Thedemocratization of knowledge is the acquisition and spread ofknowledge amongst a wider part of the population, not justelite groups such asclergy,professionals, or academia. Massliteracy, theprinting press,public libraries,television, and moderninformation technology such as theInternet have played a key role, as they provide the masses with openaccess to information through a variety of means.
Wide dissemination of knowledge is inseparable from the spread ofliteracy.[citation needed]
The Information Age is ahistorical period that began in the mid-20th century. It is characterized by a rapid shift from traditional industries, as established during theIndustrial Revolution, to an economy centered oninformation technology.[1]
Digitization efforts byGoogle Books have been pointed to as an example of the democratization of knowledge, butMalte Herwig inDer Spiegel raised concerns that the virtual monopoly Google has in thesearch market, combined with Google's hiding of the details of itssearch algorithms, could undermine this move towards democratization.[2]
Google Scholar (andsimilar scholarlysearch services) andSci-Hub (and similar scholarlyshadow libraries) have also been pointed to as examples of democratization of knowledge.[3][4]
Open Library's andHathiTrust's digitization efforts and their use of thecontrolled digital lending model are also examples of democratization of knowledge.[5]
After the most powerful search engine,Google, and the most viewedonline encyclopedia,Wikipedia, the most viewed information-based website is theEncyclopædia Britannica.[6]
Large language models likeChatGPT orGoogle Gemini have also been shown as examples of democratization of knowledge.[citation needed]
An article written in 2005 by the editors ofReference & User Services Quarterly calls the library the greatest force for the democratization of knowledge or information.[7] It continues to say that public libraries in particular are inextricably linked with the history and evolution of the United States, but school library media centers, college and university libraries, and special libraries have all also been influential in their support for democracy.[7] Libraries play an essential role in the democratization of knowledge and information by providing communities with the resources and tools to find information free of charge. Democratic access to knowledge has also been co-opted to mean providing information in a variety of formats, which essentially means electronic and digital formats for use by library patrons.[8] Public libraries help further the democratization of information by guaranteeing freedom of access to information, by providing an unbiased variety of information sources and access to government services, as well as the promotion of democracy and active citizenship.[9]
Dan Cohen, the founding executive director of the Digital Public Library of America, writes that democratic access to knowledge is a profound idea that requires constant tending and revitalization.[8] In 2004, aWorld Social Forum and International workshop was held entitled "Democratization of Information: Focus on Libraries". The focus of the forum was to bring awareness to the social, technological, and financial challenges facing libraries dealing with the democratization of information. Social challenges includedglobalization and thedigital divide, technological challenges included information sources, and financial challenges constituted shrinking budgets and manpower.[10] Longtime Free Library of Philadelphia director Elliot Shelkrot said that "Democracy depends on an informed population. And where can people get all the information they need? —At the Library."[11]