Global Networks and Local Values

Whether you call it the third wave, the information revolution, or the virtually connected world, the implications of a global information network are profound. As a society, we want to forestall the possible negative impacts without closing the door to the potential benefits. But how? Global Networks and Local Values provides perspective and direction, focusing on the relationship between global information networks and local values-that is, the political, economic, and cultural norms that shape our daily lives. This book is structured around an illuminating comparison between U.S. and German approaches toward global communication and information flow. (The United States and Germany are selected as two industrialized, highly networked countries with significant social differences.) Global Networks and Local Values captures the larger context of technology and culture, explores the political and commercial institutions where the global network functions, and highlights specific issues such as taxation, privacy, free speech, and more. The committee contrasts the technical uniformity that makes global communication possible with the diversity of the communities being served and explores the prospects that problems resulting from technology can be resolved by still more technology. This thoughtful volume will be of interest to everyone concerned about the social implications of the global Internet.Table of ContentsFront MatterExecutive Summary1 Introduction and Context2 The Evolution of Global Networks3 Understanding Local Values and How They Are Affected by Global Networks4 Democracy and Political Institutions5 Free Speech and the Internet6 Privacy and Freedom of Information7 The Impact of Global E-Commerce on Local Values8 Governance in Cyberspace Multi-Level and Multi-Actor Constitutionalism9 Information Networks and Culture10 Principles and ConclusionsAppendix: Biographies