2010s ebook readers became common.
A TIMELINE OF MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS
c 3,300 BC
Writing is invented in Iraq
c 1,600 BC
The alphabet is invented in Lebanon and Israel
c 200 BC
Paper is invented in China
c 1445
Johannes Gutenburg invented the printing press
AD1476
William Caxton introduces the printing press into England
1512
Henry VIII created the Royal Mail
1635
King Charles I allows private citizens to send messages by Royal Mail for a fee
1641
The first English newspaper is printed
1690
The first American newspaper is printed
1702
The first successful daily newspaper in England is published
1752
The first Canadian newspaper is published
1783
The first daily american newspaper is published
1785
The Daily Universal Register is printed. In 1788 it is renamed The Times.
1791
The Observer is founded
1803
The first Australian newspaper the Sydney Gazette
1806
and New South Wales Advertiser is printed. Carbon paper is invented by Ralph Wedgwood
1821
The Manchester Guardian is founded. In 1859 it is
1837
renamed The Guardian. The telegraph is invented. Isaac Pitman invents
1840
shorthand. Rowland Hill invents the Penny Post
1855
In Britain stamp duty on newspapers is removed mak-
1874
ing them much cheaper The first successful typewriter goes on sale
1876
Alexander Graham Bell invents the telephone
1880
The New York Graphic is the first newspaper to
1888
print a photo
1901
The Financial Times is first printed
1891
Marconi sends a radio message across the Atlantic
1900
The Daily Graphic is the first newspaper in Britain to print a photo
1903
The Daily Express is first published
1922
The Daily Mirror is first published
1925
The BBC begins radio broadcasting
1927
Television is invented
1936
The first transatlantic telephone line opens
1958
The BBC begins broadcasting high definition television
1960
Liquid paper is patented by Bette Nesmith Graham
1964
Echo, the first communications satellite is launched
1969
The Daily Herald becomes the Sun
1973
The laser printer is invented by Gary Starkweather
1978
Dr Martin Cooper makes the first cell phone call
1985
The Daily Star is first published
1986
The first mobile telephone in Britain is made
1989
The Independent is first published
1999
Satellite television begins in Britain
2010
A free newspaper called Metro is published i, an abbreviated version of The Independent is first published
The world is changing. Not only will there be far fewer manual and clerical jobs -about 35% of current jobs will be automated over the next 20 years, but the jobs that are left will require a far higher degree of digital know-how.
WHO
LOOKS
AFTER
THE
COMMUNITIES
?
24
Manifesto Sec. 1 Digitalized
Manifesto Sec.
The Net Interconnected group or system
Impacts World is a common name for the whole of human civilization, specifically human experience, history, or the human condition in general, worldwide,
the World The action of one object coming forcibly into contact with another.
We digital natives understand virtuality as part of reality. Even if virtuality is not a physical phenomenon, it still has a major inuence on thought and feeling. Consider the Internet as a mental space to see that its impact is true reality. For us being online is not a ight from reality but participation in the virtually extended real world of the 21st century.
HOW COMMUNICATION HAS EVOLVED WITH NEW TECHNOLOGIES
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Manifesto Sec. 2
Digitalized
N. Nayab, edited by: Ginny Edwards
Throughout history, developments in technology and communications have gone handin-hand, and the latest technological developments such as the Internet and mobile devices have resulted in the advancement of the science of communication to a new level. In today's world, it's common to see tablets and smartphones everywhere you go. The process of human communication has evolved over the years, with many path-breaking inventions and discoveries heralding revolutions or a lift from one level to another. The invention of pictographs or the first written communication in the ancient world gave us written communication. These writings were on stone and remained immobile. The invention of paper, papyrus, and wax, culminating in the invention of the printing press in the 15th century, made possible transfer of documents from one place to another, allowing for uniformity of languages over long distances. The latest revolution is the widespread application of electronic technology such as electronic waves and signals to communication, manifesting in the electronic creation and transfer of documents over the World Wide Web. Speed and Costs The most significant impact of technology on communication is the spread of the Internet and the possibility of sending emails and chatting. In the pre-information technology days, a document often required re-typing on the typewriter before the final version. Sending the letter across a distance to someone else required a visit to the post office and a postage stamp. Faster methods such as telegrams had severe limitations in text and were quite costly. Computers and the Internet have made the process of creating and editing documents and applying features such as spell check and grammar check automatically easy and natural. Email let us send documents to any part of the globe within seconds, making telegrams and even ordinary letters mostly obsolete. The Internet has thus increased the speed of communications manifold, and reduced the costs drastically. Quality The huge amount of knowledge accessible by a click of the mouse has helped improve the quality of communication. Translating a text from an
unfamiliar language to a familiar language, seeking out the meaning of an unknown word, and getting followup information on an unfamiliar concept are all possible thanks to the internet. Technology allows easy storage and retrieval of communication when needed, especially verbal communication, the storage of which was very difficult before. It now becomes easier to rewind and clear misconceptions rather than make assumptions, or contacting the person again to clear doubt. Change in Style The invention of new gadgets such as mobile phones made communication easier by allowing people to communicate from anywhere. An underestimated impact of mobile gadgets is the effect they have on the nature of communication. The possibility of high quality communication from anywhere in the world to anywhere else at low costs has led to a marked decline in face-to-face communications and to an increased reliance on verbal and written communication over electronic mediums. The small keyboards on mobile phones and other hand-held devices that make typing difficult has resulted in a radical shortening of words and increasing use of symbol and shortcuts, with little or no adherence to traditional grammatical rules. Such change now finds increasing acceptance in the business community. Communication has become concise and short, and the adage “brevity is the soul of wit� finds widespread implementation, though unintentionally. Accessibility The answer to the question of how technology has changed communication is incomplete without a mention of technology's role in the democratization of communication systems. Technology has brought down the costs of communication significantly and improved people’s access. The proliferation of online forums, live coverage of news, and other such media-related initiatives have resulted in world wide access and participation in news and information for almost everyone. In the realm of business, access to communication or privileged information was hither to a major source of competitive advantage.
Technology helps remove such barriers and ensure a level playing field in this aspect for the most part. Nature of Communication The ease of communication and the spread of interactive communication methods such as instant messengers and video conferencing have increased the volume of communications but reduced their average length. People now communicate whatever comes up instantly, and tend to break up different topics into different communications. Finally, technologies integral to the Internet help spread the net of communication by tracking down old friends, shedding light on new business opportunities, creating new opportunities for business and personal purchasing, and similar ventures.
HOW
WILL
TRADITIONAL
JOBS
CHANGE
?
46
Manifesto Sec. 2 Digitalized
Manifesto Sec.
Networks A group or system of interconnected people or things.
make better More desirable, satisfactory, or effective.
problem-solvers A thinker who focuses on the problem as stated and tries to synthesize information and knowledge to achieve a solution.
We work in networks and collaborate in dynamic and open network teams. Collective intelligence plays a big role in our working lives. Crowd sourcing is a concept that doesn’t just shape our way of working but our whole way of thinking, too. The huge range of communication instruments now on hand – from micro-blogs to Wikis – means that we can collaborate with other sat any time on any kind of topic.
Digitalized Manifesto Sec. 3 54
A job that used to take hours can now take only a few minutes with a micro-posting. We do not measure the difďŹ culty of a problem in terms of how much knowledge any one individual has but rather by his/her ability to communicate in networks. Depending on the degree of individual networking, we can almost always ďŹ nd a solution to every problem. Even so, crowd sourcing can only function when the work is accessible to all. This is why we digital natives call for digital
openness and digital modernisation of the world of work. Too many ideas have withered before seeing the light of day. They never had a chance to change the world or at least garner sympathy for the venture.
Alone in the crowd Sherry Turkle says social networking is eroding our ability to live comfortably offline.
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Manifesto Sec. 1
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http://www.apa.org/monitor/2011/06/ social-networking.aspx
People today are more connected to one another than ever before in human history, thanks to Internet-based social networking sites and text messaging. But they’re also more lonely and distant from one another in their unplugged lives, says Massachusetts Institute of Technology social psychologist Sherry Turkle, PhD. This is not only changing the way we interact online, it’s straining our personal relationships, as well. Turkle’s new book, “Alone Together” (Basic Books, 2011), explores the ways online social networks and texting culture are changing how people relate to society, their parents and friends. The book is based on meta-analyses of individual and family studies and her own interviews with 300 children and 150 adults. Turkle maintains that people who choose to devote large portions of their time to connecting online are more isolated than ever in their non-virtual lives, leading to emotional disconnection, mental fatigue and anxiety. The Monitor spoke to Turkle about her research and what it means for the Facebook generation. How has social networking through technology changed society the most? The most dramatic change is our ability to be “elsewhere” at any point in time, to sidestep what is difficult, what is hard in a personal interaction and go to another place where it does not have to be dealt with. So, it can be as simple as what happens when 15-year-olds gather for a birthday party. As anyone who has ever been 15 knows, there is a moment at such events when everyone wants to leave. Things get awkward. It is, however, very important that everyone stay and learn to get along with each other. These days, however, when this difficult moment comes, each 15-year-old simply retreats onto Facebook. Whether or not they physically leave the birthday party, they have “left.” When teens tell me that they’d rather text than talk, they are expressing another aspect of the new psychological affordances of the new technology — the possibility of our hiding from each other. They say a phone call reveals too much, that actual conversations don’t give them enough control over what they want to say.
Does social technology isolate people from the real world, or augment our personal relationships? Both. Some people do use social networks to keep up with real friendships, to keep them lively and up to date. There is, however, another trend in which people “friend” people they don’t know or where they are unsure of the nature of their connection. We Facebook-friend people who do not know their commitment to us and similarly, we are unsure of what commitment we have to them. They can, in fact, be more like “fans” than friends. But their presence can sustain us and distract us and make it less likely for us to look beyond them to other social encounters. They can provide the illusion of companionship without the demands of friendship, without the demands of intimacy. How does that reduced intimacy cause problems in our relationships? We are tempted to give precedence to people we are not with over people we are with. People talk to me about their phones and laptops as the “place for hope” in their lives, the “place where sweetness comes from.” We text during dinner with our families. We text as we drive. We text when we are with our children in the playground. Children say they try to make eye contact with their parents and are frustrated because their parents are looking down at their smart phones when they come out of school or after school activities. Young men talk about how only a few years ago, their dads used to watch Sunday sports with them and during the station breaks or between plays, they used to chat. Now their fathers are too often checking their email during games. The young men I interview sometimes call it “the BlackBerry zone” when they speak of their fathers’ unavailability. For those who would object that it’s the same as reading a Sunday paper while you watch sports, it is not. We give another level of attentional commitment to our devices. What are some of the benefits of solitude and taking time off from technology? It’s a great psychological truth that if we don’t teach our children how to be alone, they will always be lonely. When they’re always connected, children, adolescents and adults become dependent on the
Do you have any strategies for getting away from technology and nurturing real-life relationships? I have some basic rules. I think of them as creating sacred spaces around certain activities. No technology at meals. I used to check email before my daughter came down to breakfast, but then I got into a “just let me finish this one last email before I make you breakfast” mode and she called me on it! So, no technology when I’m with my daughter or out with friends. When my colleagues bring their phones to dinner and place them on the table, I sometimes tease them about the unlikeliness of “epistemological emergencies.” The idea that we should put each other on pause as though we were machines in order to attend to those who are not present has become commonplace. It needs to be examined. I don’t think that is how we want to treat each other. Also, no technology when I’m taking time for myself in nature. I have a house on Cape Cod and I notice people walk the dunes with their eyes down, looking at their smart phones. I think it is important to teach the next generation the importance of walking in nature, and in the city, and focusing on those experiences. I am concerned about our losing touch with the realities of our physical surroundings. I am concerned about our losing touch with the kind of solitude that refreshes and restores.
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My guarded optimism about the future comes from the young people I speak with who already complain about having to perform a character on social networks. Living on social networks means performing one’s profile, and indeed multiple profiles, almost all the time. Young people complain of performance anxiety. Between performance exhaustion and the sense that they have never had their parents’ full attention, young people are in fact nostalgic for something they have never had. One of the case studies in “Alone Together” that most moved me was the case of Sanjay, a 16-year-old whom I met for an interview. During the hour we met, Sanjay had put away his phone and laptop. After the interview was over, he took it out and he had over 100 new messages, most of them texts. He explained that some of these were from a girlfriend “in meltdown,” some of these were from a group of friends with whom he was starting a band. As he collected his technology in order to begin to respond to these communications, Sanjay was clearly overwhelmed. He said, not particularly to me but more to himself, as a comment on his situation, “How long am I going to have to do this?” As we ratchet up the volume and velocity of our communication, we begin to set up a pace that takes us away from each other.
In my own research, I find that men are more likely to be confrontational on social networking sites and women more likely to “stalk” (obsessively check people’s status updates and learn about them) and less likely to bully or be confrontational. One gender element that did become apparent is that mothers are now breastfeeding and bottlefeeding their babies as they text. Of course, in feeding an infant, so much more is going on than giving nutrition to a baby. There is the emotional exchange on the most primitive level, the feeling of gratifying someone and being gratified in return. A mother made tense by text messages is going to be experienced as tense by the child. And that child is vulnerable to interpreting that tension as coming from within the relationship with the mother. This is something that needs to be watched very closely. It reminds me of something that has occurred to me often as I have done this research: Technology can make us forget important things we know about life.
Manifesto Sec. 3
For young people who’ve never really known a world without social technology, how can you stress the importance of preserving a non-networked life?
Do men and women use social networking technology differently?
58
presence of others for validation in the most basic ways. When people move from, “I have a feeling, I want to make a call” to “I want to have a feeling, I need to send a text,” something unfortunate happens to their relations with others. They start to need other people to feel validated and they cannot approach others as full, individual, differentiated people. Rather, other people are used, as what one might think of as part objects — spare parts to support a fragile self. In a recent New York Times article, the founder of an online dating site (www. datemyschool.com) summed up the problem of his generation by saying that, “People in the 21st century are alone. We have so many new ways of communicating, yet we are so alone.”
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Manifesto Sec. 3
Manifesto Sec. 3
Digitalized
WHAT
WILL
REMAIN
FROM
TRADITIONAL
NETWORKS
?
72
Manifesto Sec. 3 Digitalized
Manifesto Sec.
Flexibilization, The act or process of making something flexible.
mobilization and To assemble, prepare, or put into active service
globalization The process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale.
of works Activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a result.
Traditional nine-toďŹ ve jobs are a left over from the industrial age. It is now high time to free work from the constraints of rigid labor models. As network individuals, our global contacts are indifferent time zones so that traditional working hours are counter productive for us. And we also want to bring more exibility into the way we do our work. Different tasks can be combined to make for quicker and more efďŹ cient performance while the synergy thus created can enrich content with new ideas.
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Manifesto Sec. 4
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In a similar vein, we are not bound to any particular workplace and prefer to use the spot that seems most convenient at the moment – a café, an office or a home office.
The Internet gives us easy access to all the relevant data and instruments no matter where we are. Flexible, open domain modes of work, at hierarchies, participation, trust, motivating challenges and results-oriented proper payment are the qualities of work we subscribe to.
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Manifesto Sec. 4 Digitalized
Private life and society
By
Increasing representation of a wide variety of content in digital form results in easier an cheaper duplication and distribution of information. This has a mixed effect on the provision of content. On the one hand, content can be distributed at a lower unit cost. On the other hand, distribution of content outside of channels that respect intellectual property rights can reduce the incentives of creators and distributors to produce and make content available in the first place. Information technology raises a host of questions about intellectual property protection and new tools and regulations have to be developed in order to solve this problem. Many issues also surround free speech and regulation of content on the Internet, and there 5 continue to be calls for mechanisms to control objectionable content. However it is very difficult to find a sensible solution. Dealing with indecent material involves understanding not only the views on such topics but also their evolution over time. Furthermore, the same technology that allows for content filtering with respect to decency can be used to filter political speech and to restrict access to political material. Thus, if censorship does not appear to be an option, a possible solution might be labeling. The idea is that consumers will be better informed in their decisions to avoid objectionable content. The rapid increase in computing and communications power has raised considerable concern about privacy both in the public and private sector. Decreases in the cost of data storage and information processing make it likely that it will become practicable for both government and private data-mining enterprises to collect detailed dossiers on all citizens. Nobody knows who currently collects data about individuals, how this data is used and shared or how this data might be misused. These concerns lower the consumers’ trust in online institutions and communication and, thus, inhibit the development of electronic commerce. A technological approach to protecting privacy might by cryptography although it might be claimed that cryptography presents a serious barrier to criminal investigations. It is popular wisdom that people today suffer information overload. A lot of the information available on the Internet is incomplete and even incorrect. People spend more and more of their time
absorbing irrelevant information just because it is available and they think they should know about it. Therefore, it must be studied how people assign credibility to the information they collect in order to invent and develop new credibility systems to help consumers to manage the information overload. Technological progress inevitably creates dependence on technology. Indeed the creation of vital infrastructure ensures dependence on that infrastructure. As surely as the world is now dependent on its transport, telephone, and other infrastructures, it will be dependent on the emerging information infrastructure. Dependence on technology can bring risks. Failures in the technological infrastructure can cause the collapse of economic and social functionality. Blackouts of long-distance telephone service, credit data systems, electronic funds transfer systems, and other such vital communications and information processing services would undoubtedly cause widespread economic disruption. However, it is probably impossible to avoid technological dependence. Therefore, what must be considered is the exposure brought from dependence on technologies with a recognizable probability of failure, no workable substitute at hand, and high costs as a result of failure. The ongoing computing and communications revolution has numerous economic and social impacts on modern society and requires serious social science investigation in order to manage its risks and dangers. Such work would be valuable for both social policy and technology design. Decisions have to be taken carefully. Many choices being made now will be costly or difficult to modify in the future.
Manifesto Sec. 3
Manifesto Sec. 3
DOES
THIS
REINFORCE
INDIVIDUALISM
?
Manifesto Sec.
Our The act or process of making something flexible.
commitment To assemble, prepare, or put into active service
to the public The process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale.
domain Activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a result.
Because we know that our strength lies in public collaboration, we freely share our intellectual capital and thus create resources of knowledge freely available to all.
Competitive modes of thought are strange to us even though we do engage in competition, striving for better ideas and public acknowledgment of what we have achieved. We recognise the potential of free knowledge and call for free access to all research ďŹ ndings and learning material supported by tax payers money. We equally call for all institutions of education to be given the ďŹ nancial and material support that enables them to use all the media competencies needed top ass on such
information to future generations. For us it is of the very essence that free knowledge resources are ďŹ nanced, nurtured and made freely available to everybody. As digital natives we support all initiatives that seek to make information and tools freely available and reusable. We view new media in general as an opportunity for a better world. Their ability (in the sense of the Latin virtus for strength or virtue) to disseminate and process information enables people to communicate and interact
with one another in a huge variety of unprecedented ways. This means that even now our digital culture is calling geographic, cultural and thus also political boundaries radically into question, offering a genuine opportunity to create a participative and democratic cosmopolitan world. We digital natives are citizens of the world and one of the ďŹ rst global generations. The ďŹ rst step toward a participative democratic global politics would be unlimited transparency of political
business and decisionmaking coupled with the development of online participation in all its multifarious variety.
Information freedom in a democratic society and the role of librarians in cyber era.
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Manifesto Sec. 5
Digitalized
http://eprints.rclis.org/7192/1/vijayakumarjk_02. pdf
The right of access to information and ideas is vital for any society. We know, freedom, prosperity and the development of society depend on education as well as on unrestricted access to knowledge, thought, culture and information. Libraries, at all levels, are instruments to assure and promote equal access to information and to disseminate knowledge. The state of intellectual freedom in libraries is considered as an indication of the progress of democracy within a nation. A commitment to intellectual freedom or right to information is a core responsibility for the library and information profession. In this age of Information Explosion, where people can access information at their fingertips with out much delay, we have to rethink our role as information professionals. Democracy Democracy, a government of the people by the people and for the people is widely acclaimed as the most suitable model of governance in the world. Democracies the world over makes several assumptions about human nature. One is that people are generally capable of governing themselves in a free and fair manner. Another is that society comprises a great diversity of interests and individuals who deserve to have their views respected. In a nutshell the universal appeal of democracy is predicated on its respect for the dignity and autonomy of man. Man’s desire for liberty, equality and freedom are all prescriptive imperatives of democracy. Democracy itself guarantees nothing. It offers instead the opportunity to succeed as well as the risk of failure. It is a challenge because the success of the democratic enterprise rests on the shoulders of the citizens and no one else. Precisely the pillars of democracy such as, the sovereignty of the people, government by consent, majority rule, guarantee of basic human rights, free and fair elections, equality before the law, social and political pluralism and many more, had long ago crumbled political history of the world. Democracy and information “If information and knowledge are central to democracy, they are the conditions for development”, Kofi Annan, the UN secretary-general stated once. Modern society incessantly produces and uses information and in a democratic country information
is considered as a vital resource for development. Managers, politicians, staff in the public sector, educators and many more exploit information services. Access to relevant information is the most important requirement for individuals if they are to cope with the pressures of modern society. As the world moves into the information age it is crucial that societies have a policy that guarantees access to information and knowledge for the average person. In the twenty-first century denial of access to information and knowledge constitutes disenfranchisement at the very best and tyranny at the worst. From the above it is implicit that information and ideas are basic human needs and that every citizen, no matter their race, creed or economic position, should have free access to information. It is regarded as a right. Effective access to information and ideas increases the citizen’s ability to be informed on the questions of the day. It can increase their right to vote with knowledge or influence policy. As such, information is an aid to democracy. In promoting and consolidating democracy and good governance, people should be conscientious about their rights and obligations. A representative elected government and independent judiciary, and a free press, are all elements of good governance. So also is a wellinformed and motivated electorate, which, through a comprehensive campaign of civic education, should be made aware of its constitutional rights, including the right to demand accountability and transparency from those it voted into office. Democracy and Libraries in Information Society Libraries do not exist in a vacuum in any society; they are the storehouses of knowledge. This value is acknowledged without reservation. Not only do they conserve society’s culture, but as agencies of communication they also play an important role in its transmission. Libraries provide happiness, mental joy and spiritual delight. They are social institutions charged with the duty of providing perpetual self-education of individuals in the society. Libraries are powerful instruments of social and political change; they can help in the demands of democracy and the spread of literacy. In short, libraries exist for the sake of freedom and thought. Those people who trains in this art (librarians) are therefore expected to make a unique contribution by safeguardingthis freedom, which is
not only a vital constituent of liberty but a means of securing and preserving liberty as a whole. Providing access to the worldwide information has been the goal the modern librarianship. They can do this by their expected roles as: - How to find information and how to use it? - How do we evaluate the power of information in support of our organization’s strategic aims? - Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. - Assessing the impact of services on the end user. - Accessing the information that is needed. Information transmission. Information Society, as we call it today, is a society where information is the central factor andwhere primary economic and social activities are the production, storage and distribution of information. Intellectual freedom and Libraries Intellectual Freedom is the right of every individual to both seek and receive information from all points of view without restriction. The right to intellectual freedom is not just the right of free expression; it is the right of free reception also. To have real intellectual freedom,individuals must open themselves up – not only to allow other perspectives to exist, not only toallow other “truths” to be expressed, but to allow themselves to take in those ideas, soak them up, accept or reject them, but truly “hear” them either way. Librarians in particular have helped to protect this important right by ensuring that all citizens have access to whatever information they need. To exercise one’s freedom of thought in a democratic society such as India, a person needs to have the freedom to explore issues from all points of view. Libraries have always been a cornerstone in building that society, which ensures those citizens, has access to information so that they can gain the knowledge to govern themselves. The mission of librarians is to ensure access to all types of information so that every citizen can explore all types of information and viewpoints. Throughout the past years, librarians in the world have collected, organized, preserved and provided access to information for all citizens. In the future, technology can become a means to subvert censorship as well as to promote censorship.
Democracy and the professional librarian Democracy assumes that people have access to facts and opinions from a wide range of sources. Democratic decision making, be it at local or national levels, depends on equality of access to information. Professional librarians, with their skills, can play a significant role in providing such access and thus aid the development of an informed society. Librarians can still be arsenals of a democratic culture ready to answer not only the criteria inherent in the democratic process but also responsive to varying social requirements, as democracy itself. In short, librarians are both a cause and consequence of their society. As society changes, so too must they and their institutions change. The question about their interest in political issues is pertinent because it raises issues about the kind of society want and the policies they wish to pursue so as to improve their life chances. To be precise, professional librarians have long tended to be content rather than to react to or initiate government policy. The profession has been too ready to let others set the agenda, regardless of the formation of their professional association. At a crucial time like this, when libraries are facing decreasing resources and competition from other agencies, there is an urgent need for vocal public support for the service they provide. There is need, therefore, for an effective lobby to communicate the value of libraries and the profession to politicians, the media and others who can influence public opinion. Librarians have an obligation to educate members on what their rights are in a democratic society. Librarians should develop more skills to support the constitutional right to know in their self-governing society. No longer should they distrust their ability to help users with queries about law and government. As the awareness of citizens is vital to democracy, librarians should play a role in providing access to legal documents and proceedings. By allowing a free flow of information, citizens would be able to make reasoned judgements. Individuals need access to information about government affairs in order to maintain the privileges of democracy. Furthermore librarians are important because democracy is based on the common needs and hopes shared by people of different character and experience. Since individuals have different information needs, the ability to deal with clientele champions the right to know. Society and many at its expense educate most
of the librarians. They therefore owe it to society to share their know-how in the discipline in which they have acquired expertise. The dissemination of legal information should no longer be left in the hands of law librarians. Academic and public librarians are all directly or indirectly related in the process of law making; their goal being to provide access to information about a wide range of subjects of which law is just one. It stands to reason, therefore, that those citizens who refuse to participate in the political process are irresponsible. As Plato rightly put it, the punishment which the wise suffer for refusing to take part in government is to live under the government of worse men. When more and more librarians are involved in partisan politics, and if they observe the code of ethics learned in their profession and apply the expertise they have acquired in their training and bring this to bear on political positions, it would be good for society. Cyber effect In this age of boundless electronic communication, boasting an abundance of information, flowing increasingly faster through satellites, cables and the Internet, freedom of expression and access to information should hardly be a problem. WWW facilitates easy interfacing of diverse information systems on Internet, which could be used as a vital tool by libraries to enhance their information services. In the present electronic environment, intellectual freedom has become an even more complex issue by allowing individuals a forum to easily state their opinions, whether truth or propaganda. The World Wide Web functions as a private, independent printing press in homes but technology provides the means to trace the home server and disable it. Technology provides the ability to hide a server but new developments provide possibilities to hide and find servers in a never-ending see-sawing race. Satellite phones and televisions allow communication without government restrictions or interference so that an open society or organization can beam programs into countries that restrict intellectual freedom. Memory cubes carrying the equivalency of many books can be taken across borders to provide information to countries living with information restrictions and censorship. Yet these technological advances can also be used in reverse to invade people’s privacy and to monitor their information habits and use.
Becoming a Cybrarian Computerized information retrieval has brought considerable changes and yet many librarians remain untutored. Invariably then, librarians cannot respond quickly to community needs. Librarians should be desirous that their libraries should respond to the changing needs of the community and, where possible, anticipate them, Hence they are expected to draw up schemes of induction and training for their staff. There is only limited of co-operative ventures among librarians in the country. If librarians want to play a more effective role in this democracy they should start exploring ways of putting their information resources, both materials and personnel, at the service of other information and advice agencies by agreeing to keep an update of current information in documents in the country. This will provide access to their numerous users who use their services and this will indeed save time in their search for information. The idea that we live in an information society is commonplace today. The information society is one in which the communication of information is one of the key activities in all developed and developing nations, and where information is a key factor in economic development. In consequence, professional librarians must be people equipped with a variety of skills to help them to perform diverse roles which effectively facilitate freedom of access to information by the literate and non-literate, so that they can acquire knowledge, develop good governance and democracy, alleviate poverty, exploit technological change and maintain social equality. In spite of the rapid growth in both the scope and diversity of information available today, the development of information services has not been the same everywhere. A large factor in development, or underdevelopment, of information services in any given country is a function of society’s perception of the importance of such services in its decision-making process.
Manifesto Sec. 3
HAVE
LIBRARIES
BECOME
OBSOLETE
?
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Manifesto Sec. 1 Digitalized
110
Manifesto Sec. 5 Digitalized
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Manifesto Sec. 1 Digitalized
Manifesto Sec.
The Net A communications or broadcasting network, especially of maritime radio. The Internet.
has its own Used with a possessive to emphasize that someone or something belongs or relates to the person mentioned.
culture The ideas, customs, and social behaviour of a particular people or society.
We understand the Internet as a sociocultural space. We inform its content with our real identities and enrich its sociability with our own social relationships. In the framework of legality – and sometimes in constructive dialogue with the same – it is we who are the executive, our morals the judiciary and our code the legislature.
It is our vigilance that elects a fourth estate. In the global diversiďŹ ed reality of our networks, what we consider as relevant is above all that which is socially relevant. Our multi-dimensional networks offer us the means to exchange experience and make collective evaluations. Given our social relationships, proposals and data from one of these networks are particularly important. As digital natives we are fully aware that our culture is dependent on technological progress.
And this is precisely why we make early use of technical innovations – both to sound out the possibilities they embody for developing our culture, and to use our feedback to counter and correct bad courses of development.
The influence of modern technology on society
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Manifesto Sec. 6
Digitalized
By
While technology is often described as the most important influence upon society (ref), it remains a subject which deserves further study. This situation is generally accepted, with politicians, sociologists, industrialists and educationalists alike recognising that technology lies at the very heart of society (Chandler, 1996). The critical role that technology plays in the development of society, stimulating not only the economy but society’s socio-cultural values, rather than being merely a tool of society, however, is referred to as ‘technological determinism’ (Underwood, 2009). It is this aspect of how technology drives modern society that this essay addresses. Social progress has come to be equated with technical progress, particularly since the Industrial Revolution (Beniger, 1989). This progress has not always been acknowledged at the time it was occurring; indeed, as Beniger further notes, ‘human society seems rather to evolve largely through changes so gradual as to be all but imperceptible, at least compared to the generational cycles of the individuals through whose lives they unfold’ (1989, p. 2). Perhaps because of this ‘historical myopia’, the value of the change may not be evaluated until the changes has already passed (Beniger, 1989, p. 2). Critics such as Henry David Thoreau, for instance, suggested that improvements in society’s technical means are no guarantee of improved ends, and that they may instead lead to a mechanistic and fatalistic outlook, positing that 'we do not ride upon the railroad; it rides upon us' (1845, p. 308). Thus, technology itself becomes an overriding preoccupation, for it never stops still. Technological advancement seems important at the time to different ages in different societies, psychologically if not practically; in a variety of modern societies, for example, young people presently feel a heightened empathy with the digital age (Bennett and Maton, 2010). However, not all sectors of the community will be directly involved with, share an understanding, or even see the relevance, of the latest technological inventions. Nevertheless, as de Tocqueville (1990, p. xxii) noted in 1840, ‘this social revolution, which I believe to be irresistible… is already accomplished or about to be so’, and thus recognition of it is recognition of the past as much as the present. The current revolution in technology, known variously as the ‘Information Age’ or ‘Age of Technology’, similarly is unrelenting: the older person who is reluctant to use a computer
has a life shaped by others’ use of computers and may even accept a basic mobile telephone, once considered a glamourous accessory (Coeckelbergh, 2012). As globalisation becomes an increasingly significant factor in countries’ economic success, technological competence is becoming an essential tool for surviving and thriving not only in society, but in its constituent parts, such as employment, education, agriculture, and industry. Advantages and disadvantages of modern technological progress The younger generation today, like many previous generations, seeks to change the world and make it a better and more comfortable place in which to live (Griswold, 2012). They want to be contributors to peace, economic reforms, the improvement of public services and many other aspects of the society. For them, the best way to contribute to these changes is through modern technology. (Weiser and Brown, 1997). This does not necessarily mean that youth wants to make a huge change on the view of the world where they grew up, or that they just want to split away from the norms of society. Instead, they believe that the advances in communication, through technological means, will facilitate social change as no previous generation has had the opportunity to learn so much, so authentically, from one another (Griswold, 2012). The ability for realtime conversations, forums, information exchange, visualisation of other cultures, and greater social equality across the world has developed more in the last 20-25 years than at any other time in history. This has allowed commentary on situations as they develop, rather than purely through the perspective of written media. For example, the role of social media during the ‘Arab Spring’, not only through Twitter but Facebook and other social media platforms, provided contextualisation for the media reports at a time when media bias is increasingly critically examined (Khondker, 2011). Thus, this generation is able to confirm journalists’ interpretation of an event, even in film, with those who are participating on both sides of the event, as well as casual observers. This is unique in history. The degree to which unfettered access to opinion, counter-opinion, reportage, and propaganda will truly reshape the world is yet to be determined. The Habermasian interpretation of the development of the public sphere holds some analogies, as the
well as developed economies.
Manifesto Sec. 6
The vision of teenagers in this day and age With the growth of technologies as the internet and computers, teenagers and young people are becoming more dislocated from society (Griswold, 2012). Isolation is one form of this problem. The Japanese phenomenon of hikikomori, whereby young people (commonly, males, and more increasingly, adults) sequester themselves, using only technology to keep in touch with society, is believed to affect almost two million people worldwide (Longo, 2010). Social interaction results in levels of stress and distress to the degree that individuals cannot cope, and seek refuge instead in an environment which they feel is fully within their control. Additionally, education is being transformed by technology. Stimulating students is not a matter of making a great speech or a dominant lesson anymore; educators need to be brought down to a teenager’s level of understanding (Weiser and Brown, 1997). The need and wishes of modern youth are very different from those of their parents, as can be seen in hikikomori (Longo, 2010). The most inspiring
Digitalized
However, modern technology does not bring advantages but some disadvantages as well. The similarity of lifestyles, whereby communication channels homogeneity, can have deleterious effects (Griswold, 2012). Before the rise of film, television, and the internet, people had different cultures and traditions that were reflected in the way they wear clothes or design buildings. Now, in a form of creeping conformity, people tend to build the same models of house and wear the same fashions. The new, modern technology is excellent in many ways, but its philosophical, physiological, and psychological effects remain unknown in a period when technological interaction and live communication through computer use, internet chat, mobile phones, and SMS texts are part of the everyday life of -teenagers and the youth of today. This not only includes issues such as the debate on whether mobile telephones increase the likelihood of brain tumours, but the behavioural responses of children to ‘instant’ gratification, or whether mobile phone addiction will become a significant disability (di Maggio et al., 2001). These are issues which remain unresolved; their resolution will not be immediate.
122
democratisation of critical analysis unfolded in finde-siècle Viennese coffee houses (Habermas, 1989). According to di Maggio et al. (2001) extensive social ‘effects’, both optimistic and pessimistic, have been claimed for many communications technologies before our current computer-based age of information technology. The so-called I.T. revolution (which tends to be presented as the ‘final’ communications revolution) can be seen as having been preceded by the ‘writing revolution’ and ‘the print revolution’, and only the latest phase of an ‘electronics revolution’ which began with telegraphy and telephony. Winston (1998) criticises technological determinism and instead develops his theory of cultural determinism. In this theory, Winston considers not how technology shapes society, but rather that the evolution of technology, which is not static, is mediated and manipulated by society. Thus, as a result of these manoeuvres, the ‘radical potential’ of a specific technology is stifled; society therefore only accepts that which it believes itself to be in a position to accept (Winston, 1998). Systems and machines like computers, mobile phones and operating systems, which just involve one click on the computer, replace the things which used to takes hours or even days. Almost every home has a computer and telephone, and individuals within those homes often each have a mobile phone (Bennett and Maton, 2010). For some people, the application of technology is the only technique for them to develop patience, as even the tedious business of waiting can be ameliorated by keeping busy with a mobile phone, especially for youth. One of the most important advantages of modern technology is globalisation, which has allowed the world to feel ‘closer’, and permitted the world’s economy to become a single, interdependent system (Barrell and Fic, 2014). This means that people can not only share information quickly and efficiently, but can also bring down barriers of linguistic and geographic boundaries. Zhong (2007) observes that, in today’s stock markets, financial infrastructure, global news organisations, powerful militaries, strong governments and big corporations, instantaneous communication is an asset society cannot afford to lose. The internet allows interconnection and promotes globalisation and information sharing. The reduction in the cost of instantaneous communication over the last 20 years have considerably expanded its potential, by making it accessible to developing as
tool for teens and their lifestyle is the internet, mobile technologies, and computers (Griswold, 2012. Teenagers and young people also have changed in comparison with teens in the past, taking into account eating habits, an active way of life, spending free time, and the importance of music and fashion. The affordability of many of these factors has changed considerably since, for example, the post-war generation (Bennett and Maton, 2010). The most important change, however, is that they are a “technology” generation. For teens in today’s world, mobile phones, internet, music, movies, television and video games are very important. Most teenagers prefer watching television and playing computer games to reading books. They dislike reading because watching television or playing online role-playing games is easier and they do not have to use their own imagination (Davies and Eynon, 2013). Computer games have the capacity to provide teaching opportunities but they are also harmful to health (Longo, 2010). Teenagers prefer to spend free time in front of a computer rather than to walk, play football, go to a swimming pool, or just simply meet a friend in the park and have a chat. The long term effects of these changes are not likely to be evident for at least three more generations. According to di Maggio et al. (2001), the internet expands daily and reaches more and more people globally. As a society, improvements in literacy may rise due to the growth of the internet. The young generation cannot imagine their day’s homework without the support of the one of most important modern technological developments, the internet. The internet is very useful and an important tool for studies, as there they are able to see the latest reports and articles, find and practise exercises which are relevant to their studies, as well as submit assignments and other work.
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Manifesto Sec. 3
Manifesto Sec. 3
HOW
MUCH
WILL
TECHNOLOGY
CHANGE
US
?
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Manifesto Sec. 1 Digitalized
130
Manifesto Sec. 6 Digitalized
Manifesto Sec.
The Net The Internet. A communications or broadcasting network, especially of maritime radio.
belongs to (Of a thing) be rightly placed in a specified position.
the future A period of time following the moment of speaking or writing; time regarded as still to come.
Like every medium, the Internet also has its weak points. Yet interactivity and networking make for greater transparency which is why the Internet is superior to other mass media.
The opportunity it provides for poly-directional communication also enables the creation of a much more highly differentiated picture of reality which makes the Internet itself the ideal medium for a postmodern world. Rightly so, the Net is establishing itself as the leading medium and its open culture is more suited than any other to serve as the benchmark for the just society of the future.
Side effects of technology
138
Manifesto Sec. 7
Digitalized
By Alice Martin
The rapid revolution in technology affected our lifestyle drastically and led us to believe that our lives have changed for the better. Now communication with our distant friends or relatives, buying branded products or goods on-the-go and conducting business meeting is possible with just a single click. We believe that all these changes have made our lives more comfortable than before. However, there is a critical concern that is eating up most parents from inside, i.e., whether technology is affecting their children for the good or worse? What are some of the side effects of technology? What are we to do about the tech overload happening right now to students and everyone else? The minds of children are like blank pages. As we know that the generation of this era has a high level of dexterity. Their elevated cleverness allows them to fill those pages very fast with the provided information. Such information can be extracted not only from books and other educational materials but also from games, TV shows and texting. A limited use of gadgets can be quite useful for children as it will allow them to be up to date with the current technology. However, the overuse of these advancements can really hamper or even damage their development in the personal growth, communication and educational department. Though we can’t deny the endowments that the current era of advancement has provides us with, but like any other thing, we cannot deny the fact that there is always two sides to everything: Good and Bad.
Deteriorated Patience Patience is a very precious virtue and its scarcity could deteriorate a person’s Will. Determination is a necessity that comes with patience and without it no individual can survive the hardships of life. According to studies, tolerance in children is vanishing quite increasingly due to the improper use of technology. For example, children get frustrated quickly when they surf internet and the page they want to view takes time to load.
Elevated Exasperation These days, children indulge themselves in internet, games or texting. These activities have affected their psyche negatively, consequently leading to increased frustration. Now they get frustrated whenever they are asked to do anything while playing games or using internet. For instance, when their parents ask them to take the trash out, they get furious instantly. This behavior has shattered many parent-children relationships.
The bottom line is that while technology is a necessity to survive and flourish in this age of advancement, however, parents should control their children by keeping an eye on its excessive usage.
Declining Writing Skills Due to the excessive usage of online chatting and shortcuts, the writing skills of today’s young generation have declined quite tremendously. These days, children are relying more and more on digital communication that they have totally forgot about improving their writing skills. They don’t know the spelling of different words, how to use grammar properly or how to do cursive writing. Lack of Physical Interactivity No one can deny the fact that the advancement of technology has produced a completely unique method of interaction and communication. Now, more and more people are interacting with others through different platforms like apps, role-playing online games, social networks, etc. This advancement has hampered the physical interaction skills of many children. Due to that they don’t know how to interact with others when they meet them in-person or what gesture they should carry.
If the Net is the future...
WHAT
WILL
HAPPEN
TO
COMMUNITIES
?
Modernization is a process which indicates the adoption of the modern ways of life and values. It refers to an attempt on the part of the people particularly those who are custom-bound to adapt themselves to the presenttime, conditions, needs, styles and ways in general. It indicates a change in people's food habits, dress habits, speaking styles, tastes, choices, preferences, ideas, values, recreational activities and so on. People in the process of getting themselves modernized give more importance to science and technology. The scientific and technological inventions have modernized societies in various countries. They have brought about remarkable changes in the whole system of social relationship and installed new ideologies in the place of traditional ones.
INDEX
THE HISTORY OF COMMUNICATION THROUGH THE AGES
By Tim Lambert http://www.localhistories.org/communications.html
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Manifesto Sec. 1 Digitalized