Alan Sondheim on Tue, 18 Jan 2000 06:51:06 +0100 (CET)


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<nettime> Virtual States info (fwd)



(Jerry has been a member for a longtime of the Cybermind list, and
participated in the Cybermind Conference, 1996 - I can strongly 
recommend this work - Alan)

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VIRTUAL STATES: The Internet and the Boundaries of the Nation-State
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author: Jerry Everard
Publisher: Routledge London and NY
Year of publication: 2000 (now available)
ISBN: 0-415-17214-4 (pbk)

VIRTUAL STATES challenges the idea that the nation-state is dead. In 
all the hype about the Internet, little thought has been given to the
systematic inequalities being brought about by globalisation, and
exacerbated by the global spread of the Internet. Jerry Everard argues
that new disparities are emerging between the information 'haves' and the
information 'have-nots'; between wealthy and poor states; and between the
wealthy and poor in wealthy states. VIRTUAL STATES systematically
addresses these inequalities.

The book argues that there are two economies embodied in nation-states:
the goods and services economy, and the identity economy. While the
state's role in the first may be diminishing, its role in the latter is
stronger than ever. In today's climate of change and uncertainty, people
are turning to nationalism and engaging in regional conflicts over
identity. Jerry Everard suggests that identity is the outcome of
boundary-making processes: ways of identifying self from other; 'us' from
'them'. The Internet's ability to cross borders with impunity challenges
traditional, state-based identity structures. What is needed, he argues,
is a theoretical framework within which states can be disaggregated into
multiple sets of identities. This book provides just such a framework.

Structured in four parts, with detailed chapter summaries, VIRTUAL STATES
presents a compact and accessible theoretical and historical introduction
to the Internet, its relationship to the developing world, the Internet in
relation to the developed world and the Internet and society. The book
also covers such issues as war, censorship and the philosophical
implications of hypertext, which is at the heart of the Net. Written for
the general reader, this book is also a core resource for those interested
in the implictions of the Internet in international relations, cultural
studies and international political economy.

JERRY EVERARD is in the Department of English and Theatre Studies at the
Australian National University.
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