{"id":5566,"date":"2025-04-27T17:18:31","date_gmt":"2025-04-27T09:18:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/?p=5566"},"modified":"2025-05-06T12:39:35","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T04:39:35","slug":"lost-in-the-feed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/onsc\/5566\/lost-in-the-feed\/","title":{"rendered":"Lost in the Feed"},"content":{"rendered":"<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/ChatGPT-Image-Apr-27-2025-05_10_57-PM-1-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail alignleft autoexcerpt_thumb  wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" title=\"\" \/>Imagine a world where anyone, anywhere, could learn anything with just a click. No gatekeepers. No barriers. Just pure, unrestricted access to knowledge. It sounds like a dream, doesn't it? But what if that dream comes at a cost we're not ready for?\n\nThis paper critically examines John Perry Barlow\u2019s (1996) A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace, a bold call for an internet free from regulation. While Barlow imagined a utopia built on absolute freedom, this paper argues that without structure or oversight, digital spaces quickly become breeding grounds for misinformation, exclusion, and inequality.\n\nAnd this conversation is bigger than just students. Today, we are all learners. Every time we scroll through TikTok, search a question on Google, or read a headline, we're shaped by the information we consume, often without even realising it.\n\nThis paper explores what happens when that information ecosystem lacks accountability. It reframes Barlow\u2019s claims about older generations being fearful of the internet, arguing instead that their exclusion is the result of systemic barriers rather than fear.\n\nAt its core, this paper asks an urgent question. In a world where algorithms decide what we see, where misinformation travels faster than truth, and where not everyone has the tools to tell the difference, can we really call that freedom? Maybe it's time to rethink what true digital empowerment should actually look like. <a href=\"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/onsc\/5566\/lost-in-the-feed\/\" class=\"more-link\">...<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Imagine a world where anyone, anywhere, could learn anything with just a click. No gatekeepers. No barriers. Just pure, unrestricted access to knowledge. It sounds like a dream, doesn&#8217;t it? But what if that dream comes at a cost we&#8217;re not ready for?<\/p>\n<p>This paper critically examines John Perry Barlow\u2019s (1996) A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace, a bold call for an internet free from regulation. While Barlow imagined a utopia built on absolute freedom, this paper argues that without structure or oversight, digital spaces quickly become breeding grounds for misinformation, exclusion, and inequality.<\/p>\n<p>And this conversation is bigger than just students. Today, we are all learners. Every time we scroll through TikTok, search a question on Google, or read a headline, we&#8217;re shaped by the information we consume, often without even realising it.<\/p>\n<p>This paper explores what happens when that information ecosystem lacks accountability. It reframes Barlow\u2019s claims about older generations being fearful of the internet, arguing instead that their exclusion is the result of systemic barriers rather than fear.<\/p>\n<p>At its core, this paper asks an urgent question. In a world where algorithms decide what we see, where misinformation travels faster than truth, and where not everyone has the tools to tell the difference, can we really call that freedom? Maybe it&#8217;s time to rethink what true digital empowerment should actually look like.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":484,"featured_media":5572,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5566","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-onsc"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5566","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/484"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5566"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5566\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6155,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5566\/revisions\/6155"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5572"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5566"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5566"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/networkconference.netstudies.org\/2025\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5566"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}