Inside the digital society
David Souter writes a column for APC twice a month, looking at different aspects of the information society, development and rights. David’s pieces take a fresh look at many of the issues that concern APC and its members, with the aim of provoking discussion and debate. Issues covered include internet governance and sustainable development, human rights and the environment, policy, practice and the use of ICTs by individuals and communities.
Each week David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog is about how the possibility of privacy is changing in the digital age. Privacy, say many people, is the human right most threatened by the Internet – and more generally by ICTs. I agree – so much so that I think we need to change the way we think about it. Before I come to why, and how, we need to ask three questions: What is privacy? Who thr...
Each week David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog is about our changing relationship with mobile phones. The way people use mobiles and other ICT devices is the most dramatic change in life and lifestyle in my lifetime. Mobility is at the heart of that. Fifty years back, you needed a big office to hold a mainframe computer with any kind of power. Thirty years ago, accessing data tied us to our desks and...
Each week, David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog is about building skills or capabilities for the digital age. Last week’s blog explored the impact that information technology’s having on the world of work. Some of us are enthusiastic about – or at least comfortable with – the disruptive impact ...
David Souter’s weekly blog for APC about the Information Society returns today from its summer/winter break. This week’s blog is about the impact of ICTs on the world of work. More attention’s being paid of late to the impact that ICTs are having on the world of work. Not before time, I’d say. After all, the work we do is central to most of our lives. It plays a big part in deciding how...
Each week, David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog is about the growing role of intermediaries in information access. The Internet, we all agree, has transformed access to information. Those of us with broadband access – though, let’s remember, that’s a minority worldwide – can, increasingly, acce...
Each week, David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog looks at how the digital divide has changed since the concept was first developed in the 1980s. ‘Bridging the digital divide’ has been a central theme – perhaps the central theme – of international agreements, development programmes and nat...
Each week, David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog looks at how to map the Internet governance landscape, which grows more complex almost by the day. Internet governance is a lot more complicated than it used to be. We need maps to help us navigate our way. When I first lectured on the subject, around the...
Each week, David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog comments on the future of the IGF following last week’s UN retreat, in continuation to last week’s post. The United Nations held a retreat last week to discuss the future direction of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF). Around forty people, from ever...
Each week, David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog looks at the challenges for the future of the Internet Governance Forum. Later this week, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) is holding a ‘retreat’ to discuss the direction and work of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF). Around 3...
Each week, David Souter comments on an important issue for APC members and others concerned about the Information Society. This week’s blog looks at the impact of ICTs and the Internet on economic, social and cultural rights. Debates about rights and the Internet have focused mostly on civil and political rights, especially privacy and freedom of expression. But, as I wrote in last week’s b...
Association for Progressive Communications (APC) 2019
Unless otherwise stated, content on the APC website is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)