Geopolitics and the Internet

Abstract

This book proposes a broader perspective of cyber war, conceptualized as the utilization of digital networks for geopolitical purposes, including covert attacks against another state's electronic systems as well as the myriad ways the Internet is used to further a state's economic and military agendas. In particular, it examines the historical genesis of the “internet freedom” movement and considers the political, economic, and geopolitical factors driving internet-freedom policies, such as the U.S. State Department's freedom-to-connect doctrine. The book argues that efforts to create a singular, universal internet built upon Western legal, political, and social preferences alongside the “freedom to connect” is driven primarily by economic and geopolitical motivations rather than the humanitarian and democratic ideals that typically accompany related policy discourse. This introduction discusses the geopolitics of information and introduces the debates over internet freedom and information sovereignty. It also offers a brief review of the literature, describes a political economy approach to internet freedom, and provides an overview of the book's chapters.