maandag 18 juni 2012

And I present to you:

Welcome to my blog,
Let me introduce myself: I am Mark Verheyden, PhD Student/Teaching assistant at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and affiliated researcher at SMIT (Studies on Media, Information and Telecommunication). Furthermore, I am a student at the Institute for European Studies (Brussels) where I started a two-year master-program on European integration and development. This background explains a good deal of why I chose to begin a blog on ICT and European affairs. Both are more connected than one might think. The Europe 2020 program (and its predecessor, the Lisbon Strategy as formulated in 2000) proclaimed that Europe aimed to be "the most competitive knowledge-economy in the world". These targets would be met by investing heavily in (communication) technology. 

New media have become strongly ingrained in our society. As researchers, we often speak of a future where all things will be connected into one giant (social) online network. The Internet has turned our world into a 'global village' (McLuhan). Connected is the key word here, since 'connected' does not automatically imply 'united'. What we witness in Europe these days is a turning point in (European) history. It seems as if the few decide for the many. Civil society nags and moans about politics and how things are decided without having a say in it. Well, new media are a way to be (or at least 'feel') empowered. The social side of the Internet offers us the chance to speak out. That is exactly what I will try to do. This blog will be a fusion of both science, morals and politics. The days that these societal domains could be kept separated are long gone. Embrace uncertainty but keep believing. We are on our way to a certain (better?) future: let us analyze and report about the things we love, because we are all experts in our own fields of interest. 

Enjoy!

Mark

1 opmerking:

  1. The fact that the Internet and the information it offers is accessible to almost everyone makes me think about Einstein's quote “A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. So is a lot.”

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