Ah yes I forgot Betteridge's law. I wasn't exactly sure what the headline should be, I almost made it something more definitive. But I think what I was actually trying to do with that headline was sort of a double bluff - modern attitudes to the effects of the internet are pretty negative and cynical that I would assume everyone would immediately think the answer to that question should be "no", and so I'm trying to put forward the surprising case for it to perhaps be "yes". (While not dismissing or shying away from any of the modern criticisms, which I mostly completely agree with).

Thanks for this links, they're really interesting. They are exactly the sort of questions I'm exploring here, and I think we should all be asking.