Using Netscape's net directory I chose the link to social science and used Yahoo's search engine. My query was the same as the first team-report, "history of the Internet," I wanted to find an overview about the Internet's history which is not designed for the business sectors only. Yahoo offered five matches to my query and under the link to Government: Military I chose the sub-link Electronic Headquarters for the Acquisition of War Knowledge. From there I selected links to Current Events, Online News Resources, Foreign -- news from selected foreign.
This last link offered recent news from several countries in Asia, Africa, Middle-East, Balkans, Europe, etc. I was interested in reviewing news about my country, Israel. Subsequently, I clicked on the link to ISRAEL: info gopher; Latest Israeline -- daily survey of Israeli press; Israeli line -- recent date
The document that I found was similar in tone and style to any news reports commentary read in the newspaper or heard/viewed on the radio/television. The readability level was designed mostly for the lay person so it was easily understood.
The document that I read discussed the peace process between Israel and Palestine, and an attack by Palestinian youth on Israeli army (i.e. throwing stones).
It is ironic that from a query about the history of the Internet I have ended with a link to Israeli news. It illustrates the Internet's intricate nature as an interconnected, inter-linked system. Yet, maybe foreign news and the Internet's history do have something in common--they both are included in today's history in the making.
It is a great advantage to be able to read my country's new via the Internet. First, the Internet offers up-to-date news whereas Borders Book Store sells Israeli newspapers 3-4 days late. Second, it is important to have multiple perspectives of what is going on in one country or another. That is, when you read several newspapers and listen/view various stations/channels you can monitor and screen the biases that each entails. Hence, the more paths available for communication the better. Finally, there is no need to limit people's knowledge or access to information only to subject matters concerning their own country. For example, look how much coverage foreign countries receive in the media compared to the home country? Not so much. The Internet, on the other hand, offers accessibility to various foreign news. You just have to pick your link and in one minute you will be informed.