Human Factors of XR: Using Human Factors to Design XR Systems
5th Estate at Rhodes House-2012
1. Accountability in a Network Society:
The Rise of a Fifth Estate
William H. Dutton
Professor of Internet Studies
Oxford Internet Institute (OII)
University of Oxford
Presentation for Integreon, Rhodes House, Oxford, 3 May 2012.
2. Online Freedom of Expression?
1. Internet is not political, it is just
entertainment;
2. Internet is not the press, which is being
threatened;
3. Virtual assembly is not real: ‘clicktavism’
is not activism
4. Inherently free, cannot be regulated
5. Tool for autocracy, not democracy
6. Internet enables democratic
accountability
4. Empirical
Research Foundations
• Oxford Internet Surveys of Britain: 2003, 2005,
2007, 2009, 2011 and World Internet Project (WIP)
• The Global Values Project: OII in collaboration with
INSEAD, comScore, and WEF
• The Performance of Distributed Problem-Solving
Networks (DPSN) Porject (2007-8)
• The Oxford e-Social Science Project (OeSS),
Economic and Social Research Council (2005-12)
• The Fifth Estate Project, supported by the OII,
Oxford Internet Surveys (2003-2012), and June
Klein, Electronic Boardroom™
8. Reliability of Information by
Internet Users and Non-Users 2009
(QA4 by QH14)
OxIS 2009: N=2,013 8
Note. The scale changed from a 10 point scale in 2007 to a 5 point scale in 2009.
9. Networked Institutions v Networked
Individuals
Networked Institutions, such as in e-Health
Networked Individuals:
going to the Internet for health and medical
information
networking patients, e.g., UK Children With
Diabetes Advocacy Group (500 Families)
networking physicians, e.g., Sermo
11. Arenas: Networked Institutions Networked Individuals
News Online journalism, BBC Netizens, Citizen
Online, Live Micro-Blogging Journalists, Bloggers,
Whistleblowers, Leaks,
Churnalism.org, Hacking
Blacklash
Democracy E-Democracy, E- Obama campaign, Aung
Consultation, e-Voting San Suu Kyi, Arab Springs,
Anti-Bribery Websites
Education Online Learning, Multimedia Backchannels, Informal
Classrooms Learning, Rate My Teacher
Health and Medical NHS Direct, e-mailing safety Going to the Internet for
alerts health information, Sermo
12. The Fourth Estate
“[Edmund] Burke said there were Three Estates in
Parliament; but, in the Reporters’ Gallery yonder,
there sat a Fourth Estate more prominent far than
they all. It is not a figure of speech, or witty
saying; it is a literal fact – very momentous to us
in these times.”
Thomas Carlyle (1831), Heroes and Hero-
Worship, at www.gutenberg.org.etext/1091
13. Feudal Estates into the 21st Century
Estates Feudal Modern
Clergy Public Intellectuals
Nobility Business, Industry
and Economic Elites,
including Internet
Industrial Elites
Commons Government and
Politicians
‘4th Estate’ Press Journalists and the
Mass Media
Mob Civil Society,
Networked
Individuals, Mobs
14. Montesquieu’s Tripartite System into
the 21st Century
Estates Tripartite Modern US Parallel
Courts Judiciary
Monarch Executive
Parliament Legislative
‘4th Estate’ Press Journalists and the
Mass Media
Mob Civil Society,
Networked
Individuals, Mobs
15. The Fifth Estate
Press since the 18th Century -
the ‘Fourth Estate’
Internet in the 21st - enabling a
Fifth Estate
−−
Enabling people to network with other individuals
and with information, services and technical
resources in ways that support social accountability
in business and industry, government, politics, and
the media.
16. “Wael Ghonim, a 30-year-old executive from Google, was the
administrator of an anti-torture page on Facebook, the social
networking website, that is widely credited with organising the first
day of protest [in Egypt] on January 25.”
Jon Swaine, The Telegraph, 11 Feb 2011
18. Networked Institutions v Networked
Individuals of the Fifth Estate
Networked Institutions: greater ubiquity,
universal access
Networked Individuals of the Fifth Estate:
require a critical mass, not universal access
19.
20.
21. The Fourth Estate:
News of the World, …
The Fourth Estate Depends on an Independent
Press – Independent in Relation to Other Estates
22. 18th Century Estates: 21st Century Enemies
18th Century 21st Century: Attacks
Estates Enemies of the
5th Estate
Clergy Public Intellectuals ‘Culture of Amateurism’,
individualist consumerism
Nobility Business, Industry Vertical Integration; Monopoly
and Economic Elites over Search; Three Strikes
Commons Government and Filtering; Content Regulation;
Regulatory Agencies Identification; Surveillance;
Disconnection; Control Press
Press Journalists and the Pay Walls, Co-opting,
Mass Media Imitating, Competing, and
Supporting
Mob Spammers, Undermining Trust and
Fraudsters, Confidence; Fostering
Regulation of Content,
Cyberstalkers, Attacks on Anonymity
Rioters…
There are many who challenge a focus on online freedom of expression. Various critics argue one or more of the following: That the Internet is not an important political tool – it is primarily an entertainment medium. Freedom of expression is not an argument for illegal downloading of music! Democratic rights are based on freedom of the press and assembly, but the Internet is not the press – driven by amateurs and not professional journalists – and clicktavism is not activism. Pressing a ‘Like’ button is not equivalent to being on the street in a protest or march. Another argument is that there is no need need to worry about Internet regulation and efforts to block political expression since it would be impossible. Example: Instagram: Google bought for $1B 551 days after it was set up. 1 billion photos uploaded, 5 million per day. Finally, an increasingly popular argument is that the Internet and related ICTs are a gift to autocrats, who can used these technologies to track who says what to whom. States can use the Internet to reinforce their control over the public.