In the 19th Century, Americans came to believe that it was their "manifest destiny" to occupy the whole of North America. No matter that most of it was already inhabited by Native AmericansThe indigenous people of the Americas, who lived in the region before settlers from other places.. American settlers began to push West.

In the vast expanses of land in which they settled, there was no government. People took advantage of this freedom to set up utopianImpossibly perfect. The term comes from an ancient Greek phrase meaning "no-place" invented by Henry VIII's chancellor, Sir Thomas More, in 1516, as the name of an imaginary, ideal island. communities and religious cults. However, without laws, violence was common.

By the early 20th Century, the so-called "Wild WestUsed to describe the western USA during the 19th Century when settlers were moving into new areas. It was considered to be a lawless place. " was finally under state control. But some experts say a hundred years later, the same thing happened all over again when the internet was founded.

Governments have lacked the knowhow or the will to regulate the internet. So people behave just like they did on the American frontier. Many formed their own online communities. Some took advantage of the lawlessness to kickstart shady ventures.

But the difference with the Wild West is that the internet is everywhere. And that means chaos is spreading everywhere too.

When, in 1692, children in the small community of SalemBetween 1692 and 1693, more than 200 people in the puritanical British colony of Massachusetts were accused of witchcraft, and 19 people were sentenced to death. began accusing adults of witchcraft, the tragedy was at least contained to this corner of MassachusettsA state in the northeast USA. . But today false accusations can have a much wider impact.

Last November, when four students were murdered in IdahoA state in the northwest of the USA with a population of nearly 2 million. , the news spread across the world on TikTok. Then users started accusing people. The family of a local man was threatened after he was falsely blamed for the killings.

And when, in 1843, a fraudster named James Addison Reavis claimed to be the owner of a large chunk of ArizonaA state in the southwest USA with a population of more than 7 million. , it was easy to prove he was not who he said he was. But today the internet is making it much harder to police people's identities.

A few months ago, voice actor Greg Marston found an online AI tool that converts text to speech. It was speaking with his own voice.

The company responsible had bought his voice from IBMAn American multinational technology company. It's longer name is The International Business Machines Corporation., to whom Marston had sold it in 2005. He could never have imagined he would one day be competing with an AI version of himself.

Writers are finding the same thing. Companies are training AI on their books and scripts so that in future the programmes will be able to write their own. They will soon be in competition with their own work.

And just yesterday Spotify said it would take no action against AI-generated music, causing angst for musicians.

That is why some think it is time to accept the internet has been bad for humanity.

Some psychologists warn that the internet is making us unhappy. On social media, people project an ideal image of their lives that makes other users feel dissatisfied with their own.

And there is evidence the internet is shortening our attention spans. In 1984, 35% of American children said they read for pleasure almost every day. Now it is just 17%.¹

But others say we should not be so quick to judge. The internet can be a social lifeline. Surveys have consistently found that internet users have more life satisfaction than non-users. And it gives us free, instant access to almost all of the world's knowledge.

Yes: Before the internet, people could spend their time reading and learning. They were happier and less anxious. Not only has it robbed us of all that, but now it is threatening to put us all out of work as well.

No: The internet has given us access to opportunities for learning and growing that we could never previously have dreamt of. We cannot blame it if we are making bad choices about how to use it.

Or... There is no way of going back to an offline world. All we can do is try to get the internet under our control so it does not wreck people's lives.

Native Americans - The indigenous people of the Americas, who lived in the region before settlers from other places.

Utopian - Impossibly perfect. The term comes from an ancient Greek phrase meaning "no-place" invented by Henry VIII's chancellor, Sir Thomas More, in 1516, as the name of an imaginary, ideal island.

Wild West - Used to describe the western USA during the 19th Century when settlers were moving into new areas. It was considered to be a lawless place.

Salem - Between 1692 and 1693, more than 200 people in the puritanical British colony of Massachusetts were accused of witchcraft, and 19 people were sentenced to death.

Massachusetts - A state in the northeast USA.

Idaho - A state in the northwest of the USA with a population of nearly 2 million.

Arizona - A state in the southwest USA with a population of more than 7 million.

IBM - An American multinational technology company. It's longer name is The International Business Machines Corporation.