17 Sep 2019 WACC publishes No-Nonsense Guide to Communication Rights and the Internet

Over half of the world’s population of 7.7 billion are connected to the Internet, which has profoundly changed the way people live, work and communicate.

The Internet has also transformed entire industries and has had an impact on democracy, human rights, trade, security, privacy, and economic development, among other things.

Indeed, as a report issued in June by a UN High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation has acknowledged, the Internet and other digital technologies have resulted in “unprecedented advances,” and opportunities, but they have also posed given way to “stark abuses and unintended consequences.”

To help people navigate the challenges and complexities of the Digital Age and to understand it from a rights-based perspective, WACC has published A No-Nonsense Guide to Communication Rights and the Internet, a free online resource available here.

“Digital and Internet-based communication is an everyday occurrence for many people around the world, and the number of people with Internet access is set to increase significantly over the next few years,” explains Lorenzo Vargas, WACC manager for Communication for Social Change, who prepared the guide. “As a communication rights organization interested in social justice, democratic participation, and inclusion of marginalized voices, WACC is keen to contribute to the public conversation about the complex and still developing consequences of an Internet-based global communication system.”

The seven-page guide discusses the role of communication in human society, what communication rights are and how they relate to today’s information society, an analysis of the Internet’s impact and the challenges ahead, and the role of civil society in advocating for “a communication and information ecosystem that truly upholds freedom, equality and solidarity.”

Photo above: The Internet has profoundly changed the way people live, work, and communicate. By Stefan Vladimiro/Unsplash