Beyond the Blogosphere: Information and Its Children

(Hardback)

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Description

This book looks at questions and answers pertaining to the organization, usage, and ownership of information in the Internet ageand the impact of shifting attitudes towards information ownership on creative endeavors. In the competing traditions of Marshall McLuhan and Langdon Winner, authors Aaron Barlow and Robert Leston take readers on a revealing tour of the Internet after the explosion of the blogosphere and social media. In the world Beyond the Blogosphere, information has surpassed its limits, the distinction between public and private selves has collapsed, information is more untrustworthy than it ever was before, and technology has exhibited a growth and a desire that may soon exceed human control. As Langdon Winner pointed out long ago, "tools have politics." In an eye-opening journey that navigates the nuances of the cultural impact the internet is having on daily life, Barlow and Leston examine the culture of participation in order to urge others to reconsider the view that the Internet is merely a platform or a set of tools that humans use to suit their own desires. Provocative and engaging, Beyond the Blogosphere stands as a challenge on how to rethink the Internet so that it doesn't out-think us.

Reviews

This book is a clarion call for people to influence technology before it expresses a desire running 'counter to the well-being of the human.' The authors see the Internet as having the capability to help people 'embark on a course of unrealized human collective potential.' . . . Recommended. * Choice *

Author Bio

Aaron Barlow is associate professor of English at New York City College of Technology. Robert Leston is assistant professor of English at New York City College of Technology.