Bridging the Digital Divide: Facing the Crises and Challenges of the Second Modernization

Author: Hu Yanping (Compiler)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-11-01
Features: The digital divide issue refers to the "information gap," "knowledge segregation," and "wealth disparity" problems caused by differences in the development, application levels of information and network technology, as well as varying innovation capabilities among countries, regions, industries, and populations during the global digitalization process. The digital divide is a result, not the cause. The differences in performance and development gaps among countries worldwide in the second modernization process, characterized by "global integration, political democratization, economic liberalization, and social informatization," are the true root of the issue. In the core content of the second modernization, informatization is not only closely linked, motivating, and symbiotic with the other three modernizations. Fundamentally, information technology is reshaping education, science, culture, international relations, and state forms, while also endowing democracy and freedom with new connotations. Just as marketization often promotes the liberalization of economic and social life, the productivity of information technology is changing various production relations in many aspects. The digital divide issue is also referred to as the wealth gap in the information age and the North-South problem. Bridging the digital divide is not merely a matter of the popularization and application of information technology. This book defines the "digital divide," explores the origins of the digital gap issue, the current status and solutions in, the role of information industry enterprises, domestic research status and government policies, opinions from all walks of life, and related efforts.