“The History of the WWW”: an audio drama that takes you back to the early days of the World Wide Web

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Over the course of seven episodes, listeners will be taken on a journey from the origins of the web to its cultural and social implications. The audio drama is produced in collaboration with RSI as part of an SNF Agora project sponsored by the Institute of Media and Journalism (IMeG) at USI and the Institute of Design (IDE) at SUPSI.

On April 30, 1993, CERN announced that it was releasing into the public domain the system that would change the way we access information, connect, and communicate: the World Wide Web. This initiative made the Web accessible to anyone, without restrictions. In the collective imagination, this decision, made by directors Walter Hoogland and Helmut Weber, marked its global spread, making the Web an indispensable service and a cornerstone of our society’s political, economic, and cultural interactions.

On April 30, 2026, the first episode of “The History of the WWW” will be launched online—an original audio drama produced in collaboration with RSI Swiss Radio and Television as part of the SNF Agora project “Once Upon a Time in the Web. Exploring, Interacting and Dialoguing with the World Wide Web of the 1990s,” jointly promoted by the Institute of Media and Journalism (IMeG) at the University of Italian Switzerland (USI) and the Institute of Design (IDe) at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI).

An audio drama blending academic research and storytelling
Written and directed by Sara Flaadt, an author and director for RSI, “The History of the WWW” is a seven-episode audio drama (a film for the ears) that brings a scientific subject - the result of academic research - to life in an accessible, everyday way. This is how the techniques of radio storytelling bring those events closer to everyday life, making the WWW a character it’s hard not to grow fond of. The dialogues, the actors, and the sound design curated by sound engineer Thomas Chiesa all contribute to making those events feel immediate and engaging. 

This audiofiction is based on the research findings of the SNF project “The origins and spread of the World Wide Web. Rediscovering the early years of the Web inside and outside the CERN archive (1989–1995),” coordinated by Professor Gabriele Balbi and completed in February 2025. The narrative follows Deborah Barcella’s doctoral research journey, through her work with CERN’s archival sources (World Wide Web collection), where she spent many days sifting through various documents: private correspondence, newspaper articles, press releases, memoranda, meeting minutes, and much more.

This work has challenged the notion that the Web was the inevitable result of technological progress, demonstrating instead how it emerged from an interplay of strategic decisions, communication practices, and organizational dynamics specific to the CERN context. In particular, the research highlights how the key figures in the Web’s development in the early 1990s had to face various challenges, such as gaining legitimacy and funding within CERN, distinguishing themselves from competing technologies, and clarifying the distinction between the Web and its infrastructure - namely, the Internet (a confusion that, let’s admit it, persists even today).

Episode Release Schedule 
The seven episodes will be released online weekly, every Thursday, according to the following schedule:

  • April 30, 2026 – Episode 1: A Beginning
  • May 7, 2026 – Episode 2: CERN
  • May 14, 2026 – Episode 3: 1989
  • May 21, 2026 – Episode 4: Call Me the World Wide Web
  • May 28, 2026 – Episode 5: Confusion
  • June 4, 2026 – Episode 6: Competitors
  • June 11, 2026 – Episode 7: Characters

Through these episodes, listeners are guided from the origins of the Web to its cultural and social implications. We begin with the “prehistory” at CERN, then leap forward to 1989, when a “vague but exciting” proposal laid the groundwork for its development. Subsequent episodes explore the process of defining the Web’s identity, from the choice of its name to the persistent confusion with the Internet.

The narrative also reconstructs the competitive landscape of the early 1990s - when the Web was not the only technology for retrieving information - concluding with a collective reflection on the protagonists, both famous and forgotten, of this story. The audio drama will also be broadcast on RSI Rete Due, as part of the Alphaville program, starting Thursday, June 18, 2026, at 12:00 p.m., with daily episodes through June 26, 2026. The first episode is available starting April 30 at the following link.

A project to foster dialogue between research and society
The SNF Agora project “Once Upon a Time in the Web” was launched with the aim of actively engaging the public in exploring the history of the Web in the 1990s, fostering a dialogue between academic research and society.

The project is led by:

  • Gabriele Balbi, Interim Rector and Vice Rector for Education and University Life at the University of Italian Switzerland (USI), as well as Full Professor of Media Studies at the Faculty of Communication, Culture, and Society. An internationally renowned media historian, his research focuses on the history of telecommunications, digital media, and communication infrastructures from a long-term perspective.
  • Giulio Zaccarelli, Director of the SUPSI Design Institute (Department of Environment, Construction, and Design), where he coordinates research and innovation activities in the field of design, with a particular focus on the intersections between design, scientific communication, and interactive experiences.

The research team includes:

  • Deborah Barcella, a postdoctoral researcher and lecturer at the Institute of Media and Journalism (IMeG), Faculty of Communication, Culture, and Society (USI), earned her Ph.D. in April 2025 on the early years of the history of the Web.
  • Luca Morici, senior research lecturer at the SUPSI Design Institute and head of the “Design for Science” sector, where he develops projects that translate complex scientific content into accessible and engaging experiences for the public. 
  • Max da Rocha Fonseca, research associate at the SUPSI Institute of Design in the “Design for Science” sector, is engaged in developing interactive and participatory solutions for communication and knowledge mediation.
  • Vanessa Mazzei, assistant at the SUPSI Design Institute in the “Design for Science” sector; in the project, she is responsible for translating scientific content into dynamic visual solutions for various communication devices and social media channels.
  • Alessandro Plantera, a Master’s student and assistant at the SUPSI Design Institute in the “Design for Science” sector, is involved in project activities and the development of educational and immersive experiences related to the project.

The project benefits from the collaboration of several partners: RSI Swiss Radio and Television (SRG SSR), the Swiss National Sound Archives, CERN, Lugano Living Lab (L*3), Locarno Film Festival, DECS, and La Filanda.

“Web Genesis”: an educational escape room to rediscover the early years of the Web 
In addition to producing the audio fiction, the research team will bring “Web Genesis”- a completely free educational escape room - to two major events in the Ticino region:

  • LongLake Festival (Lugano): July 9–26, 2026
  • Locarno Film Festival (Locarno): August 5–15, 2026

The experience will immerse participants in a narrative where the history of the Web risks being distorted by inaccurate information and oversimplifications. Through puzzles based on real historical sources and the use of technologies from the 1980s and 1990s, participants will have to reconstruct certain events in the history of the Web to preserve an accurate account of its evolution. The team that completes the challenge in the shortest time will win a trip to CERN in Geneva.

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