Talk:Global digital divide

Social media aspect
Hi everyone,

I added some more insight about the social media aspect of the global digital divide. Given the popularity of social media, I thought this was an aspect that should be further explored. Nav.Malik (talk--Nav.Malik (talk) 17:54, 25 October 2011 (UTC)

Geographical divide
Hi All I added the following information under the geographical divide.


 * One of the main differences in correlation between developing and developed nations is that developing nation’s technology level is more influenced by FDI and government initiatives, while wealthier nations’ technology level is more associated with labor force participation of women and educational variables. (Pick & Azari, p. 24).

I think it's a good point to add in, and it's a good place for the statement. Thanks, Nazia — Preceding unsigned comment added by Nshahrin (talk • contribs) 03:31, 23 October 2011 (UTC)

Some things are missing
yoo everyone:

It looks like this article fails to mention actual concrete examples of the global digital divide. Here are a few I have encountered in my travels around the world:

(1) Maps - I can easily obtain a map of every street address in the United States, and even satellite, aerial, and ground-level photography of many addresses. But most Third World countries don't have this luxury because the number of computer-literate people is so small as to not make it worth the trouble for geographers to drive around getting the data.

(2) Shopping - With services like ShopLocal.com, I can find out what's on sale at every major American retailer within a 30 mile radius without having to go buy a newspaper. Again, this service is nonexistent in most countries.

(3) Variety of software - I went to an Office Depot recently in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. I was shocked at the much smaller size of the software section, relative to the same section of a typical Office Depot store in the United States. This is probably even worse for language blocs that are smaller than Spanish (and Spanish is huge). I assume the reason for this discrepancy is that most countries don't have a big enough market to justify the cost of translating software from English into the local language. I also noticed that even though Windows and Office are available in Spanish, much of Microsoft's product line is not available in Spanish

I think we should use concrete examples like this in the article (backed up by appropriate citations, of course) rather than speak in generalized abstractions. What does everyone else think? --Coolcaesar 01:18, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

I quite agree. I don't have a plan of how to structure it, but adding an "examples" section would be a start. As it grows, it could be restructured as makes sense. Chitu 14:00, 30 November 2005 (UTC)


 * Nice job, this article. I scrolled down thinking it would be the usual waffle that so fails to communicate the scale of the challenges - and found your Obstacles § and Concrete egs §. Well done. Am so flummoxed by not having to explain the basics that I can't think of anything to add. Again, nice one. JackyR 07:46, 18 February 2006 (UTC)

I believe that this article needs to be cleaned up. I mean many of the 'concrete' examples are also found in poorer parts of Asia like internet cafes in the Philippines. In fact, Asia is leading in this category espescially in The IT Sector(India, Philippines) and online gaming(South Korea)


 * Um, "Asia" is quite large... Maybe there needs to be more on urban/rural divides, and centres with electricity/telecoms surrounded by large areas without. JackyR 16:23, 8 March 2006 (UTC)

When you say "Aisa" do you mean Tokyo or rural Cambodia? Petra 14 Sept 2010 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 115.64.84.123 (talk) 07:06, 14 September 2010 (UTC)

I think that the section on "Concrete examples of the global digital divide" needs to be expanded. Any thoughts? Elizabethca1001

Removing duplicated information
Hello, I have deleted 2 paragraphs in the section ‘The geographical divide’ and provided a ‘See also’ link to the article ‘Digital divide’. While the paragraphs are well written and properly cited, they duplicate information on the Digital divide article. Examples of populations that have or do not have access to the Internet can be found under the Digital divide’s subsection Global digital divide, as can the map of The Global Digital Divide. Discussion about causes of and solutions to the divide can be found throughout the Digital divide article. I think it is worth considering how to completely merge this article into Digital divide. Any suggestions? MelodyLynn (talk) 19:55, 26 October 2011 (UTC)

Significant trimmming
I've begun the task of major trimming...there's still a lot of work to be done because this doesn't read like a WP article; rather, it reads like what it was--a school assignment. The sourcing really needs to be fixed (inline citations, not paranthetical), anything resembling synthesis needs to go...i got the easiest stuff I could see on a first pass, but a bigger review needs to be done. Plus, we need to consider whether this really deserves a separate article or if it should just be merged into Digital divide. Qwyrxian (talk) 00:02, 28 November 2011 (UTC)

Semi-protection
This article is now indefinitely semi-protected. Ideally, the teacher who keeps telling students to alter the article for a class assignment will now decide to talk to us. These additions are not for Wikipedia's benefit, because people are basically just dumping their class essay into the article. Sometimes it gets better, oftentimes sourced info is removed, or unsourced info is added, or sources don't meet WP:RS, or information is duplicated, or there are violations of WP:UNDUE. Wikipedia can be a great tool for classroom work, but not in the way this is done, especially since some prior posters have indicated that the teacher isn't even a Wikipedia editor him/herself. If that teacher would actually like to continue this project, please have him/her contact me on my talk page and we can start the education process so that everyone involved can contribute productively. Qwyrxian (talk) 03:37, 4 October 2012 (UTC)

Are all sure this disparity needs to be overcome?
In some cases, it may reflect cultural differences between countries or societies. Any investigations&sources? - 89.110.15.191 (talk) 15:51, 4 March 2013 (UTC)
 * That's not really a topic for this page; that is, this page isn't a forum (see WP:NOTFORUM) for debating the topic of digital divide, but rather just a place to discuss improvements to the article. Qwyrxian (talk) 08:04, 5 March 2013 (UTC)
 * Investigations can be put into the article once sourced if you know what I mean. I don't have access to English sources, and I cannot edit the article myself, but I gave an idea to stay by mentioning a topic that is completely missing for now; if an article discusses a problem, the first thing to discuss is whether the problem really exists and to what extent. Otherwise the approach is not serious.


 * No debating, not even of the rules. - 95.55.150.157 (talk) 17:57, 5 March 2013 (UTC)
 * You've basically just proposed your own personal opinion, what we call original research. If you want to see if there are sources for it, that's fine, but it's not up to other editors to go searching down your personal theory. If I were to put in my own OR, I'd say that you're wrong, because even if it's a cultural difference, it's still one that causes significant disparity to the detriment of already underprivileged groups. For example, just because in some cultures women aren't supposed to do "serious" work and thus aren't trained in the use of technology doesn't mean that women aren't being harmed by the digital divide. But my opinion isn't of any real value here either. But to me, it sounds like you're saying "This article should explore whether or not poverty might be okay because in some cultures some people are supposed to be poor." So, the burden's on you to find sources. Qwyrxian (talk) 01:34, 6 March 2013 (UTC)

Merge to Digital divide
Although this article was once the topic of a class project, it seems that project has been inactive since Dec 2011. There are multiple issues, including misinformation. It is suggested this article be merged into Digital divide, which may be local or global in scope. Please discuss at: Talk:Digital divide. Meclee (talk) 17:26, 5 July 2013 (UTC)

Merging into Digital Divide
✅ - Completed - I am currently working on merging this article with the article Digital divide. This topic will then be redirected to that article. Meclee (talk) 14:37, 30 March 2014 (UTC)