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Global Brain-Ware
Where does opinion come from? World-Information.Org traces the power structures that influence the process of opinion making and its outcome. Transnational corporations and tycoons generously fund think tanks that produce vast quantities of scientific studies and policy recommendations. Often labeled as independent institutes these organizations aim to shape public opinion and government policy over a wide range of issues so as to advance the political ideologies of their donors. World-Information.Org examines the influence of private interest and corporate lobbying in the overall research and content production and furthermore charts the role of intelligence agencies.
Global Content Channels
In the 21st Century information is one of the most precious goods. World-Information.Org examines the economic interests in content production and distribution and investigates the function of commercial vs. independent content providers in political and societal systems. It analyzes the role of global advertising and public relations agencies and their influence on the content industry. Moreover World-Information.Org studies historical and recent developments concerning intellectual property and investigates the global trend towards stronger copyright regulation and its implications.
Global Data Bodies
Data are the most important resource for the New Economy and have become a commodity more valuable than money. Data-mining companies are keeping detailed files on millions of people, which are shared, sold or rented and guarantee the information economy a formidable added value. World-Information.Org investigates the methods and practices of the data industry and displays the effects of this development to the right to privacy especially the risk of abuse of personal information and the dynamics of social control.
Global Digital Security
Surveillance and control systems of state agencies, private and military institutions exist around the globe. World-Information.Org provides in depth information on the major surveillance systems such as ECHELON and an analysis of their political, geographical, technical and organizational status. Moreover the status quo in the development and usage of digital identification and tracking technology and the evolution and utilization of cryptography is investigated.
Global Info-Rights
World-Information.Org shows the problems of a unilateral control of communication systems and the danger of abuse of privacy and the risk to democracy through the misuse of intelligence and information systems. It illustrates the use of disinformation as well as the utilization of new surveillance techniques and the role of psychological operations. World-Information.Org explores the threats to digital human rights and provides an overview of the abuse of the freedom of expression, information and communication.
Global Market
Today information and communication markets are more and more subject to globalization and concentration. World-Information.Org examines the question to which extent a free market of competitors is existent or in how far the interlocking of the big players has created virtual cartels. It also reviews the trend to deregulation and makes visible the structure of global capitalism and its institutions.
Global Networks
Although the Internet has become ubiquitous, hardly anybody has a clear picture of its economic, political and technical hierarchies. Understanding this major technological development enables to gain an idea of the socio-economic powers structuring the Internet. World-Information.Org investigates the common legend that the Internet is highly decentralized and diversified and therefore not easily controllable and provides an assessment of the architectural properties of this network. It aims at making transparent the global communication structures and the technical Infostructure in the context of its invested interest.
World-Infostructure
World-Infostructure provides information on a variety of topics that enable to understand the context in which actual developments in the field of new media and technologies happen. The timeline of communication systems presents a chronological overview of the most important events in the history of communication systems and shows the acceleration in the storage and processing of information. Moreover World-Information.Org explores the level of concentration and exclusion between the north and south as well as between the corporate world and the public interest. On the basis of a world map it illustrates the levels of saturation with technology, and the power structures and assets of the commercial sphere vs. the civil sector and the public interest.
Slaves and expert systems is concerned with technological developments such as the invention of powered machines, computers, robots and artificial intelligence that enable the automation of labor processes. Also the role of expert systems in the workplace and the social status of machines vs. humans is examined. A history of disinformation and propaganda is given in disinformation vs. democracy. It demonstrates the methods of falsification and manipulation in digital environments, and shows the power and dangers of automated information systems and their potential for abuse. The fusion of flesh and machine, the rise of biometrics, the patenting of life, and the development of body implants is the issue of biotechnology convergence.
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