Today I attended the Berkman Center luncheon presentation by Victoria Stodden of Stanford University on “The Internet and Democracy: Problems and Ideas.” (The event was webcast live.) Her talk inspired an animated discussion of what empirical methods are most appropriate for studying the Internet's effect on the democracy. Victoria said that the Internet could potentially affect democracy in three way: 1. by disseminating information (increase in accessibility of information, increased accountability, more informed citizens) 2. as a tool for democratic processes (online voting, activist mobilization) 3. as a means of educating people about democratic values (respect for human rights, freedom ... Leer más
