Unweaving the web of identity: Assessing the Internet's impact on identity among national minorities

The context of this research is the increasing prevalence of Internet usage among national or ethnic minorities and the growing assumption among media theorists and some political scientists that there is a connection between access to uncensored and self-published media on the Web and national identity and nationalism. This research investigates: (1) the historical challenges national minorities have faced when engaging in identity politics; (2) the unique benefits of national identity building in cyberspace such as cross-border communication with co-nationals, anonymous production and consumption of self-selected media and the preservation and distribution of various totems of national culture, etc.; (3) the role of Internet-enabled elites in the national projects and how the Internet is used as a tool of mobilization for the rest of the community (most of whom lack access to the Web); and (4) the impact of cyberspatial identity formation, maintenance and re-articulation on national identity and nationalism in the real world. The ultimate goal of the project is to test the hypothesis that access to the Internet has a positive impact on national identity, i.e., increases nationalism, among ethnic minorities who face political marginalization in their states of residence.; My expectations were that I would find unimpeded access to anonymous media which allowed consumption as well as production of political discourse, access and storage of cultural artifacts, and transnational communication would lead to strengthened national identity among marginalized minorities. In fact, I found the exact opposite to be true. My case studies clearly demonstrate that a weakening of national identity is occurring among those members of national minorities with sustained access to the Internet and opportunities for social mobility in their states of residence, even when faced with political repression and cultural marginalization. Rather than using the Web to become interstitial powers commanding influence among their peers, these Internet-enabled elites are opting for personal development through the transnational networks and globalist reorientation enabled and sustained through cyberspace. Thus, the Internet is serving to dampen, rather than increase, nationalism among ethnic minorities.