WebJunction

You can access the full text of Stuart Hamilton's thesis here.

The advent of the Internet has brought with it an explosion of possibilities regarding information access and increased communication – especially for libraries. However, as time goes on and access increases we must be aware that the Internet is in the process of being altered as a result of the actions of users, governments and market forces. On one hand there is the possibility of increased individual access to information and communication, revitalised democracy and greater accountability, along with greater consumer choice, but at the same time there is the possibility of greater information control and surveillance of populations, a retreat from diversity of opinion to the comfort of like-minded individuals and an online world where accessing information costs money.

It is against this background that libraries are providing access to information on the Internet. I have recently completed a doctoral dissertation looking at how libraries around the world might overcome barriers to accessing online information resources. This short paper gives an overview of the obstacles I examined between 2001 and 2004 and findings of the research in relation to them. Overall I found that while the international library community, especially when represented by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), is behind the ideal of freedom of access to information on the Internet there are often obstacles that stand in the way of this ideal – obstacles that can be created by cultural attitudes or developmental differences, but often obstacles that are a result of the actions of nation state governments or players in the global economy. When it comes to accessing information on the Internet these main actors have the potential to negatively influence library users’ information seeking activities. Empirical investigations undertaken as part of my dissertation sought to discover the extent to which libraries as information providers are affected.

The Digital Divide – Basic Access to the Internet

To begin with, my research focused on the extent of Internet access in the international library community. As acknowledged in some depth in my thesis,

the concept of access is complicated. However, a global survey of IFLA member countries carried out as part of my research focused on basic Internet access provision across the international library community in order to assess levels of inequality. In this case, basic Internet access is considered to be a working computer connected to the Internet. Table 1 below provides some context to the global access situation:

Table 1 – Global Internet Use Levels (March 2005)[1]

Table 1 is based on the most up to date figures from Internet World Stats but readers should be aware that the variety of methods used to calculate figures, along with differing definitions of what constitutes a ‘user’, mean that getting accurate numbers is extremely difficult on a global scale. Nevertheless, Table 1 does show differences between regions in terms of user numbers which can be described as the digital divide. The term ‘Digital Divide’ can be defined most simply as “the wide division between those who have access to ICT and are using it effectively, and those who do not”

Looking at levels of access in libraries, the findings of my survey also showed the existence of the Digital Divide. Simply put, on a global level the results showed that access to the Internet in public libraries in the international library community is not as advanced as it is in research libraries. The results were much more interesting when looked at on a regional basis however, and great differences in access across the library community can be seen. Access levels in North America and Oceania are very high for example, while at the other end of the scale Africa suffers from much lower levels of access. Latin America and Asia are in a similar situation to Africa, but with better access in research libraries. It is interesting to note that even within regions there are also divides – the northern and western parts of Europe offer better levels of access in libraries than in the south or the east for example.

Table 2: Internet use in Eastern and Western Europe[2]

The Filtering and Blocking of Information on the Internet

Therefore there can be digital divides across regions, and even within countries. It is apparent that differing levels of Internet access exist all around the world, with regions such as Africa far behind compared to others. Even once access has been gained however, further obstacles can be constructed to impair the free flow of information.

One of these obstacles is the filtering and blocking of information. Simply put, filtering software blocks access to certain web pages – it is a direct block on an Internet user’s freedom of access to information. The use of filtering software is justified to protect Internet users – both children and adults – from harmful materials. Filtering software can be installed on individual PCs or on local or wide area networks and in some cases, as in China, Iran, Vietnam or Saudi Arabia, these networks can be countrywide. This means Internet users in those countries are banned from accessing material the governments do not wish to see circulated. In China this could be information about democracy or human rights; in Saudi Arabia it could be information about Islamic Reform or homosexuality.

Even in the US, legislation has led to libraries who want to receive federal funding for computers and Internet access having to filter all their PCs – the aim is to protect children but the software affects adults’ information access. In this type of situation library users’ freedom of access to information will suffer because regardless of the aim of filtering software it is technologically imperfect. For example, it is very poor at contextualising words – confusion over the word ‘breast’ can lead to sex education or cooking resources being blocked. Basically, the software overblocks and underblocks information – cutting out some harmful sites and letting others through.

In light of this, my research attempted to find out how common the use of filtering software was in the international library community and whether or not library associations endorsed its application. Overall the findings revealed that the use of filtering software is not widespread in the international library community at present. However a significant proportion of the respondents were to some degree in favour, or totally in favour of using the software. The respondents to the survey indicated the protection of children to be the main motivation for the use of filtering software. Cultural priorities also came through in the results, with some countries considering using filtering software to protect public morality, or safeguard national culture or religious values.

In light of the contextual and technological problems with filtering software, and the commitment of the library profession to Article 19, this creates a situation that is open to interpretation. It appears that libraries around the world would consider using filters to protect more vulnerable users such as children, even if it is at the expense of accessing legitimate information. This is worrying because trust has to be placed in the hands of commercial vendors unwilling to give up the secrets of their filtering software. Some of these vendors may have agendas that differ from traditional library attitudes towards freedom of access to information and adults’ responsibility for their own information seeking decisions. If librarians continue to lack an understanding of exactly how filters work then their continuing use – especially if government mandated - does little to ensure that access to Internet-accessible information resources is unhampered.

Surveillance and Data Retention

Another barrier to freedom of expression on the Internet is the intrusion of Internet user privacy through the monitoring of use and the storing of usage data. Freedom of expression in terms of the Internet means the freedom to experience an online environment where information-seeking activities are not monitored or recorded by third parties. Since September 11th 2001, but also prior to this date, surveillance of Internet activity and retention of user data has been on the increase on a global scale. A thorough reading of reports compiled by human rights organisations and legal experts during my period of research revealed that the template put in place in the United States, namely the USA PATRIOT Act, has influenced certain governments in Africa, Asia and Europe to increase expenditure on online surveillance and lower legal restrictions on monitoring Internet users information-seeking and communications.

The PATRIOT ACT explicitly affects US libraries through a clause that allows law enforcement officers access to library user records, including Internet records. The books an individual has read and the web sites they have visited are open to scrutiny while the legal hurdles to do this have been lowered and it is a crime for librarians to reveal to anyone they have been visited by the FBI. In a situation like this, increased surveillance of activities and retention of user data can act as a brake on individuals’ freedom of expression and prevent the seeking of certain types of information.

In the global survey carried out for this dissertation, respondents were asked whether or not libraries in their country kept any sort of records of Internet use that could be accessed at some point in the future by law enforcement agencies or another third party. While it appears that data retention does not appear to be too significant a problem in the international library community at present 18 out of 83 countries surveyed did say their libraries kept records. It seems that although the majority of countries believed that keeping records did harm users’ freedom of expression, it was apparent that some countries have no problem with this sort of data retention – 25 countries in all, some of whom had signed up to the IFLA Internet Manifesto, a policy document that states libraries should respect the privacy of their users and recognize that the resources they use should remain confidential.

The findings also showed that 8 countries (Belarus, Egypt, Lebanon, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Russia, South Africa and Uzbekistan) all kept records despite believing it to affect freedom of expression. This might mean that while members of the library community might value user privacy as a tenet of the profession, the situation may be out of librarians’ hands. Continuing reports by organisations such as Privacy International and email interviews with senior IT professionals suggest surveillance equipment is often implemented at an upstream network level, outside of librarians’ scope of influence. It is governmental preferences that are driving the development of the Internet’s surveillance capabilities at this point and while the ‘War on Terror’ goes on, libraries will continue to operate in an environment where user privacy is compromised. Users’ freedom of expression on the Internet is likely to remain hampered by this for some time, regardless of the library profession’s stance on the issue.

Commodification of Information and the Increasing Corporatism of the Internet

The final area examined in my thesis concerns the effects of the market on the development of the Internet. In the past ten years, private interests have begun to exercise more control of Internet infrastructure, leading to a decline in the quality and quantity of freely available creative works, public knowledge and cultural heritage online. Simply put, this means that getting access to the best information on the Internet is increasingly requiring greater financial resources on the part of the user. The consequences of such a situation are some very direct blocks to Internet-accessible information resources.

How is this happening? A combination of copyright and technology is creating the new online environment. Extensions in the length and scope of copyright restrict the flow of information into the online public domain and these changes are enforced by increased technological control of copyrighted works through Digital Rights Management (DRM). Strictly enforced DRM restricts the ability of users to manipulate information, and instead shifts control to rights holders who are more and more able to ‘license’ works instead of selling them outright. We are also at a time where powerful commercial sector players are beginning to influence Internet infrastructure, especially in countries where broadband is highly developed. Taken altogether these trends contribute to the increased commodification and corporatism of the Internet – attempts at organising or controlling Internet development by large media corporations or private information providers who share a common interest in retaining control over their intellectual property.

How does this affect libraries? LIS professionals interviewed during my research stated that journal subscriptions/online information resource costs are increasing year on year well above the rate of inflation - leading to cutbacks and attempts to find alternative models of information dissemination. Some interviewees commented that DRM allowed copyright owners to take instant action if their copyright was being infringed by e.g. a student using journal resources in an unauthorised way. They cautioned that further technological lock-in as a result of increased DRM would restrict the amount of access to online information resources that libraries can offer. Furthermore, if publishers move to ‘license’ works rather than sell them libraries’ ability to offer full access to information will be affected, especially relating to archival access. Licenses are already limited for a number of years, and fees are liable to changes decided by publishers.

The real issue to consider, however, is the extent to which the cost of accessing Internet resources is passed on to the user. If library users are charged to access the Internet in order to contribute towards overheads then there will not be equality of access for all members of the community. Part of my research therefore examined whether or not it was free of charge to access the Internet in public or research libraries - a charge for time on library terminals. Nearly a third of all survey respondents were able to provide free Internet access in all of their libraries. However, 31 of 74 respondents stated that using the Internet was not free of charge in their country’s libraries and consequently it cannot be said that there is a free and equal access situation in these countries. Africa in particular is unable to provide free access, with 10 out 14 respondents indicating that services are charged for. Half of the Latin American and Caribbean respondents also reported charging for access. In other regions the results are more mixed, with a fairly even split between charged and free in Oceania for example. Europe has the largest proportion of countries that offer free access in all libraries, 27 out of 34, but some countries still are unable to offer a free Internet access service. The survey also discovered that 50 out of 89 countries had benefited from extra funds to increase Internet access in the library system. However in some regions, such as Africa and Latin America, over 50% of the respondents had not received any funding at all.

Conclusion

In light of this, it is unsurprising that the majority of countries responding to the survey identified financial barriers as the biggest problem facing libraries seeking to provide Internet access. At the same time, a majority agreed that the need for more computers was the one thing that would help library users search for information. Interestingly, responses from some of the countries with the highest levels of access indicated that more training would make finding online information easier for library users. This suggests that as access levels increase different priorities appear for libraries as providers of online information resources. Furthermore, when discussing access barriers with interviewees, representatives from countries with low levels of Internet access were far less concerned with barriers such as the commodification of information or the corporatism of the Internet. Delegates from developed countries were more likely to identify with these barriers.

This led to the construction of the following model, evaluated and endorsed by LIS professionals participating in the final phase of my research.

Figure 1:

Obstacles to accessing information appear over the period of a country’s Internet development. The fundamental problem of basic access, as encapsulated in the concept of the Digital Divide, is the problem that all countries will face as they seek to increase Internet user numbers. The problems of the digital divide will affect every country, even ones with high levels of Internet access. It is not just Africa that experiences the digital divide, even if things are worse there - this can be seen in the regional interpretations of library Internet access mentioned above.

As previously discussed however, there exist further obstacles that appear over the period of a country’s Internet development and exacerbate the problems of the digital divide. The problems caused by filtering, data retention and surveillance and the increasingly commodified online environment are a result of governments and economic actors attempting to control information on the Internet. As development continues more of these issues will become apparent. With increased use the nature of information people are accessing might lead to restrictions through filtering or surveillance of Internet activity in the name of security. It is possible to see these obstacles present in developing Internet countries such as Vietnam for example. Further down the line, as countries attempt to build an infrastructure to support commerce, problems such as unequal access to information as a result of payment mechanisms may arise. Once countries have developed hi-speed Internet infrastructure and have access to rich media content such as streamed movies or content provided by entertainment corporations, it is likely that questions relating to intellectual property and its unauthorised (or authorised) use will crop up more often. This is where the problems of a corporately controlled Internet are likely to appear.

This, then, is the environment in which libraries are seeking to offer free, equal and unhampered access to information on the Internet. Attempting to serve our users in light of the obstacles will be a difficult task, especially in countries where Internet development is in its early stages. Countries with currently low levels of Internet access will have to prioritise the provision of infrastructure and material access - libraries have to pay specific attention to the problems of the digital divide to ensure access is offered to as many people as possible. In many ways this is the area where libraries on the ground can make the most difference by providing users who can get online with quality training, skills and access to relevant local content. This is where the core strengths of the profession lie.

To complement our traditional skills however, libraries must get as involved in the formation of information policy in their country as possible, not only to push for support in terms of providing basic access but also to highlight the potential impact upon human rights of actions such as filtering or Internet surveillance. As my dissertation shows, the Internet’s potential as a democratic tool is being contested by the digital divide, state imposed barriers and commercial ends. It is extremely difficult to propose solutions for the whole world but without considering these factors then the international library community will be unable to provide the best levels of Internet access for our users.