While we can find statistics in South Africa that say 92 percent of schools do not have libraries or statistics in the United States that say more black men are in jail than in college, we ultimately do not need numbers to know that economic and social problems in the education system and beyond are consistent. Are the various forms of new media just entities that reiterate the power structures that already exist in society? Or, is there hope for these new inventions? Can new strategies and tactics be created that will de-marginalize the poor?

I am usually on the pessimistic side of this argument, but in the realm of education, a new discovery has me hopeful. E-Books in Africa. When I think about the simple human right to education, it revolves around the simple concept of ACCESS. Nothing will ever be equal or fair if access is not equalized. I understand that once access is accomplished there is still more work that needs to be done to reverse centuries of inequalities, however, it starts with access. E-books give hope to closing the access gap that is pertinent across the world.

With the lack of both libraries and general access to hard copies of books, having E-Readers in Africa makes a lot of sense. With the price of the latest Kindle E-reader decreasing and the rapid expansion of mobile phones and mobile Internet in even rural areas of Africa, the potential of the e-reader is exciting to think about for the future. There is a struggle for power that starts with access to knowledge and information. The expansion of information is therefore (I would like to think) the expansion of power. However there still are obstacles in place, before we can see these technologies began to change educational systems in poor communities. Obstacles that include the lack of broadband, internet access, electricity, cost and in many situations the first economy will continue to benefit from these new technologies due to the barriers that are entrenched in communities with less or no access.

However, I still am pushing for more of these new technologies to be utilized now- not in 20-30 years, when the privileged world starts to throw their old IPads and Kindles away, especially because they ultimately bring more access, a multitude of other resources, and a lowered transaction cost. New Media is here to stay and it will continue to transform our world.