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The late senator Ted Stevens once infamously described the Internet as a “series of tubes”. Humorously, this belies what the Internet truly is. It also underestimates how incorporated the Internet is in how we communicate. This technology has allowed people to exchange information unlike anything thought possible. Not only is it capable of bringing information to people faster and easier, it also has the tendency to magnify that information. Thus, senator Stevens’ mistaken remark exhibits a dissonance to how real and powerful the Internet is; unfortunately, he wasn’t and isn’t the only one bereft of this fact.
The unfortunate reality is that a lot of people think of the Internet as a digital world outside of reality. This thinking has some users anonymously spreading malicious content for all to see, believing that none of their actions online will have any repercussions. Some individuals have gone as far as to use the Internet to spread rumors or to harass others.
This malevolent use of the Internet reached headlines when a student at Rutgers University committed suicide when video of him having a homosexual encounter was posted online. What was thought to be a joke turned out to be much more. Similar examples of digital harassment can be found across America. In fact, 30 states have recently created electronic harassment laws with five of them specifically targeting cyberbullying like the example mentioned.
This isn’t a problem with technology like the Internet and computers. It is a problem with people, and the inability of some to realize how powerful of a tool the Internet is and how to use it responsibly. While things are meant to be posted among friends, all information can be searched by everyone. But its ability to harness innovation and creativity is still at hand. All it takes is users to understand the Internet is real, and sending information over a “series of tubes” doesn’t make it any less so.
