Introduction “An information society is a society in which the creation, distribution, dissemination, use, integration and manipulation of information constitutes a significant economic, political, and cultural activity” (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) Societies have evolved over the past few centuries from agricultural communities to industrial giants. Sociologists, among others, are fascinated by the changes that have occurred in society, especially from the advent of the industrial revolution to recent decades. in the information age, this essay will discuss the theories of several prominent authors, such as Daniel Bell, Frank Webster, Fritz Machlup and others, regarding the notion of "information society". The different approaches have all gained some momentum over time. in recent decades, as technology advances, there will be comments on their interpretations, how the information fits into our society, and how it may have changed our society. We will also see if some or all explain exactly what an information society is. Contrasts in society It seems that there are fundamental differences between the post-industrial revolution society and the information society. During the British Industrial Revolution, society moved from small family communities with people working the land to a mass of population leaving rural areas to work in an increasing number of factories in the cities. Manufacturing was booming and Britain became a major exporter. However, these new working conditions were often very harsh and wages very low. Workers have moved from the flexibility of working for themselves or working with their families... middle of paper ... to an information society. We are probably all networked on some level, whether in a large company, a call center, or on a personal level using the Internet to contact or find friends. WSIS members are fervent defenders of the information society and seem to have very high hopes for it. From the evidence, it appears that there is a change in the way people earn a living these days in the West, and that the workforce is increasingly using ICT rather than engage in manual labor. This is perhaps the beginning of a new information society. We'll have to wait and see, Works Cited Theories of the Information Society, Frank Webster The Information Society Reader; Frank Websterwww.wikipedia/freedictionnaireAntony Giddons. Sociology 6th editionWorld Summit on the Information Society (Geneva 2005)www.itu.int/wsis/docs/geneva/official/dop.httml.