Professional Documents
Culture Documents
1
Hoffman, D. L., Novak, T. P., Venkatesh, A. Has the Internet Become indispensable?
Communications of the ACM (July 2004). P. 38
2
Hoffman, p. 38
3
Ibid, p. 39
4
Ibid, p. 40
5
Fialkoff, F. The Power of Blogs. Library Journal, (Apr 1, 2005), p. 8
1
social implications, the most imediately recognizable of which it its in use in afefecting
political change. Such was the case during Ukraine`s Orange Revolution.
A study of website use resulting web traffic for both sides of the political battle
showed some clear differences, with Viktor Yuschenko`s supporters being much more active
in the online realm.6 With the Ukrainian government in firm control of all the traditional
media, such as newspapers, magazines, radio, and television, the internet was the only choice
for those to critique the actions of presidents.7
The internet has also been used in a more introspective way, exposing issues and
incting changes within other forms of more conventional media. This is the different from
other forms of media venturing onto the internet, as discussed above, because instigator of
this change has been internet-based, disseminating outward from websites.
The exposure of James Frey`s bestselling memoir A Million Little Pieces as a
fraudulent and fictionalized tale by the website thesmokinggun.com was a prime example of
the internet`s use to expose problems in the structure of conventional media. The story of
Frey`s vast exagerations in a supposdly true book was broke by thesmokinggun.com, in an
expose posted on January 8th, 2006, entitled A Million Little Lies.8
The revolution of information acces that the internet is creating continues to affect
both personal and mass comunications in a society where information control is a vary
valuable comodity.
Like the democratic and industrial revolutions before it, the information revolution has
started out with grand and noble ambitions behind it. The ideea of free acces to information in
an enticing prospect, but we must not forget the begginings of this modern movement, as
seems to have happened in the two previous to it. If power is defined as access to resources,
then we as a society have an oportunity to capture the vast power of information. The
importance of this opportunity should not be overlooked.
With the use of the internet technology there can be seen a great positive force on
globalization as it tends to increase the communication processes between people living in
different parts of the world and also helps to promote the political, social, economic, and
cultural aspects of a country.
6
Kyj, M. J. Internet use in Ukraine`s Orange Revolution. Bussiness Horizons, (2006), p. 78
7
Kyj, p. 72
8
http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0104061jamesfrey1.html
2
As there is a positive impact of internet on globalization there can be seen a negative
impact of internet on globalization as well. While the interdependence and the internet
technological advancement have increased in some parts of the world, this is not true in the
vast majority of the South. Despite the rapid globalization of the internet, the less developed
countries cannot benefit as much as those of the developed countries in economic as well as in
political institutions.
Thus the internet both has positive as well as negative effects on globalization and
they play equally an important part in the financial and economic status of a specific country.
The negative impact on the globalization can be reduced if an equilibrium and balance is
created and developmental techniques and schemes of information technology are introduced
in the less developing countries so that they may progress and pace forward in the 21st
century.
9
http://socyberty.com/issues/the-internet-and-globalization/ (The Internet and Globalization)