The Birth
of the Internet
The Commercial Structure of the Web
Media Convergence
& Video Games
Ownership, Advertising, Security, & Appropriateness
The Digital Divide, Alternative Voices,
& Democracy
100
This software was created in the 1970's, to send electronic messages to any computer on the Net. Major Web corporations offer free access to these accounts to draw users to their sites. Advertising is one cost of this "free" service.
What is e-mail?
100
The Internet became commercialized when businesses began to compete for users in these areas: Internet service providers, web browsing, e-mail, and directories and search engines.
What are the four main features of the commercial structure of the internet?
100
Video games crossed over into having multiple players join via the Internet.
How did video games emerge as a mass medium?
100
Government agencies can uncover records of users who thought their online activities were private, especially after the USA PATRIOT Act. During online fraud, identity thieves obtain credit card information in order to spend other people's money. Hackers use unethical data-gathering methods like phishing scams to trick Internet users into "updating" their account information.
What are concerns about the Internet regarding security?
200
A military/government project in the 1960's, ARPA-net was developed as a way for researchers to share computer processing time.
What is the development stage of the internet?
200
For a fee, these businesses offer connection to the Internet through dial-up or broadband.
What are Internet Service Providers?
200
Games have inspired movies, as well as books, comic books, and television series. For many movies, a video game spin-off is a must-have. Advertisers have used games to engage with potential consumers. And many people are concerned about the addictiveness of gaming.
How are video games now part of the broader media culture?
200
AOL connected millions of users through dial-up access. Google had instant success with its algorithmic search engine, and owns a number of other Internet offerings, including YouTube, Google Maps, and the Android operating system for mobile phones. Microsoft merged its Windows operating system with its Internet Explorer web browser to create a near monopoly, and also owns the search engine Bing and the Internet-connected video game console Xbox. Yahoo ranks as the third most popular search site.
Who are the major players vying for control of the Internet?
200
This is the growing disparity (great difference) between the "information haves," those who can afford computers and Internet services, and the "information have-nots," who may not be able to afford either. In addition, in many nations, the technology to connect to the Internet is unreliable or nonexistent, or the government permits limited access to the web.
What is the digital divide?
300
In 1971 the Net became more marketable with the introduction of microprocessors. These miniature circuits enabled the manufacture of the first personal computers, which were smaller and cheaper than the huge computers that took up entire buildings in the 1960's.
What is the entrepreneurial stage of the Internet?
300
This is the most common interface with the Internet. Examples include Mosaic, Netscape, Internet Explorer, Safari, Firefox, and Chrome.
What is a web browser?
300
High-speed broadband connections to the Internet for personal computers, and wireless networks for laptops, phones, and tablets.
What were the technological developments that allowed media convergence?
300
In any medium, sexually explicit imagery is typically considered "indecent" and "obscene." There are several software programs designed to filter out Internet content deemed pornographic. Some legislative efforts to "tame the web" have been judged unconstitutional, because of the First Amendment - which protects Americans' freedom of speech.
What kind of online content is considered inappropriate, and why have acts of Congress failed in eliminating such content?
300
The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation is a leading advocate for helping make Internet access available in public libraries. Smartphone usage is contributing, especially among African Americans. Nicholas Negroponte began a program to provide laptops for children in developing countries.
What is being done to narrow the digital divide?
400
In the 1980's, the invention of fiber-optic cable allowed the transmission of thousands of messages simultaneously. With this increased speed, the amount of information that could be sent digitally became virtually unlimited.
What is the mass media stage of the Internet?
400
These help users navigate the vast amount of information on the Internet, creating categories with hierarchical structures or allowing users to enter key words or queries to locate certain Web pages.
What are directories and search engines?
400
Online connections are now a normal part of console video games, and existing games have been diversified. Game apps are popular on social networking sites. MMORPG's allow users to play online using an avatar, and some players even use real money for virtual goods. Many of these games require paid subscriptions in order to join in the play.
How has the Internet changed video games?
400
Traditional display ads in newspapers, magazines, and early Web pages reached small, general audiences, and were not very profitable. However, paid links or "sponsored ads," appearing on search engine results lists, social media sites, email, and instant messaging, help advertisers measure people's attention to ads. All of these sites can glean information from profile information to deliver individualized ads to users' screens. These "pay per click" ads are very profitable; every time a user clicks, the advertiser pays for the click-through. Cookies and spyware are also used to create marketing profiles.
How is advertising on the Internet different from other kinds of advertising in the history of mass communication?
400
Newer media forms such as music files, digital texts like books and newspapers, and social media sites, allow greater participation than any other medium, across vast distances.
How can the Internet make democracy work better?
500
This text data-linking system uses HTML to allow computers to communicate. Together with browsers, it gives the Internet multimedia capability, allowing users to transmit pictures, sound, and video.
What is the World Wide Web, and how is it important to the development of the Internet?
500
Users, especially teens, fill out detailed profiles when they sign up for these applications, giving advertisers multiple ways to target them.
Why are Web 2.0 applications like social media sites attractive to large media corporations?
500
Personal computers have become home information-entertainment centers, allowing users to access TV shows, movies, books, music, newspapers, magazines, etc. Internet-ready TV's and video consoles allow access to the same. Smart phones, like the Blackberry, allow text messaging and e-mail access. Tablet computers, like Kindle, Nook, and i-Pad, are especially suited to reading books and magazines, and watching videos.
What are the most popular converged digital devices today, and how does each fill a cultural niche?
500
Often, search results for controversial issues are biased. When researching, in order to find information about all sides of an issue, start by including the word "controversy" with the search term. You can also search for the term on alternative information sources, like independent media publications (AlterNet, MediaChannel, Common Dreams, Salon) or nonprofit digital archives (ibiblio, INFOMINE).
How valuable are search engines for doing research? Are they the best resources for academic information?
500
Commercialization and control by only a few corporations may prevent widespread use of the Internet by all. Furthermore, Internet users may be interacting only with those who have similar beliefs and values; these "closed group" discussions may not serve to extend the diversity and tolerance that are essential in a democratic society.
What are the key challenges to making the Internet itself more democratic?
M
e
n
u