Digital Divide

Forbes columnist Rich Karlgaard writes in the the Nov 29 issue: "Five years ago for the sake of the kids, my wife and I unplugged our television. ... Bottom line, the Karlgaards could not watch the election on TV. So we followed it on the Internet. Wise choice. Around 10 pm Eastern we knew George Bush had the vote in the bag, even in Ohio. The fat lady was singing lustily on the IP channels. I fired off an e-mail to a friend in Connecticut, urging him to relax and go to bed. Bush was sailing to an easy win. Television -- old, slow and biased -- wouldn't tell us the truth for another two and a half hours."

The "digital divide" that had obsessed class warriors for some years is actually about those who still get their news and entertainment from TV and those who do not.