The Politics of Access

What is public in the digital age?

William H. Dutton

Oxford Internet Institute (OII)Balliol College

University of Oxford

Presentation for the 2011 Oxford Alumni Weekend, Lecture Room XXIII, Balliol College, Friday 16 September 2011.

ARPANET – Sharing Resources

Open Science – Reducing Secrecy

Open Access Publication – Sharing Knowledge

Open Government – Linked Data Initiatives

Co-creation, co-production – Wikipedia, OS

The Culture of the Internet

Real Issues

• Facebook Settings – Privacy• Echo, Friend-Finder – Tracking • WikiLeaks – Confidentiality• Arab Uprisings to England Riots – Freedom of

Expression

“You have zero privacy anyway, … Get over it." Scott McNealy

Press since the 18th Century - the ‘Fourth Estate’

Internet in the 21st - enabling a Fifth Estate

−−

The Fifth Estate

Enabling people to network with other individuals and with information, services and technical resources in ways that support social accountability in business and industry, government, politics, and the media.

“[Edmund] Burke said there were Three Estates in Parliament; but, in the Reporters’ Gallery yonder, there sat a Fourth Estate more prominent far than they all. It is not a figure of speech, or witty saying; it is a literal fact – very momentous to us in these times.”

Thomas Carlyle (1831), Heroes and Hero-Worship, at www.gutenberg.org.etext/1091

The Fourth Estate

Feudal Estates into the 21st Century

Estates Feudal Modern

Clergy Public Intellectuals

Nobility Business, Industry and Economic Elites

Commons Government

‘4th Estate’ Press Journalists and the Mass Media

Mob Civil Society, Individuals, Mobs, … ?

• 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011• Cross-sectional Surveys versus Panels• Multi-Stage Probability Sample • England, Scotland & Wales

• Respondents: 14 years and older

• Face-to-face Interviews, High Response Rates

• Sponsorship for 2011 from the Nominet Trust, British Library, Ofcom, O2, and ITV.com

• Component of World Internet Project (WIP)

Oxford Internet Surveys

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People shouldprotect creditcard details

online

Use of computersand Internet

threatens privacy

Use ofCCTV/webcam/security cameras

threatenspersonal privacy

OxIS 2011: N=2,057

Attitudes toward Privacy by Users and Non-UsersNext generation users First generation users Non- and Ex-Users

Pattern of Findings Supporting Conception of Networked Individuals

Networked Institutions, such as in e-Health

Networked Individuals:

going to the Internet for health and medical information, and support (UK Children with Diabetes Advocacy Group)

networking physicians via Sermo

Networked Institutions v Networked Individuals

Sermo

Networked Institutions v Networked Individuals of the Fifth Estate

Arenas: Networked Institutions

Networked Individuals

News Online journalism, BBC Online, Live Micro-Blogging

Citizen Journalists, Bloggers, Netizens Posting Videos

Democracy E-Consultation, e-Voting, e-Petitions, Citizen Sourcing

Obama campaign, Networking the Pro-Democracy Protests

Education Online Learning, Multimedia Classrooms

Backchannels, informal learning

Health and Medical NHS Direct, Web First, e-mailing safety alerts

Going to the Internet for health information, Sermo

The Fourth Estate Depends on an Independent Press – Independent in Relation to Other Estates

The Fourth Estate:

News of the World Case

“Wael Ghonim, a 30-year-old executive from Google, was the administrator of an anti-torture page on Facebook, the social networking website, that is widely credited with organising the first day of protest [in Egypt] on January 25.”

Jon Swaine, The Telegraph, 11 Feb 2011

Networked Institutions: greater ubiquity, universal access

Networked Individuals of the Fifth Estate: require a critical mass, not universal access

Networked Institutions v Networked Individuals of the Fifth Estate

Reputation (Facebook Page)

Privacy (Tracking Location, Surveillance)

Safety of Individuals (WikiLeaks)

Human Flesh Search (HFS)

Loss of Confidentiality (Open Government)

Quality of Information (Wisdom of Crowds?)

Tools for the Mob (Riots)

Recognizing Risks of Misuse

The Fifth Estate?

England Riots & Cleanup

18th Century Estates: 21st Century Enemies

18th Century Estates

21st Century: Enemies of the

5th Estate

Attacks

Clergy Public Intellectuals ‘Culture of Amateurism’, individualist consumerism

Nobility Business, Industry and Economic Elites

Vertical Integration; Monopoly over Search; Three Strikes

Commons Government and Regulatory Agencies

Filtering; Content Regulation; Identification; Surveillance; Disconnection

Press Journalists and the Mass Media

Co-opting, Imitating, Competing, and Supporting

Mob Spammers, Fraudsters, Cyberstalkers, Rioters…

Undermining Trust and Confidence; Fostering Regulation of Content, Attacks on Anonymity

Centrality of the Internet, Trust in Government and Attitudes toward Internet Regulation over Time

OxIS 2003: N=2,029; OxIS 2005: N=2,185; OxIS 2007 N=2,350. OxIS 2009: N=2,013

Balancing Rights within an Ecology of Choices

Don’t panic – use the Internet and social media

Individuals learning to shape access (e.g., privacy settings, spam filters, …)

Providers competing to offer control over access (Facebook and Google+)

Ecology of policy choices shaping rights online

Protect the vitality of a new 5th Estate, and networked individuals in liberal democratic societies

Politics of Access in Negotiating ‘What is public?’

The Politics of Access

What is public in the digital age?

William H. Dutton

Oxford Internet Institute (OII)Balliol College

University of Oxford

Presentation for the 2011 Oxford Alumni Weekend, Lecture Room XXIII, Balliol College, Friday 16 September 2011.