Revised - Communication of information & its role in our society: A Historical perspective.
The increased flow of information invariably resulted in more complex decision-making structures, due to the complexities associated with taking decisions which would affect the whole society.
Note: This is a revised edition of the previous newsletter with new writing, for easily readability and comprehension.
Humans talk, to communicate. It ensures our survival in this world. The question then, is how?
The human activity of observing, comprehending, memorising, recording and communicating details about ourselves and our surroundings is how information is generated and propagated.
The practice of collecting, disseminating and consuming information in a society, about ourselves and our surroundings, is a vital enabler of the process of making decisions which affects our lives and surroundings.
In other words, our ability to communicate and understand information about the world is essential for making decisions which ensures our survival as a species, by enabling us to cooperate with each other on various matters of importance in a society.
We have possessed these abilities since we started evolving as humans and living in groups.
All the people who came before us collected, disseminated and consumed information about the world using very rudimentary communication tools, to make decisions which ensured their survival.
Although we use very advanced communication tools to collect, disseminate and consume information about the world, all of us present today also make decisions necessary for our survival.
Therefore, it becomes paramount that we analyse the historical practices of collecting, disseminating and consuming information, its underlying processes and the communication tools used in the process before more efficient communication tools were developed, to understand the role information played in the decision-making activities essential for ensuring the survival and development of individuals and society.
The analysis of past practices of collection, dissemination and consumption of information along with its role in the decision-making activities of individuals and societies, also acts as a reference point for us to evaluate and understand how individuals and societies collect, disseminate and consume information using digital communication tools now and how this change has impacted their decision-making activities.
Communication of information on the scale possible today was not always like this. It has evolved a lot since the time our ancestors started collecting, recording, communicating and consuming information using very rudimentary communication tools, about themselves and their surroundings.
The records of information created by people of past generations about the world, which contained their observations and understanding of the world, survive today as epic literature or treatises on various subjects around the world.
The knowledge contained within these records of information reflect the foundations of their thoughts, ideas, actions, events, observations, conversations, identities, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religion, science, politics, economy, community and society.
In present time too, we derive the essence of our thoughts, ideas, actions, events, observations, conversations, identities, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religion, science, politics, economy, society and community, from the knowledge preserved and codified in the information collected, distilled and recorded by people who came before us.
The rich collection of recorded information available from our past, despite containing distilled knowledge of the world as our ancestors saw it, hides important facets of how or why all this information was collected, disseminated or consumed by people in the past.
To understand how people in the past collected and disseminated information, we need to understand the underlying processes of arriving at something worthwhile to record or communicate.
The process began when a chronicler gathered information about the people and their surroundings, then engaged in a process of debate, discussion, feedback and criticism around the gathered information, to understand its various aspects, perspectives and context.
Once all the intricacies of the gathered information were evaluated and understood, the chronicler then recorded and disseminated it among the general population for consumption.
This underlying process of collecting and identifying important information is hidden behind a veil of time, in the records of information that survive from our past.
Which leads us to the question, why was it necessary for chroniclers to gather information about people and their surroundings, evaluate and understand its various aspects, perspectives and contexts before recording or communicating them, and what role did the activity of collecting, disseminating and consuming information play in people’s lives and the society?
To answer the above questions, we need to understand that in the past, only a few people from the general population took up the task of collecting, recording and disseminating important information as a vocation, since the process of replicating and disseminating information among the general population was possible, only through very rudimentary communication tools, i.e., face-to-face conversations.
Those who engaged in the vocations of collecting, recording and disseminating important information were considered learned and knowledgeable people, since they gathered and understood more information about the world they lived in, than the general population.
We know these people today as the leaders, sages, monks, philosophers, historians and educators among others of past generations.
The primary focus of their responsibility was the task of collecting, identifying, recording and disseminating important information, necessary for making decisions which ensured the survival and development of individuals and society, among the general population.
They did that by first observing and understanding the world, its constituent structures, institutions, societies, communities, people, their decisions and how they communicated and interacted with each other to survive.
While observing and understanding the world and its constituent components, learned and knowledgeable people also gained knowledge of people’s identities, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religion, science, politics and economy.
These learned and knowledgeable people then engaged in face-to-face conversations with their peers about their observations and understanding of the world, expressing it in the form of thoughts, ideas, actions, events, conversations or observations.
These face-to-face conversations among learned and knowledgeable peers, ensured that every observation or understanding of the world under scrutiny, went through a rigorous process of debate, discussion, feedback and criticism before it was recorded or disseminated among the general population.
The rigorous process of debate, discussion, feedback and criticism ensured that every aspect, perspective and context of information regarding the world was identified and analysed before being recorded or communicated.
The process also helped the participants to accurately identify information with the widest potential impact, utility, acceptance and importance among the general population.
The objective of identifying important information with the widest potential impact, utility and acceptance among the general population, was crucial to the process of decisions-making activities of individuals and society.
Which leads us to examine the relationship between communication of important information and the decision-making activities of individuals and societies.
This relationship can be understood by examining the process of communication used to communicate important information and the tools used for it during each period of history.
While it can be imagined that during the earliest periods of human history, when capabilities of speech and language had not completely developed, people communicated using signs and demonstrations.
As evolution of humans continued, so did their capability of speech, which was codified into commonly understandable language. This ability to communicate enabled people to consolidate their lives for common purposes.
The ability to communicate as a group was the primary facilitator of people coming together to live in communities, at a time when survival was the biggest challenge for humans.
The advent of speech allowed people living in communities to holistically voice their concerns and then negotiate and compromise about them to arrive at mutually beneficial decisions.
To do this effectively, people needed to agree on some basic facts of life, like where they came from or what their history, culture, traditions, aspirations, identities, values, beliefs, morals and ethics were.
The basis for these basic facts of life were provided to individuals by learned and knowledgeable people of the society, in the stories they told them.
For example, the leader observed the world and regaled stories of leaders in the past who had led people to glorious battles or established huge kingdoms.
The sages gathered knowledge about the world and talked of wise men who had renounced the material world to serve the poor and downtrodden.
The monks examined the scriptures and extolled the virtues of God. They told stories of Gods who had lived among humans and gone through the trials and tribulations of human life, just like them.
The philosopher examined life itself and expounded upon the realities he observed, while the historian kept track of ‘what was’ to ensure that ‘what would be’ was better. The educator meanwhile, taught people about whatever he could teach and they could learn.
All this information was disseminated among people in communal acts of societies, where people gathered to listen to the stories, myths, legends, plays, dialogues and sermons of learned and knowledgeable people.
The message conveyed in these communal acts of storytelling ensured that all the people living in communities inferred a common thread of aspirations, identities, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religion, science, history and economy in their daily lives.
In this way, the communal acts of storytelling in societies shaped people’s views about culture, traditions, values, ethics, morals, religion, politics, society, community, history and economy, while also setting boundaries for what was considered acceptable or unacceptable in a society.
As a result of shared aspirations, identities, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religion, economy and history in a society, individuals were able to find common ground on divisive issues, to make decisions which would be beneficial for themselves as well as their communities.
They were also able to infer the right and wrong of any significant issue concerning their lives and surroundings by referring to the boundaries set in the stories, myths, legends, plays, dialogues and sermons they heard.
The knowledge people gleaned from these community activities not only served as a yardstick for them to measure and understand their decisions, experiences, aspirations, identities, thoughts, ideas, actions, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religion, opinions and perceptions of reality.
Rather the message conveyed in these stories also gave them an inkling of the possibilities of human life, which inspired them to strive for a life of prosperity, dignity and security, by making informed decisions which would ensure good governance, empowering politics, a fruitful economy, an inclusive religion, a peaceful society and a caring community.
Consequently, the general population took its cues about trade, commerce, war, education, politics, religion, values, morals, beliefs, ethics, culture, traditions, society and community among other aspects of their lives, from the information they consumed during these community activities.
What we need to understand from all this recorded history of humanity is not only the activity of collecting, recording, communicating and consuming information which identified and codified past generations’ aspirations, identities, thoughts, ideas, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religions, opinions and perceptions of reality; rather also the fact that communication of important information played the catalysing role behind decisions of individuals and societies which led to revolutions or wars, of people becoming leaders, followers or agents of change or the establishment of governments and the organisation of people into a society, community or country where everyone could strive for a life of prosperity, dignity and security.
In other words, throughout history, it was the practice of collecting, recording, communicating and consuming important information which enabled robust decision-making activities of individuals and societies, regarding everyday matters like leadership, governance, politics, economy, religion, society, community, culture and traditions.
These decisions were influenced by the thoughts, ideas, aspirations, identities, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religions, opinions and perceptions of reality communicated or prevalent among people in a society or community.
As societies kept growing in size, more efficient tools of communication were developed to serve its needs, which exponentially increased the amount of information collected, recorded, communicated and consumed within a society.
This complicated the decision-making activities of individuals and societies since the amount of information necessary to be processed before mutually agreeable decisions could be made increased too.
Whether it was the era of tribal, nomadic, pastoralist, agriculturalist or industrialised communities, the necessity of a framework within which generations of individuals enquired and communicated about significant issues impacting their lives, like leadership, governance, politics, economy, religion, traditions, culture, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, society and community, to infer their own views about these things and make their own decisions, were vital for sustaining a society where every individual could live a life of prosperity, dignity and security.
Consequently, basic communicational and decision-making necessities of human society were developed into an ecosystem of information communication and decision-making with distinct institutions, structures, systems, processes, roles and responsibilities, with the clear purpose of communicating important information within a society to ensure better decision-making activities by individuals and societies.
In other words, the increased flow of information as a result of growth in human population invariably resulted in more complex decision-making structures, due to the complexities associated with taking decisions which would ensure a life of prosperity, dignity and security for every individual in a growing society.
To that end, the requirement of maintaining transparency in the communication of information disseminated among the general population along with ensuring accountability and integrity of the decisions taken to ensure a life of prosperity, dignity and security of people was always present.
As a result of these requirements of a society, the rules, roles, responsibilities, structures, systems and processes intrinsic to the ecosystem of information communication and decision-making activities of a society continuously evolved, to maintain transparency, accountability and integrity of the ecosystem.
The roles and responsibilities of leaders, sages, monks, philosophers, historians and educators also evolved and fragmented into various professions and vocations over time to adapt to the evolving needs of society.
The ecosystem meanwhile, was further developed, to include processes and systems which ensured that every member of a society participated in these communication and decision-making activities, so that common ground could be found for opposing views to co-exist with the understanding and agreement of all stakeholders.
As this ecosystem of information communication and decision-making activities matured with the development of more efficient communication tools and accumulation of more information, the institutions, roles, responsibilities, structures, systems and processes inherent to the ecosystem evolved and were codified into the principles and theories of democracy, where an individual’s choice and free-speech were given paramount importance.
The evolution of principles and theories of democracy, based on an ecosystem of transparent information communication and accountable decision-making activities of individuals and societies, which evolved to ensure a life of prosperity, dignity and security, generation by generation, is again threatened by the innovation of digital communication tools.
The causes and effects of this crisis of democracy, brought about by the development of digital communication tools are blatantly visible in the 21st century ecosystem of information communication and decision-making activities of individuals and society.
Throughout the vast expanse of human history till the time digital communication tools were invented, the primary purpose of communication was not to generate wealth, build a following or sow discord between individuals and communities for nefarious reasons. Although various people throughout history have utilised the principles of good communication despite an absence of advanced digital communication tools, for these very reasons, with disastrous results for society.
Rather, the primary purpose of communication since people started talking, was to engage in the creation of a body of information which equipped and enabled individuals within a society to infer knowledge, information and tools to understand themselves, their surroundings and consequently, make decisions which enabled them to live a life of prosperity, dignity and security within their surroundings.
Which brings us to a number of questions I will explore in the upcoming newsletter.
How has the ecosystem of information evolved in a world dominated by digital communication tools?
How has the objective of ensuring accountability of people, processes and institutions involved in the decision-making activities of a society, along with maintaining transparency of information communicated among the general population, coped with the development of digital communication tools?
How are people’s views about thoughts, ideas, actions, events, values, beliefs, morals, ethics, culture, traditions, religion, science, politics, economy, community and society influenced in a world of digital communication tools?
Do the rules, roles, responsibilities, structures, systems and processes intrinsic to an ecosystem of transparent information communication and accountable decision-making activities of a society still work to ensure a life of prosperity, dignity and security for people in a world dominated by digital communication tools or have they turned obsolete with the passage of time?