Interviewing Martha Lane Fox about Digital Inclusion

As part of my ongoing crusade to make the Internet accessible for all, I approached Martha Lane Fox to see if she would be interested in being interviewed for an Action for Blind People podcast. When she said yes, it did dawn on me that I have never ever interviewed anyone before, but, hey I like a challenge.

After a few dry runs with Yvonne at Action HQ, I was ready. I had my list of questions to hand, but I did not read them verbatim and allowed the conversation to flow as much as one can in these situations, and what I did find really interesting about the experience was that it allowed me to see the whole issue of the digital divide in a different context. I mean, what I know about the machinations of British politics could be written on the back of a matchbox.

Martha is independent from the government, and, as such, acts as an advisor rather than an implementer, so even though her role is ultimately to try to find a way to fix the digital divide, there is still the task of actually making it happen. Fortunately, a lot of the work has already been done by a combination of charities, technologists, advocacy groups and government and, in theory, it is only a matter of piecing it all together, but there is theory and there is practice. Having said that, with so many of the pieces already in place, the task is not as insurmountable as it may seem.

Although I am far from being an historian, I kept on pondering what I learnt at school about the Industrial Revolution. It was supposed to bring prosperity and equal opportunity for all citizens, but in reality it created the opposite for society’s perceived inferiors, who suffered more exclusion than ever before. And when Martha stressed that Digital Inclusion was a mainstream issue, it made me realise that Digital Inclusion is not really about the Internet at all, but an opportunity to not allow history to repeat itself.

If the Digital Revolution is going to be remembered for anything, I can only hope it will be for its incredible impact on repairing the breakdown of society and for creating a truly inclusive global community, where everyone is welcome.

Listen to the podcast interview.

Download the podcast interview. (9.1 MB)

Transcript for Martha Lane Fox interview (38 KB)