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Cyberbalkanization refers to the division of the world wide web into sub-groups with specific interests, to the extent that a sub-group's members almost always use the web to communicate or read material that is only of interest to the rest of the sub-group. It is sometimes hyphenated as cyber-balkanization.

Many claim that the term was first used in an MIT paper by Marshall Van Alstyne and Erik Brynjolfsson that was published in early 1997.^[1]

Origin

The term is a hybrid of:

• cyber - relating to the internet, and

• (The) Balkans, a part of Europe that was historically subdivided by languages, religions and cultures.

Usage

Cyberbalkanization occurs when members of specific interest groups tend to use the internet to exclude views that contradict their cherished beliefs and theories. Commentators like Aleks Krotoski consider that Jihadist groups often use the internet in this way.^[2]

See also

Internet meme

Notes