From: Terry W. Colvin (fortean1@mindspring.com)
Date: Wed Jul 02 2003 - 18:04:32 MDT
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Subject: Paradox of the Global Information In
Author: Moderator of conference "asia.security"
The Paradox of the Global Information Infrastructure
Dana R. Fisher
The emerging global information infrastructure (GII) is set
to become a powerful tool in international relations. As people
within countries around the world develop the ability to access
the Internet and the graphical interface called the World Wide
Web, the borders separating states become more permeable;
information can enter and leave without a visa. Although
commercial applications currently predominate, the GII is
increasingly used in diplomacy and as an educational tool for
academics, governments and activists.
The GII has two major advantages. First it is fast.
Sending information across borders is no longer a matter of
couriers and days; it is almost instantaneous. Second, once the
hardware is in place, it is inexpensive. The latest Internet
capabilities work much like video teleconferencing, except with a
far lower cost. Even the "older" Internet resources give one the
ability to have a spontaneous, textually-based conversation and
send huge amounts of data quickly and very inexpensively.
By making communication between countries faster, easier and
cheaper, people in other countries are virtually next door
neighbors. The Nautilus Institute, for example, uses electronic
communication to enhance its work on security and sustainable
development in Asia. Through the GII, the Institute involves
people from over 30 countries in a virtual community of experts
via the Northeast Asia Peace and Security Network (NAPSNet) and
the Asia-Pacific Regional Environment Network (APRENet).
Because the GII traverses territorial boundaries, it
supports the development of new types of global and regional
relations. In Asia, it is an important contributing force to
emerging regionalism. The eighteen members of the Asia Pacific
Economic Cooperation group (APEC) have agreed to establish an
"Asia Pacific Information Infrastructure" which has enormous
implications for the conduct of trade and investment, as well as
diplomacy, in the region. In addition, the GII was used to
educate and coordinate the work behind the November APEC meetings
in Osaka. Primary documents, background information, and most
recent research on APEC was available to anyone through the
Internet.
Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) and citizen groups in
Asia are also increasingly turning to the GII to facilitate
cross-border information flows and campaigns. The Internet
allows vast amounts of information to be shared cheaply and
quickly and stored for future use. The GII, in short, promotes
new forms of grassroots international cooperation and advocacy.
Ironically, however, the GII also reinforces social
inequities both inside and between countries. Like other aspects
of economic globalization, the spread of the GII is uneven. It
may increase social fragmentation within state borders and
between countries even as it forges new communities. With the
growth of the GII comes the risk that developing countries and
the less affluent in societies will become more disenfranchised.
Many developing countries are not yet able to take full advantage
of the resources available through the GII. In addition, many
sectors of developed societies can not or do not choose to use
the new technology. Because the growth of the GII does not
follow the usual lines drawn by those who have telephones and
televisions, this social fragmentation will exclude many who are
presently considered the technological haves resulting in a whole
new sector of society: the have somes. Paradoxically, one of
the largest populations of have somes are governments, many of
whom are as disconnected from the new technology as those who
cannot afford phone lines.
As participation on the Internet explodes, people and
countries without access can only lag behind. Unable to receive
information easily and inexpensively, those without or unable to
afford access will remain less informed and less involved in the
international dialogue. Many countries can afford the Internet
but are limited in their ability to use the World Wide Web.
Those countries receive only some of the benefits of the new
technology.
At a June 1995 workshop on Harnessing the Communication
Revolution in Beijing, China, representatives from developing
countries expressed their concern that they were "missing it."
As the World Wide Web--which needs consistent telephone lines and
relatively fast computers-- grows more popular, countries without
strong telecommunications infrastructures will not be able to
access the latest tools on the GII [See Box]. Even today, many
developing countries do not have open, public access to the
Internet.
Presently, the majority of the information available through
the GII-- which includes files, conferences, mail and hypertext--
is English based. To compound other factors that limit many
people's use of the Internet, those without skills in English
would find it very difficult to make use of a number of the
resources that are available on-line. Until the GII has the
resources to support translation, international dialogues are
significantly limited by the singularity of the language. Thus,
the seemingly perfect tool for international communication
actually isolates a large percentage of the world from the most
hyperactive level of human communication.
In the future, the Global Information Infrastructure will
grow enormously in terms of applications and usage. But who will
be able to take advantage of this growth is not certain.
Although it will make it even easier for citizens of the world to
communicate quickly and inexpensively at all levels of
international society, many organizations, people and even
countries could be left out of the dialogue. In short, commitment
to include the developing world and the less advantaged in
international dialogues is inadequate.
The growth of the GII has made hard copies of many materials
obsolete. Because the new technology renders obsolete expensive
and labor intensive distribution of hard copies, those who do
not have Internet access are also missing information they might
once have received. To ensure that the GII serves its purpose as
a communication tool for everyone, we must consciously design
information services that are tailored to the local needs and
technological capabilities of all constituencies, including those
in the developing world and the have-nots inside each society.
Nautilus provides its on-line services--NAPSNet and APRENet-
-free of charge to anyone with access to the Internet. By making
its documents and information available through e-mail as well as
on the World Wide Web, even those who cannot afford or do not
have access to anything but e-mail are included in the dialogue
-- Terry W. Colvin, Sierra Vista, Arizona (USA) < fortean1@mindspring.com > Alternate: < fortean1@msn.com > Home Page: < http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Stargate/8958/index.html > Sites: * Fortean Times * Mystic's Haven * TLCB * U.S. Message Text Formatting (USMTF) Program ------------ Member: Thailand-Laos-Cambodia Brotherhood (TLCB) Mailing List TLCB Web Site: < http://www.tlc-brotherhood.org >[Vietnam veterans, Allies, CIA/NSA, and "steenkeen" contractors are welcome.]
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