Technozealots, Indians and Information Technology

Year Published:  1983
Resource Type:  Article
Cx Number:  CX2852

Abstract: 
This article argues that "technozealots' (advocates of technology) fundamentally misrepresent the social and political implications of the information society. The author raises concerns for those who are on the margin or outside the existing industrial system. Specifically, with regards to indigenous people some commentators have suggested that the new techologies magically mesh with indigenous culture and promise great benefits. This view is challenged and a plea is made for a demand-side approach of information technologies.

The author suggests that Native people "must begin with organizing themselves to articulate their goals, idenfitying barriers to their realization, approaching those barries in a way that is systematic, analytical and participatory. There are social, educational, and economic barriers; underlying them all are problems of power, of how decisions are made and who makes them. If information technologies are to make a contribution, it will be in that context."