e-Society: Press Any Key to Be Included

Cristina Pop, West University of Timisoara

Assignment on “Theories of Social Exclusion”
“Social Inclusion in Europe” Master Programme 2005-2007
 e-Society: Press Any Key to Be Included

E-mail, e-commerce, e-government – more and more parts of our life move, at
least partially, to the relatively new and highly emerging space of the internet. While this
is obviously having a strong impact on many aspects of society, it is yet hard to
accurately estimate the consequences, both positive and negative, on the quality of human
life and the functioning of society.
Theoretical studies on the topic have been developed mostly in the last 10 years;
they are still not easily accessible in Romania and, from what I could find, they deal
mostly with global concepts like network society, evolution of technology or
globalization.
What I will focus on in this paper is the impact that the use of the internet has on
the everyday life of an average person. As the practical examples will be mostly from my
own experience or that of people in my entourage, this will result in a glimpse over the
life of a Romanian young person (aged between 20 and 30), living in one of the biggest
cities of the country and completing or having completed a form of higher education. The
web services that I will refer to are those most commonly used by myself and by people I
most interact with:
- for communication: personal e-mail, e-mail groups, messengers, forums, online
communities (e.g. 360.yahoo.com);
- for research: online newspapers and magazines, manuals, dictionaries, e-books;
- for career related purposes: online recruitment sites, presentation sites of
companies (potential employers);
- for shopping or other payments: e-commerce sites, presentation sites of
producers of the wanted products, sites for online payment of different services (e.g.
some of the local public taxes in Timisoara);
- for entertainment: online games, online radio stations, sites dedicated to
music/movies/jokes etc.
I will also consider the implications of what I present with regard to
inclusion/exclusion, based on these 5 sites: body, work, citizenship, identity and territory.
And I will try to relate my examples to the wider context given by the mentioned
references.

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The Body Site

When talking about this virtual space of the internet, is there really anything to
mention about the human body, except for its absence? Yes, there is, as the body and the
online activities have powerful influences on each other.
First, we must notice that the body does not “give up”, it refuses to be hidden
behind a screen and not be given a role in the online communication. Of course, this is
mostly valid for the personal communication (instant messaging, forums, personal blogs),
which is to be expected if we think of the importance of body language in our face to face
interactions. In most of these forms of online communication, the user can add a photo of
himself/herself or create an avatar (a picture that combines different predefined images in
order to create a resemblance with the person in several aspects like appearance, state of
mind, hobbies, fashion preferences and so on). The fact that online written
communication tends to be the most impersonal form of communication (because of
losing a very important source of information – non-verbal language) causes frustration
for people engaged in this process. Thus, substitutes are being developed, starting from
emoticons and going to online audio/video calls. It is also important to notice that when
people use chat programs for making new acquaintances, one of the early questions in the
conversation is “Can I see a photo of yourself?” – so we are still not as “virtually-
minded” as to set aside the looks of the person we are talking to.
On one hand, this means that the internet is still a better place for the beautiful.
On the other, it gives more chances to the non-beautiful to gain appreciation for their
qualities, as you can choose in which way and how much you unveil yourself. This may
lead to the conclusion that exclusion based on physical differences can be easily avoided
in the online life; still, it is not real inclusion if it is based on hiding or lying about
yourself and it is also limited, in many cases, to the territory of the internet (the
communication can be very good between two persons who chat online, but this may
change if they meet face to face and one turns out to have a physical disability).
We must also consider the way that the body is influenced by the increasing use
of computers (not all computer activities involve the use of internet, but the growth of
online services determines an increase in the number of people who use a computer

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frequently and also in the time that an average person spends using a computer). As
Himanen ([Him04]) mentions, obesity and diseases caused by physically bad positions
are major threats for the members of information society. He proposes that national and
international initiatives should use the internet (and other methods) for promoting a
healthy way of life (physical activities, work ergonomics). Here I must bring an example
(www.iDieta.ro), a Romanian website where health related problems (especially those
involving obesity) are presented and discussed; the site gives many “recipes” for living
healthier, yet the result is that many users spend their time in front of the computer,
reading and discussing with each other, which counter balances the positive effects of
following the given advice (advice that is not even followed by a large number of users,
as we can see from their messages on the forum). So the internet is only able to support a
small part of the solution for this problem by itself – we need a wider spread of education
on this matter. Otherwise, what we risk is excluding ourselves from the information
society, as some diseases (e.g. RSI – Repetitive strain injury) will cause a person to
drastically reduce the time spent using a computer – this is particularly important for
programmers or other persons whose job involves specialized computer work, as it may
force them to choose between damaging their body and giving up the job they have been
trained for.
One way to solve this last problem and also to enable persons with certain
physical disabilities to use a computer is developing alternative input and output devices
– for example, software using vocal commands is being developed and might become
easily accessible in the near future.

The Work Site

Starting from finding a job and going to performing the tasks as an employee, the
internet is now present in all aspects of work.
Online recruitment services are a well recognized alternative for traditional
recruitment (also a cheaper one). In Romania, there are 3 major sites providing such
services. Of course, they target potential employees who can at least use a computer for
browsing the internet and for writing their electronic CV. So it is not surprising to see that

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a large percent of the jobs offered are in IT related fields. As an example, on

www.ejobs.ro (the Romanian recruitment site with most users, both companies and
candidates), 2335 jobs out of 4986 fit into the categories “IT Hardware”, “IT Software”
and “Internet/Commerce/New Media”, while there are only 47 jobs for “Food Industry”
and 50 jobs for “Textiles Industry” (data valid for 20.07.2006). This shows how online
recruitment is mostly meant for candidates with computer literacy and for companies
searching for specialists in a limited number of domains.
Although communication plays a major role in the work of more and more of
their employees, many companies have found it necessary to restrict their access to
internet at work because of their decreasing efficiency. On the other hand, access to
internet is very useful or even critical in some jobs (e.g. sales, programming, design). So
in the end this is a matter of the employee’s sense of responsibility.
A positive effect of using the internet for work is the flexibility it brings: more
possibilities to work from home (which can have a positive influence on family life, with
at least one parent being able to stay home and be close to the children), working with/for
persons who are not physically close (which can improve the quality of work by sharing
multicultural experiences and by being able to work with the persons who are the best for
a certain job, no matter of their location – as long as they have a computer connected to
the internet). This advantage is not restricted only to IT related work, as what is shared
online does not need to be the final product, but information needed for producing it.
On the other hand, we can see the relation to the concept of “trainability”. Not
only there is an increase in the number of job types requiring computer literacy, but the
fast evolution of computers is also forcing us to keep developing new skills in order to
stay included in the job market place. Perhaps the most eloquent example is that of ERP
systems (Enterprise Resource Planning), which are network applications used inside a
company for managing its resources and production processes. Due to the growth of
multi-national companies, the demand for such software is increasing, as it is expected to
raise the profit of the enterprise through better planning and administrating. Though, it
has been shown that the impact on the employees efficiency is not as positive as expected
– they suddenly have to change their working procedures and learn how to use a new
complex system. The damage is both for the individual whose life is affected and for the

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company, in many cases having a decrease of profit for the first years after the
introducing of the ERP tool.
The evolution of online advertising brings on a new phenomenon: ways to earn
money as a consumer. There are sites where registered users get paid for filling in
surveys about different products (e.g. www.ciao.co.uk) and there are even programs who
run advertising banners on top of all applications, count the number of displays and the
user gets paid accordingly (e.g. http://www.selmedia.ro). It goes to prove the impact of
the importance of the current approach to information; producing goods is not enough for
an enterprise, producing information about the goods, about the organisation itself has
become a must.
This raises major doubts about the potential success of organisations who are not
present on the internet. For a common internet user, the first place to look for information
on a product or enterprise is online, so a presentation site of the enterprise is seen as a
minimum requirement. E-commerce sites have already proven to be successful,
especially in domains like IT, printing or gift shops; will they gradually replace shops as
we know them today? It is hard to imagine that we will use less and less of our senses for
choosing the products we need, but considering that a virtual restaurant has been working
successfully for the last 5 years (http://www.rusoaie.com/food/), this is a small proof that
we are already moving on that direction. This aspect is also relevant for the body site:
what we can touch and smell seems to be losing ground to what we can see and hear. In
such a world that is more and more virtualized, it is obvious that traditional societies will
become exceptions, having only two options for developing: either adapting to the new
culture, or preserving the traditional one and using it as a touristic attraction (which is
actually also a consumeristic approach, so not a genuine “sticking to tradition”). Neither
of these alternatives can be considered as an inclusive process.
The last aspect I will consider for the work site is about the implications of the use
of internet on education. Flexibility is an obvious result: the possibility to teach at long
distances, more access to useful documents, the chance to choose what to learn outside
school (since the internet offers so much information on practically any topic). By giving
alternatives and/or complements to the knowledge gained from official schooling, the risk
of the state controlling its citizens seems to diminish.

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However, the ability of interpreting the information received is still something to

be educated by the family and/or school. In an indirect manner, the internet is
encouraging the acceptance of information that is not understood or verified, by offering
the necessary tools to just copy information needed for school or work related tasks. A
recent study made in UK by Sally Brown, a professor of Leeds Metropolitan University,
shows that British students nowadays do not understand the concept of plagiary. The
practice of solving assignment by copy-pasting documents found on the internet is
regarded as normal. I have not found similar studies made in Romania, but a simple
search returns many sites where typical assignments are posted, ready to be downloaded
and delivered in class (e.g. http://www.e-referate.ro/). We can relate this fact to the use of
illegal copies of software or audio/video products downloaded from the internet and we
get a more complete picture of the poor acceptance of the rights of intellectual property. I
believe this is a risk not only for intellectuals, whose work is being stolen on a regular
basis, but also for the society as a whole, if the sense of critical interpretation of
information is not developed by other formal or informal education systems.

The Citizenship Site

I consider the “hacker ethics”, as defined in [Miz**], to be a relevant starting

point for a discussion of citizenship in this context. This is because the core group of
internet users also represents its creators. What makes the IT (including online
applications) develop so fast is the passionate drive of those called hackers (with the
meaning of creators and modifiers of computer software and hardware). According to
[Miz**], the principles of hacker ethics have changed from the original ones, those of the
60s generation (first presented by Steven Levy in “Hackers: Heroes of the Computer
Revolution”). Still, the new ethic, followed by the 90s hackers, emerged from the former
one, showing some continuity, while being influenced by the overall evolution of society.
Briefly, the new hacker ethics is shown as based on the following principles:
1. Above all else, do no harm!
2. Protect privacy!
3. Waste not, want not!

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4. Exceed limitations!
5. The communicational imperative
6. Leave no traces!
7. Share!
8. Self defense
9. Hacking helps security
10. Trust, but test!
This set of principles seems to be working similarly to a social contract inside the
virtual community of hackers. What I find very interesting is that, by this ethic, hackers
are, to a certain extent, excluding themselves from the market – for example, they state
that information or software should be accessed for free by anyone. This has lead to the
growth of open source communities and to the functioning of many interactive sites
where whoever is interested by creating software can get examples and advice from those
who are more experienced.
Paradoxically, hackers promote individualism and generosity at the same time. As
a personal experience, I have felt the influence of this ethic while being a student of an
Automation and Computer Science Faculty. When comparing the interaction of my
faculty’s students to that of other faculties (where some of my close friends were
studying, e.g. Architecture, Management, Economics), I was surprised to see that in my
faculty there appeared to be much more spontaneous cooperation, for both school projects
and other activities. At the same time, interest in self development as a professional was
not diminished in any way.
Since hackers following the above mentioned ethic are indispensable for IT
development, the IT industry and society as a whole will also have to adapt to the hacker
culture, not only vice-versa. This affects the work site too, as producers of free software
have to find non-traditional ways of obtaining profit (like funding for research, donations
or advertising).
As for the common internet user, I will mention the following aspects regarding
citizenship:
• from a certain point of view, the internet can be regarded as the most inclusive
community: since you can’t be judged by your physical appearance, social status

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etc., all that makes your image on the internet is the idea (or product, like a
software tool) that you present, thus setting the basis for a certain type of
meritocracy; however, as long as this acceptance of diversity does not spread from
the virtual society to what we still call real life, I believe we cannot talk about real
inclusion;
• in order to have access to the largest part of internet resources, users must share
some common features; leaving the obvious ones aside (access to a computer with
internet connection, minimum computer literacy, certain physical abilities – like
well functioning hands and eyes), we must consider English knowledge (a large
number of sites, documents and programs are in English or at least have an
English version) and knowledge of specific terms (e.g. spyware) or abbreviations
(e.g. ISP, meaning “internet service provider”);
• sometimes the state and the internet, as communities, interfere; a positive result is
the diversification of internet services (sites in more languages, services adapted
to different market types); one major negative result is censorship imposed by the
state (e.g. restrictions of internet search in China);
• although the online world can be seen as the best place for diversity, exclusion
still exists even in this virtual territory: the “other”, who is not oppressed or
denied any rights, but is practically not existing, is the one who does not have
access to the network; in some cases, like poor countries, they are persons (or
even entire populations) who do not have the resources to reach the technological
development of the Western world; in other cases, the exclusion is on a voluntary
basis – but there is a price to pay, just like with other forms of exclusion.

The Identity Site

Due to its virtuality, the internet sets grounds for new ways of shaping an identity.
First, we must notice the existence of non-identity, meaning the possibility to be
present in the online community while keeping a hidden identity. It is not only the case of
hackers (whose ethic includes the principle “leave no traces”), but also of web sites
administrators, for example. In many cases, the administrator is someone who will

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answer your requests and help you solve your problems, but except for an impersonal e-
mail address and some formal phrases you do not get to know more about that person. It
is similar to interacting with a machine, which leads us again to a connection with the
body site and the more and more abstract aspect of our life.
Second, as characteristic for the contemporary society, the platypus metaphor for
plural identity fully applies for internet users, too. Sometimes, this plurality is
functionally split into its components. One practical example is the way that some
persons use more e-mail addresses, each for a specific purpose: one for professional
activities, one for communication with close friends, one for subscribing to various
mailing groups. Besides, no other territory offers so many chances to build your identity
exactly the way you want it and even use several different identities in the same
community, for purposes going from having fun to criminal intentions.
An interesting situation is that of self-contradicting identities. When mentioning
it, I have in mind the large number of e-mails, forums and personal blogs where I have
read negative appreciations regarding the increasing use of personal computers, supposed
to damage human social abilities. On one hand, it is true that if you want to transmit a
message for computer-addicts, the most efficient environment for this is the internet. On
the other hand, reading such a message online may make you feel like you are attending a
conference on animal protection led by a woman dressed in a natural fur coat. The
situation is similar to that presented by Castells ([Cas04a]) regarding the so-called anti-
globalization movement, which is actually using the same network structure and
technology that it is expected to be criticizing.
Typical for the consumeristic society we live in, brands and life-styles are of
increasing importance. Nowadays, you only need a quick search (on sites like
360.yahoo.com) to find people who share your interests. Contextual advertising tries to
predict products you may be interested in based on the text you are reading or writing. It
has never been easier to create a consumer’s profile and direct him or her to certain
products or services – it looks very practical, but is it ethical? To what extent will we
allow others to use the definition of our identity to their own benefit? How can we make
sure that their benefit does not interfere with our own, when we may not be able to

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critically analyze the content we receive (as mentioned in the section about the work
site)?

The Territory Site

As a virtual territory, the internet is not restricted by any physical boundaries;

theoretically, you can be in any part of the world and access it. However, restrictions do
exist, like those created by lack of infrastructure or censorship imposed by the
government of some countries, making us conclude that the internet is still strongly
dependent on physical territories.
In no other territory have space and time been so much separated. At least
partially, the consequences are benefic for humanity. Like Castells mentions in [Cas04b],
“the added value of the Internet over other communication media is its capacity to
recombine in chosen time information products and information processes to generate a
new output, that is immediately processed in the net, in an endless process of production
of information, communication, and feedback in real time or chosen time”. He continues
by arguing that “this is crucial because recombination is the source of innovation, and
innovation is at the roots of economic productivity, cultural creativity, and political
power making”. Following this line of thought, we can see how the chances are high that
the rich will get richer and the poor will get poorer also based on this difference between
them: access to the internet network.
As presented in [Cas04c], the fear that technology will grant humans with
excessive leisure time has not only proven unfounded, but what is happening is the
contrary. The study demonstrates how the use of wireless communication technology has
made it possible for people to occupy their every potentially idle moment. Partly, wireless
communication involves using internet applications. But not only wireless technology has
this effect: as mentioned in the section about the work site, employees tend to occupy
their time at work with internet related activities if they have access to it.
We can also notice the emergence of virtual sub-territories, defined by networks
based on shared interests (mailing groups and forums on topics going from academic
ones to celebrities fan clubs; sites for online games also fit here), on specialized services

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(e.g. dating sites, recruitment sites) or on common goals (applications for communication
between the world wide employees of a multinational companies or for communication
of the company with its clients and suppliers; online courses or competitions). I mention
them as sub-territories because many of them are closed, only possible to access by using
a username and a password. In some cases, this happens for protecting confidential
information (like inside a company). In others, it is more like saying: in order to benefit
from our network, you have to contribute to it; signing up for an account is the minimum
guarantee we can ask to prove us your commitment. This is closely related to the new
hacker ethic, as “freeloading” (always taking and never contributing) is one of the “thou
shalt nots” of this ethic ([Miz**]).
Finally, I will mention some of the most common threats present on the internet:
malware (software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system, without the
owner's informed consent), phishing (social engineering activities, aimed to capture
sensitive information – like passwords for e-mail accounts or even bank accounts),
hacking (deliberately gaining unauthorised access to an information system) or
cyberstalking. Besides these, which directly affect the user, we can mention pornography,
offensive content and piracy.
Although they are usually not a direct threat to the physical integrity of a person,
these actions can sometimes have major negative consequences on his or her life (e.g.
cyberstalking is usually accompanied by other forms of stalking; information obtained by
phishing or malware can lead to financial loss or even stealing identities). At an
organisational level (associations, enterprises and even governments), data loss, data
altering or data leak can also cause major financial damage and could even reach the
gravity of menace to a country’s security.
The common internet user is usually vulnerable to these threats (the most frequent
being those who seek profit) because, if you do not have a solid understanding of virtual
processes, you may not differentiate an authentic service from an attempt to cheat. This
brings us again to the matter of using less of our senses – will we need to compensate it
by gaining more IT knowledge? How much can we trust the good intentions of internet
service creators and providers and how justified are the dark scenarios that face the
internet as a way for a government to trace the private lives of the population?

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Considering the data retention directive – proposed in 2005 by the Swedish Minister of
Justice – which supported the storing and control of personal electronic data as means to
fight terrorism, it does not seem impossible for the internet to become a territory where
privacy does not exist.

Conclusions

Not at all surprisingly for the type of network society we are living in, the internet
as a social space exhibits the main characteristics of post-modernity:
1. the body is substituted by a custom representation of its features, taking the
concept of “body as agency” to the maximum flexibility;
2. the more net-connected work is, the more weight and success it gains;
3. claiming citizenship based on differences is nowhere else as legitimate as in a
territory like the virtual territory, where there is space for everyone and also the
possibility to personalize your own (or your group’s) space;
4. identity stretches from hybridisation to annihilation;
5. the virtual territory deepens the separation between those who can access it and
those who do not have the resources to do it.
As Castells mentions when describing the network society, “nodes increase their
importance for the network by absorbing more relevant information, and processing it
more efficiently” ([Cas04b]). Thus we can conclude that the most relevant criteria for
inclusion/exclusion will be the ones affecting the capacity to act as an efficient node of
the information society.

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References

[Cas00] Castells M. (2000), “Materials for an exploratory theory of the network

society”, British Journal of Sociology Vol. No. 51 Issue No. 1
[Cas04a] Castells M. (2004), “Power and Politics in the Network Society”, lecture
delivered at the London School of Economics and Political Science
[Cas04b] Castells M. (2004), “Informationalism, Networks and the Network Society: a
Theoretical Blueprint”, Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar
[Cas04c] Castells M., Fernandez-Ardevol M., Linchuan Qiu J., Sey A. (2004), “The
Mobile Communication Society – A cross-cultural analysis of available
evidence on the social uses of wireless communication technology”, presented
at the International Workshop on Wireless Communication Policies and
Prospects: A Global Perspective, held at the Annenberg School for
Communication, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, October
8th and 9th 2004
[Cox04] Cox G., Krysa J., Lewin A. (2004), “Introduction to 'The (Digital) Culture
Industry'”, ed. Economising Culture, New York: Autonomedia, pp. 7-21.
[Cox05] Cox G., Krysa J. (2005), “System Error: economies of cultural production in
the network society”, in Malcolm Miles, ed. New Practice - New
Pedagogies: a reader London: Routledge, pp. 29-38
[Him04] Himanen P. (2004), “Challenges of the Global Information Society”,
www.eduskunta.fi
[Miz**] Mizrach S., “Is there a Hacker Ethic for 90s Hackers?”, on “The Cyber
Anthropology Page”, http://www.fiu.edu/~mizrachs/hackethic.html
[Sto02] Stoer S. R., Magalhaes A. M., “The Reconfiguration of the Modern Social
Contract: New Forms of Citizenship and Education”, European Educational
Research Journal, Volume 1, Number 4

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