Political, intellectual and business leaders are engaged today in a vigorous and far-ranging debate over what should be done to address the "digital divide"-the fact that various geographic, socioeconomic and cultural subpopulations have widely varying access to a range of digital technologies, including computers, the Internet, mobile phones and, increasingly, TV. These conversations encompass multiple perspectives and options-everything from giving schools, community organizations and citizens of lesser-developed countries broader access to computers and the Internet to simply letting market forces run their course. And they are truly global, whether in various meetings of the United Nations or as a prominent agenda item at the annual G8 summit of the world's leading industrial countries. Yet strikingly, they lack a single organizing principle.

The Luddites, for example, argue that no digital divide exists because technology doesn't really organize anything. The Technologists believe that with a few government policy tweaks, hardware and software dispersion through the marketplace will address any gaps. The Market Adherents say that market forces will eliminate the divide without any government involvement. Meanwhile, the Digital Egalitarians want to mandate equal access to technological tools throughout all strata of society, the Digital Democrats seek a political order that enables all people to participate as e-citizens in a cyberdemocracy, and the Globalists view the divide as proof that the United States is digitally isolating itself from the rest of the global economy. In short, there are many perspectives, but no encompassing view.