The Information Society GLIS-601 Information & Society September 11, 2003.

The Information Society

GLIS-601Information & SocietySeptember 11, 2003

September 11, 2003

Information & Society GLIS 601


Learning Objectives

By the end of this session students should know and understand:The various characteristics of the information societyThe role of the private and public sectors in the information societyInformation values and policies.

September 11, 2003



The Information SocietyWe are living at a time of profound change. The introduction of new information and communication technologies is having far-reaching effects on individuals, on organizations and on nation states. It is changing the ways in which we work, learn and play; Changing the relationships between individuals and the state; Changing the nature of business and commerce and, in the long run, it will change fundamentally the characteristics of cultures that have evolved over centuries.

Nick Moore. “Policies for an information society” (p. 31)

September 11, 2003



IT Developments1947 Transistor invented at Bell Laboratories 1954 Use of silicon for chips first accomplished by Texas Instruments 1957 Integrated circuit invented1959 Invention by Fairchild Semiconductors of process that made possible precision manufacture of miniaturized componentsBetween 1959 and 1962 prices of semiconductors fell by 85%. Integrated circuit: $50 in 1962 to $1 in 1971.

September 11, 2003



IT Developments: Chips

1971 Invention of microprocessor (computer on a chip) by Intel In 1971 could pack 2300 transistors on a chip.In 1993 could manage 35 million. Speed of chips increased by factor of 550 between 1972 and 1995

September 11, 2003



Computer Developments1946 ENIAC at U of Pennsylvania – first general purpose computer1951 UNIVAC-1 first commercial computer – made by Remington Rand – used to process 1950 US census data.1953 first IBM computer1975 Altair – small scale computer built around a microprocessor1976 BASIC adapted for operating the Altair1976 apple – launched1981 IBM pc1984 apple Macintosh with a WIMP interface

September 11, 2003



Networking1969 ESS-1 first industrially produced electronic switch from bell labsMid-1970s digital switches – increased speed, power and flexibility while saving space, energy and labor Early 1970s development of optical fiber by corning glass – by 1995 one cable could carry 85,000 compressed voice circuits (in 1956 first transatlantic cable carried 50 such circuits).

September 11, 2003



Internet1969 ARPANET 4 nodes at UCLA, Stanford, UCSB, U of Utah.Packet switching; Distributed network1971 TCP/IP – allowed different types of networks to be connected1978 modem for PCs1979 UNIX (invented by bell labs in 1969) modified so it could link computers over regular telephone lines – Usenet

September 11, 2003



Internet1990 WWW invented at CERN in Geneva– allowed diffusion of internet into mainstream society –1992 MOSAIC – web browser 1993 MOSAIC developed to run on a PC 1994 Netscape Navigator launched1995 Internet Explorer launched

September 11, 2003



Information Ages?

1. Classical age – rise of literacy – alphabet – by 4th century BC classical world had produced taxonomies and a classifying mindset

2. Renaissance – typographic literacy – flood of printed books – overturned classical classifications

3. Contemporary information age – with computers at its heart

Hobart and Schiftman argue we are experiencing the 3rd

information age.

September 11, 2003



Fritz MachlupThe Production and Distribution of Knowledge in the United States (1962)

First efforts to measure production and distribution of knowledge. Grouped 30 industries into 5 major classes of knowledge production, processing and distribution:

September 11, 2003



Fritz MachlupThe Production and Distribution of Knowledge in the United States (1962)

EducationR&DMedia of communication – printing, stationary, office suppliesInformation machines – including typewriters, musical instrumentsInformation services – including securities brokers, real estate agents…

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Daniel Bell: The Coming of the Post-industrial Age: A Venture in Social Forecasting

(1973)US economy is changing from a goods producing to a service oriented economy – post-industrial society.Professional and technical classes in US are now numerically pre-eminent. Teachers are largest category, followed by engineers – also includes librarians, nurses. Post-industrial society = knowledge society (reflected in the GNP and larger share of employment in the knowledge field)

September 11, 2003



Marc Porat: The Information Economy (1977)

Divided the economy into 5 sectors:1. Primary information sector

Produces information machines or sells information services as a commodity– advertising, education, accounting

2. Secondary information sector Public bureaucracy, private bureaucracies (planning, marketing…)

September 11, 2003



Marc Porat: The Information Economy (1977)

3. Private productive sector Producing goods

4. Public productive sector Road building, dams, etc.

5. Household sector

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Marc Porat

According to Porat, by 1967 in the US the primary and secondary information sectors accounted for:

Nearly 50% of GNPMore than 50% of wages and salaries

September 11, 2003



Peter Drucker: Post-capitalist Society (1993)

“Knowledge has become the central, key resource that knows no geography. It underlies the most significant and unprecedented social phenomenon of this century. No class in history has ever risen as fast as the blue-collar worker and no class has ever fallen as fast.”

Drucker predicted that the largest single group will become “knowledge workers”.

September 11, 2003



European Union…

Martin Bangemann: Europe and the global information society: recommendations to the European council (1994) Information society represents a revolution based on information which adds huge new capacities to human intelligence and changes way we work and live together. IS will create more jobs

September 11, 2003



Canada…

Information Highway Advisory Committee Final report, 1995

Not dissimilar from Bangemann Report

“Rather than a highway, it is a personalized village square where people eliminate the barriers of time and distance and interact in a kaleidoscope of different ways”

September 11, 2003



Australia…

Goldsworthy Report: The Global Information Economy: The Way Ahead (1997)

IS is a societal revolution based around information and communication technologies and their role in developing global competitiveness

September 11, 2003



General Characteristics of an Information Society

Development of information as a central strategic resource in industrial and commercial development – determinant of competitivenessRapid growth (faster than growth of economy as a whole) of an information sector within economy – to satisfy demand for information facilities and services – includes technological infrastructure but also information content

September 11, 2003



General Characteristics of an Information Society

(Continued)Greater use of information among general public – to choose products and services, to take greater control over their lives, to exercise their civil rightsGlobal information networksGlobalization of capitalismReduction in the constraints of space

September 11, 2003



The Critics: Duff

Critique of Bell’s theoryBell does not empirically prove dominance of information workforce – uses Porat’s suspect statsDoes not use term “information society” that oftenInformation society or knowledge society?Need to take a longer perspective

September 11, 2003



The Critics: Webster

TechnologicalEconomicOccupationalSpatialCultural

Groups arguments for Information Society under 5 justifications:

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The Critics: Sterling“We live in the Information Age now, but

there are people walking around…who have lived through the Aviation Age, the Radio Age, the Thousand-Year Reich, the Atomic Age, the Space Age, the New Age, the Aquarian Age, not to mention the sexual revolution and the epoch of the New Soviet Man. And trust me, a lot of these geezers and geezerettes are going to outlive the Information Age as well.”

September 11, 2003



The Critics: Borgman“Some contend that these changes [as a result of IT]

are revolutionary and will change the world; others argue that the changes are evolutionary, and that individuals and organizations will incorporate [IT] into their practices just as they incorporated many earlier media and technologies…I take the view that these changes are neither revolutionary nor evolutionary but somewhere between: that they are co-evolutionary”. – Some technologies are adopted by some of the people some of the time. And people/organizations adapt technologies to their interests and practices.

September 11, 2003



LIS Sector: BrowneConcerned about role of private sector in the Information Society and consequent undermining of public sector role.Concept of information as a right for all. Concept of free library and information services not fee-based. Information as benefiting the public good.

September 11, 2003



LIS Sector: Browne“For the information professional…there is a

pressing need to keep abreast of commercial trends in IT and to be aware that when professional decisions are being made on a value for money basis there is not a consequent undermining of the traditional information institutions which operate in a not for profit mode and form the essential infrastructure.” (p. 25)

September 11, 2003



Browne’s Values for Information Professionals

Supporting access and freedom by ensuring people are well informedPreserving personal privacy rightsSupporting the public’s right to knowInformation worth is determined by its use – who decides what is useful and therefore what information should be collected and stored.

September 11, 2003



Browne’s Values for Information Professionals (continued)

Reconciling commercial and public interests in terms of information collectionMonitoring attempts to control information by governments and othersMonitoring intellectual property restrictions

September 11, 2003



4 Goals of Information Policy (Moore)

1. Cheap and efficient telecommunications infrastructures.

2. Industrial and commercial competitiveness/productivity using information as a resource

3. Education and training of workforce4. Support of information services sector

September 11, 2003



Moore and Information Policies

Goals of information policies surprisingly consistent regardless of size, ideology, level of economic development, etc. What differ are mechanisms to achieve goals.

Two dominant models:–Neo-Liberal–Dirigiste

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Neo-Liberal

Market DrivenState = Facilitator

Private Sector = “Doer”

People = Consumers

Characteristic of Developed Countries

September 11, 2003



DirigisteCharacteristic of developing countriesUsed by developed countries during

development phaseInterventionistState = Leader

Private Sector & State = PartnershipRegulation

People = Participants

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The Information Society GLIS-601 Information & Society September 11, 2003.

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