Book Review: The Rise of the Network Society - The Information Age: Economy, Society, and Culture

There are many studies which examine the relationship of technology with economy, society, and culture. Manuel Castells is one of the researchers who have worked on this subject. He enhanced the discussions with sociological evaluations based on field research; he has done this within the concept of the “Network Society.” Castells is a Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Planning at the University of California, Berkeley. He is also the Wallis Annenberg in Communication Technology and Society at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, as well as being a Research Professor at the Open University at Catalonia in Barcelona, Spain. He is a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Technology and Society at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Internet Studies at Oxford University in United Kingdom. He is a recipient of numerous academic awards. He is a fellow of the European Academy, a fellow of the Spanish Royal Academy of Economics, and a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy. He has received 14 honorary doctorates from the universities around the world. He has authored 22 books, among which is the trilogy “The Information Age: Economy Society, and Culture” first published by Blackwell in 1996-8, and translated into 20 different languages.