According to Jonathan Sterne, the typical internet user would most likely be white. Due to the fact that white people generally have superior access to computers as a result of their more affluent backgrounds, they have higher computer literacy skills. Other minorities on the other hand do not have as high of computer literacy skills because of the different environment that they have been raised in. For the most part, the black and Hispanic communities have little opportunity to learn computing skills because of the high prices associated with computers and new technology. Companies like Apple and Microsoft constantly come out with new products that revolutionize the computing and internet world, but these innovations are only available to those who can afford it; most of the time it being the white community. Personally, I agree with Sterne’s stance on the situation on the topic. Although I grew up in a fairly affluent family and was able to keep up to date on the latest advances; many of my friends never had the opportunity to own such luxuries. In this country, minorities are still having a difficult time catching up to the social position of the white community and always remain a few steps behind. For example, my parents, who were born and raised in India, have trouble keeping up with the new technology and constantly ask me for help on what computer to buy or tablet to get. In the past generation, the minorities came from different countries that didn’t have the technological advances that the United States has, so they do not see the importance of teaching computing skills to their children. As a result, there is less emphasis on computer literacy skills in minorities as they see it as a secondary skill.
As the stereotypes suggest, Asians and Indians often push their children to pursue careers in math or medicine because those were the noble careers of their generation, but in this new age, computers are becoming more and more prominent. However, only those who have grown up with the evolution of the computer can truly appreciate its importance to society. That is why I believe that only the white population who has been accustomed to the computer generally has better computer skills.
Another key factor in the demographics of internet users is location. Since only first world countries such as North American and European countries have nationwide access to the internet, it would make sense that only citizens to those countries would be internet users. It just so happens that these countries are predominantly white and this explains a predominantly white internet.
While the demography of the Internet currently is overwhelmingly white, that statistic will not remain the same. Sterne notes the fact that there is an increase in nonwhite internet users and this is because even less fortunate countries such as India and China are slowly making more and more technological advances and becoming contenders with the US and European nations. In my experience second and third generations are more attuned to computer use than the previous generations in America and the number of nonwhite internet users will equal that of white users in the next decade.
As the stereotypes suggest, Asians and Indians often push their children to pursue careers in math or medicine because those were the noble careers of their generation, but in this new age, computers are becoming more and more prominent. However, only those who have grown up with the evolution of the computer can truly appreciate its importance to society. That is why I believe that only the white population who has been accustomed to the computer generally has better computer skills.
Another key factor in the demographics of internet users is location. Since only first world countries such as North American and European countries have nationwide access to the internet, it would make sense that only citizens to those countries would be internet users. It just so happens that these countries are predominantly white and this explains a predominantly white internet.
While the demography of the Internet currently is overwhelmingly white, that statistic will not remain the same. Sterne notes the fact that there is an increase in nonwhite internet users and this is because even less fortunate countries such as India and China are slowly making more and more technological advances and becoming contenders with the US and European nations. In my experience second and third generations are more attuned to computer use than the previous generations in America and the number of nonwhite internet users will equal that of white users in the next decade.