This paper explores key policy issues of national information and communication technology development to identify the gap between the heterogeneity in issues pertaining to the ＂digital divide＂. How this issue is ca...This paper explores key policy issues of national information and communication technology development to identify the gap between the heterogeneity in issues pertaining to the ＂digital divide＂. How this issue is cast often as a problem to be solved in recent years. On the public policy front, a series of reports issued by Taiwan Residents policymakers were endeavored to address universal services and digital divide issues. Government also has taken various steps to mitigate the disparity in opportunities to access the Internet （e.g., ＂e-Taiwan＂ for broadband services, ＂M-Taiwan＂ for broadband infrastructure and heterogeneous network services, and ＂i-Taiwan＂ for ubiquitous networks and digital convergence by Taiwan＇s Cabinet）. However, when policymakers worked to craft solutions to the pressing societal concern, they found lots of policy agendas need to redefine to foster greater understanding and enlighten practice for policy going forward. An examination of conflicting narratives within policy has been conducted, which identified not only the earlier debates were framed, but also key agendas of the most studied and empirical data used among them. The article attempts to examine the topic from a longitudinal perspective by using sets of documents revealed a tendency over time to explore how particular the agendas and debates of ＂digital divide＂ were framed. The study traced back to policy debates from cultural, economic, educational, and political perspectives at various Internet diffusion stages. The results provide useful insights into the study and discussion on new convergence policy making implications.展开更多
文摘This paper explores key policy issues of national information and communication technology development to identify the gap between the heterogeneity in issues pertaining to the ＂digital divide＂. How this issue is cast often as a problem to be solved in recent years. On the public policy front, a series of reports issued by Taiwan Residents policymakers were endeavored to address universal services and digital divide issues. Government also has taken various steps to mitigate the disparity in opportunities to access the Internet （e.g., ＂e-Taiwan＂ for broadband services, ＂M-Taiwan＂ for broadband infrastructure and heterogeneous network services, and ＂i-Taiwan＂ for ubiquitous networks and digital convergence by Taiwan＇s Cabinet）. However, when policymakers worked to craft solutions to the pressing societal concern, they found lots of policy agendas need to redefine to foster greater understanding and enlighten practice for policy going forward. An examination of conflicting narratives within policy has been conducted, which identified not only the earlier debates were framed, but also key agendas of the most studied and empirical data used among them. The article attempts to examine the topic from a longitudinal perspective by using sets of documents revealed a tendency over time to explore how particular the agendas and debates of ＂digital divide＂ were framed. The study traced back to policy debates from cultural, economic, educational, and political perspectives at various Internet diffusion stages. The results provide useful insights into the study and discussion on new convergence policy making implications.
