The creation of the internet enable more communication between people globally than one could ever think was possible. Ideas, information, and various movements can spread rapidly. Internet Freedom has given rise to digital media, e-commerce, and an evolving form of technology based activism. There have been calculated means to stop the progress of this new freedom by the ruling elite of the world. Net neutrality has been under attack by various governments and corporations who realize the power of the medium. Internet freedom offers a diverse alternative media, enables a new form of commerce, and allows for a forum of open discussion on various topics or issues. The major reason why internet freedom is so essential is that it provides a vast amount of knowledge easily available to people who have access. Once the digital divide is closed, more people have access to information. There are still places in the world that do not have reliable internet access. It is only a matter of time before this changes. It will become more difficult for information to be suppressed or hidden from public view. The internet's creation did have negative consequences. Hacking, the spread of extremist ideology, and cybercrime have become common problems with widespread internet use. Prohibition of certain internet platforms would be counterproductive. Such suggestions are designed to either hinder the flow of information or end internet freedom completely. Arguments from suppressing internet freedom range from public safety, stopping online piracy, or crime prevention. The real motive behind this is for far-right and authoritarian elements to silence the voices of dissent. If social and political movements can be started by either websites, social media, or other digital platforms networks of oppression may not have a means to counter such speed. Internet freedom could be a means for radical change of the economic, political, and social structure.
Internet freedom can ensure preservation of a functional free press. Many nations do not have this privilege. Nations with press protection face another problem of corporate domination of news. The presentation of the truth is not the objective for a business. The major media corporations are more concerned about profit rather than high quality reporting or journalism. The authoritarian regimes seek to stifle internet access to prevent exposure to new ideas or information reaching the wider world. Exposure to new ideas or ideology can disrupt the status quo in a repressive state. The internet has become a place in which information and news is limitless. Video sharing and original content for various individuals has exposed billions of people to different perspectives. Alternative media has emerged as a challenger to mainstream news, which presents a simplistic or biased narrative. Although major cable news networks both local and international have an online presence, they still present the same message. The critical or serious analytical element is missing, yet is replaced with opinion presented as fact. Out of frustration, consumers have turned to alternative media. Fox News, CNN, CCtv, BBC, Africa News, Euronews, France 24, and Russia Today either have a national or political based biased that can be seen in their reporting. The internet allows users to seek out various websites and compare information. The challenge for the user is distinguishing between fact and erroneous claims.
There has been an increase in what has been called fake news. Websites and social media platforms have been spreading information that is not true or checked for accuracy. Fake news is not a new phenomenon seeing as there were cases in which false statements or accusations were made in newspapers and television. Jayson Blair a former
New York Times journalist fabricated stories in 2003 regarding the Iraq War. Articles were discovered to false by the staff and Blair was forced to resign. Incidents such as that have gradually cause a more suspicion of the media by the public. The press has come under threat from the corporate model of news, censorship, and government hostility. The internet has for the most part avoided large scale censorship that television and radio has been faced with. The issues surrounding privacy and technology companies using personal data has gained the attention of numerous political figures. The government's concern is not the theft of personal data or the violation of privacy, but a means of either having control or more strict regulation of the internet. If net neutrality is eradicated, press freedom could lose a valuable resource. Internet service providers could easily just reduce speeds to certain websites or worse by taking them off of search engine listings. With print media disappearing, it is critical that the consumers of news have access to multiple sources of information. Media literacy become more essential in a world that is driven by information.
Electronic commerce has become a major economic development. It has revolutionized the way people purchase products. The driving force in the contemporary consumer culture is e-commerce. None of this would have been possible without internet freedom. People have the power to buy many products at any time of day. Amazon or E-Bay has a multitude of items ranging from clothing, books, electronics, clothes, and furniture. The difference is that a consumer can also engage in selling items. The option for the individual can be to set a certain price with the hope it get s the attention of a potential buyer. E-commerce also contributes to the survival of small businesses. Compared to large and long running corporations, smaller businesses have difficulty competing in the market. The disadvantage is obvious in terms of advertisement. A corporation can have more resources devoted to buying air time, erecting billboards, or developing public relations campaigns. A small business or start-up does that have the finance for such ambitious projects. However, social media and websites can provide spaces for advertisement at minimal cost. This creates an equal atmosphere of market competition between small business and corporations.
Large corporations have the benefit of having a lower federal income tax rate compared to smaller businesses. Having wider internet freedom encourages an expansion of small business, which will keep the economy diversified. There is a legitimate fear that monopolies could reemerge as corporations move to more amalgamation. This is occurring more so with media and entertainment. Entertainment and other forms of media can benefit from internet freedom. Video streaming and sharing has change the way people watch movies and TV shows. It allows for a greater variety for the viewer to choose from. As time progresses, the internet will become a large section of the entertainment industry. Internet freedom allows commerce to happen even without a physical store or market. Staring a business or company becomes much easier with the tools of the internet. Some believe that e-commerce has been causing the decline of traditional retail stores. What is not realized is that many stores are establishing websites and online shopping options. This allows more exposure of a company's brand to the wider public. The rise of e-commerce will continue and it will become more a part of consumers lives. The amazing phenomenon is that the divide between consumer and producer may gradually disappear.
Internet freedom has given the average person more knowledge than previous generations. Prior to the internet, the library, school, or a book was what people referred to. Now, a person can merely type on their laptop or phone and get answers to their questions. The internet has become a large encyclopedia of a vast assortment of human experience. Video streaming as also enabled an immense archive of prominent individuals and years gone by. Knowledge has become an even greater power and commodity in the modern world. The more a person knows, the more advantages they will have. Even though many would see the internet as nothing more than senseless entertainment or a frivolous waste of time, it can be used for learning. Public schools and universities realize that a contemporary workforce needs at least some basic computer literacy skills. Schools now offer coding and computer science courses to students. Living in a technological society requires a solid knowledge base. Just having knowledge stored is not enough; people must be taught how to decipher and interpret it.
Prior to technological advancements, it was difficult for the average person to gain access to knowledge. Information was either transmitted through oral traditions in many societies. The rise of writing and language made it so a person did not have to be reliant on their memory only. The printing press gave way to the increase in literacy and the rapid transfer of information. Books became more available and libraries became open to the public. Newspapers could print faster with a printing press. Speed of information became more important as the centuries progressed. The 20th century brought into existence two influential forms of technology which were radio and television. People could listen or look at what was happening around the world. The establishment of the World Wide Web in 1989 would amplify how fast and the total amount of information the public could receive. The people of the world can witness events without even leaving their own country. Information on individuals, academic subjects, or entertainment can be accessed at anytime. Research and archiving has experienced in a sense a renaissance. The internet can have a positive effect on education and the wider knowledge base of human civilization. The internet can contribute the spreading of ideas and the preservation of the vast body of knowledge.
Internet freedom also ensures that activism can continue and get large portions of people involved in a cause. There is a negative consequence to this. Hate groups, terrorist organizations, organized crime, and cyber criminals can also use internet freedom to their advantage. The only way to counter extremism to confront it with activism and facts. Organizing has become much easier with social media platforms such as Twitter or Facebook. Gathering people for a demonstration could be more complicated in the past. Making contact or attracting others to a cause would take considerable time and effort. The absence of internet freedom would mean movements such as Black Lives Matter or # Me Too may not have become as large or rapidly growing. Their is a limitation to the new wave of digital activism. Short attention spans and long term plans for change seem absent. There is the greater possibility of co-option at a faster rate. Leaders of social justice movements must be aware of this and learn to use the internet to their advantage. The term hacker has been given a negative connotation. Yet, some use their skill to expose or leak information that is deliberately hidden from the public. The exposure of government abuse and surveillance has caused many leaders to seek more restriction to hide possible crimes.
The establishment of Wikileaks has made world leaders more nervous about possible leaks to the press. Julian Assange is not being charged because he committed a heinous act, rather he exposed US war crimes in Iraq. The release of diplomatic cables cannot be considered classified information, yet the argument has been made it compromised national security. If Assange faces prison or possible execution then it will be a major loss for press and internet freedom. Eric Snowden who was a subcontractor for the CIA exposed the US government's expansive surveillance network of its own citizens. Both Assange and Snowden have been demonized by both government and mainstream media. Being a whistleblower in an age of internet freedom has become easier, which puts political figures in a state of fear. No longer can acts of corrupt foreign or domestic policy be denied when physical evidence exists. The Panama Papers were leaked by an anonymous source, which revealed that world leaders and the business elite were using firms for tax evasion, fraud, or circumventing international sanctions. The documents were leaked from the former corporate service provider Mossack Fonseca. When more corruption is discovered, the greater the amount of public discord grows. Controlling the narrative seeks to keep people passive and accepting of violations or government abuse of power. Some who were active and fought to keep internet freedom alive were not so fortunate. Aron Swartz was a computer programmer and activist for internet freedom. Swartz was the founder of Demand Progress, an organization dedicated to human rights, an open internet, and transparency. Aron Swartz was also involved in the development of RSS, Creative Commons, one of the founders of Reddit, and the Markdown web publishing format. Swartz had the belief that knowledge should be free and available to everyone. Aron Swartz connected a computer to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology network gaining access to academic journals. He was charged with under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Instead of facing a life sentence he chose suicide. Swartz's story is a tragic one, but makes it even more important to be aware about net neutrality and technology related issues. The new era of movements is going to have online activism being a part of their organizing strategies.
Internet freedom can protect free speech and expression to a greater extent than previously imagined. Discussions are more open in an online setting. The problem is that can get more vitriolic and tribal. People have a tendency to associate both online and in real life with others who share their own views. So, a internet user may not be getting more exposure to different ideas or belief systems. Inevitably they will seeing as the internet is an enormous entity of information. The way in which a person articulates themselves online differs compared to seeing someone face to face. Online discussion can be more candid, at times more offensive, or too truthful for people to handle. There is a habit for some to impose self-censorship when debating sensitive issues. Certain topics are either ignored or not talked about at all. Racism, sexism, homophobia, police brutality, poverty, or corruption are topics that are avoided in common conversation. The internet through video displays the worst aspects of human cruelty and hatred. Without video sharing websites, the public would not know the severe extent of police brutality. Generating conversation is the first step to initiating effective change. No topic or subject is off limits in digital space. Content can be violent, extreme, or artistic. The exchange of ideas and art can provide a creative outlet that no other medium can offer. Free speech can also be unlimited as well as expression. While a huge amount of freedom can be a benefit, it comes with responsibility. Internet users mush be conscious of what they post or share both personally and professionally. Comments or pictures could instigate controversy and condemnation. Words do have power and it is proven with writing. New mediums always have a challenge or establishing appropriate conduct, but this is not a justification for censorship. Free speech and expression cannot exist under a society than wants everyone to adhere to a single mode of thought. The ability to share large amounts of data and information can ensure that free speech and expression has a future.
Net neutrality has been under attack and its effects could be devastating. Numerous global challenges do dominate including climate change, war, and poverty. It would seem that internet freedom should be a low priority. However, the only weapon that the oppressed or the struggling have is a platform to expose injustice. The mainstream media has failed in many regards in relation to reporting truth. Alternative media provides a more critical technique to global affairs. The corporate model focuses on establishing on narrative or presents information based around a politically partisan spectrum. This distorts the view of the world, which is more complex than presented on television. Internet freedom allows a person to get access to different sources. The only way to foster media literacy is to see news from other countries and websites. Consumers must learn to see various media and compare. While some condemn or scapegoat the internet for particular troubles in society, the rise of technology should not be seen as a curse. Outcomes depend on how technology is used. E-commerce, online activism, and the spread of human knowledge is what the internet should be used for. A government controlled internet would be nothing more than a branch of a large propaganda arm. Regulations and laws are required to keep private data safe, stop online piracy, and prevent cybercrime. However, laws should not be made to reduce a user's access to information. Copyright should not be used as a means of corporations to hinder fair use. The internet was meant to be free and for everyone. The information age has enabled the world to become a smaller place. An event that occurs on one part of the globe will effect the rest. More people will know about it and share information. Information technology has ushered in a possible fourth industrial revolution in which computers and artificial intelligence will be a part of our daily lives. Internet freedom is a human right, but at the moment few recognize it as such.
