digital divide - origin of the term

[Jeff Prucher]

Editor, Brave New Words: The Oxford Dictionary of Science Fiction. Now in paperback!
http://www.jeffprucher.com


----- Original Message -----
> From: ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
> To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> Cc:
> Sent: Thursday, May 23, 2013 4:41 AM
> Subject: digital divide - origin of the term
>
> An article dated 2009 at the edutopia.org website examined the history
> of "digital divide" and included the following claim:
>
> http://www.edutopia.org/digital-generation-divide-connectivity
>
> [Begin except]
> When all of the clues are culled through, it seems that Hammond, who
> today teaches law at Santa Clara University Law School, was the
> co-inventor, along with NTIA Administrator Larry Irving, of the phrase
> "Digital Divide." At any rate, in 1996, Newsweek Magazine named
> Irving, "Conscience of the Internet," and the phrase Digital Divide
> found its way into speeches by Vice President, Al Gore.
> [End excerpt]

Not much help here, but it seems that Irving publicly denied coining the term, although he may have helped popularize it:
http://web.archive.org/web/20070303170409/http://www.rtpnet.org/lists/rtpnet-tact/msg00080.html

Someone else has done a lot of research on this, as well:
file://localhost/Users/jprucher/Downloads/secondthoughts.pdf

Jeff

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