The Unconnected ─ Social Justice, Participation, and Engagement in the Information Society

This collection of thirteen articles considers who is disconnected and why. The articles examine the link between connectedness and political behavior, notes empirical evidence on the multidimensionality of the digital divide from Italy, and examines new modes of engagement for the disabled. They analyze increased social engagement in disability, virtual and proximate libraries, the reach of open source software, unconnectedness in and within virtual worlds, a case for public informatics, virtual belief communities, the tyranny of the majority, redistribution of the wealth of networks, the wishes of the willfully disconnected, and open resistance to the temptation to get connected. Annotation c2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Paul M. A. Baker (PhD, George Mason University) is Associate Director at the Center for 21st Century Universities (C21U) at Georgia Institute of Technology and Adjunct Professor at the Centre for Disability Law & Policy at the National University of Ireland, Galway. He has published numerous journal articles dealing with issues of e-accessibility, disability policy, and virtual communities.
Jarice Hanson (PhD, Northwestern University) is Professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She is the author, co-author, editor, and co-editor of 24 books and the author of numerous articles about the social impact of digital technology.
Jeremy Hunsinger (PhD, Virginia Tech) is Assistant Professor in Communication Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University. He recently co-edited a special issue on learning and research in Virtual Worlds for Learning, Media, & Technology. He co-edited the International Handbook of Virtual Learning Environments and the International Handbook of Internet Research and has edited or contributed to several other volumes.