 Does Information Technology Hinder the Conflict Resolution Process in Second and Third World Countries?
As we become a global community, technology is becoming an increasingly important tool in our lives. How does information technology (IT) affect different societies and cultures? Does it enhance or impede the conflict resolution process? It is important to understand what IT encompasses. In the United States and other industrialized nations, IT is often thought of as Internet, TV, radio and other technological advances. However, in Second and Third World countries, IT is discussed only in terms of radio and newspapers.
 University of Maryland’s Mr. Ernest J. Wilson III, Director of the Center for International Development and Conflict Management and Senior Advisor to the Global Information Infrastructure Commission, explored in his research how technology increases conflicts in the second and third world countries.
Wilson uses two of the most talked about conflicts in the post-Cold War era—Rwanda and Bosnia—as examples: “Information Technology was used in both cases intentionally to disseminate hate propaganda designed either to cause or sustain genocide…the creation of heavily censored, government-controlled domestic mass media, which never reports anti-government criticisms and protests, does nothing to defuse, and instead likely heightens political tensions between governments and those they define as their enemies.”
In his research Wilson states, “An important, but sometimes overlooked, implication of IT and Third World conflict is how “instant news” and external audience demands for instant news can influence internal dynamics in developing countries.”
As an additional example, Wilson uses the United States’ activities before the Haitian intervention, in 1986 as an example of how “instant news” escalated the tensions in Haiti. While reporters were stationed in Haiti waiting for U.S. actions, they were seeking interviews with anyone who would give them time. Unfortunately, this meant that the only interviews being given were from pro-government people—everyone else was too scared of the consequences of speaking out against the government. Therefore, a biased perspective of the government was depicted. This gave the Haitian government more confidence that it could sustain a U.S. invasion, according to Wilson.
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