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**The Digital Divide **

 * Introduction **

With the constant advancement of digital technologies within our ever-changing society, we are able to collectively distribute and receive a large body of knowledge and information across huge populations at a very rapid pace. The high efficiency and reliability of digital technologies such as the internet have prompted an increasing number of individuals to use this new medium for everyday aspects of their lives. From getting the latest breaking stories from around the world to keeping up to date on the current stock market, this new medium has become quite crucial and has had a beneficial effect on society. Because of the endless amounts of information and overall a ccess  that the internet presents us with, computer literacy and the internet has become an essential tool for education, a staple and often a requirement for job qualifications and employers, provides opportunities for companies to expand their brand, and offers deliberative spaces for social interaction and networking as well as political affairs. With the budding potential and immense impact of digital technologies, one might conclude that there is nothing but favourable outcomes that will result from the use of this new medium. Unfortunately, this is not the case because there is a gap of division between those who have a ccess  to these technologies and those who do not; this is referred to as the digital divide. This differential and unbalanced usage of the internet across the population only leads to continuing inequalities for those without a constant connection, often referred to as the ‘’have nots’’. Also, it reaffirms a position for those who are of a privileged background who have continued a ccess to these technologies while the underprivileged continue to be disadvantaged. The digital divide does not only affect different countries, but those in different regions, social economic backgrounds and demographics. This research paper will focus heavily on the history of digital divide as well as the implications and effects on society that the division brought forth by these digital technologies has had on our society. Finally, this paper will discuss a communication strategy that will help shed more light on this issue and present effective strategies to bridge this gap between the haves and the have nots.




 * Background **

Most societies that exist in the world today, in both developed and developing countries, share something in common. There always tends to be a gap between individuals based on their access to information. This is what separates individuals in a society and as we advance, this gap continues to grow. Before the use of the internet in the nineties, people may have referred to this as the knowledge gap or information society, but according to an article contained in Edutopia, ‘A Short History of the Digital Divide’, the term digital divide was brought about through the emergence of the internet. Regardless of the fact that the digital divide is mostly associated with the Clinton-Gore administration, it is stated that ‘’there might not have even be such a thing as the digital divide and it did not even cross the national mind until the 1991 passage of the High Performance Computing Act, which funded a high speed fiber optic network that would ultimately become the internet.” (Rapaport, 2009). The issue of digital divide did not become significant until the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), an agency that serves as the president’s principal adviser on telecommunications policies issued a report called ‘Falling Through the Net: A Survey of the “Have Nots” in Rural and Urban America’ in the summer of 1995. The main theme of the report was “Toward Digital Inclusion”, referring to those individuals who were left out of the cyber world (Have Nots) and it was meant to review some causes and economic reasons why t his gap should be closed.

According to the article; “Between 1991 and 1996, the number of personal computers in the United States jumped from 300,000 to over ten million. By the mid-1990s the development of web browsers like Mosaic and Netscape was leading more adventurous users into a new realm called “cyberspace”. Email was becoming an increasingly useful application, and officials in the Clinton Administration were beginning to wonder if access to information technology was being fairly distributed” (Rapaport, 2009).

Although the number of users seems to increase rapidly and massively there are still individuals living in such societies who can’t indulge in these activities due to certain reasons. For instance the less privilege among them or in some cases where the cost of computers began to increase a family may be able to afford one but no internet connection. These factors can be considered as some of the origins of digital divide as they tend to have a major effect on the way one garners information.




 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Effects **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">In investigating the effects of the digital divide, it is important to explore the scope of these effects and the resultant impacts they could have. People in regions of the world with little or no internet connectivity and or telecommunication systems, are not able to make informed decisions on matters that are important to their lives. Access to the internet through a computer can have a profound influence on a person’s educational and career success. Although the younger generation in these regions do have access to the internet, although limited, they catch on quicker to new innovations than the older generation. However, they are still behind when compared to their age groups in more developed parts of the world. <span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">A study conducted by professor Jie Huang found that "with regards to the relationship between technology accessibility and academic achievements, our study has found that math, science and reading scores rank from high to low consistent with levels of technology accessibility at the schools, that is, more accessibility, higher scores"(61). These subject areas are fundamental to the development of a nation so where they are not measuring up, there is a consequent effect on the level of development considering that the future is in the hands of the younger generation. Various opinions have been raised on the matter of whether simply equipping society of the "have nots" with technology will directly translate to higher standards or education, social empowerment or quality of life. Although Jie Huang argues that certain other factors may be relevant in determining the effect of the access of technology, there is no denying the fact that first the technology must be in place in order to for instance train people to use them. With access to information through the internet and all the networking features it offers, young people are informed at the same pace with the rest of the world in terms of what is new or what direction technology is going. Also, having the vast information which the internet provides means that thorough research can be done by individuals about a field of study. This builds a certain level of confidence in the person, knowing that they know their forte. It can help an individual to be focused and have more direction and clarity of the future and their pursuits. Whether it is information needed for school research or just general knowledge about anything, the internet makes it available in a matter of seconds. Another issue is that lot of people in deprived regions become less knowledgeable on global matters and as a result may not be able to make salient contributions and share their own ideas. It keeps them apart, in some ways, isolated. They are not able to use the internet to build communities with people with similar interests, culture, religion and political persuasions. With internet access in place, forums and chat rooms can be created where people can relate with other people who share similar ideas as them. The effects of such enabling technology in place could be far reaching. Mary Chayko, in bid to support this point states that "the availability of public internet access may have also fostered cultural beliefs and attitudes that make more rapid progress possible" (20). Some social units could become more viable and are able to expand faster and perhaps even stronger because of this feature of the internet. Chayko, in reference to the formation of such group forums in the internet, argues that;

<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">"Such acts helps the group to be 'cognitively reunited' at regular intervals and ensure that a very large group or culture that can never all gather physically (the set of all those who, say, have practiced a religion, followed a sport, gone to school or had any other meaningful characteristic in common) remains a viable social unit" (20).

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This networking feature of the internet has done quite a lot in allowing the voice of the people to be heard again oppressive regimes. What internet compliant societies have been able to achieve simply by forming social groups around an idea or social issue, building upon it, using blogs and other interactive social media outlets, have really been unprecedented. The force that is formed through these kinds of networks are very powerful for democracy to prevail. The recent events in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya where oppressive regimes were ousted would not have been possible but for the internet through social media platforms like twitter, Facebook and certain other blog sites. The citizens in these countries were able to communicate the atrocities committed daily by these regimes to the rest of the world in real time. This brought about a swift response from the international community to their aid. It is clearly another situation where the internet access or the lack thereof would not have helped to alleviate a people from oppression. It is apparent that there is a correlation between the social benefits of having the internet access and other forms of technology in place and the economic effects they translates into. The effects of the digital divide have proven to have such adverse effects on region that suffer from the lack of technology and hence are not able to harness it for the vast benefits.




 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Communication Strategy **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">There are many different tools we could utilize in our communication strategy in order to spread the message about digital divide. Digital divide is basically the gap between haves and have-nots. Therefore, one of our target audiences will be the haves. These people are the ones who enjoy the benefits of having access to technologies, especially the internet. Currently, social media sites are most popular for sending and receiving information. Large corporations are also using social media sites to get the message across about their products and services. Therefore, our group will use these social media sites like Facebook and Twitter in order to inform people about the digital divide. Our Facebook page will also encourage other people to share their experiences about digital divide and how it affected them. The Facebook page will also be used to invite everyone’s opinion on how the problem of digital divide can be solved. Another tool our group will use will be YouTube. This website is extremely popular among people and is a fast and efficient way to get our message across. Using compelling videos and animated film instead of just text is a lot more effective when trying to get people’s attention. Our group will create a YouTube channel that is dedicated to informing people about the digital divide. Also, all the different activities that our group does will be videotaped and the video will be posted on the YouTube channel.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Governments play a big role in controlling the digital divide. Our government can spend money on building proper infrastructure in order to provide affordable internet connections to its citizens. Therefore, writing letters to members of parliament would be another tool our group will use. This will put digital divide on the minds of the politicians. This is important because the politicians are the ones deciding on the government budget. Another issue is the private internet service providers paying less attention to rural areas because of the high cost. Our letters will inform the politicians of how serious the issue of digital divide is and it will focus more on how it hinders the growth of our economy. Also, for those who are unaware of how to use a computer or the internet, such as older generations and those who have not yet adapted to the lifestyle, we will discuss ideas of how to teach them to become computer literate. Such things as introductory classes and education on how to use the internet in its basic form can be taught through government funding.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Therefore, our communication strategy will mainly revolve around using the internet to spread the message across. Our main target audience would be people who are not suffering from digital divide but are unaware of how serious the matter can be. Another target audience would be the government and those who are computer illiterate, as our group will try to encourage the politicians to pay more attention to this issue.


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Conclusion **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">With the advancement in technology changing our way of life rapidly, those who fall behind are unable to adapt and suffer from its disadvantages in this competitive world. When the internet was introduced to the general public that marked the start of the digital divide. Whether it's a financial gap, place of residence or age, the digital divide is a continuing issue. The gap between the haves and the have nots continues to grow as our technology advances. The internet being an equalizer, a balancer is only limited to those with access, those without suffer in their social, educational, and economic lives. Social networking and other user based news sites has been proven on a daily basis, to provide unregulated information to the world in real time. Sharing what's happening in the world, new trends, and information all in the perspective of a single person, or citizen of a country. Students with constant access to technology have been known to score higher in math, science, and reading. Students without this are at a disadvantage when looking for personal and professional development. With the way things are at the moment, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. The lack of awareness is a major issue regarding this concern. By using social media sites and the voice of the community, we can create awareness, whether by using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, or writing letters and emails to politicians. As more people get involved with getting this concern known to the world, businesses and politicians will want to address this growing concern as well. Creating this awareness will hopefully allow the haves and the have nots to understand that the access to technological advancement is becoming an advantage in life rather than just a luxury. Allowing access to digital technologies regardless of financial, regional, or demographic barriers will allow the internet to truly become an equalizer and balancer for the population and will help to bridge the gap between the current digital divide.

__<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Works Cited __

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Chayko,Mary (October 2008. Portable communities: the social dynamics of online and mobile connectedness. SUNY Press.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Rapaport, R. (October, 2009). “The New Literacy: Scenes from the Digital Divide 2.0”. //A Short History of Digital Divide.pt 5.// Accessed on Feb 23, 2012. From [].

<span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hang, Jie and Susan E. Russell( April, 2005). “The digital divide at elementary schools in Oklahoma City <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Metropolitan Area: A case study’’//. University of Oklahoma//. Accessed on Feb 25, 2012. From []