Information access in an unequal world
Next
time you get frustrated with your computer taking too long to download,
spare a thought for those who aren't as well off. According to the Star
Tribune, half of the world has yet to make its first telephone call.In 1990 India had only about five million telephones for its population of about 850 million people – and modern Latin America doesn't fare much better.
This type of cultural gap is just one aspect of the divide between the 'haves' and 'have-nots' in the information age.
Addressing the issues of the battle for the provision of and access to information was the subject of a paper by UniSA reference librarian Karen Williams which won the 2004 Jean Arnot Memorial Fellowship.
The fellowship honours the life of Jean Arnot, a former staff member of the State Library of NSW who retired after a 47-year career. Arnot was active in women's organisations and a pioneer in the campaign for equal pay.
The award was presented by the Governor of New South Wales, Her Excellency Professor Marie Bashir, at Parliament House in Sydney on April 30.
University librarian Dr Alan Bundy said it was an honour for one of the University's graduates to win such an award. "We are delighted that Karen has won such a prominent national award," he said. "There needs to be a greater awareness of what is happening in the world of information, particularly with regard to information being treated increasingly as a commercial commodity.”
The paper, A call to arms: what in the world is happening to information? is on the web at www.library.unisa.edu.au/
The Star Tribune article mentioned above is available at www.startribune.com/stonline/html/digage/drkside.htm