‘Digital Inclusion’ or …

Sitting here with snow pattering down outside and just pondering the term ‘digital inclusion’ …

In the last few weeks it has been questioned by many people; it’s champion Martha Lane Fox now says publically, “I hate the phrase digital inclusion, it is a classic government term and nobody knows what it means”

“I have a very specific remit which is always misunderstood. I am not trying to get the whole country on broadband, or to get Radio 4 listeners online.

“I’ve been asked to look at the four million people who have never used the internet and are heavily economically challenged.”

IDF50 blogger Graham Andrews reckons the term came from the writers of Monty Python Sketches along with the Ministry of Silly Walks.

Stephen Dodson the Director of the DC10plus network has long been of the belief that we should be talking about simply ‘inclusion’ as digital inclusion now encompasses social inclusion, and Will Perrin of talk about local believes in dropping the ‘digital’ even more broadly … way back at the eGov Summit which Tony Blair addressed a fair few years back John Fisher caused titters by talking about dropping ‘e’.

So … did we drop the ‘e’ simply to change to the ‘d’?

The thing is, that as ‘digital inclusion’ becomes a more ‘public facing’ term (sorry about all the quote marks) you can bet that if you asked the average bloke on Kings Cross station during rush hour or woman crossing the Tyne Bridge if they knew what you meant by ‘digital inclusion’ they would probably simply glare at you and think you were talking about something nasty to do with fingers …

Thoughts please on a phrase that means something to all … and will inspire those who arn’t to join the ranks of us that are.