Chapter 3

Alain Clavet analyses policies related to linguistic duality in the Internet and in broadcasting. In August 1999 he wrote a report called The Government of Canada and French on the Internet. In the introduction, he says: "The Internet can have a profound influence on the organization of the Government of Canada and how it provides services to and communicates with Canadians. The English language predominates on all electronic works, including the Internet. It is therefore vital that the Commissioner ensure that French has its equitable place in exchanges that use this new method of communication and publication."

*Interview of September 3, 1999 (original interview in French)

= How did using the Internet change your professional life?

The Internet became one of my main fields of interest. I also use it as a research and communication tool and to broaden my views on matters to do with Canada's official languages (English and French).

= What are your new projects?

At the moment, I'm giving a series of lectures about the report I wrote called The Government of Canada and French on the Internet. Over the next few years, I'll investigate this subject further.

= What do you think of the debate about copyright on the Web?

We need software that can charge the user a fee when necessary. Governments should make available as many documents and services as possible, especially in French. What practical suggestions do you have for the growth of a multilingual Web?

There are several suggestions in my report (see chapter V: Observations and Recommendations).

= What is your best experience with the Internet?

Discovering all the uses of a cable modem. It's very fast and showed me the power of this communication device. The Internet as a universal encyclopaedia is also essential for me.

= And your worst experience?

The fact it was so slow, but the problem has now been solved.

JEAN-PIERRE CLOUTIER (Montreal)

#Editor of Chroniques de Cybérie, a weekly report of Internet news

Chroniques de Cybérie was launched in November 1994 as a weekly newsletter sent by email. Since April 1995, it has been available on the Web. Both versions are currently available: the e-mail version (5,000 subscribers) and the Web version.

In The New York Times, Bruno Giussani wrote: "Jean-Pierre Cloutier (...) is one of the leading figures of the French-speaking Internet community. Cloutier writes one of the most intelligent, passionate and insightful electronic newsletters available on the Internet (...) an original mix of relevant Internet news, clear political analysis and no-nonsense personal opinions, (...) a publication that gave readers the feeling that they were living 'week after week in the intimacy of a planetary revolution'."

*Interview of June 8, 1998 (original interview in French)

= Could you tell us about your professional work?

There are two different things. First I was a translator (after working in communications). I got connected to the Internet at the request of my small translation company's customers because it made it easier to receive the work to translate and then send the result back to them. Quite quickly, I began to get a broader range of customers, including some in the US.

Then I made a switch. I stopped translating and became a columnist. At first I was doing it part-time, but it soon became my main activity. For me it was a return to journalism, but in a very different way. In the beginning, Chroniques de Cybérie dealt mainly with news (new sites and new software). But gradually I tackled more fundamental aspects of the Internet, and then branched out into current national and international social, political and economic events.

With basic issues, it's fairly simple because all these resources (official documents, news stories, commentary and analysis) are online. You can delve into them, quote them, broaden the analysis and go on with the research. For current events, the choice of subject depends on available resources, and resources are not always easy to find. So you're in the same situation as radio or TV, that if there aren't any audio clips or pictures, even a major event becomes less interesting on the Internet.

= How do you see the future?

For Chroniques de Cybérie, we could introduce and maintain a formula because entry costs are quite low in this medium. However, everything will depend on the extent of what's called media "convergence" and on whether production costs rise if we need to offer audio and video material to stay in the game. If that happens, we'll have to rethink our strategic partnerships, such as the one linking us to the Ringier group which enabled us to relaunch Chroniques after six months of silence. But however much "convergence" there is, I think there'll always be room for written work and for in-depth analysis of the main questions.

*Interview of August 6, 1999 (original interview in French)

= What has happened since our first interview? Any new projects, new ideas...?

No real new projects. New ideas, yes, but I'm still working on them.

= What do you think of the debate about copyright on the Web? What practical suggestions do you have?

That's a very big subject.

First there are the copyright and reproduction rights of big companies. These are relatively well supported legally, either through internal legal means or by hiring specialized companies.

There's no doubt the "dematerialization" of information, brought about by the Internet and digitization, makes it easier to undermine intellectual property in various ways.

The danger is real for small producers/distributors of "original" content, who don't have the means to monitor the theft of their products, or to take legal action to ensure their rights are respected.

But all this is the "official" part -- cases of plagiarism that can be found in "rematerialized" works. There is perhaps a more insidious form of plagiarism, which is the theft of ideas, concepts, formulas, etc., with no mention of their origin. It's hard to "prove" such plagiarism because it is not just a matter of "copy and paste". But it's another aspect of the issue which is often obscured in the debate.

What's the solution? We need a system where you can register free of charge an article, book or piece of music with an international organization that can take legal action against plagiarism. This wouldn't solve all the problems, but would at least establish a basic structure and, who knows, might deter the thieves.

= How do you see the growth of a multilingual Web? What practical suggestions do you have?

We passed the milestone this summer. Now more than half the users of the Internet live outside the United States. Next year more than half of all users will be non English-speaking, compared with only 5% five years ago. Isn't that great?

At the same time, the Internet has became multi-faceted and now requires more and more efficient tools because of the "enrichment" of content (or rather of what contains it, because as far as the real content is concerned, there's no enrichment, except of the firms that sell it). The Internet needs strong systems, with good memory and powerful microprocessors. Development of the non English-speaking Web will be mainly aimed at people who have no way of getting powerful systems or the latest software and operating systems, or of upgrading or renewing it all every year. Also, communication infrastructure is sorely lacking in many places outside Europe and the United States. So there is a problem of bandwidth.

I've been noticing this phenomenon since the very beginning of Chroniques. Some readers (in Africa, Asia, Caribbean, South America and the Pacific) tell me they like being able to suscribe to an e-mail version. They can get Chroniques as a single message, read it off-line and choose the sites they want to consult later. Often they have to plan their time online carefully because of poor communication links.

The Web is going to grow in these non English-speaking regions. So we've got to take into account the technical aspects of the medium if we want to reach these "new" users.

I think it's a pity there are so few translations of important documents and essays published on the Web -- from English into other languages and vice-versa.

Let me explain. Jon Katz published on the Web an analysis of the "Goth" culture which the perpetrators of the Littleton slaughter were into, and of the term "Goth". The French-speaking press quoted one or two sentences of his analysis, lifted a few of his ideas, made an article out of it and that's all. But it wasn't enough to allow one to understand Katz and his analysis of this youth culture.

In the same way, the recent introduction of the Internet in regions where it is spreading raises questions which would be good to read about. When will Spanish-speaking communications theorists and those speaking other languages be translated?

= What is your best experience with the Internet?

It's not a very cheerful one and has nothing to do with the significant influence Chroniques de Cybérie has gained over the years.

At the beginning of 1996, I got a message which roughly said: "My son, in his early twenties, has been very ill for months. Every week, he looked forward very much to getting your newsletter in his electronic mailbox. As he could no longer leave the house, the newsletter allowed him to 'travel', to open his mind and think about something else other than his pain. He died this morning. I just wanted to thank you because you lightened his last months with us."

When you get a message like this, you don't care about speaking to thousands of people, you don't care about lots of statistics, you tell yourself you're talking to one person at a time.

= And your worst experience?

I haven't really had a "big bad" experience. Lots of small and irritating ones, though. The system is fragile, content takes second place, the human resources aren't talked about much and lots of new software is inundating us. But we can live with it all quite easily.

KUSHAL DAVE (Yale)

#Student at Yale University

*Interview of September 1, 1998

= How do you see the relationship between the print media and the Internet?

This is still being worked out, of course. So far, all I've been able to see is that electronic media undermines the print form in two ways:

a) providing completely alternative presses that draw attention away from the previous strongholds, and

b) forcing the print publications to spend resources trying to counteract this trend. Both forms of media critique one another and proclaim their superiority. Print media operates under a self-important sense of credibility. And the electronic media operates under a belief that they are the only purveyors of unbiased truth.

There are issues of niche and finance that need to be resolved. The Internet is certainly a more accessible and convenient medium, and thus it would be better in the long run if the strengths of the print media could be brought online without the extensive costs and copyright concerns that are concomitant. As the transition is made, the neat thing is a growing accountability for previously relatively unreproachable edifices. For example, we already see e-mail addresses after articles in publications, allowing readers to pester authors directly. Discussion forums on virtually all major electronic publications show that future is providing not just one person's opinion but interaction with those of others as well. Their primary job is the provision of background information. Also, the detailed statistics can be gleaned about interest in an advertisement or in content itself will force greater adaptability and a questioning of previous beliefs gained from focus groups. This means more finely honed content for the individual, as quantity and customizability grows.

= How did using the Internet change your life?

The Internet has certainly been a distraction. ;) But beyond that, an immeasurable amount of both trivial and pertinent information has been gleaned in casual browsing sessions.

= How do you see the future?

In my personal future, I'd like to get a B.S., M.S., and M.Eng, working in the industry for a while before moving on to write about the medium for some reputable publication.

The future of the Internet in general I see as becoming more popular and yet more fraught with conflict over the growth of commercialism and the perception that the Net's devolutionary spirit has been undermined. There will also be a need to deal with a glut of information - already we see Internet search engines reinventing themselves to try to provide a more optimal and efficient portal.

CYNTHIA DELISLE (Montreal)

#Consultant at the CEVEIL (Centre d'expertise et de veille inforoutes et langues - Centre for Assessment and Monitoring of Information Highways and Languages)

[Joint interview with Guy Bertrand. See: Guy Bertrand.]

BRUNO DIDIER (Paris)

#Webmaster of the Pasteur Institute Library

"The Pasteur Institutes (...) are exceptional observatories for studying infectious and parasite-borne diseases. They are wedded to the solving of practical public health problems, and hence carry out research programmes which are highly original because of the complementary nature of the investigations carried out: clinical research, epidemiological surveys and basic research work. Just a few examples from the long list of major topics of the Institutes are: malaria, tuberculosis, AIDS, yellow fever, dengue and poliomyelitis." (extract of the website)

* Interview of August 10, 1999 (original interview in French)

= Can you tell us about the website you've created?

The main aim of the Pasteur Institute Library website is to serve the Institute itself and its associated bodies. It supports applications that have became essential in such a big organization: bibliographic databases, cataloging, ordering of documents and of course access to online periodicals (presently more than 100). It's also a window for our different departments, at the Institute but also elsewhere in France and abroad. It plays a big part in documentation exchanges with the institutes in the worldwide Pasteur network. I'm trying to make it an interlink adapted to our needs for exploration and use of the Internet. The website has existed in its present form since 1996 and its audience is steadily increasing.

= What exactly is your professional activity?

I build and maintain the web pages and monitor them regularly. I'm also responsible for training users, which you can see from my pages. The Web's an excellent place for training and it's included in most ongoing discussion about that.

= How did using the Internet change your professional life?

Our relationship with both the information and the users is what changes. We're increasingly becoming mediators, and perhaps to a lesser extent "curators". My present activity is typical of this new situation: I'm working to provide quick access to information and to create effective means of communication, but I also train people to use these new tools.

= How do you see the future?

I think the future of our job is tied to cooperation and use of common resources. It's certainly an old project, but it's really the first time we've had the means to set it up.

As for my professional future, I especially hope the Internet will eventually allow me to work from home, at least part of the time. It would avoid two and a half hours of travelling every day...

= What do you think of the debate about copyright on the Web?

I haven't followed these discussions. But I think it's going to be hard to maintain the community spirit which was the basis of the Internet in the beginning.

= How do you see the growth of a multilingual Web?

I think a multilingual Web's a very positive thing. The Internet doesn't belong to any one nation or language. It's a vehicle for culture, and the first vector of culture is language. The more languages there are on the Net, the more cultures will be represented there. I don't think we should give in to the kneejerk temptation to translate web pages into a largely universal language. Cultural exchanges will only be real if we're prepared to meet with the other culture in a genuine way. And this effort involves understanding the other culture's language. This is very idealistic of course. In practice, when I'm monitoring, I curse Norwegian or Brazilian websites where there's isn't any English.

= What is your best experience with the Internet?

The day I won a box of Swiss chocolates on the Health On the Net site. But don't rush to this site, the game doesn't exist any more.

= And your worst experience?

The abuse of e-mail: bad-mannered people take advantage of the distance and relative anonymity to say not very nice things and take really juvenile attitudes with, alas, consequences which are not always the kind you find in a children's world. For example, I once forwarded an email to somebody I thought would be interested in the subject and the person wrote directly to the original sender and discredited me.

CATHERINE DOMAIN (Paris)

#Founder of the Ulysses Bookstore (Librairie Ulysse), the oldest travel bookstore in the world

Located in central Paris, on the Ile Saint-Louis in the middle of the river Seine, Librairie Ulysse is the oldest travel bookstore in the world and has more than 20,000 books, maps and magazines, out of print and new, including some in English, about all countries and all kinds of travel. It was set up in 1971 by Catherine Domain, a member of the French National Union of Antiquarian and Modern Bookstores (Syndicat national de la librairie ancienne et moderne (SLAM)), the Explorers' Club (Club des Explorateurs) and the International Club of Long-Distance Travelers (Club international des grands voyageurs).

Catherine has travelled all over the world for many years, visiting 136 countries, and she is still on the move. In 1998 she went sailing in Kiribati and the Marshall Islands in the the Pacific. In 1999, as a judge in the Island Book Prize (Prix du livre insulaire) contest, she visited the French island of Ushant. She also sailed around Sardinia in September.

*Interview of December 4, 1999 (original interview in French)

= Can you tell us about your website?

My site is still pretty basic and under construction. Like my bookstore, it's a place to meet people before being a place of business.

= How did using the Internet change your professional life?

The Internet is a pain in the neck, takes a lot of my time and I earn hardly any money from it, but that doesn't worry me...

= How do you see the future?

I'm very pessimistic, because it's killing off specialist bookstores.

= What do you think of the debate about copyright on the Web?

I must say I'm more concerned about the WTO (World Trade Organization) than about copyright.

= How do you see the growth of a multilingual Web?

Isn't it already multilingual? I think it's going to kill the French language as well as many others.

= What is your best experience with the Internet?

A daily chat with my sister who lives in Sri Lanka and the friends I have in Mexico, the USA, the UK, South Africa etc., because I've travelled a lot, for long periods all over the world.

= And your worst experience?

My first year with a computer and the Internet. It was one long technical agony!

HELEN DRY (Michigan)

#Moderator of The Linguist List

The website of The Linguist List gives an extensive series of links on linguistic resources: the profession (conferences, linguistic associations, programs, etc.); research and research support (papers, dissertation abstracts, projects, bibliographies, topics, texts); publications; pedagogy; language resources (languages, language families, dictionaries, regional information); and computer support (fonts and software).

The Linguist List is moderated by Helen Dry (Eastern Michigan University), Anthony Aristar (Wayne State University) and Andrew Carnie (University of Arizona). Helen Dry, who is interviewed here, is a professor of linguistics at Eastern Michigan University. Her major research interests are linguistic stylistics, corpus linguistics, pragmatics, and discourse analysis.

*Interview of August 18, 1998

= Is The Linguist List multilingual?

The Linguist List, which I moderate, has a policy of posting in any language, since it is a list for linguists. However, we discourage posting the same message in several languages, simply because of the burden extra messages put on our editorial staff. (We are not a bounce-back list, but a moderated one. So each message is organized into an issue with like messages by our student editors before it is posted.) Our experience has been that almost everyone chooses to post in English. But we do link to a translation facility that will present our pages in any of 5 languages; so a subscriber need not read Linguist in English unless s/he wishes to. We also try to have at least one student editor who is genuinely multilingual, so that readers can correspond with us in languages other than English.

*Interview of July 26, 1999

= What has happened since our last interview?

We are beginning to collect some primary data. For example, we have searchable databases of dissertation abstracts relevant to linguistics, of information on graduate and undergraduate linguistics programs, and of professional information about individual linguists. The dissertation abstracts collection is, to my knowledge, the only freely available electronic compilation in existence.

BILL DUNLAP (Paris & San Francisco)

#Founder of Global Reach, a methodology for companies to expand their Internet presence through a multilingual website

Founder of Global Reach, Bill Dunlap specialized in international online marketing and e-commerce among mainly American companies. Global Reach is a methodology for companies to expand their Internet presence into a more international framework. This includes translating a website into other languages and actively promoting it, to increase local website traffic from countries by a promotional campaign.

Bill Dunlap, an MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) graduate, has made a life of bringing high-tech products and services to the international markets. When the microcomputer industry was in its early stages in the early 1980s, he set up a company to export popular Apple and PC software to top European markets. This led to a thorough familiarity with the European PC distribution business, and he worked then as AST Research's first European sales manager. Further opportunity brought him into Compaq Computer's newly established Paris office, where he became Compaq's first sales manager in France. He continued with Compaq afterwards at their European headquarters in Munich and managed Scandinavian sales.

Since the mid-1980s, Bill Dunlap has developed the international marketing consultancy Euro-Marketing Associates from Paris and San Francisco. In 1995, Euro-Marketing Associates was restructured into a virtual consultancy called Global Reach, a group of top online marketers throughout the world. The goal is to promote clients' websites in each targeted country, thus attracting more online traffic: more traffic, more sales.

*Interview of December 11, 1998

= How did using the Internet change your professional life?