The Web as History

##This article mainly discusses the role of the web in society and the dynamics between the web archives and the reasearchers. The extent of the impact of the web is very large and on global level. The examples in the text, including China,the 2014 shooting down of a passenger plane over the Ukraine during the war between Russians and Ukrainians,and UK Conservative Party reminds me of the phenomenon fake news during the last U.S. presidential election. I would argue that the web plays an important role in the spread and virality of fake news. The ability to share information globally on the web shifts the dynamics of information and readers. Not only you get the source of the information, now you know who share that information. The significance of the news can change dramatically if an important figure shares such a news globally.

Further, the web gives off this aura of a place of freedom of expression and a open source of information that is under the people’s control. We often don’t see the context of the web and its behind the scene. To a great extent,it is a platform of free expression and a great source of information. However, it is greatly influenced by the people at the top. For instance, facebook and twitter were suspected of blocking certain information about the presidential candidates during their campaign in order to endorse one over another. The worst part was that they are so powerful that they could discreetly narrate the stories as if they were the definite truth or the reality.

It is incredibly important to understand the context, culture and the history of the web in order to understand its biases. It also helps clarifying any confusion that the web is some alternative reality that holds the truth.