Splinternet
A splintered internet
Example
Did you see Facebook's not showing news content in Australia anymore?
Great, another splinternet
Splinternet definition by Slang.net
This page explains what the slang term "Splinternet" means. The definition, example, and related terms listed above have been written and compiled by the Slang.net team.
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Tech pundits, journalists, and others use the term splinternet to describe how technological and ideological fractures are siloing people into detached portions of the internet. In most cases, those discussing this splintering of the internet believe it is dangerous, because it prevents and/or disincentivizes people from finding new information and opinions.
Examples of the splinternet
China's Great Firewall is an example of a technologically-enforced splinternet. It prevents Chinese internet users from accessing certain foreign websites, creating a Chinese splinternet that is distinct from other users' internet.
In other cases, netizens end up falling into their own ideological splinternets. For example, a person's political beliefs might push them toward websites that contain only content supporting those beliefs. Pundits and journalists may refer to these echo chambers as splinternets. (E.g., a "right-wing splinternet" or "left-wing splinternet.")