[LINK] Oh, that evil Internet!

[Stephen Wilson]

David Boxall wrote:
> <http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/07/23/2633775.htm>
>> A Melbourne mother has blamed her 14-year-old daughter's suicide on 
>> the internet ... "I can guarantee you if she didn't go on the internet Friday night she'd be alive today."
> Is there really anything new here? Bullying happened long before the 
> Internet. 
"New" is in the eye of the beholder (and polemicist). 

I observe that when the Internet is implicated in something good and 
wonderful -- like collaboration, consumer generated content, search or 
social networking -- then it certainly is regarded as new (and 
disruptive, transformative, radical etc.).

But when it's implicated in something bad -- like piracy, file-sharing, 
bullying and porn -- then the Internet is often said to be nothing new 
at all really, just another communications medium, ho hum.

Cheers,

Steve.

Stephen Wilson
Lockstep
www.lockstep.com.au <http://www.lockstep.com.au>