Sender: "Michael Strangelove" <•••@••.•••> In reply to John Whiting's insightful comments, "Cyberspace, however, is only a means of communication through which such forces [state and corporate] can operate. In itself, it has no direct power for good or evil, unless one is convinced that, like Scientology, it exerts some sort of hypnotic influence." I, of course, must disagree. Cyberspace is a social force on at least three levels, as a collection of myths and symbols, as an experience that contradicts the myths of freedom of speech with democratic societies, and as an ideal (democratized mass communication). Cyberspace is much more than merely a "means of communication", or a tool of distribution and production. Within the context of corporate media culture we find that cyberspace, as the experience of democratized mass communication, is having the same effect as previous paradigmatic ideals, such as the equality of the sexes, the equality of race, and so forth. It is taking its place along side some of the most powerful historical forces: myth, imagination, and claims-to-rights. Of course, few things have power "in itself". The power of cyberspace is manifested not merely in the still immature direct political action of its users. It is also manifested in the way it changes the imagination of the possible within the minds of its users. Self-determination within the global media sphere of cyberspace presents a direct threat to social structures held in place by the control of the imagination through corporate and state media culture. As to your comment, "One can speak meaningfully of a conflict of interest or of jurisdiction between nation-states and multinational corporations because both are capable of claiming immense power over the lives of people whom they govern and/or employ." Keep in mind that I am *proposing* a structural model of the global political economy that is *not yet present,* but emerging as a result of the combination of the new media class of the uncensored self and a new economic force of globalized small business. The combination of these two cyberspace-based realities should prove similar to the effect printing had in the years of 1500-1600 when it was a critical component in creating a new class of merchants who proceeded to "negotiate" new forms of power sharing concurrent with the rise of the nation-state. Thanks again for taking the time to read and comment, notquiteyetdoctorstrangelove ~=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=~=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=~-~=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=~=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=~ Posted by Andrew Oram - •••@••.••• - Moderator: CYBER-RIGHTS (CPSR) Cyber-Rights: http://www.cpsr.org/cpsr/nii/cyber-rights/ ftp://www.cpsr.org/cpsr/nii/cyber-rights/Library/ CyberJournal: (WWW or FTP) --> ftp://ftp.iol.ie/users/rkmoore Materials may be reposted in their _entirety_ for non-commercial use. ~=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=~=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=~-~=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=~=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=~
