This article discusses how major economic, educational, social, legal,
and political events in America, from its beginnings to present, impacted
information access, and draws a parallel between the evolution of American
Democracy and equal information access, Today as in the past, the laws and
customs of the day dictate to a large degree who accesses information. In
pre-revolutionary times, information access was selective, enjoyed by the
wealthy privileged class, usually limited to white, Protestant, well born males.
As machines were introducted into American manufacturing, as educational
opportunities became available to more Americans, and when Congress and other
governmental agencies passed laws that included more Americans in the democratic
process, so did access to information become a reality for a growing number of
Americans. Full educational opportunities for all Americans were deemed
essential to a democratic society in the 19th and 20th centuries, and had direct
impact on equalizing information access. The same philosophy should guide the
21st century, where knowledge of information processing skills and principles is
essential to information access in the electronic age of information, and for
the continual evolvement of democracy. The schools and colleges must respond
with creative methods to fulfill its mission.