many of the dot com companies had already failed, and the Internet economy had begun to cool considerably. Jacobson asks whether or not a computer and a connection to the Internet is a gateway to freedom for the masses (Jacobson 2003, 164). Jacobson believes that there is a digital divide, a widening gap between the information haves and have-nots. Levels of education and income appear to be the most significant variables in Internet access and usage. In the U.S., both governmental agencies and corporations have tried to narrow the digital divide, sometimes with varying motives, whether to widen a consumer base or simply train people for jobs.
It appears that the poor and uneducated have fewer maps, ways to envision uses for the Internet and the sophisticated media offered over the web. Some users get stuck in their view of the Internet as an entertainment device, sometimes not having the sophistication to discern between knowledge and information (Jacobson 2003, 165). When one is writing a report on a topic and 4000 sites appear, how is one to determine which are useful for a project and which are not? Such decision-making requires a certain type of background that might not come instantly with the availability of the Internet.
Literacy is a component of Internet use. If medical and health information to enhance the quality of life is available on interesting sites, it is of no use to someone who cannot read it. The information superhighway seems to be growing to a global entity, but perhaps there are ideological and cultural conflicts inherent in the intercontinental and borderless web. If information is under the power of certain countries or individuals, the availability of the Internet makes no difference to those under such power and control.
Herman and McChesney, respectively professors of finance and mass communications, say that the Internet is a global medium, but its course is determined primarily by the...