n September 11, Deb Aikat, associate professor of journalism and mass communication, stayed awake most of the night capturing screen shots from web pages. As the crisis unfolded, he worked feverishly to analyze the Internet’s role in sharing news and creating communities in the immediate aftermath.

People used Internet discussion groups to vent their anger about the attacks, discuss the consequences, or offer solace, Aikat says. "When we talk on the telephone, there is not much record of it, unless you or I tape-record the conversations. But when we communicate on-line, we can revisit it and analyze the discourse."

On that day, phone lines were down in Manhattan and elsewhere, and even many cell phones were useless. But the web was one tool that still worked, Aikat says. People turned to their computers for immediate news updates on the attacks and to track loved ones who might have been involved. Survivors who couldn’t get in touch with their families created web registries that said "Hi, I’m here; I’m okay."

"A lot of bad things happened on September eleventh," Aikat says, "but one of the good things that happened was that the net emerged as an even stronger source of news, communication, and of community."