Class and the Information Age. From the Industrial Revolution of the last century, to our post-modern age, class forms the bedrock on which society gives structure to its means of production and distribution. This hasn't changed with the metamorphosis that is taking place, as we move into an informationally dominated society. Once again the battle lines are drawn and mirror the class structure that continues to dominate modern society. And for all the rhetoric about information emancipating the underclass's, this is little more than a mirage.
Information is power in the same way that knowledge was power in the last century.
The Clothier dominated his workforce who produced the goods that he would sell on to his customers. His position remained unassailable as his workforce had little access to the knowledge that the Clothier possessed. The Industrial Revolution bought with it a new form of organised oppression. This captive workforce knew only what they needed to carry out their part of the manufacturing process. The Information Age is offering society a new and altogether more Utopian existence.