Misunderstanding the internet / James Curran, Natalie Fenton and Des Freedman

The growth of the internet has been spectacular. There are now more 1.5 billion internet users across the globe, about one quarter of the world's population. This is of enormous significance for the economic, political and social life of contemporary societies. However, much popular and academic writing about the internet takes a technologically deterministic view, assuming that the internet's potential will be realised in essentially transformative ways. The book has a simple three part structure: Part 1 looks at the history of the internet, and offers an overview of the internet's place in society Part 2 focuses on the control and economics of the internet Part 3 examines the internet's political and cultural influence Misunderstanding the Internetis a polemical, sociologically and historically informed textbook that aims to challenge both popular myths and existing academic orthodoxies around the internet.