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The discourse on "the information society" developed until the 70's as one of the prevailing discourse in our society; with promises to link information technology and free market with economic growth and human progress. This eventually became something like the official ideology of the European Union as demonstrated by the famous Lisbon strategy to become "the most dynamic and competitive knowledge-based economy in the world" placing "emphasis on the need to adapt constantly to changes in the information society". This discourse about "information society" raised its share of criticism based on technological determinism or the new informational prophecies, Here I think about the works of French authors, like Armand Mattelart, David Forest, Philippe Breton, and so on. This discussion is not intended to review the criticisms, but to go back in time and analyse what can be considered as the first concept of information and society in the wake of the cybernetic movement, in the United States, at the end of the 1940's.Now, briefly, what is cybernetics and how can it claim to be the first discourse about information society?

Cover -- Half Title -- Series Page -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Contents -- 1 Introduction: What Do We Do with Information? -- 2 Defining -- 3 Searching -- 4 Accessing -- 5 Using -- 6 Creating -- 7 Conclusion: Can We Do More with Information? -- Index.