Page 361 - Culture Technology Communication

344 Index

Internet (cont.) (see also censorship, socioeconomic factors vs. gender
indecency); commercialism of as in access (Kuwait), 190; as sup-
anti-democratic, 241f. (see also porting new social encounters
commercialism; global monocul- (Kuwait), 207; as symbol of youth
ture; McWorld); complexity, per- and resistance (Korea), 253; as
ceptions of and attitudes towards, tool for male pleasure (Kuwait),
274; as most conducive to low- 194; universal access to, vii (see
context culture of Western male also access); prevailing values on
society, 181 (cf. use of texts, 316); as Western, 316. See also chat
conferencing (Yamada village, rooms; CMC; Digital Divide; elec-
Japan), 276; as deconstructing hi- tronic networks; haves and have-
erarchical power (Korea), 255; as nots; Information Superhighway;
empowering women (Kuwait), Information Technology; interac-
199; equilibrium in use of tive networks; mailing lists; list-
(Kuwait, Singapore), 198; ethno- serv; specific countries and
graphic research of, 188; as fail- regions (e.g., South Asia, the UK,
ing to impose Western values, etc.); Usenet
317ff.; as facilitating increased Internet culture, as mutually deter-
gender equity (Kuwait), 207f.; mining local cultures, 321; as
global diffusion of, 95–114; as “thin,” 22f., 318–20
globalizing agent, 316; global Internet cafes (Kuwait), 191, 196,
usage statistics, viii, 29n. 1, 187, 197; as divided along gender lines,
307; growth of in Asia, Thailand 191. See also cybercafe, vii, 19
307; growth of in South Asia, 295; Internet Explorer (Microsoft), 95
hosts per GNP in Korea, Japan, interpersonal communication, as
Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, theoretical source for technologi-
Malaysia, 265; indecency, as cal adoption variables, 94
problem, sensationalized in Ko- interpersonal distance, in Japanese
rean journalism, 248; India, low CSCW, 226
penetration of in, 297; lack of interpersonal space, in Japanese
trust in privacy of (Kuwait), 203; CSCW, 224
as limited force for social change Iraqi occupation (Kuwait), 208
(Kuwait), 206f.; as localizing IRC (Internet Relay Channel), Vir-
agent, 318; measuring growth of tual Reality interface for (Japan),
via host counts, 100; media as 234. See also chat rooms
emphasizing economic, democra- ISCII (Indian equivalent of ASCII),
tizing benefits of (Korea) 270; 292, 301
military origins of, 53; as mono- Islam, cultural constraints of
culture, 315f.; as non-democratiz- (Kuwait), 208; Jihad in, 30n. 3; in
ing medium (Korea), 248, 258; Kuwait, 191; in India, 296;
parochial relation with democ- women and veiling (Kuwait), 197,
racy, 323n. 8; as example of post- 199
modern communication culture, Islamic world, 9, 19f., 32n. 9;
74 (see also fragmentation); as women’s struggle for liberation
not reaching women most in need in, 202f. See also Arabic
(Kuwait), 210n. 21; as reinforcing Italian, attitudes towards media
gender boundaries (Kuwait), 194; use (Switzerland), 152–59; lan-