Curran, James P.; Fenton, Natalie and Freedman, Des (D. J.). 2012. Misunderstanding the Internet. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-57958-2: [Book]

No full text available

Text misunderstanding_the_internet.pdf - Draft Version Permissions: Administrator Access Only Download (1MB)

Abstract or Description

The growth of the internet has been spectacular. There are now more 1.5 billion internet users across the globe, about one quarter of the world’s population. This is certainly a new phenomenon that is of enormous significance for the economic, political and social life of contemporary societies. However, much popular and academic writing about the internet takes a technologically deterministic view, assuming that the internet’s potential will be realised in essentially transformative ways. This was especially true in the euphoric moment of the mid-1990s, when many commentators wrote about the internet with awe and wonderment. While this moment may be over, its underlying technocentrism – the belief that technology determines outcomes – lingers on, and with it, a failure to understand the internet in its social, economic and political context.

Misunderstanding the Internet is a short introduction, encompassing the history, sociology, politics and economics of the internet and its impact on society.

Item Type:	Book
Departments, Centres and Research Units:	Media, Communications and Cultural Studies Media, Communications and Cultural Studies > Goldsmiths Leverhulme Media Research Centre
Date:	March 2012
Item ID:	5964
Date Deposited:	10 Nov 2011 09:08
Last Modified:	29 Apr 2020 15:31
URI:	https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/5964

View statistics for this item...

Edit Record (login required)