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A review by maijau
Tools and Weapons: The Promise and the Peril of the Digital Age by Carol Ann Browne, Brad Smith
3.0
The authors raise interesting and important questions and it is rather encouraging to read that someone with arguably a lot of influence in the relevant circles seems to think about major issues of our times from multiple angles, explicitly highlighting themes such as privacy, democracy and human rights.
On the other hand, the actions detailed in the book are very Microsoft centric and I could not help but wonder if this is justifiable alone by the authors affiliation. I am accepting the notion that some big firms, I mention in particular Amazon, Facebook and Google, do not seem to be doing enough and far from the same as Microsoft. However I believe there are many other initiatives in the industry, public administrations and in particular NGOs. Given this, at times the book seems all too polished in favor of Microsoft.
Further, I f you are not yourself in a senior leadership position in the relevant industries or politics, it seems difficult to take concrete learnings away from the book. It might be too much to ask for hands-on approaches and solutions to complex and inter-dependent questions, but while certain paths are outlined, the book meanders on a rather high and abstract level, often involving lenghty descriptions of legal, corporate and political issues.
All in all, it was an interesting read with many different facets but leaves me wondering what I should have learned for myself. 3 stars are on the lower end, in particular given the thorough and precise research backed by an extensive list of original sources, but 4 stars seem to generous.
On the other hand, the actions detailed in the book are very Microsoft centric and I could not help but wonder if this is justifiable alone by the authors affiliation. I am accepting the notion that some big firms, I mention in particular Amazon, Facebook and Google, do not seem to be doing enough and far from the same as Microsoft. However I believe there are many other initiatives in the industry, public administrations and in particular NGOs. Given this, at times the book seems all too polished in favor of Microsoft.
Further, I f you are not yourself in a senior leadership position in the relevant industries or politics, it seems difficult to take concrete learnings away from the book. It might be too much to ask for hands-on approaches and solutions to complex and inter-dependent questions, but while certain paths are outlined, the book meanders on a rather high and abstract level, often involving lenghty descriptions of legal, corporate and political issues.
All in all, it was an interesting read with many different facets but leaves me wondering what I should have learned for myself. 3 stars are on the lower end, in particular given the thorough and precise research backed by an extensive list of original sources, but 4 stars seem to generous.