Information superhighway must not bypass humanity

By Most Rev. Charles Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., Cap.

Thirty years from now, when the "information revolution" has changed more of our world than we ever imagined, we'll look back and marvel at its impact on the way we interact, the way we do business, the way we entertain ourselves.

But the most important legacy of the information age will not be how it simplified or accelerated our work—but instead, how it changed us.

Colorado is home to some of the most forward-looking companies in the world, with communications giants like TCI, Jones Intercable, Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems developing pivotal new technologies in our own backyard. Denver is emerging as a global hub in the telecommunications industry.

As a result, our region has a unique opportunity to help form the information culture of tomorrow. In other words, I believe Denver has more than simply a role in shaping the future; it has what Catholic believers call a vocation.

Today's remarkable new tools—from software to wireless telephony to digital satellite communications—are the building blocks of a new global mentality. They have the potential to fundamentally rewire the way we think, the way we act, the way we believe.

Tremendous good can come from this. Distance learning through the internet and video can cut the cost and increase the availability of education. Children can cross cultures on-line to connect with other children around the world. Libraries can be squeezed onto tiny disks, making massive amounts of knowledge easily accessible to almost anyone.

But history shows that technology alone—no matter how spectacular—can cut both ways, and the new tools of the communications revolution will carry some unintended consequences. Digital photography can manipulate reality. The net has become a favorite haunt for porn peddlers. And as psychologist Sherry Turkle has pointed out, an unsettling number of people now use their computer screens as an alternative to daily life—fleeing into virtual personalities which sometimes become more "real" than reality itself.

Peter Drucker has argued that we live in the world's first true "knowledge society," where information—not gold or oil—is the primary source of wealth. If that's true, then the 500-year-old axiom that "knowledge is power" is more valid than ever—and we should all be increasingly concerned. Those who have access to, and influence over, these information technologies will have power . . . and those who do not, will not. We might all do well to reflect on the cost of allowing a new kind of class system to emerge: the information "haves" and "have-nots."

The leaders of today's communications revolution are intelligent women and men. They have the opportunity, the moral capacity—and also the responsibility—to think deeply, not just about where we're going, but why we're going there. As we ponder how our daily lives will change, we also need to consider the larger ethical questions: How will the poor be empowered by the information revolution? And what are the unstated social consequences of all these tools for our families, beliefs and institutions?

I invite all people—particularly the knowledge providers among us—into a continuing discussion of these critical questions. The Church is eager to be a partner in that dialogue.

As we proceed, I encourage everyone to keep one important principle in mind: All technology should be at the service of the human person; of humanity's inalienable rights and integral good.

From that perspective, even the most complex and extraordinary technologies share a very simple goal.

Editor's note: The Archdiocese of Denver and the Pontifical Council for Social Communications are co-sponsoring a conference for bishops and communications industry experts March 26-28 in Denver. Entitled "The New Technologies and the Human Person," the conference will explore the opportunities and implications of the communications revolution.