Digital mythologies: the hidden complexities of the Internet

Abstract

From the Publisher: Surf the web. Ride the information highway. Log on to the future. Corporate ad campaigns like these became pervasive in the 1990s, and will doubtless continue into the new millennium. You're either online, or you're falling behind the times-at least, that's what the media tells us. Since the beginning of the 1990s, when the Internet gained widespread popularity, it has been heralded as one of the most revolutionary technologies ever. Commentators expected it to redefine how we communicate, do business, and educate our children. Conversely, other pundits vehemently attacked this technology. Naysayers of cyberlife emerged with their warnings of how the Net provides an uncensored, around-the-clock venue for pornography and inaccurate, simplified information; it is rife with opportunities to violate our right to privacy. In Digital Mythologies, Thomas Valovic hopes to raise the level of discussion by giving a full and balanced picture of how the Net affect our lives. Digital Mythologies asks hard questions about where information technology is taking us. Through anecdotes drawn from his experiences as former editor-in-chief of Telecommunications magazine, the author gives readers a peek behind the scenes of the Internet industry. He explores the underlying social and political implications of the Net and its associated technologies, based on his contention that the cyberspace experience is far more complex that is commonly assumed. Valovic explores these hidden complexities, and points to fascinating connections between the Internet and our contemporary culture.

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