The Levitt organization, which was no more culpable in this regard than any other urban or suburban firm, publicly and officially refused to sell to blacks for two decades after the war. Nor did resellers deal with minorities. But we can- not combine the two. The way in which Levitt built suburban hous- ing was a technological innovation, but this text helps us to understand that it was not used as a value free innovation. Again, the message is related to the value orientation of the medium.
Entertainment is the supraideology of all discourse on television.
Discussions such as the one above help all of us to look at our use of technology again and to see the way in which our seemingly neutral technology becomes tied up with values and biases as we interpret a purpose and make choices about how to use an artifact, tool, or process. Stross' anthology leaves the reader with a message about how we make decisions about the use of technology and, through his se- lections of readings, he leaves the reader a strong message about how we make those choices from our own ideology and values. The anthology is a good counter to the tech- nological determinist view. It would be a good ad- dition to the professional reading list of teacher educators and practicing teachers. It could serve as either the foundation of a general technology course or a source of readings for courses in communication, con- struction, manufacturing, etc.