Forged in War

Starred review from March 19, 2021

With this latest book, Lankes (Carolina's Sch. of Library and Information Science, Univ. of South Carolina; The Atlas of New Librarianship) tells the history of several high-level technologies that are popular in the 21st century. He writes that data and media were supposed to bring communities together, yet they have often does the opposite. In this wide-ranging account, the author reexamines the histories of mobile phones, the internet, data (and its collection), web standards such as HTML, and more. He sheds light on the downsides of the information world we live in now, such as data monetization, attacks on privacy, and erosion of widespread public trust in information sources. In a manner similar to previous works on the subject, Lankes clearly argues that technology, data, and information sharing have human bias and are not objective. After detailing the rise of misinformation and disinformation, as well as the history of public libraries in the 20th century, Lankes concludes his multifaceted, intelligent work with the comment that his book is itself a context-based effort. VERDICT This most recent book by Lankes is ideal for readers seeking a more comprehensive look at information dissemination technology, its context, and its impact on the way in which we now live.--Jesse A. Lambertson, Univ. of Chicago Law Libs.

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2021
Modern knowledge infrastructure is a fractured complex of filter bubbles, tracking our every move across platforms, websites, and apps, gathering our personal data to sell to the highest bidders. To understand how this came to be, Lankes studied the origins of knowledge systems from the time of the world wars through the twentieth century. Most of our communication systems and technology were designed to be weaponized in response to wartime threats. Propaganda, manipulation, and ubiquitous surveillance are built in as data analysis is optimized for the cold calculations of war. These tools weren't intended for commerce or entertainment, and certainly not to protect the privacy of users. But these are precisely the features businesses and designers use to capture attention and increase profits. Lankes argues for more humanist values to redesign our knowledge infrastructure: policies and systems that prioritize privacy and give users control of personal data, intellectual property rights that better serve the common good, and nuanced data analysis instead of algorithmic dataism. Lankes' historical perspective is compelling and his arguments convincing.

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