After the Internet (Digital Futures) 1st Edition by Ramesh Srinivasan (PDF)

Description

In the wake of Edward Snowden’s revelations, and concern that the internet has heightened rather than combated various forms of political and social inequality, it is time we ask: what comes after a broken internet?Ramesh Srinivasan and Adam Fish reimagine the internet from the perspective of grassroots activists and citizens on the margins of political and economic power. They explore how the fragments of the existing internet are being utilized – alongside a range of peoples, places, and laws – to make change possible. From indigenous and non-Western communities and activists in Tahrir Square, to imprisoned hackers and whistleblowers, this book illustrates how post-digital cultures are changing the internet as we know it – from a system which is increasingly centralized, commodified, and “personalized,” into something more in line with its original spirit: autonomous, creative, subversive. The book looks past the limitations of the internet, reconceptualizing network technology in relation to principles of justice and equality. Srinivasan and Fish advocate for an internet that blends the local concerns of grassroots communities and activists with the need to achieve scalable change and transformation.

User’s Reviews

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐As with all media communication, the power that be control it. From the early days of the telegraph; where the AP & Western Union colluded to monopolize & control information for their own private interests, at the expense of the country & her citizens. It has reached the point in the 21st Century where mainstream news has become a joke. More people are watching comedy channels of fake news in order to get more real picture of what’s really going on.Now Facebook, Google & other knowledge platform monopolies are themselves controlling what news the people are getting[World Without Mind: The Existential Threat of Big Tech by Franklin Foer 2017]. In After The Internet the authors continue in the above frame; specifically focusing on the internet and how it is being manipulated away from its beginning promise of the decentralization of information and the promise that the citizens of the world would be able to communicate with each other without authoritarian control.This book thus examines existing critical theories, practices, and case studies to imagine a democratic internet where human rights, diversity, and social justice are respected and empowered. Across this book’s chapters the authors share academic and journalistic research and analysis that relate to the internet surveillance, economic development, activism, and cultural diversity. They discuss research around surveillance that reveals the internet is no longer a space for decentralized communication but instead capitalized upon by those who can best manage and manipulate digital infrastructure. It also begs the question as to why so many no longer feel safe with public forms of digital expression without fear of persecution. They also share research focused on how the digital divide is a conceptually obsolete theme. Numerous studies have begun to show that blind access to technology does not in itself combat marginalization. Indeed, the myth of the internet as making people equal across the world and overcoming geographical inequality has been rebutted by sobering realities that show how the digital divide economic bring disproportionate wealth to the limited few.Also addressed is the mission creep of AI. It doesn’t take much imagination to realize that monopolized social platforms like Facebook, Google, Twitter and their Chinese counterparts will use this undetectable mass social influence, powered by artificial intelligence. It’s a hidden threat to humanity herself. Though still in its infancy, the trends are becoming Nixon crystal clear. That, all too soon, it will potentially be operating on a scale that not only differs in shaping human cultural & politically structured phenomena; it will be operating at exponential speeds & subtlety that eclipses their so-called human masters’ capabilities.The authors break many myths being spread by the mainstream media in regards to the internet. This makes this book a superb antidote to the idiot box known a TV.With the so-called democratic free public airwaves are being sold-out the monopolies, and the internet’s net neutrality being dumped by our so-called current corporatized government; the increasing consolidation of power of elite voices in driving mankind’s internet’s future, leaves the commoners wondering if they’re the only ones left on Earth with ANY common sense.Is this then a future of internet malls, and/or systems where preferential access is structured to make powerful corporations more visible & powerful? A future of the disparity of resources that will be offered in a pay-scale-monopoly-run internet? Or will it be a future where the people have a representative government, with a free public internet and return of the PUBLIC air waves?

⭐As part of Polity’s Digital Futures series, “After the Internet” by Ramesh Srinivasan and Adam Fish isn’t quite what the title suggests. The summary on the back cover is a bit more accurate in noting “…what comes after a broken Internet?”I’m not sure if the writers make all their points but I appreciate their presentation because it comes from angles that I normally don’t venture into. The section on Native Americans from the first chapter was particularly interesting. The chapter on Hacktivists was expected but still had fresh information and insight. Mostly, the book seems focused on the Internet’s ability to communicate ideas and where it goes into the future.It is a lean, streamlined read and I liked that the writers keep the text accessible and readable. Interestingly, the Reference section is quite extensive for an under 150 page book, but it is probably worth a look to further read into the subject.

⭐The authors talk about a ‘broken Internet’ and the risks and challenges that this may pose, but this has nothing to do with the horrible feeling you get when you realise you are temporarily ‘disconnected’. The broken-ness of the Internet is more focussed, concerned with the restrictions and limitations that are being placed on the Internet and various services by governments and big businesses, and the risks that this can pose for grassroots activists and citizens who may wish to push against the latest ‘accepted thing’.At one stage the Internet was thought of to be the free-wheeling saviour of free speech, free ideas and free exchange. On one hand technology has given access to the platform, but the platform itself faces constriction, censorship and restriction. This book is a fascinating, sensitive and engaging look at the status quo and how some forces are reacting against the push to centralise, commodify and change the Internet. It is an academically focussed read, but accessible to the curious generalist if they put a fair bit of effort in.The authors note concern with how ‘political, economic, and ideological visions of the internet are controlled by Western corporate giants such as Google, Facebook, and Microsoft’ — and these companies dominate the whole process and control even the storage back-end. Theory, real-world practical activity and reference case studies are mixed to get a complete picture and help imagine a democratic internet where human rights, diversity, and social justice are respected and empowered. There is not one whole Internet either, as the effective parallel system extant in China can testify. Even language groupings and regional clusters of services in non-English languages can be a powerful alternative or more critical in their own regard.Even if you don’t necessarily agree with all the concerns raised or the solutions for possible change, you need not fear the book and enjoy it as an intellectual exercise. It is far from being a naïve undergraduate rant in the guise of an extended essay. It is certainly nuanced, illustrative and thought-provoking, drawing on a wide range of information that is also mirrored back out to the reader for their knowledge and contemplation.There is a bit of a love-hate relationship with the book. Its core idea is sound and engaging, it is just the presentation of the text can grate since it reads like an out-of-control academic journal article, frequently obscuring a lot of good material in ‘jabber and word soup’ when a more direct, clear approach would be better. Fortunately, it gets a bit clearer once you are past the introductory chapters, but by then a less-patient and dedicated reader may have cast it aside.A fairly unique book, thus far, you may surmise.

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