Social networks and digital

media:

enhancing local participation

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DESIGNING AND IMPLEMENTING E-GOVERNMENT POLICIES: THE CASE OF THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY

Trento 28-29 March 2012 Dr. Stefano De Paoli Fondazione <ahref stefano@ahref.eu

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Problem(s)

New Social Relations

With the advent of the

“Information Society”, social

relations are radically changing:

• Compression

• Speed

• Discontinuity

• Participation

• Produsage

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Objective

New Social Relations

It is important to understand

these changes in order to be

able to master and use them

for reaching desired goals

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Compression

Linear and extended forms of

information (books/newspaper

articles) are often compressed

in short units that widely link to

other informations

New Social Relations

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Speed

New Social Relations

Speed of transmission of

information has increased

exponentially

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Discontinuity

New Social Relations

“Traditional” linear relations

(one-to-one) are exploded in

massive networks of

interacting people

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Participation

New Social Relations

We move from the one-to-

many communication typical

of traditional media to a many

to many communication

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Produsage

New Social Relations

Users are not anymore just

passive receivers of

messages they are Proactive

producer and consumer of

content (produser) organized

in large communities

Social Network & Digital

Media in Italy & Trentino

Web-based services that allow individuals to

(1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system,

(2) articulate a list of other users with whom they share a connection, and

(3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within the system.

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SOCIAL NETWORK

What are Social Networks?

boyd, d. m., & Ellison, N. B. (2007). Social network sites: Definition, history, and scholarship. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(1), article 11. http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol13/issue1/boyd.ellison.htm

Every day several million of people talk and communicate using

social network platforms

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SOCIAL NETWORK

From the report Mapping Digital Media Italy

A report by the Open Society Foundation http://bit.ly/HetktK

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SOCIAL NETWORK

In Italy almost one person out of three has a Facebook account and

the trend is increasing especially among young people . Jan. 2012 http://www.fortunecat.it/facebook-statistics/

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SOCIAL NETWORK

In Trentino: 180 thousands Facebook users (almost 1/3),

more than 80 thousands in Trento city only

Source: Trentinosviluppo - http://tinyurl.com/d3qhs9g 14

SOCIAL NETWORK

“11 years old” is the average age in which

people learn how to use a computer in

Trentino

Almost all of the young people in Trentino

(93,3%) has an internet connection at

home

82% of students (aged 14-19) has a

Facebook account, more than a half

(51,1%) uses it every day

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Young people in Trentino

SOCIAL NETWORK

Source: Livememories project survey http://bit.ly/GWkR0G

Clearly there is a great potential

for a direct citizen involvement in

public decision and policy

buidling – especially young

people - and for their mobilization

and participation to civic life in

general….

SOCIAL NETWORK

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Potential

What is Trentino Doing?

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Institutional use of SN

Trentino

The Province “as an institution”

is doing a quite good use of the

new mediums

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Blog PASSO

Trentino

Brand new initiative (launched in March

2012), that wishes to leverage co-

participation and direct user-citizen input in

the discussion of sustainable development

for the Province

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Le storie di timu

The blog rightly whishes to leverage

“many-to-many” communication and

discontinuity but it lacks an

understanding of “compression” and

“speed”

=> One has to read and comment a

36 pages long pdf document

Blog PASSO

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Plan for Education and Literacy

Trentino

New Media literacy especially for

young people is regarded as crucial.

Although the focus is mainly directed

toward education against “threats”

(e.g. Privacy, Scams, Identity

Theft…).

What about education for “speed”,

“compression”, “produsage” and so

forth…?

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Natural Science Museum

Trentino

Is doing a very good job with its

Facebok page

=> A lot of community

management work has been done

here in order to leverage

participation…

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Self-Organizing groups

Trentino

Self Organised Facebook local groups like “Genitori

a Trento e Dintorni” (Parents in Trento): they are a

network of people that contribute to improving civic

“offline” life (for families).. > 1K Subscribers

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Viral produsage content

Trentino

Viral Youtube Music Video

crafted by a local musician (Feb.

2012) – was hit by 20K people in

3-4 days

Immeditely “adopted” by the

Local Tourism Promotion Agency,

“probably” with far less results.

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Fondazione <ahref

Trentino

Promoted by the Autonomous

Province Trento as an R&D

centre focused on new media,

internet and social network

Launched in September 2010

http://www.ahref.eu/eng

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Main Projects

Trentino

Platforms for digital storytelling

and Media Literacy.

timu: platform for collective

storytelling on relevant national

and local themes http://www.timu.it

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Main Projects

Trentino

Media literacy education..

Privacy Traders: a live game we

play in schools (age 14-19) which

teaches how SNs exploit

personal user data and the

privacy threats implied thereof…

Key themes to work on…[my taste]

We are still beginning to explore the

potential and risks of reputation for a

better internet governance:

• Fair, transparent and open reputation

algorithms (who owns them?)

• Ownership of reputation data (should

these be open too?)

• Representation & Power

(representation is not neutral)

Reputation

Looking forward

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People do a lot of productive

things with these platforms and

there is the potential for

creation of economic value,

more entertaining working

conditions and for the delivery

of innovative private and public

services.

Massively Multiplayer Virtual

Environments

Looking forward

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One cannot just open an Institutional

Facebook account or anything

“social” and pretend it will live alone

or deliver “the magic” of SN.

The community must be continously

“cultivated”, time and manpower

must be invested.

Community Management

Looking forward

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Use of game mechanichs in

non-game situations:

This is a new trend in web and

mobile Human Computer

Interaction, it promises to make

participation more fun and

engaging

Gamification

Looking forward

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