The internet has become a global tool to interconnect almost anyone who has a computer. At no time in history has human kind been more connected to each other. The global discussions and sharing of ideas has never been so widespread, and the change developed from these discussions has never been so rapid. Given the powerful ability of the internet to connect people, should internet access be a right?
In recent months we have seen the overthrow of dictators in countries such as Egypt, Tunisia, and soon to be Libya. The internet was cited as being instrumental to organize and mobilize people to rebel against the powers that be. The inference brought forth by the use of the internet as a tool of these uprisings, is that the internet is in fact, a tool of democracy.
An even more obvious example of the internet as democratic tool, or anti-democratic in this case, is the throttling and limiting of the internet in China. Although the internet is widely available throughout most of China, it is limited to websites that have been approved by the Chinese government. The suppression of the internet in China is so great that an actual branch of government is devoted to blocking out web sites that do not comply with a lengthy list of criteria. Web monitoring is constant and anti-government posts are usually erased within minutes.
In a world where most people derive their information from public or state run media, a clear threat to democracy exists if the free and full access to the internet is restricted or made illegal. Never in the history of mankind has news ever travelled so quickly. Example after example exists as to how quickly information about natural disasters, governmental overthrows, and just general events are propagated by social media. At issue is not only the speed at which news travels but also the filters it passes through prior to being broadcast. Social media allows all those connected to experience the events of the moment from people at the scene, rather than filtered through the conventional media.
The question is posed as to whether or not free and full internet access should be a right? Demonstrated are three clear examples as to how, in a democratic society, the removal or suppression of this communication tool may cause the eventual loss of democracy as well.
I would like to hear your thoughts about internet access and censorship.