Questions for the documentary “Virtual Revolution” part 1, 2, and 3.

1.     The web is celebrated as the revolutionary technology that is great leveling of humanity creating equal opportunity, equal access, and equal potential. However, there are only a quarter of people on the earth who can use it. How do you explain the controversial argument here?

The main issue is that some countries that are not able to access the internet 3rd world countries, like Africa, and even certain 1st world locations that can’t afford a computer or the costs that come with one.

2.     How is Wikipedia the best example to implement the leveling ideas of the Web rooted in the cultural revolution of 1960s, namely the Libertarianism in the counter culture? How does it explain some of the digital convergences?

In Libertarianism, expertise and hierarchy don’t matter – which is what Wikipedia is mainly about. Anyone can post whatever they want on Wikipedia and have their voices heard regardless of their level of expertise or knowledge on the subject. It's a perfect explanation of digital convergences because it’s mass amounts of individuals who connect with each other and share information through the World Wide Web.

3.     How does the Web make it possible for different kinds of digital convergence?

The Web makes it possible for different Internet users from around the world to connect through alternate types of social media online.

4.     How can the Internet become a challenge for traditional authority? Use the political landscape changes in some counties to illustrate your answer.

A Russian feminist band called Pussy Riot uses the Internet to challenge authority and defend the rights of the people of Russia. They video tape their protests and use them in their music videos to attract more attention on the Internet. More recently, two of the band members were arrested and convicted of ‘hooliganism motivated by religious hatred.’ The trial and sentence attracted a considerable amount of attention around the world, mostly in the west.

5.     Do you believe that getting information free can set us free eventually? Why or Why not? Do you see any concerns of the complete freedom or self-expression without limit on the Internet? Why or why not?

I believe that getting information could be a good thing and a bad thing. On the better side, anyone could get on the Internet if it were readily available to them and vocalize their opinions. However, these opinions could get altered and changed into what some people would take as facts. No one would have any credibility. There is already a lot of freedom of expression on the Internet, and giving everyone the ability to use the Internet for free whenever they want can also lead to a lot of overcrowding – with a lot of website crashes and server/network problems.

6.     In traditional media communication, it has the “vertical” authority. In the Web communication, it becomes “horizontal?” How do you explain the change? How does this create the possibility for digital media convergence?

In traditional media communication, there was much more credibility to a "vertical" model of authority. However, by throwing out the expertise behind posts, and putting everyone on an equal level of credibility, it becomes more "horizontal." This creates the possibility for digital media convergence because what people write on the Internet would now have a greater effect on people and influence facts – this results in a wider spreading of information.

7.     Why is that the Web is free critical for the success of the Web itself? How does that clash with the corporate business ideology? How does that pose challenges for copyright issues at the same time? What will happen if the Web is not free?

The fact that the Web is free is absolutely vital to its because that’s how the Internet received most of it’s users in the first place. If they take that away from people, they’ll lose users at a fast pace. However, there are a lot of issues with corporate business and copyright issues. If the Web is not free, the digital divide mentioned will get exponentially larger. Fewer users will use it and the balance will shift drastically.