Sam, I would not dispute your contention that the internet opens up a new
"space" for social struggle that sees reproduced in it many of the same
actors and social forces that operate in other sectors of society, but it
seems to me that implicit in your discussion is the notion that the
internet, WWW and other info technologies are entirely "neutral" spaces
into which such struggles are extended. I rather doubt that technologies
are as neutral as you would appear to suggest. Just as Neil Postman
(AMUSING OURSELVES TO DEATH, 1985, Penguin and more recently, TECHNOPOLY:
THE SURRENDER OF CULTURE TO TECHNOLOGY, 1992, Vintage/Random House),
Marshal McLuhan (UNDERSTANDING MEDIA, 1964, Mentor/Penguin), and others
have commented so ably on the far-reaching impacts of television on society
(many initially subtle, but ultimately far-reaching, and profoundly
troubling), so too do we need to consider the implications of the medium
itself for the nature of social relations and social control in years to
come. This is not to say that there aren't many opportunities provided for
both "progressive" and "regressive" work (however defined) as a result of
such new technologies (and on balance I agree we need to be ready to take
advantage of these as they become available), but I don't think this should
blind us to the potential impacts of the medium itself.  So the middle
ground I would advocate would be one that (a) celebrates the connectivity
provided to those (like Joanne King - in an earlier posting) who welcome
the opportunity to forge links with distant others, and the opportunities
for social activism (c.f. Schwartz, NETACTIVISM, 1996, O'Reilly), while (b)
at the same being sensitive to the potential downsides of the medium.  I
remain cautious in my enthusiasm for the internet, despite it's incredible
usefulness to me.


Blake D. Poland
Department of Behavioural Science
Faculty of Medicine, McMurrich Building
University of Toronto
Toronto, Ontario
Canada   M5S 1A8

tel: 416-978-7542; fax: 416-978-2087
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