No, of course not. Not in the US, anyway. Not yet. But I do find it odd that no one seems even the least bit disturbed by this:
“And meanwhile, you’re coming of age in a 24/7 media environment that bombards us with all kinds of content and exposes us to all kinds of arguments, some of which don’t always rank that high on the truth meter. And with iPods and iPads; and Xboxes and PlayStations — none of which I know how to work — information becomes a distraction, a diversion, a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment, rather than the means of emancipation. So all of this is not only putting pressure on you; it’s putting new pressure on our country and on our democracy.”
Obama in a Hampton University Commencement speech: May 9, 2010
Information is a distraction? Information & technology poses a danger to our country & to democracy? I always thought it was a lack of information that was the biggest threat.
For my part, I’m just waiting to see how soon it is before legislation is brought up to place limits on the Internet…
Just call me paranoid.
I agree. I think this is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard Obama say. Although I don’t interpret this as him saying that information is bad in any way — he just feels uncomfortable the kind of disposable forms he mentions. Notice he singles out iPads and iPods and doesn’t mention netbooks or laptops.