Using FaxModems and E-Mail as Tools of Social Change (page 1 of 3)
By Carl Davidson
Networking for Democracy

Faxmodems, E-mail, LANS, BBS conferencing--all the high-tech buzzwords of modern telecommunications can sound very intimidating and alienating to the average union organizer or neighborhood activist working to save their jobs or protect the local environment.

Yet communicating with other people is the heart of what organizing is all about. In modern society, it's a complex task that has grown far beyond the ability of speaking and listening well. The skills we learn in making the best use of a wide variety of tools for communicating can often spell the difference between success and failure, victory and defeat.

Just think about trying to launch a campaign today without the telephone, mailing labels or a Xerox machine. These devices have only become widely in the last three or four decades. When they first appeared, they seemed almost magical. But now, learning to use them is no big mystery and operating them seems as natural as breathing in and breathing out.

In the same way, there is no inherent reason why we should look at today's new tools negatively. With a little training and practice, anyone willing to make the effort can learn to use the basic instruments of telecommunications. Learning to drive a car, especially in a big city, is probably more complicated and difficult; yet almost all of us managed to do it because the rewards were great.

For an organizer, the rewards of combining computers with telephones are far greater. Instead of being limited to voice messages, your phone line can now be used to transmit the text and graphics files generated by computers. That means entire documents-- newsletters, position papers, grant proposals, agendas, mailing lists, leaflet designs, press packets, even photographs--can be sent or received by any location with a telephone jack and a computer.

Some might object that you can do the same thing now for the price of a postage stamp, and it goes anywhere the post office will take it. Yes, and it's also true that a horse-drawn carriage can take you anywhere a car will, and then to some that a car won't. But the big difference between electronic mail and the regular mail--or, to use the lingo, between "E- mail" and "Snail-mail"--is a vast savings in time and energy.

E-mail travels at close to the speed of light. Depending on the lines and services used, it can be delivered anywhere in the world in a matter of minutes or hours. But the speed of delivery, while attractive, is not necessarily the most important feature of this new method of communication. Of greater significance is the form of the messages.

E-Mail arrives as text or graphics files that can be read by your computer. If it's a draft of an article or position paper, you can immediately begin editing it or changing its size of appearance for publication in your local newsletter without having to re-type the whole thing. If it's a memo for collective discussion, you can add your comments and pass it on immediately to someone in another city. If it's a mailing list, you can print all or some of the labels without having to re-type the names and addresses over again. If it's a leaflet layout, you can make changes in the design or replace lines without having to cut and paste. More >>