As the
World Wide Web and related digital media have evolved, they have come to serve many diverse purposes for many different actors, such as household entertainment,
government surveillance. Technical innovations are altering traditional business models, such as in the provision of news, and the structure of organizations, where traditional hierarchical reporting relationships have been challenged by many-to-one and many-to-many networks of communication that span organizational boundaries.
Policy As digital media has been a force behind the convergence of formerly more distinct technologies of the past, such as the telephone and
mass media, policy and regulation have moved more slowly in comparison. A worldwide ecology of policies and regulations changes local and global outcomes of the internet on access to information and knowledge, freedom of expression, privacy, and ethics. Such policy choices are being considered by multiple actors at all levels, concerned that the policies and practices governing the internet could undermine principles and purposes they view as fundamental, whether those values are centered on freedom of expression, the privacy of personal information, or ethical conduct, and whether the implications are immediate or long-term. the idea that different internet users will see different versions of the internet based on how algorithms use their previous search or social media preferences. User
targeting can happen in government,
private companies, and
infrastructure. The role of
mass surveillance potentials and the use of big data analytics could change the balance between the state and individuals.
Whistleblowers, such as
Edward Snowden, helped identify the mass surveillance of
communications metadata in response to a security problem. Concerns were also expressed during the 'CONNECTing the dots' conference about
surveillance tools, which were originally built to address severe crimes, but being used to collect personal information about dissidents, or sometimes from all citizens. Further concerns were expressed over transparency on how data is collected or used for security investigations. Manipulation of security practices, such as the introduction of
'back doors' into
software, which were originally made to allow legitimate government access, can leave internet users vulnerable to illegitimate threats.
Jurisdictional Issues There are a certain obstacles in maintaining and promoting
freedom of expression via regulation and regulatory frameworks. Due to its globalized and borderless nature, the internet can be seen as inherently unregulated. For example, it is difficulty to establish state-based regulation, due to content being able to be hosted and accessed by those in multiple countries. UNESCO considers that governments role is not to restrict
freedoms but to ensure that certain concepts—including communication-related rights—are protected. == Sources ==