Burning Question: When will this whole Internet fad die out?

It may be hard to believe, but there was a time when serious thinkers thought the Internet was just a fad. The Three Word Chant blog dredges up a 1995 Newsweek piece by Clifford Stoll, an astronomer and technology writer, in which he argued that the whole notion of a vibrant cyberspace was "oversold."

"Visionaries see a future of telecommuting workers, interactive libraries and multimedia classrooms," Stoll wrote. He proceeded to dismiss such talk as "baloney," concluding, "the truth is no online database will replace your daily newspaper, no CD-ROM can take the place of a competent teacher and no computer network will change the way government works."

Why the internet will fail (from 1995)
(Three Word Chant. Hat tip: BoingBoing)

Burning Question is a recurring feature that looks at key issues and compelling stories being explored at other publications and social media sites covering the federal government.