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The internet is a valuable tool to connect people with like minds and it has been used extensively to raise awareness of oppression and anti-democratic practices around the world. But writing about your government can come at a high price and some bloggers expose themselves to real dangers every time they write. Even in the West, rules designed to ensure fairness at election time can limit the rights of bloggers.
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eGovernment is supposed to transform services, save time and money. However, it also has to make life easier for citizens. When the design of the system actually gets in the way, it’s a barrier to service delivery and likely to put users off.
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Broadband is a critical delivery medium for eDemocracy but Ofcom’s latest statistics suggest uptake has stalled in many places. Whilst it’s positive to see rural adoption increasing, overall we are still lagging well behind anything amounting to digital ubiquity. Until this is overcome, the benefits of eDemocracy will remain off-limits to many – and in some cities, to the majority.
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Hansard Society eDemocracy Director, Andy Williamson, launched a new book at the end of April called Researching with Communities: Grounded perspectives on engaging communities in research.
It provides guidance, examples and discussions for researchers that are
aiming to promote a community voice in their work. This book looks at
the issues from an international perspective with chapters drawn from a
range of disciplines including; community development, mental health,
migration and refugees, and community technology. It draws on the
experiences of researchers and community practitioners to explore what
community based research means in a variety of settings and how it can
be carried out meaningfully, respectfully and inclusively.
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The internet had a bit-part in last week’s local government elections but its importance in central and local government continues to increase. Those of us who advocate for eDemocracy as a way of increasing participation need to also consider strategies for getting more people online and using the internet effectively. Failure to do this could make the democratic deficit worse.
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MPs websites have matured from the simple and garish to being slick, template-driven and branded. In the UK, however, the rise in the use of the web has mirrored an era of political stability, with no change of government. Experience elsewhere suggests that when a party loses power the way its MPs use the web changes too. As the UK draws closer to a general election, political hopefuls are turning to online campaigning tools but are they on a level playing field or do incumbent MPs have a significant advantage?
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One month after launching, Lords of the Blog has exceeded our early expectations. It’s not just a passive place to learn about Britain’s upper house but has become somewhere that citizens can directly interact with peers in a way that wasn’t possible before. It's also been an eye opener for many in terms of how engaging and down-to-earth peers can be!
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This week, Parliament’s Procedure Committee strongly endorsed the idea of ePetitions. Whilst there’s clearly a long way to go, their report presents a strong argument for ePetitions and recommends moving ahead. There’s obviously a lot of work to be done but the report’s focus on process over technology is to be welcomed a step in the right direction.
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The most recent Hansard Society project - Lords of the Blog - has so far taken the world of blogging by storm. The House of Lords appears to be an institution much misunderstood by the public, many of whom have no idea what Peers do and who inhabits the second chamber, but this is starting to change. The project, commissioned by the House of Lords authorities, is in a 6 month experimental phase after which its sucess will be evaluated by the Hansard Society and its contributors will take sole control.
Catch 21, an internet televsion channel run by young people for young people, has interviewed two of the most prolific and enthusiastic peers in this project, Lord Norton and Lord Tyler, to give an introduction to what the project is all about and what it involves for them. Watch the interview here.
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Innovation theory tells us to accept failure as not only inevitable but a good thing – without failure there is no success. As the civil service is being encouraged to become more innovative, this point should not be lost on eDemocracy practitioners. We need a culture of risk and innovation if government is to transform.