THE DIGITAL DIVIDE

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THE DIGITAL DIVIDE

STANDING AT THE INTERSECTION OFRACE & TECHNOLOGY

Raneta Lawson MackProfessor, Creighton University

School of Law

Carolina Academic Press

Durham, North Carolina

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Copyright © 2001Raneta Lawson MackAll Rights Reserved.

ISBN 0-89089-641-0LCCN 2001092053

Carolina Academic Press

700 Kent StreetDurham, North Carolina 27701

Telephone (919) 489-7486Fax (919)493-5668www.cap-press.com

Printed in the United States of America

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For my daughter Kandace,you have blessed my life

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Contents

Preface xiIntroduction xiii

PART I EXPLORING THE REASONS

Chapter 1 Fear of Science and Technology 3

The Legacy of Slavery 6The Pseudoscience of IQ Testing 8The Tuskegee “Experiment” 16Overcoming the Avoidance Factor 25

Price 26The Risk to Privacy 28Utility: But What Good Is A Computer? 31

Chapter 2 The Economic Gap 35

The Economics of Slavery 37Exclusion from Asset Accumulation 42Who’s Got the Wealth? 48The Promise of the Internet and E-Commerce:

Leveling the Playing Field? 50Finally . . . A Word About Reparations 56

Chapter 3 The Education Gap 59

The Legacy of Slavery. . . . Again 60Seventy Years of Stagnant Inequality 62“At the Same Place and at the Same Time” 65

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The Aftermath of Brown 70Perceptual Inequality 71Classrooms Without Walls: A Digital Promise of Equality? 75

PART II THE IMPACT OF THE DIGITAL DIVIDE

Chapter 4 Communication and Networking 87

E-Mail 89Web Pages 94Discussion Groups and Chat Rooms 98

Chapter 5 The E-Commerce Revolution 105

The E-Commerce Revolution 105Purchasing Power and Convenience 106The Making of a Dot.com Empire 107The Informational Advantage 114The Educational Advantage 117The Employment Advantage 120

Chapter 6 Entrepreneurship and E-Government 125

Internet Entrepreneurs:“There’s Gold in Them There Bytes!” 126

In the Beginning. . . . 128“Show Me the Dot.Com Money” 133E-Commerce in the Public Sector: E-Government 136The Digital Divide, E-Government and E-Voting 142

PART III SOLUTIONS TO CLOSE THE GAP

Chapter 7 Legal, Practical and Technological Initiatives 147

The Internet as “Big Brother” 147Privacy Policies 150Privacy Regulation and Legislation 158Privacy Software 162The Cost of Technology 163

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Chapter 8 Relevance and Access 167

Community-Based Efforts to Bridge the Digital Divide 171The Future of Community Access Centers 179

Appendix 183Selected Bibliography 185Index 189

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Preface

Divides and Intersections. At first glance, these concepts seem di-ametrically opposed and mutually exclusive. Yet, if one carefully ex-amines what is currently described as the “digital divide” or the“technology gap” between the haves and have nots, it will quickly be-come apparent that this divide is not of recent origin and is, in fact,a proxy for the myriad societal divisions that have resulted from thehistorical legacy of racism in America. This current “divide” thusrepresents an intersection of the legacy of racism and the promise oftechnology. The past and the present are colliding and dividing, andthe divisions are palpable. We see it in low-income schools wheretechnology education is not part of the curriculum because schoolsystems cannot afford to purchase updated textbooks, much lesscomputer technology. We see it in the homes of people in under-served communities where computer technology is not valued be-cause it is not considered relevant or because economic circum-stances simply do not permit expenditures for such “luxury” items.We will begin to see it in the workplace where the digital economywill compel employers to g ive preferential hiring treatment to thosewho have technology skills or training, while eliminating jobs thatdo not require such competencies.

As we embark upon a new century, how we address the divisionscreated by the technology gap will rest in large part upon our under-standing of how the legacy of racism has set the stage for the currentdivision that threatens to leave behind millions of Americans whoare unprepared and, in some cases, unwilling to become part of thedigital revolution. At the same time,however, the intersection of raceand technology is also a crossroads of opportunity. At this cross-roads, the haves can choose to increase the opportunity for partici-

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pation of the have nots by ensuring that technology resources andeducation are widely available and relevant. The have-nots canchoose to become active participants in the digital revolution by ed-ucating themselves about the ever increasing opportunities for fullparticipation in the new economy.

This book is an ex p l ora ti on of the divi s i ons that be s et us and thecorre s ponding ch oi ces that con f ront us as we seek to en su re that nopers on is left beh i n d . I hope it can serve as an inform a ti onal re s o u rcefor those who share the con cern of n a rrowing the divi de and ex p a n d-ing opportu n i ties for equal parti c i p a ti on in the digital econ omy.

I would like to thank Dean Patrick Borchers and the CreightonUniversity School of Law for providing me with funding and sup-port for the research and writing of this book. I am also grateful tomy husband John and my daughter Kandace for their love, encour-agement and support throughout the drafting process.

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Introduction

This book is a call to arms. It is a rallying cry for everyone, re-gardless of race or economic circumstances, to immediately armthemselves with the necessary technological knowledge and skills tocompete in the rapidly expanding digital economy. As those who fol-low technology trends and predictions know, barely a week goes bywithout mention of the widening “digital divide.” This term has be-come the political and sociological catch-phrase to describe thegrowing disparity between the “haves” and the “have-nots” in thecurrent digital revolution. Although the terms “haves” and “have-nots” encompass a variety of racial, ethnic and socioeconomicgroups, the largest and most noteworthy differential is developingbetween blacks and whites, two groups that have been divided onmyriad bases throughout the course of history. Thus, in many re-spects, it is as if this historical divide is simply repeating itself on thetechnology landscape. However, without underestimating the im-pact of previous divisions between the races, the digital divide hasperhaps the greatest potential to doom the “have-nots” to the statusof permanent underclass. Before discussing the disadvantages thatwill almost certainly flow from being left behind in the technologyrace, it is important to examine the most recent statistics concerningtelephone, computer and Internet access and usage. This informa-tion offers insight into how current technology is penetrating targetmarkets and reveals where disparities in access and usage are mostpervasive. The statistics are appalling, yet not very surprising.

In Falling Through the Net II, the National Telecommunicationsand Information Administration (NTIA) published the results of itsdetailed examination of technology access and usage in the UnitedStates. At the outset, the report confirmed the importance of com-

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1. According to the NTIA report, whites are twice as likely to own com-puters and have access to the Internet than blacks. The percentages forwhites owning computers and accessing the Internet are 46.6% and 29.8%respectively, while black ownership and access is 23.2% and 11.2% respec-tively.

puters and Internet technology in today’s society by observing that,“[t]he Internet is a nascent, rapidly diffusing technology thatpromises to b ecome the economic underpinning for all the success-ful countries in the new global economy.” The NTIA report furtherexplained that “understanding who is connected to the Net, and howit is being used, is critical to the development of sound policies inthis area.” The study examined three areas of technology access andusage — telephones, personal computers and the Internet — and de-termined that, with respect to telephones, approximately 94% of thepeople in America own a telephone set at home. Yet, even with whatamounts to nearly universal access to telephones, there is still amarked disparity when the ownership numbers are broken down bydemographics. Specifically, those who are low-income, minority,less-educated or single parents are less likely to have a telephone athome. Although telephones are not new technology, they are themost frequently used means to access the Internet from home.Therefore, an examination of telephone ownership is important be-cause it identifies those households that have established the prereq-uisite to Internet access.

The study also determined that although household rates of per-sonal computer ownership and Internet access have dramatically in-creased since 1994 for all demographic groups, some areas of thedigital divide have nevertheless widened. For instance, black house-holds are far less likely than white households to own personal com-puters and have Internet access.1 Indeed, during the four year periodbetween 1994 and 1998, the computer ownership gap between whiteand black households grew from a 16.8% difference to a 23.4% dif-ference. In terms of Internet access, the gap widened similarly from13.5% to 18.6% during that same period. The study summarized allof the findings by stating that while “all Americans are becoming in-creasingly connected. . . certain groups are growing far more rapidly[which] means that the “haves” have only become more informa-

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tion-rich in 1998 while the “have-nots” are lagging even further be-hind.” In terms of policy implications, the NTIA report advised thatefforts to resolve the digital divide should continue to focus primar-ily upon low-income,minority and young populations because thesegroups “could most use electronic services to find jobs, housing andother services.”

This compelling observation highlights one of the bitter ironiesof the digital divide. That is, those groups that could most benefitfrom the informational resources and convenience afforded by com-puters and Internet access are precisely the groups that are laggingbehind. This is indeed an unfortunate consequence because as tech-nology continues to permeate more and more of our daily existence,knowledge and capabilities in this area may no longer be a matter ofcuriosity and optional convenience, but may become a necessarytool for survival. For example, consider some of the more recenttechnological advances.

• By the end of the year 2000, General Motors (GM) plans tooffer voice activated Internet access in one of its vehicles.GMpredicts that within five years, in-car services such as Internetaccess could generate revenues of four to six billion dollarsannually. GM also plans to make it easier for consumers topurchase automobiles online and equip them with a varietyof on-board services via satellite.

• In September 1999, the United Network for Organ Sharingunveiled Transplant Living, an Internet program that pro-vides transplant patients with detailed information on theorgan transplant process. Among other things, the programwill enable transplant patients to quickly locate health carecenters that provide organs. United Network also plans to de-velop UNET, a secure Internet program to exchange informa-tion on patients and potential donors.

• In March 2000, Arizona Democrats held their state presiden-tial primary online. Although there were a number of secu-rity and authentication glitches,the major challenge to onlinevoting was a lawsuit filed by an organization known as VotingIntegrity Project. The group argued unsuccessfully that vot-ing online would effectively disenfranchise the state’s minor-

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ity population and, in fact, it almost did. To alleviate this con-cern, party leaders offered absentee ballot voting to allowusers without computers to vote from home. Perhaps notsurprisingly, many more minority voters used the absenteeballots, while whites used their personal computers to votefrom home.

• Internet “people auctions” now allow job seekers to sell theirskills to the highest online bidder. This idea adds a new wrin-kle to the online job recruiting process, where employers areprojected to spend as much as $1.7 billion dollars by the year2003 searching for employees.

• And finally, how would you like to make a back-up copy ofyour life? Scientists are currently researching ways to joinmind and memory chips. If successful, this technology couldpotentially be used to recreate a person’s life just as he or sheexperienced it. This extraordinary use of memory chip tech-nology, known as the “Soul Catcher,” is both intriguing andalarming. As everyone has probably felt at one time or an-other, there are some life events that are best forgotten. Howfrustrating it might be to have those same memories indeliblyimprinted on a memory chip!

These are but a few examples of the numerous ways in whichtechnology is rapidly becoming intertwined in our lives, for better orworse. As statistics clearly demonstrate, most Americans are embrac-ing these changes and many are reveling in the added convenienceand efficiency these innovations provide. For some segments of thepopulation, however, adapting to meet the demands of the technol-ogy revolution is not even a remote consideration. Indeed, to someof these individuals, computers and the Internet are viewed as anunnecessary luxury at best, and a potential intrusion into personalprivacy at worst. This intransigent group of “have-nots” is unlikelyto be persuaded to adopt technology no matter how many free or re-duced price computers are provided. These individuals actively re-ject technology in their lives and will be relegated to the perimeter ofour information technology driven society .

On the other hand, there is another group of “have-nots” whocould be persuaded to explore and eventually embrace technology if

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the costs and benefits of adoption are clearly articulated in termsthat illustrate the severe long-term personal and professional conse-quences of ignoring the digital revolution. This is perhaps the mostoverlooked aspect of current strategies to narrow the digital divide.As with many social issues that disproportionately impact minoritygroups, there is a constant dialogue between politicians and acade-mics decrying the fact that there is an ever widening technology gap.But there is very little discussion between these groups and the af-fected segments of the population about the real consequences ofpermitting these divisions to persist.

In other words, why is it important for minority children to at-tend science and technology summer camps instead of or in addi-tion to the traditional summer sports camps? Why is it importantthat technology become a required part of inner city school curricu-lums as early as first or second grade? Why is it equally importantfor the parents of children in these schools to make a similar com-mitment to explore technology and make every effort to bring it intothe home? Why is it important to not only establish technology cen-ters in urban areas, but to perhaps make the receipt of certain gov-ernment benefits dependent upon taking basic computer skillscourses?

The answer is, in part, because we are rapidly approaching whatmight be considered a digital fork in the road where the “haves” and“have nots” will be so widely separated in terms of information tech-nology skills that there will be no hope of ever reuniting these diver-gent paths. Quite simply, to be left behind in the digital age is to beunemployed, information-deprived and subject to a continual “tech-nology tax” on goods and services that are more expensive to con-sumers who don’t utilize Internet technology. These are significantdisadvantages, which are already becoming reality. For example, anumber of employers now require potential employees to demon-strate some familiarity with computer technology even though theirjobs may not require them to interact with computers on a dailybasis. Thus, job applicants are weeded out in the initial phases of therecruitment process if they cannot demonstrate a minimal level ofcomputer competency. Additionally, employment advertisements forall t ypes of occupations are increasingly finding a home on the In-

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ternet. Job seekers who are adept at the online job search process willundoubtedly have a considerable advantage over those who continueto search by traditional means.

Furthermore, as technology becomes more ingrained in our cul-ture, the means of distributing information will be driven by theelectronic and wireless markets. Today, in addition to the traditionalmedia outlets, many people receive news and information through avariety of electronic sources. With the wireless technology revolu-tion upon us, it will not be uncommon for people to regularly carrytheir news and information sources with them, receiving periodicupdates throughout the day. Less expensive means of communicat-ing will also be technology based. We have already witnessed thetremendous effect of e-mail as a modern communication device. E-mail users appreciate and frequently take advantage of the instanta-neous and low cost nature of this communication tool as evidencedby the fact that the use of e-mail easily outpaces all other aspects ofInternet use. Now, with the possibility of voice over the Internet,long distance voice communications are also making inroads intoInternet technology.

Retail establishments, financial institutions and health careproviders are also moving toward an Internet model to make theirservices accessible to customers 24 hours a day. As an extra incentive,some Internet merchants offer reduced rates or additional servicesto customers who choose to conduct business on the Internet. Be-cause web sites typically aren’t as costly to maintain as brick andmortar establishments, some merchants are willing to pass these sav-ings on to Internet consumers.

These examples demonstrate that the momentum is clearly in thedirection of more technology, not less. Therefore, an obvious ques-tion arises: why wouldn’t everyone want to be a part of the digitalrevolution? The answer is multi-faceted.

F i rs t , m a ny cite cost as a factor in their dec i s i on not to purchase acom p uter or obtain In tern et acce s s . Yet , tod ay, with the pri ce of com-p uters dropping to an all - time low, the qu e s ti on is no lon ger who c a na f ford tech n o l ogy, but who c a n’t . O f co u rs e , this is not to su ggest thatt h ere aren’t sti ll some segm ents of the pop u l a ti on whose econ om i cc i rc u m s t a n ces are so severe that the purchase of a com p uter is com-

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2. Marcia Stepanek, A Small Town Reveals America’s Digital Divide Busi-nessWeek Online (October 4, 1999).

p l etely out s i de of t h eir financial re ach . However, due to dra m a tic re-du cti ons in the pri ce of com p uter tech n o l ogy, that group is shri n k i n gto the point that it can hardly be said that cost pre s ents the barri er toen try that it on ce did. A similar ob s erva ti on may be made with re s pectto trends in In tern et servi ce . Al t h o u gh pri ces va ry, the avera ge cost ofan unlimited access plan can ra n ge from $20–$25 a mon t h . In ad d i-ti on , t h ere are a nu m ber of companies now of fering free In tern et ac-ce s s . In most cases, con su m ers pay no fee to access the In tern et , butmust agree to vi ew targeted adverti s em ents as they use the servi ce . Fors om e , this might be con s i dered a minor annoya n ce wh en wei gh eda gainst the access to inform a ti on ga i n ed by using the In tern et .

Another argument often advanced as an explanation for not ac-quiring technology is that, to some, computers and the Internet havevery little usefulness in their daily lifestyles. Technology just doesn’tfit or seem relevant. Perhaps these individuals prefer to get theirnews from other formal or informal sources, or they prefer to engagein face-to-face communication, or they would rather shop locally forgoods and services. There is just no perceived place for computertechnology in their lives. In these circumstances, often what is re-quired is exposure and education.

Ot h er arguments against tech n o l ogy adopti on rel a te to mispercep-ti ons abo ut the diffic u l ty of l e a rning basic skill s . Ba s ed upon no ex pe-ri en ce or a previous nega tive ex peri en ce , m a ny perceive com p uters ascom p l i c a ted to understand and difficult to maintain. Th ey bel i eve it isu n l i kely that these “gad get s” would make life easier and would on lys erve to make things more confusing and, t hu s ,i n ef fic i en t . F i n a lly, t h eperceived lack of privacy is a sign i ficant cause of con cern for many asf requ ent news stories reveal how tech n o l ogy may be manipulated toi n tru de into the pers onal privacy of u n su s pecting indivi du a l s . But canthese arguments against tech n o l ogy ju s tify all owing the digital divi deto persist? Con s i der this tale of t wo town s .

In an article entitled, A Small Town Reveals America’s Digital Di -vide, Marcia Stepanek describes how the technology gap is impact-ing a community on the edge of rural Appalachia.2 The article is

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3. Id.

bri ef , but few have wri t ten as poi gn a n t ly and insigh tf u lly abo utthe re a l i ties of the digital divi de . S tepanek de s c ri bes the rel a tivelypro s perous town of Bl ack s bu r g, Vi r gi n i a , wh ere Vi r ginia Po lytech-nic In s ti tute and State Un ivers i ty spon s ored the cre a ti on ofBl ack s burg Electronic Vi ll a ge (BEV) to bring In tern et access toh omes in the are a . Al t h o u gh most of Bl ack s burg is now wi red and,i n deed , Bl ack s burg is the most wi red town in the nati on , the su r-rounding areas lag far behind in access to tech n o l ogy. The con-trasts are staggeri n g. For instance , Lori At w a ter, a thirty-nine ye a rold single mom in Bl ack s bu r g, ch a n ged her life dra m a ti c a lly byutilizing the re s o u rces provi ded by the BEV In tern et access pro-gra m . Af ter working for 10 ye a rs as a meter maid at $6 an hour,At w a ter dec i ded to use her son’s com p uter and the inex pen s iveB EV. n et In tern et con n ecti on to te ach hers el f h ow to de s i gn webp a ge s . Af ter mastering the tech n o l ogy, At w a ter quit her job to be-come pre s i dent of Lori At w a ter Enterpri s e s , a web de s i gn com-p a ny wh ere she earns three times her previous salary as a meterm a i d .

In contrast, just outside of Blacksburg in the town of Christians-burg, nearly one-third of the adults do not have high school diplo-mas and Internet connections are few. Although the town hoped tobenefit from the same BEV project that brought low cost Internetaccess to Blacksburg, that assistance has not materialized. Many ofthe residents cannot afford computers or Internet access and parentsworry that their children are being left behind because the schoolsdo not yet have computer training as part of their curriculum. Tomake matters worse, even the few technology resources available inChristiansburg sit gathering dust because there is no one to providetraining on the equipment and many of the residents simply lack in-terest in the technology. Stepanek sums up the lesson from this ex-perience in this way: “Making equipment and Net connections avail-able isn’t enough. The Internet haves must find a way to introducefolks to the technology and then to make access meaningful to thosewithout. It’s the difference between giving people a book and teach-ing them how to read.”3

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4. William F. Birdsall, The Digital Divide in the Liberal State: A CanadianPerspective First Monday(5) (2000).

5. Id.

The harsh realities of the Blacksburg experience raise the funda-mental question of whether the technology gap between the havesand have nots can ever be narrowed or closed, or is it an inevitableresult of a society in which information is treated as a market com-modity? William F. Birdsall, in an article examining the Canadiandigital divide, concluded that because of the “ideology of informa-tion technology” and the “dual social structure” in both the UnitedStates and Canada,the “policy debate in time will not be over how toeliminate the digital divide but only how large or small it shouldbe.”4 According to Birdsall, the ideology of information technologybegan to emerge in the United States in the 1970s. The premise ofthis ideology is that:

information technology is inevitably driving the shift froman industrial society to an information society. The raw ma-terial or basic commodity of this society’s knowledge-basedeconomy is information. In the knowledge-based economyonly the marketplace should determine which goods andservices are produced and how they are generated; there areno public goods.5

In this model, government’s role is to promote a competitivemarket through deregulation and privatization rather than ensuringequality of access to goods and services. Birdsall posits that both theUnited States and Canada are liberal welfare states, where the workethic prevails and welfare entitlements are distributed only to thosewho meet strict criteria. For those who do not meet the criteria, thegovernment allows the market to provide and distribute benefits.This creates a dual social benefit structure where most attain benefitsthrough the market and a few receive them from the governmentwith the expectation that they will eventually attain them from themarket as well. The choice to treat information as a market com-modity creates a digital divide in the sense that, just as any othergood, those who are able to attain information through the marketwill do so, while those who can’t will simply have to rely upon either

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6. Id.7. Beth Cox, Crossing the Great Digital Divide ECommerce Guide (De-

cember 12, 2000).8. Id.9. Id.

limited government assistance or the good will of private enterprise.Given these circumstances, Birdsall argues that one possibility foreliminating the digital divide rests upon “recognizing that technol-ogy is a social construct and that access in the information socie tycannot be left to the market alone.”6

Although Birdsall offers a persuasive analysis of how the digitaldivide is an inevitable result of social welfare policy in certain coun-tries, his analysis perhaps underestimates the degree to which themarket may act in its self interest to increase consumer access totechnology. To the degree that the market relies upon maximizingcustomer base for profitability, it cannot wait indefinitely for thegovernment bureaucratic engine to generate programs that distrib-ute benefits to the “have-nots.” Thus, private enterprise may act onits own, investing in underserved communities and ultimately in-vesting in its own future. Consider, for example, Fleet Bank’s recentannouncement that it is launching one of the “most comprehensivecommunity economic development initiat ives in the nation to helpclose the technology gap and create greater access to financial ser-vices and the Internet for individuals and businesses in low-andmoderate-income communities.”7 Fleet’s plan is to introduce a pro-gram called CommunityLink, which will provide community basedcontent, in-home training and computers to lower income people.Importantly, Fleet’s plan recognizes that access to technology is notenough and “[has] identified comfort of use and relevancy of con-tent as crucial components to sustained usage and creation ofwealth.”8 Although it is obvious that Fleet hopes to build long-termand profitable customer relationships through this program, it isalso “functioning as a catalyst for change in community economicredevelopment.”9 Fleet’s multi-focused approach to alleviating thehardships imposed by the digital divide in one community is com-mendable for its recognition that the problem is not merely one ofaccess. Increasing public awareness about the variety of factors that

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contribute to the digital divide helps turn the focus toward findingcreative solutions rather than blaming the “have-nots.”

In furtherance of that goal, this book will discuss three separatealthough interrelated topics. In the first section,“Exploring the Rea-sons,” the book will revisit the historical bases for the economic andeducational differences that divide racial groups in the United States.The section will discuss how a tragic history of legally enforced divi-sions along racial lines in the areas of economics and e ducation hascontributed to a similar divide in the area of technology. This sec-tion will also explore how fears related to technology may also berooted in earlier practices that manipulated science and technologyto the detriment of black Americans.

Part II, “The Impact of the Digital Divide,” will provide a fairlycomprehensive overview of how technology has made inroads intoeveryday life, making it easier to complete commonplace tasks suchas shopping and banking more conveniently and efficiently. This sec-tion also reveals how computer technology is increasingly becomingthe standard way of interacting and doing business and explains whythose who are unfamiliar with technology run an extremely highrisk of being left behind and becoming part of a permanent vir tualunderclass.

Finally, Part III, “Solutions to Close the Gap,” will examine someoptions to reduce or eliminate the digital divide. Ideas ranging fromcommunity access centers to corporate partnerships with schoolswill be explored. This section concludes that while all of these effortsare admirable, in the end, none will be successful unless those pro-moting them are able to overcome the wall of suspicion and lack ofinterest that often prevents minority communities from taking fulladvantage of these opportunities.

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