Chapter 8 Flashcards
marginalization
Those who are online and manage their lives with both computers and mobile devices may have a hard time seeing the problems of those who don’t. And if you can’t see it, you can’t solve it.
global divide
Everywhere else (not the United States)
technology gap
The uneven distribution of technology in society, which relates to a person’s access to a given technology
information gap
The uneven adoption of technology in society, which relates to a person’s desire to use a given technology
participation gap
Comes when people have access to technology and adopt it to some extent but don’t achieve the ability to participate in the digital conversation
digital illiteracy
Not knowing the difference between a browser and a search engine or being able to distinguish news from gossip
digital natives
Didn’t witness the evolution of digital technology and don’t question what they’re consuming or how it consumes them
neo-luddites
A minor rebellion of people who can afford the technology and are well educated but simply choose not to engage with it (Sam)
early adopters
People who continually watch for new technologies, research them, and buy them as soon as they are on the market
* Have a more utopian view on technology
utopian
Those who believe that ICTs are making the world better
technorealoists
Those who are between the two; people who understand that technological change creates undesirable as well as desirable possibilities
infrastructure development
Necessary to foster national development
* If a country wants to foster the perception that it is ready for international investment, it needs to ensure that the physical backbone us in place and people understand how to use it
information control
How a government approaches digital media – from news organizations to social sites – as a way to control its citizens.
digital divide
o The divide between haves and have-nots has existed with the introduction of all new technologies
o Digital technology is different, however, in that a large amount of Web content today is user generated We are both content producer and content
3 basic reasons why the digital divide exists in the US
o Three reasons why the digital divide exists in the US: technology gap, information gap, and the participation gap
Nielsen’s equation
o 90/9/1
90% of web users don’t contribute digital content (lurkers)
9% contribute as it suits them
1% dominate content production
o
the US has achieved Internet saturation
Private enterprise maintains the submarine cable system, the underground lines connecting the Internet from coast to coast, and the extremely expensive data centers that keep content flowing.
If 85% of Americans are already online, but only 40% of Chinese are online, where would you expect publicly held companies to put their money? It’s a matter of math: 85% of the American population is 267 million people, tapping into the remaining 60% of the Chinese people that is currently not online is about 819 million people
* Targeting this demographic would bring more money to these big companies
retirement happens
Once people reach retirement age, there is a steady drop-off in information-technology engagement. If you have a job that requires work online, you can expect that day in and day out for your entire career.
* ICT use is highest in peak earning years and lowest after the age of retirement. This drop-off is expected to continue, as an inevitable degree of technology fatigue sets in after decades of work
demograpics influence each other
Location tends to influence both education and job opportunities which then influence income potential.
* Better paying jobs are more likely to require computer use, so a significant amount of Internet use takes place at work and work-related use takes place at home. If you don’t have a job that requires information technologies, you probably see no practical use for them in your life
you have to pay to play
Lower income areas are less likely to connect to the Internet. Internet service providers tend to wire wealthy areas first
* They’re looking for customers and have less incentive to go into poorer areas
* They also tend to bypass many of rural areas in the US. That is because it’s more expensive to connect across distance for fewer people
* Inner cities and rural areas often also have lower incomes and lower education rates, which means that people may not connect, even if access is available.
o Think about upstate NY
information-technology is a choice
Of the roughly 15% of the US population that is not online, 41% said it’s because they don’t have a computer and/or Internet connection. This number actually has increased in the past decade.
mobile devices are widening the divide
Personal computers are relatively inexpensive and there are public spaces where computer use is free.
Not having a smartphone or tablet at your fingertips in our increasingly mobile-centric culture is the issue
* If you can’t afford to pay for the latest, greatest smartphone and the monthly fees that go along with it, you’re a have-not
