Internet

In the 2010 election cycle, some 54% of adults used the Internet for political purposes, far exceeding the 2006 midterm digital usage rate of 31%.

From fundraising and campaigning to organization and voter recruitment, the Internet has changed electoral politics in America. Because of the Web’s inherently open nature, it was thought that its use would reduce the socioeconomic inequality in U.S. politics, where more affluent citizens and groups often have higher participation rates and thereby exert greater power.

According to a new survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project and the Project for Excellence in Journalism, in the United States the Internet is now a more popular source of news than print newspapers and radio. That makes it the third most popular news platform overall, behind only national and local television news.

In an increasingly digital economy, those who keep pace with technology will have an advantage in the job market, as the 21st century workforce draws more on tools such as file-sharing, video conferencing and social networking.

Many communities susceptible to dangerous events such as tornadoes have implemented systems to spread word quickly. In principle, the widespread use of Internet, mobile and computer technologies can better facilitate communication, and university campuses are interconnected in a way that make them an interesting case study in how rapid communication systems can be deployed.

For increasing numbers of people, sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are becoming crucial platforms for communicating with friends, family and work colleagues. Just as the mass-market introduction of phones, radio and the telegram changed patterns of emotional, social and political interaction across society, so too are Internet-based technologies and applications now. Precisely how these changes will play out, though, is just emerging.

A growing feeling among advocacy traditionalists is that recruiting supporters through mass-email blasts has spawned a lazier form of activism, sometimes referred to as “slacktivism” or “clicktivism.” However, whether or not the tags of “lazy” or “ineffective” are accurate remains a subject of ongoing inquiry and debate.