On the 25th birthday of the world wide web, Tim Berners Lee invites people to imagine a world without the internet and Channel 4 News asks how you think life would be different.
Greeting from Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee on the Web’s 25th anniversary from Web25 on Vimeo.
The inventor of the web, speaking on the anniversary of his proposal for the internet, said that the web is a powerful tool of democracy – but that more needs to be done to preserve it.
He said: “We need to ask ourselves how do we make the web truly global available to all people?
“How do we secure the web to protect our personal information. What does the web need to be more useful?”
He concluded: “Together we have built an amazing web. But we still have a lot to do so that the web remains truly for everyone.”
Recent revelations about spying have raised concerns about personal security on the internet, and a Channel 4 News special report, #DataBaby, has shown just how vulnerable individuals’ online data can be.
Channel 4 News asked people on Twitter to tell us how their life would be different without the internet (neatly side-stepping the irony that they would not be able to answer if it didn’t exist).
Today is the 25th anniversary of the web #web25 http://t.co/0f2cXilyBC – What does it mean to you? & could u survive without it? #c4news
— Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) March 12, 2014
The responses ranged from an end to trolling to avoiding an Orwellian, dystopian future – as you can see below.
@Channel4News well trolling wouldnt exist thats for sure
— SHREK OGRE (@likeanonion) March 12, 2014
@likeanonion @Channel4News although look at Richard Littlejohn, Katie Hopkins, Julie Burchill, etc.- trolls without need of an internet.
— Infamous Crab (@diss1) March 12, 2014
@Channel4News “Winston turned his back to the telescreen …” Orwell 1984. It didn’t help him and it won’t help you, or you, or you ….
— andy bullock (@andybullock666) March 12, 2014
@Channel4News It’s become a vital sharing tool for artists. To illustrate the fact, here’s my portrait of Jon Snow pic.twitter.com/TSjsLuRIJM
— ClayDisarray (@ClayDisarray) March 12, 2014
@Channel4News Internet@25 ©
A great place to vent your spleenâ?¢. Since 1989.— Mark Gleaves (@MarkGleaves) March 12, 2014
Let Channel 4 News know how your life would be different without the web in the form below.
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