The internet is a powerful tool for
spreading information. As the author said he thought it would be the
means to free people from media control, but corporations are just as
capable(probably more so) of using it as a source of control just as
they had done with television, newspaper, and other forms of media in
the past. Luckily the internet is not as easy to lock down for one
specific use. The vast majority of television stations are controlled
by a handful of corporate owners where as anyone can post their
opinions about things on forums and other web pages.
Even on the same pages you may post
your opinions on media control you will find examples of the very
thing you are talking about. The majority of web pages are lined with
advertisements on the borders and through pop ups. Some sites force
you to watch advertisements before you can even continue on with the
things you were planning on doing. A lot of the advertisements you
will see on the internet are picked out for you specifically based on
the things you search which makes the effect on you even more
powerful. For example if I search a lot of things about musical
instruments and I start getting more advertisements relating to that
they are a lot more likely to entice me to want to spend my money
than if my web pages were bordered with advertisements about child's
toys or a new brand of hair dye (not useful for someone with a nearly
shaved head).
I hope that one day the internet can
act as conduit against media control but I fear for now it is doing
just as much bad as it is doing good. Maybe eventually you will be
able to surf the web without first wading through an endless supply
of advertising.
credit
ReplyDeletewhen referring to an "author" state their name
so, do not say, the "author says," instead say "Douglas Rushkoff says," or "Rushkoff states"