Spinelli Piece
James Mulholland (jsm5q@darwin.clas.virginia.edu)
Thu, 22 Feb 1996 03:11:44 -0500
In the essay, Spinelli clearly shows there was a great deal of
euphoric (fantasy) language associated with the possibilities of radio for
communication, and beyond communication, politics. (Distinctions of class
flattens as everyone owns a radio and so access). Clearly the (nearly
obsessive) tone of this rhetoric is comprable to hypertext. But just as now
with Spinelli, there were probably a number of people occupying his position
in regard to the claims made about the radio. The problem is that hypertext
is emerging (originating) from a clearly not-utopian culture. The same
culture that "perverted" the possibilities of radio. Like children, though
not identical, hypertext will probably look a great deal like the culture
that porduced it. It is impossible to imagine a truly democratic, even
utopian object like the internet ever existing in relation to the society
and cultures that created and are creating it. The internet is interactive
with society, in a sense it is merely a tool of society. If the interent
were to be utopian it would have to convert society in this direction or
else it would be corrupted. I hate to animate the internet as almost a
distinctive animal battling against society (us), but the tone of all these
essays has been to establish the internet almost as self-contained and
breathing. It is not. It is a tool for a number of people in (different)
societies and thus will necessarily reflect them. Society is not utopian,
the interent is not utopian. I don't see society changing greatly, soon, and
thus the interet, though changing more, will always fundamentally reflect
what is continuously creating it. This means internet access providers and
companies to maintain your very own homepage are here to stay. This is like
everyone owning a radio, even though very few actually have the capital to
create the machinery (of (of scale) necessary to produce radio. We are
destined to be consumers. Democracy in the United Sates is not a equality
within community but an equality of opportunity to become a producer (rich-
with the rich already favored). Still, Spinelli seems to lament the poor
plight of the consumer when in fact, though not a great variety, the
consumer does have a choice: buy or not buy.
James.