The Internet and Political Action

LM350 Computer Mediated Communication

Sources

Kathy Crilley. (2001). Information Warfare in ASLIB Proceedings, 53/7

Stephen Lax. (2000). Internet and democracy in Gauntlett, D., Web.Studies

Taylor, Philip. (2000). The WWW Goes to War: Kosovo, 1999, Gauntlett, D., Web.Studies

Jan van Dijk (1999). The Network Society.

CMC and politics: the possibilities

Governments - national, local General political groupings - from parties to small groups, e.g.

Labour Party, Scottish Nationalists, Socialist Workers Party, British National Party

Pressure groups, often one-issue, e.g. animal rights, anti-war, anti-globalisation, environmental

Activist groups set up around one instance of an issue, e.g. anti-Iraq war, anti “ghost ships”, support foxhunting, supporting comrades imprisoned after actions and so on

CMC and politics: the possibilities

Each type will have different needs, capacity, traditions of:

– recruitment, – publicity, – Information gathering– information/propaganda provision, – internal/external communication, – fund raising, – internal organisation, – event management, – activity, etc

Two cases

China and the Internet

Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty

(then in 2nd hour, Stop the War in Iraq)

Typical vision

"Technology will make it increasingly difficult for the state to control the information its people receive. ... The Goliath of totalitarianism will be brought down by the David of the microchip."

Ronald Reagan, speech at London Guildhall, 14 June 1989.

Government

Official line on events can be undermined by other news sources becoming available, e.g.:

– Reporters using satellite phones on ground– Al-Jazeera on Web– Iraqi web loggers

Government

controlling regimes undermined by “agile’ ICT, e.g.:

– Malaysia – Korea– China

Activist Groups

Political left wing/anarchist etc Extreme right wing, neo-nazi Environmentalists Animal Rights

Typical vision

It's difficult to talk about how the Internet has affected politics, as in reality, we've hardly seen the effect that could be. I posit that the Internet won't begin to have a real, direct impact that everyone can acknowledge until there are a significant degree of actual connections between online activity and the offline world. -

Steve Magruder, Director, Democracy 2.0

Typical vision (US presidential elections)

These are sophisticated technologists with a special interest eye toward the preservation of specific rights in their brave new environment. Its an exclusive club, but a well meaning club… While i don't begrudge the Dean-enthusiasts who put a campaign donation on their credit cards, turn up for a rally, or sign an electronic petition while slogging a diet coke, i wonder to myself: is it really activism? I'm unconvinced. It doesn't feel like activism.

- Lars Hasselblad Torres, AmericaSpeaks