Bridge The Gap

The digital divide is a big issue our generation is facing.

According to Nick Couldry, the digital divide is “a widely used label for a range of policy debates since the mid 1990’s about the spread of access to the internet and other forms of ‘digital’ media.”

Pippa Norris, a political scientist has categorized it into the ‘global divide’ and the ‘social divide’. The global divide according to Norris is concerned with the large differences between different countries telecommunications infrastructures, number of computers, website hosts, etc. The social divide concerned with one nation and the gap between those who have access to that societies web resources and those who don’t.

On Live Trading News, an article was recently published on bridging the digital divide in Asia.

http://www.livetradingnews.com/the-digital-divide-in-asia-43022.htm

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon is working on bridging the gap that separates the rich from the poor depending on their access to modern telecommunications. “Let us promote multiple languages in new media, and let us ensure free access to the Internet and social media tools everywhere” said Ban Ki-moon.

Problem is, they have been working on this goal for over a decade now.  In the class readings Couldry wrote that the global inequalities in information resources made the vision for bridging the social gap difficult. This proved to be true for Asia.

In July 2000 the G8 Summit was in Okinawa, Japan. They set up a task force to see what could be done about the digital divide. This force was called the ‘Digital Opportunity Force,’ and the talk about the digital divide only decreased after the force was created.

Now, 11 years later, the 8^th Asian Media Summit has occurred and the digital divide is now a stronger issue than ever. The news article says that “Ministers, General Directors, policy makers, leading experts and scholars in the fields of broadcasting and press took part in the 2-day summit, under the topic “Broadcasting in the Digital Era,”

In class and from our Web Studies book we learn that the United States politically is ignoring the digital divide and pushing it to the side. This is an issue because the digital divide cannot continue being put off center stage.

Computers, websites, media and the internet together have led to the development of many ideas and innovations that would not have been imagined without access to internet and information transmitters.

In Asia the digital divide is quickly becoming more of a prominent issue to focus on, let’s hope it continues strong in that direction and the United States can take a hint.

Preserve Net Neutrality!

Preserve Net Neutrality!

The Danger Of Virtual Identity

Our identity comes from two areas. Our reflexive identity, who do I think I am? Or our ascribed identity, who do they tell me I am? Outside forces & inside forces interact to help shape our identity.

The internet allows for greater potential of anonymity, and a high level of self disclosure because you can share things online without people knowing you or seeing you.

Your online identity can make or break you.

Either you have a great online identity and when Googled the search engine spits out information  filled with informing blogs,  a clean Facebook, and possibly a witty Twitter, or you have an identity online that shows you as someone you really don’t want the world to see.

You’re virtual identity, how you present yourself online, is sometimes different from the person you are when interacting in person. The dangerous thing about having an online identity and  posting your personal information and life online: there’s no going back. Once it’s online it’s out for anyone and everyone to see.

The New York Times ran an article last fall about online identity and how it can effect your chances at finding and landing a job. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/10/jobs/10search.html?scp=1&sq=online%20identity&st=cse

It is very common now for companies to run a Google search of a job applicant online to see what comes up. If it’s a Facebook account that shows a picture of you dancing on a table, your chances of getting hired may have lowered a bit. (Unless you were aiming for a job at a strip club, in that case you might just be hired!)

 “Do not mistake the fact that you’re a decent person for the notion that you’ll look that way online,” said Michael Fertik. Fertik is the founder of ReputationDefender, a company that helps people improve their online profile and maintain privacy.

Sam Grobart, an editorial writer for the New York Times recently wrote a piece about online identity on Facebook.

http://gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/05/09/should-i-be-a-jerk-or-a-human-being-on-facebook/?scp=2&sq=virtual%20identity&st=Search

“When so many things are virtual and the actual effort to accomplish things is so low, all that’s left is the perception,” said Grobart.

Grobart criticizes himself and how judgmental and sometimes uncaring we can be online,  and how we let other peoples opinions of us alter who we are online.

A challenge that I have made for myself, and encourage for you too, is to remain the same person on and offline.