Young women, children, immigrants, minorities, gays as targets | Cheap shots and scurrilous comments on the Internet, as seen from the heartland
COMMENTARY
Some old Des Moines newspaper hands wade into the argument over anonymous postings on websites. One is reminded of a country song, "I'm Ashamed To Be Here (But Not Ashamed Enough To Leave)."

Cloud computing, the next big thing | A look at the nonstop acceleration of Internet technology
COMMENTARY
Will there ever be a pause so that the media can adapt to enormous technological change? Yes, there’s a possibility, writes John Palfreman. Maybe in 2019.

The new administration | What’s the outlook for broadband and Internet?
ASK THIS
The congressional stimulus packages could go either way, writes consumer advocate Bruce Kushnick. They could mark a new, promising beginning—or they could be a new boondoggle for AT&T, Verizon and rural phone companies.

| Phil Meyer, raising the ante again SHOWCASE 'The hunter-gatherer model of journalism is no longer sufficient,' says the journalism innovator, at a symposium in his honor. 'Citizens can do their own hunting and gathering on the Internet. What they need is somebody to add value to that information by processing it – digesting it, organizing it, making it usable.'

| A tribute to a journalism innovator, and a look at the Internet
SHOWCASE
On the occasion of the retirement of Phil Meyer, the University of North Carolina's journalism school holds a two-day symposium pondering what the Internet hath wrought.