Lots of assumptions are made about who the “hard to reach” digitally excluded individuals in the UK population might be. Generally these assumptions focus around deprivation, ethnicity and disability. However wealth, education and privilege don’t necessarily guarantee inclusion in the digital age. Ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair is himself a self-confessed technophobe.
Famously, Senator Ted Stephens of the United States Congress, demonstrated a breath-takingly sketchy grasp of how the Internet operates while opposing an amendment to the Net Neutrality Bill. Better reserve a few seats for any similarly minded politicians and bureaucrats at the next “Introduction in IT” course.
