Today is the 25th anniversary of the Internet. Whether you were there at the beginning or not, the Internet has permeated your life.
I do not see myself as an idealist, but on at least one issue I probably am. I had hoped that the Internet would change things. I had hoped that a situation in which everyone had a voice without great cost would reduce the impact of income/power disparity. The idea of the participatory or read/write web seemed so helpful. Disadvantages can not be eliminated, but I had hoped the political clout of big money would be reduced when individual opinions could be expressed to influence individual votes and lobby decision makers. I had hoped that educational opportunities would be flattened.
I am no longer as confident. Big money has moved in. An open Internet free from the control of access providers is in serious jeopardy. We cannot trust our own government to respect our privacy and even if such intrusions are necessary, it is clear we must also deal with the use of our data by big business. What are trading our privacy for? I hope more than ad supported content.
My biggest complaint is that lack of awareness and indifference are major issues. Ironically, those in the ed tech community originally suggested that a major limitation of tablet devices was that they were more suited to consumption than production. While not really true, it just seems most accept a passive role. At best they post to friends in Facebook and force themselves to generate 140 character position statements on matters of great importance. As a group, we are mostly consumers. Perhaps there is not the necessary commitment to contribute to a true participatory culture.
For more on this topic, I suggest The Master Switch.