An Initial Inquiry Into Digital Divide And Its Ethical Issues

We are enjoying the time expansion of our economy, and this prosperity is directly linked to the rise of the information technology sector. Yet the technologies, skills, and infrastructure underpinning this growth have not yet reached all people. There exists a "digital divide," separating the technological haves and have-nots, dividing those with on-ramps onto the Information Highway from those forced to live in its shadows. This digital divide is defined not only by inequality in access to technology but also unequal access to opportunities to participate in the owner-ship and management of these vital companies.There are two visions about the ultimate impact of Internet upon the economy, society etc. Many hope that the Internet will be a powerful new force capable of transforming existing patterns of social inequality, strengthening linkages between citizens and representatives, facilitating new forms of public engagement and communication, and widening opportunities for the development of a global civic society.But will the Internet transform conventional forms of democratic activism, or only serve to reinforce the existing gap between the technologically rich and poor? Will it level the playing field for developing societies, or instead strengthen the advantages of post-industrial economies?The term ' digital divide' has quickly become so popular as an instant sound bite that it has entered everyday speech as shorthand for any and every disparity within the online community. The digital divide issue incorporates two or more of the values. These include literacy, equality of access, and information literacy. The literacy question and the access question are ageless. The term digital divide means the difference in access to digital information, skills, hardware and software by information "haves" and "have-nots." The term has been used in two ways - to describe the gap between haves and have-nots withincountries. It is also used to describe the differences between the postindustrial information age countriesIn exploring these issues, this book focuses on understanding the root causes and the major consequences of inequalities evident during the first decade of the Internet age. In this study the concept of the digital divide is understood as a multidimensional phenomenon encompassing two distinct aspects. The global divide refers to the divergence of Internet access between industrialized and developing societies. The social divide concerns the gap between information rich and poor in each nation. To consider these matters, this introduction summarizes the contemporary debate about these issues, and then outlines the book's central argument, framework and organization.This paper has touched on the digital divide question by raising questions. It has been suggested that the digital divide as a concern is not something new, but it is rather a new manifestation of an old problem ?access and literacy. Information professionals of all kinds ha.ve been concerned with whether and how to address access and literacy since there were information professionals. We have had different premises and different answers, but the questions have been similar.We can explore the response of various institutions as models and as guides. It is easy to prescribe new infrastructure and new curricula. It is far more difficult to implement the prescriptions and to accommodate the new infrastructure and new thinking into our cultures, we need a sound understanding of the issues and the barriers that impair implementation of solutions.