The World Summit on the Information Society isn't getting much mainstream media coverage, so thank goodness for The Daily Summit blog supported by the British Council. Today Jack Malvern takes a swing at UK minister Stephen Timms, suggesting that much of what he says is indistinguishable from recent Institute of Public Policy Research brefing. Two reasons, Jack suggests:
a) the IPPR meeting provided a very good bluffer's guide to the World Summit, and
b) the British government shares the American government's view that the World Summit is a talking shop for politicians and should not be considered a platform for solving technological issues.
Stephen Timms is probably the best informed of Ministers about these matters - with a background in industry, and keen interest in local development in Newham - so I wouldn't be too sure who is briefing whom. Full story here
Andy Carvin who runs the Digital Divide Network at the Benton Foundation is also blogging from WSIS and reports the civil society representatives released their own information society declaration Shaping Information Society for Human Needs. "The document, a collaborative work of civil society groups from around the world, is an attempt to interject human rights into the conversation regarding the building of a global information society."
Nice piece too from Andy on Richard Stallman, founding father of the free software movement, who "gave a stimulating, blunt and occasionally eccentric speech this afternoon at the Ynternet.org forum".
" According to Stallman, there are four principles that must all be adopted. People must be free to control the software they possess on their computers; free to share it with friends; free to change the software and republish it; and free to share with the community."
Andy says "Stallman took occasional, Thelonious Monk-like breaks in his presentation: he would occasionally exercise his left arm by raising it up and down like he was lifting dumbells. He would yawn and stretch his torso, then arms and hands, reminscent of Kipling's description of a tiger stretching to chase away the lasts remnants of sleep from his fingertips. At one point in the middle of his remarks he paused, said he was cold, and walked away to find his jacket, leaving the moderator at a bit of a loss. The audience took it all in stride, with many people grinning and enjoying Richard's unusual style." Some fun at WSIS then.
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