Pessimism v progress; Technology and society. (2019). The Economist, 433 (9174), 13 (US). Web.
The article comments on the phenomenon the authors label techno-pessimism, the worldview that has spread across the world throughout the recent years. It roots at the growing discontent with the new technologies, such as social media, smartphones, and other that enable immediate access to large arrays of information as well as knowledge exchange. According to the authors, the negative consequences of those possibilities, such as privacy invasion, additional room for propaganda, and new forms of addiction continue to grow more apparent and influential. However, the writing hardly supports the pessimistic thought; rather, its authors state that any technology is possible to use for the good or for the bad, and history has multiple examples of the former.
Although those who composed the article are anonymous, the fact that The Economist published it is sufficient for recognizing its credibility. Notably, this journal has accumulated opinions, discoveries, and speculations on a variety of topics from the entire world for many decades, which apparently makes in quite influential. It is noteworthy, however, that the piece under review may be biased because it rests predominantly on a subjective view of essential events, such as the Industrial revolution, and their meaning for the humanity.
In fact, the lack of statistical data or a detailed historical discourse is the main limitation of the article; its helpfulness for quantitative research is doubtful. It is possible to use for reference in qualitative studies, meanwhile, due to the well-balanced opinion that it involves. Specifically, the authors summarize the main arguments against technological progress and provide an alternative view. Such an approach enables regarding the issue through dissimilar lenses, which actually is the strongest point of the piece.
Reference
Pessimism v progress; Technology and society. (2019). The Economist, 433 (9174), 13 (US). Web.