Modern Information Society - Essay Example

Is ‘information society’ the consequence of a revolutionary change from previous social relations or has there just been gradual evolution? Assess the evidence for both viewpoints and give reasons for your own choice. An information society comes about when there is a dearth of information. The society feels the urge to have information needs met properly and hence the discussion of an information society comes to the folds. This is a very interesting phenomenon because it touches upon quite a few significant areas – most important of that are the ways and means through which information actually reaches the intended recipients, or in layman terms, to the people themselves. It is quintessential to allow these people to absorb information in a capacity that they would like to have, otherwise the concept of information overload would creep in and hence destroy the very essence of an information society. There is the important manifestation of comprehending how an information society would function along with a number of other tangents that are present, as nearly all of these have a role to play within the related settings. The world of today is changing more swiftly than ever before and hence there is a dire need to be in line with the news and reports which are coming to the fore. This makes the lives of people within close reach of what is actually happening at the four corners of the world, and how they as individuals, would like to see changes take place. An information society would be meaningless if it is following a set agenda. This could be a politically backed agenda or could derive its motivation from a number of different areas, most of which remain within the state itself. The society has a very pertinent role to play as far as the information spreading regimes are concerned. If the society is naïve and does not actually know what this information would do towards their own lives, it would be safe to state that such an information society is serving the cause of absolutely no one. Propagation of political thought within an information society would be equivalent to meeting an objective or a goal which is intended and hence motivated in such a manner that it changes the perceptions of the people (May 2002). Following an agenda within an information society is therefore filled with different dispositions, all of which have an important role at understanding the dictum of bringing in a social change, one that is either of a short term nature or meant to bring a long run progression. Then there is the important discussion of political tilts getting shifted through the incorporation of media outlets and under such aegis, an information society would only work best towards providing that competitive advantage that has been envisaged. An information society would therefore seek to establish its own basis in such a way that the people feel the change in a very subtle and subliminal way whereas the hard hitting perspective could mean that people either become aloof of the entire situation or just do not pay heed at all. Moving further ahead, an agenda could lead to an afterthought by the people, for whom the information society has been enacted in entirety. This is a very important consideration for the sake of the society that is bent upon making the best use of the information domains which have been made present. With the passage of time, people have based their beliefs and convictions on viewpoints that have been fed on to them, thus clearly exhibiting the need for having sound policies and mechanisms which shall take care of the regulatory regimes so that no information could be overloaded on to the people. Sometimes, this information becomes too much of a hassle and the end result is that people get bored or completely switch off the media outlets (radio, television, etc), which is not a very encouraging sign nonetheless. The afterthought is a perspective that is derived from the wrongdoings in the society which are presented time and time again. These are addressed in a manner that asks for scrutiny because the same is accountable to the people in the long run scheme of things. No society would like to have measures which are irrelevant as far as information handling mechanisms are related. There must be a proper check and balance policy which takes care of all the issues that essentially comes under the aegis of an information society. This is so said because an information society has certain responsibilities that must be ensured at all times and under all circumstances. Basing the discussion on the coining of an information society in its most basic sense, it is important to understand that indeed this society has come about with an evolutionary change as people have started to decipher things more appropriately as compared to what used to happen in the past (Wester 2004). There have been wholesale changes within the thinking regimes of the people and the credit for the same needs to be given to the people who have made this change possible. These have comprised of the scholars, the theorists, the researchers and indeed the television channels and newspapers which have allowed the people to understand and rise up to the difference. These people have understood how a change can come about if they correct their own selves and what this would eventually mean for the sake of the entire society. Hence correcting one’s own self would be tantamount to correcting the whole society – an aspect that is derived from the dictum of a civilized society in essence. The previous social relations were not that strong as they are in the time and age of today, however the change has been that people are connected to one another through virtual means and not just the physical ones, as the latter was the king in the yesteryears. The times have changed and so have the thinking ideologies of the people, which has been able to manifest its truest self through the works that have been done under the auspices of an information society. The reasons for understanding how this has been a gradual evolutionary process is because an information society takes time to develop. People generally get used to things which are of their understanding levels, and hence they find ways to cut through the hurdles that are right in front of them. It takes time to understand that an information society needs to be positively inclined for the sake of the people so that they can digest whatever information is being sent their way (Lyon 1988). If they feel that this information is incomplete and lacks the very essence of being termed as information or knowledge in the first place, they would either stop paying heed tow the kind of information that is being sent their way or will generally become aloof of the things that are happening. Hence the most important element of an information society is to inculcate feelings of genuineness and reliability with regards to the information which is being fed upon them and this is the core responsibility of those people who are running the information society’s domains. An information society would therefore be deemed as a successful one when the people are ready to adapt to the social changes and are more than willing to accept the issues which need their attention. This will eventually bring in the much needed attitudinal shift that is required to have a very subtle information society, one that was envisaged in the past as well. In the end, it would be safe to state that an information society is the epitome of accomplishment as far as the goals and objectives of an entire society are concerned. If this information society does not reap benefits for the people in the long run, it would not be a consistently good one at all. An information society therefore needs to be critically judged and analyzed before it is remarked as a truly representative body of the people. This society would fail to exist if people do not pay enough attention, are prone to disregard the very basis of information that is coming to the fore and are generally non-receptive towards things that are of significance to them, from the perspective of the society in essence. The latter situation suggests that people have become aloof of their needs and desires, and hence have relied more on spending time with regards to their own lives and depending less on others. This is a very individualistic feeling which needs to be kept away, and an information society can do best to thwart such measures to even arise. All said and done, an information society takes its time to make amends within the different quarters of a society. It is important that an information society develops in a way that helps shape up the beliefs and understanding levels of the people. This is indeed something that will bring rich dividends in the times to come. Bibliography Lyon, D. (1988). The Information Society: Issues and Illusions. Polity May, C. (2002). The Information Society: A Skeptical View. Polity Wester, F. (2004). The Information Society Reader. Routledge Word Count: 1,509 Read More