(Note: The following is the introduction to a talk I gave in Beijing this past summer about the experiences I have had in China in support of a conceptual understanding that the netizen represents in China. Thru this set of experiences I have proposed that we are in the early stages of a new Era, an Era I propose is “the Era of the Netizen.” The participatory empowerment of netizens as is happening in China, South Korea and other nations around the world is setting the basis for the creation of new models for economic, political and social development. I hope in the new year to develop this conceptual framework further.)

Introduction

I am happy to be here today and to accept April Media’s invitation to make one of the first presentations at April café and salon.

The title of my talk is” The United Nations, China and Journalism in… weiter lesen

[Note: This is a slightly edited version of a talk presented on May 1, 2012 at a small celebration in honor of the 15th Anniversary of the publication of the print edition of the book Netizens]

I – Looking Back

Fifteen years ago on May 1, 1997, the print edition of Netizens: On the History and Impact of Usenet and the Internet was published in English. Later that year, in October, a Japanese translation of the book was published. Today we are celebrating the occasion of the 15th Anniversary of this event.

In honor of this occasion I want to both look back and look forward toward trying to assess the significance of the book and of Michael Hauben’s discovery of the emergence of the netizen. I want to briefly look at what has happened in the interim of these 15 years toward trying to understand what new advance this… weiter lesen

Introduction to Spring 2012 issue of the Amateur Computerist, Vol 21 No. 2

On May 1, 1997, the book “Netizens: On the History and Impact of Usenet and the Internet” was published in a print edition.(1) This May Day, May 1, 2012 marks the 15th anniversary of that occasion. Five years ago, on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the book, I wrote an article for the online magazine Telepolis. In the article I wrote that an anniversary “offers an occasion to consider the potential of the Net that was identified in Netizens and to assess what has developed with regard to this potential today.”

I reviewed some of the background of Netizens: “During the course of his pioneering research in the early 1990s, Michael Hauben discovered a surprising phenomenon. He recognized that there was a new social consciousness developing among those in the online community. At… weiter lesen

[Note: This article is about how some of the unifying foundation was set for the broad non-violent demonstrations of the people of Egypt which took place during the 18 days of January - February 2011.]

On Wednesday February 8, the Egyptian Ambassador to the United Nations, Maged A. Abdelaziz, spoke to journalists at a stakeout outside the Security Council. (1) There had been an ongoing set of questions to Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and his spokesman and to the Security Council President by journalists covering the United Nations in an effort to understand what role the UN is able to play in the struggle going on in Egypt. In response to a question about the ongoing assault at the time on journalists by police in Egypt, the Ambassador said that someone from the foreigner side was instigating the uprising.

This refrain accusing outsiders of instigating the Egyptian… weiter lesen

[Editorial Note: The following paper was presented in July 2010 at the Association for Heterodox Economics (AHE) Conference in Bordeaux, France. It was originally written to look at the lessons for economics that can be learned from the building of the Internet. I welcome comments, and debate on the issues it raises. Ronda]

Part I – Preface
In this paper I want to explore a paradigm different from that of the market, as the motivator of economic development. This model is a model that is scientifically oriented and based on the practices developed in technical and scientific research. It is a model that is open, collaborative and directed toward an evolving vision or goal.

I will call this model the Internet socio-economic development model. It is a model very different from the neo-liberal capitalist oriented socio-economic development model. It is a model based on grassroots participation and feedback. Its… weiter lesen

Part I – Netizen Journalism Panel: The Internet, Netizens, and Journalism

[Note: In October, 2008 there was a panel about Netizen Journalism at the 9th annual conference of Internet researchers (IR9.0 is the tag) which was held in Copenhagen. Following is an abstract for the panel, and then a summary that Axel Bruns posted on his blog of the session. A slightly edited version of one of the talks at the panel, my talk about Candlelight 2008 in South Korea as an example of Watchdog Journalism, is online in an earlier post on my blog.]

In his pioneering research about the impact of the Internet, Michael Hauben recognized that the nature of the Net made possible a new form of citizenship, a participatory form that is oriented toward a public purpose. He called the people who were developing this new form of citizenship, netizens.(1)

What would be the… weiter lesen