Misunderstanding the Internet The growth of the internet has been spectacular. There are now more than 2 billion internet users across the globe, about 30 per cent of the world’s population. This is certainly a new phenomenon that is of enormous significance for the economic, political and social life of contemporary societies. However, much popular and academic writing about the internet takes a celebratory view, assuming that the internet’s potential will be realised in essentially transformative ways. This was especially true in the euphoric moment of the mid-1990s, when many commentators wrote about the internet with awe and wonderment. While this moment may be over, its underlying technocentrism – the belief that technology determines outcomes – lingers on, and, with it, a failure to understand the internet in its social, economic and political context. Misunderstanding the Internet is a short introduction, encompassing the history, sociology, politics and economics of the internet and its impact on society. The book has a simple three part structure: Part 1 looks at the history of the internet, and offers an overview of the internet’s place in society Part 2 focuses on the control and economics of the internet Part 3 examines the internet’s political and cultural influence Misunderstanding the Internet is a polemical, sociologically and historically informed textbook that aims to challenge both popular myths and existing academic orthodoxies surrounding the internet. James Curran is Professor of Communication at Goldsmiths, University of London, and is Director of the Goldsmiths Leverhulme Media Research Centre. He has written or edited 21 books about the media, including Power Without Responsibility (with Jean Seaton), now in its seventh edition, Media and Society, now in its fifth edition, Media and Power, and Media and Democracy. He has been a visiting professor at California, Penn, Stanford, Oslo and Stockholm universities. James Curran was awarded in 2011 the C. Edwin Baker Prize for his research on media, markets and democracy. Natalie Fenton is a Professor of Media and Communications at Goldsmiths, University of London where she is also Co-Director of the Goldsmiths Leverhulme Media Research Centre and Co-Director of Goldsmiths Centre for the Study of Global Media and Democracy. She has published widely on issues relating to news, journalism, civil society, radical politics and new media and is particularly interested in rethinking understandings of public culture, the public sphere and democracy. Des Freedman is a Reader in Communications and Cultural Studies at Goldsmiths, University of London. He is the author of The Politics of Media Policy (2008), co-editor of Media and Terrorism: Global Perspectives (2011) and one of the UK representatives on the management committee of the COST A20 project that examined the impact of the internet on the mass media. He is a co-editor of the journal Global Media and Communication and a researcher in the Goldsmiths Leverhulme Media Research Centre. Communication and Society Series Editor: James Curran This series encompasses the broad field of media and cultural studies. Its main con- cerns are the media and the public sphere: whether the media empower or fail to empower popular forces in society; media organizations and public policy; the political and social consequences of media campaigns; and the role of media enter- tainment, ranging from potboilers and the human interest story to rock music and TV sport. Glasnost, Perestroika and the Soviet Media Getting the Message Brian McNair News, Truth and Power The Glasgow Media Group Pluralism, Politics and the Marketplace The Regulation of German Broadcasting Advertising, the Uneasy Persuasion Vincent Porter and Suzanne Hasselbach Its Dubious Impact on American Society Potboilers Michael Schudson Methods, Concepts and Case Studies in Popular Fiction Nation, Culture, Text Jerry Palmer Australian Cultural and Media Studies Edited by Graeme Turner Communication and Citizenship Journalism and the Public Sphere Television Producers Edited by Peter Dahlgren and Colin Sparks Jeremy Tunstall Seeing and Believing What News? The Influence of Television The Market, Politics and the Local Press Greg Philo Bob Franklin and David Murphy Critical Communication Studies In Garageland Communication, History and Theory in America Rock, Youth and Modernity Hanno Hardt Johan Fornäs, Ulf Lindberg and Ove Sernhede Media Moguls The Crisis of Public Communication Jeremy Tunstall and Michael Palmer Jay G. Blumler and Michael Gurevitch Fields in Vision Glasgow Media Group Reader, Volume 1 Television Sport and Cultural Transformation News Content, Language and Visuals Garry Whannel Edited by John Eldridge Glasgow Media Group Reader, Remaking Media Volume 2 The Struggle to Democratize Public Industry, Economy, War and Politics Communication Edited by Greg Philo Robert A. Hackett and William K. Carroll The Global Jukebox Media on the Move The International Music Industry Global Flow and Contra-Flow Robert Burnett Daya Kishan Thussu Inside Prime Time An Introduction to Political Todd Gitlin Communication Fourth Edition Talk on Television Brian McNair Audience Participation and Public Debate Sonia Livingstone and Peter Lunt The Mediation of Power A Critical Introduction Media Effects and Beyond Aeron Davis Culture, Socialization and Lifestyles Edited by Karl Erik Rosengren Television Entertainment Jonathan Gray We Keep America on Top of the World Western Media Systems Television Journalism and the Public Sphere Jonathan Hardy Daniel C. Hallin Narrating Media History A Journalism Reader Edited by Michael Bailey Edited by Michael Bromley and Tom O’Malley News and Journalism in the UK Tabloid Television Fifth Edition Popular Journalism and the ‘Other News’ Brian McNair John Langer Political Communication and Social International Radio Journalism Theory History, Theory and Practice Aeron Davis Tim Crook Media Perspectives for the 21st Century Media, Ritual and Identity Edited by Stylianos Papathanassopoulos Edited by Tamar Liebes and James Curran Journalism After September 11 De-Westernizing Media Studies Second Edition Edited by James Curran and Myung-Jin Park Edited by Barbie Zelizer and Stuart Allan British Cinema in the Fifties Media and Democracy Christine Geraghty James Curran ff Ill E ects Changing Journalism The Media Violence Debate, Angela Phillips, Peter Lee-Wright and Tamara Second Edition Witschge Edited by Martin Barker and Julian Petley Misunderstanding the Internet Media and Power James Curran, Natalie Fenton and Des James Curran Freedman Praise for this book ‘A deliciously fact-driven corrective to Internet hype of all kinds. Highly recommended.’ Fred Turner, Stanford University, USA ‘This is a very important book; scholarly, informative and full of useful references, it offers a piercing critique of old mythologies about new media. It is essential reading for students and teachers of mass communications and all those who wish to understand the real impact of new media on our society.’ Professor Greg Philo, Director of the Glasgow University Media Group ‘Misunderstanding the Internet is the book I have been waiting for since the late 1990s. It is a superb examination of the internet, how we got to this point and what our options are going forward. James Curran, Natalie Fenton and Des Freedman have combined to produce a signature work in the political economy of communication. They have combined hard research with piercing insight and a general command of the pertinent literature. This is a book I will be using in my classes for years to come.’ Robert W. McChesney, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA ‘This clear-sighted book provides a sometimes provocative yet solidly grounded guide through the competing claims and hyperbole that surround the internet’s place in society. Deeply sceptical about the transformative potential of the internet, the authors combine an incisive history of the recent past with a call to action to embed public values in the internet of the future.’ Sonia Livingstone, LSE, UK Misunderstanding the Internet James Curran, Natalie Fenton and Des Freedman First published 2012 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2012 James Curran, Natalie Fenton and Des Freedman The right of James Curran, Natalie Fenton and Des Freedman to be identified as the authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Curran, James. Misunderstanding the Internet / James Curran, Natalie Fenton, and Des Freedman. p. cm. -- (Communication and society) 1. Internet--Social aspects. 2. Internet--Economic aspects. 3. Internet--Political