The first working prototype of the Internet came in 1969 as the ARPANET or the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network. Funded by the U.S. Department of Defense for military purposes, the ARPANET became the foundational technology that enabled people from all over the planet to communicate and interact. 

The Internet has two parts. First is the Internet itself, which refers to the global system of interconnected networks. The second part is the “Web”, which refers to the pages of content on this network. 

As technology developed, the so-called “Web 2.0” websites boomed in the 2000s. Prior to Web 2.0, the Internet was mostly used for communication and exchanging data. The Web 2.0 refers to websites that emphasize user-generated content and participation. This includes social media websites such as Facebook, blogs and microblogging sites such as Twitter, video streaming sites such as YouTube, and others (Blank & Reisdorf, 2012).

The Internet emerged at the time of radical changes in the political, economic, and social sphere. 

For instance, during the first half of the 20th century, economies have begun transcending national boundaries. In the politico-economic sphere, the expansion of the capitalist market from national to multinational scale has been called by Vladimir Lenin as imperialism (1917). He called imperialism the highest stage of capitalism.  

More advanced communication technologies facilitated this globalizing process. This led to the birth of an awareness that goes beyond local and national boundaries. The term “global village” was coined by Canadian media theorist Marshall McLuhan in 1962. It describes the connection of the entire world through advanced communication technology, way before the invention of the Internet. 

In a global village, people become part of a digital community where they are linked mentally but not physically. This means that even though people are separated by geographical distance, they can still connect with each other through the internet. The Web today is a form of a global village.

The Internet is a decisive element in globalization. Globalization refers to the process of interaction among people, governments, and private enterprises on a global scale. Anthony Giddens (1990) also defines globalization as “the intensification of worldwide social relations.” In a globalized world, local happenings can now be influenced by events that happen miles away. 

How does the Web facilitate globalization and the creation of a global village? There are many obvious ways. One is the instant propagation of news around the world. Another is the easy communication with people anywhere. 

Today, the global village as sustained by Internet technology has seeped into a lot of facets of human society, not just economics and politics. For example, even intimate relationships and dating between people who might otherwise never meet each other is now possible, thanks to the Internet. 

Unfortunately, the story of the Internet is not all wine and roses. There are a few issues that beset the technology in its current form.

One of them is inequality in terms of access to the technology or the digital divide. The digital divide refers to the gap between those who have access to the benefits of digital technologies and those who do not (Hilbert, 2011). One glaring example of the digital divide made itself apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students who did not have access to working Internet and digital devices found themselves at a disadvantage. 

Another issue is political participation and censorship. Users have the right to express their opinions on politics and other immediate social concerns without the fear of censorship. Some citizens are deprived of this right. 

Several cases point to censorship that are state-sanctioned, and the threats of stifling press freedom in the Philippines. An example would be the signing of the “Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020” into law on July 3, 2020 by President Rodrigo Duterte. This pronouncement followed the crackdown against activists in the country, who have been slamming anti-humane and anti-poor policies of the government. Despite National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon clarifying that “activism is not terrorism” (McCarthy, 2020), there have been piling accusations against Filipino activists and government critics all over the country (Jha, 2020). Subsequently, human rights activists and lawyers expressed apprehension towards this law since individuals and media outlets that report critical news about the government are called out and even red-tagged, or branded as part of insurgent groups. 

Another is data ethics and anonymity. Some big media companies use their users’ data to benefit from them economically or politically. This can happen with or without the users’ consent. In October 2020, the National Privacy Commission (NPC) stated that it will be scrutinizing business entities that allegedly misuse and mishandle data from contact tracing forms collected from customers during the COVID-19 pandemic (Manuel, 2020). The lack of protection for these forms and lax measures in gathering data from visiting clients are part of negligence of the Data Privacy Act of 2012. Another critique would be the unjustified retention period of these data, and the absence of notices on these forms which are supposed to inform customers about why their data is needed and how their data will be handled and used. This is a serious issue since malicious entities can exploit these data for their own profit, and these unlawful acts would impact on the people whose consent are not secured or provided for these inappropriate uses. Examples of how this data could be mishandled include digital marketing and networking.   

Finally, we have misinformation; the proliferation of fake, inaccurate or sensational news content, often for profit or political purposes. This includes hiring trolls who intentionally post upsetting comments and content to provoke readers into emotional responses (Hofileña 2016). Subsequently, these further wreak disorder and cause further problems in the management of public affairs. One example would be the spread of wrong information online regarding COVID-19 and vaccines, leading to people believing that vaccines are harmful instead of being helpful. With these dangers, the Department of Health led a campaign across social media platforms to fact-check information about COVID-19 and to disseminate the proper and correct information to increase awareness on protection against the virus (DOH, 2021). Another case of misinformation would be the rumors that unvaccinated people will be barred from receiving government financial assistance, causing mobs of panicked people to flock in vaccination sites and even exposing them to infection from the virus (CNN, 2021).

Likewise, Robles (2021) reported that Facebook has taken action against suspicious pages that manifested “inauthentic behavior” and are connected to unidentified owners, and even troll networks tied to private business entities and public offices or government entities. These pages were used to spread political propaganda and distort information on current social issues (Story & Billings, 2020). 

There are lots of other issues such as: 

• Cyber bullying 
• Cyber crime (identity theft, phishing, cyberstalking) 
• Invasion of privacy 
• Hate speech 

Most of the issues we associate with the Internet stem from issues of power and freedom. We need to ask ourselves: who controls technology? Who owns the Internet? 

Technology, like science, is part of the commons. Technologies such as the Internet cannot be owned. However, some rich and powerful individuals or organizations can own companies that use certain forms of technology and thus exert control over how the technology is used by consumers. 

The one who controls the political and economic power controls the Internet (Feenberg, 1991: Foucault, 1977). The implications of this have already been seen in a number of fairly recent scandals.

Cambridge-Analytica-Facebook scandal – Data firm Cambridge Analytica made psychological profiles of voters using the data of tens of millions of private users on Facebook (Confessore, 2018). The data was then sold to politicians running for office. 

Another issue when it comes to the use of the Internet is data. Who owns our personal data? This brings up the issue of data ethics. Data ethics refers to the rights of Internet users to their personal data. Right to privacy refers to the right to live a life without interference by another person or entity. Monitoring and surveillance, either by governments or private media companies, go against these rights. 

According to the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 1948, Article 12: “No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.”

What exactly do we mean when we say we are ‘citizens’ of a particular place or locality? We typically define citizenship as the status of belonging to a country or jurisdiction. Citizens have their own rights and responsibilities. 

By saying we are ‘digital citizens’, we affirm our belonging to a community, one that is placed in the digital, rather than the physical world. As part of the community, we affirm our rights and responsibilities in this shared space. 

So who is a digital citizen? Put simply, digital citizens are “those who use the Internet regularly and effectively” (Ohler, 2010; Mossberger, Tolbert & McNeal, 2007). 

Recalling the Web 2.0 concept from the previous lesson, a digital citizen is someone who does not only consume content but also actively engages with other users on the Internet and/or creates their own content. 

Since we enjoy the privilege of being in the digital space, we are expected to behave responsibly within it. Thus, an important part of being a responsible digital citizen is digital literacy, etiquette, and ensuring online safety. 

According to Ribble, there are three principles of digital citizenship (Ribble, 2017): 

1. Respect: respect other digital users.
2. Educate: learn how to use the digital world appropriately.

c. Protect: protect one’s rights and responsibilities to remain safe in the digital and non-digital world.

As citizens of the digital sphere, we have our own stake and set of interests in this sphere. Since we share the digital space with others, it is natural to come across other digital citizens who have their own interests that may not be the same as ours. 

Thus, we can use our platforms to voice our positions in response to events within the digital sphere. More crucially, we can use the digital sphere to enrich our political and civic participation in the non-digital world. 

What exactly do we mean by political participation? Political participation refers to any form of involvement in which members of a community express their political opinion and/or convey that opinion to decision-makers (Vissers & Stolle, 2014). 

Since we consider the digital sphere as a legitimate space for communicating and interacting with others, we can practice our political and civic responsibilities in this space as well.

We have seen creative forms of political participation in recent years, which were based on using online digital communication tools. 

A great example are the protests in Hong Kong, dubbed “The Umbrella Movement”, against the extradition law pushed by the government, which from 2019 has grown into a pro-democracy movement (Shao, 2019). News on demonstrations meeting police brutality and freedom of expression being curtailed has turned online, therefore gaining attention from people abroad and sparking conversation on the political context of Hong Kong. Shao (2019) added that Hong Kong protesters utilized social media, with attentiveness on cybersecurity and communication, to document and organize rallies. Social media were believed to have profoundly helped in “mobilization, empowerment, shaping opinions, and influencing change” during these waves of political actions (Salem, 2011).

Political participation online can be done in different ways, each with a different level of impact. 

• Humorous content (memes, Tiktok, etc.) 
• Statuses, tweets 
• Long-form essays and videos 
• Online forums and discussions (Facebook, Reddit, Discord, etc) 
• Signature campaigns 
• Organizing offline actions 

Aside from being knowledgeable on the technicalities of the digital space and being aware of the laws aimed at making the Internet a safer place, individuals and entities employing digital technology for their own benefit have the responsibility of educating themselves and others in creating a more harmonious atmosphere and accountable expression online.