The Third Revolution, Politics, and the Prospect for an Open Society

This paper first attempts to characterize information technology as a political resource. How and in what respect, for example, does information technology compare in nature and significance to energy and other industrial capacities? What are the key differences, from the standpoint of politics? The paper then goes on to identify and assess a few particular impacts this technology is having and is likely to have on the future of American politics and government. Problems dealt with include: the problem of a new class division between those who know how and those who know; the problem of new forms of participation and their effect on the old; the problems of privacy and secrecy; and the future role of education.