Ralph E. Hanson, Second Edition
HomeWeblogChaptersCh. 1: Living in a Media WorldCh. 2: The Media Business: Consolidation, Globalization, and the Long TailCh. 3: Mass Communication Effects: How Society and Media InteractCh. 4: Books: The Birth of the Mass MediaCh. 5: Magazines: The Power of Words and ImagesCh. 6: Newspapers: Reflection of a Democratic SocietyCh. 7: Sound: Music and Talk Across MediaCh. 8: Movies: Mass-Producing EntertainmentCh. 9: Television: Broadcast, Cable and BeyondCh. 10: The Internet: Mass Communication Gets PersonalCh. 11: Advertising: Selling a MessageCh. 12: Public Relations: Manufacturing the NewsCh. 13: Media Law: Free Speech and FairnessCh. 14: Media Ethics: Truthfulness, Fairness, and Standards of DecencyCh. 15: Global Media: Communication Around the WorldAbout the BookAbout the AuthorHelp
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Chapter 10: The Internet

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When Paul Baran began working for the U.S. military to design a communication system that could withstand the force of a nuclear strike, he had no idea that the project would be the beginning of arguably the greatest communication medium in history. The inclusion of academics in the ARPANet project led to a successful trial of a connected network between four universities. This new network served as the first segment of the modern Internet.

One factor that allowed the Internet to flourish and expand was the development of protocols, which led to across-the-board standardization of protocols. The original idea of packet switching outlined how digital messages would be sent from one network to another. Bob Kahn and Vint Cerf's development of TCP/IP allowed incompatible networks to work together seamlessly, thus providing the single network feel of the Internet. Other standards such as HTTP, URLs, and hypertext allowed further, consistent development of technologies.

Even in the infancy of the Internet, communication was a central concept. Ray Tomlinson's development of an e-mail program that incorporated solid standards became popular. Soon, that idea expanded to mass communication concepts such as mailing lists, discussion forums, and eventually blogs. Instant messaging is a real-time e-mail program that is an exception to the principle standard of the Internet: compatibility. Whether you wish to communicate with a friend in the next cubicle or across the country or the entire world population, there is an electronic “tool” to facilitate your conversation.

Tim Berners-Lee was instrumental in bringing the Internet to the public. His concepts of the World Wide Web and the software to make sense of the ocean of information began to make the Internet more user-friendly. Browsers gradually got better and companies sprang up with the sole purpose of bringing the Internet to consumers' households. Those early dial-up connections have seen a great deal of change in the last decade. Broadband network service opens up an entirely new world to Internet surfers by allowing them to download and view or listen to large media that would have previously been a nuisance. Wireless access allows people to break away from their traditional desktop workstations and sit on a park bench and enjoy the outdoors while working online.

The Web has allowed traditional media to expand their reach and depth of coverage, especially for breaking news. However, the net is the best suited for long-tail, upstart media. Exclusively online magazines, new filmmakers looking to get their films noticed, and bloggers with a quirky, personal point of view all have been able to carve out an online niche and attract an audience. The success of these long-tail ventures has certainly not gone unnoticed by the mainstream media companies. Traditional television networks making their broadcast programming available for download is a prime example of how the Net is changing the face of the traditional media the general public has become accustomed to.

 

Learning Objectives

•  Know the ideas behind ARPANet, the individuals and the academic institutions that participated initially.

•  Understand the major protocols and standards that power the Internet.

•  Know the different forms of communication facilitated by the Internet.

•  Know who Tim Berners-Lee is and what his contributions to the Net were.

•  Understand the process by which the Internet was transformed from a private, academic network to a publicly-accessible one.

•  Know and understand the presence of both traditional and long-tail media online.

•  Understand the hacker ethic.

•  Understand how traditional media is converging with new media to meet the needs of consumers.

Review Questions

1. Who were the four initial universities that participated in ARPAnet?


2. What contributions did Bob Kahn and Vint Cerf make toward standardizing the Net?

3. Who was Ray Tomlinson?

4. What advantages do online news providers have?


5. What are the principles of the hacker ethic?

6. What are some of the barriers keeping people across the world from accessing the Internet?