|
Grassroots Mobilization
The participatory form of democracy which electronic
networks assist and
create can help stir political activism on an unrestricted level. Ideally,
this activity occurs in a realm akin to Habermas' public
sphere, which
exists
outside of the dominant institutions of government and business. Through
bulletin boards, e-mail and the World Wide Web, individuals who otherwise
might never have contact, can interact and coordinate on any number of
issues.
Concerted efforts to create public forums for discussion often lead to
the inception of new communities which can organize for political goals.
In his analysis of The Telecommunications Policy Roundtable- Northeast
USA,
Hans Klein observes that "Much of the work of grassroots activism consists
in assembling groups of people with common concerns and communicating
with
each other to formulate a common agenda (Klein 4)."
In many ways the
Internet
disregards status, race, gender and other classifications which tend
to
marginalize groups. Instead, people interact with
each other on an equal
level of concern, rather than physical or societal attribute. Every
on-line
user is provided with the same access to information,
and this information
can enable minority and local voices to be heard.
The relatively low cost of organization on the Internet also facilitates
this type of grassroots activity. For instance, the American Physical
Society,
a professional group of physicists, held elections in which a faction of
young members hoped to express to the governing council their unhappiness
with the dearth of jobs openings for new physicists. The group utilized
the Internet to reach the society's 44,000 members and obtained the required
430 signatures required to get a space on the ballot for the elections to
the council. Such an uprising was unprecedented in the society's 100
years of existence. "Zachary Levine, one of the campaigners, estimates that
the
exercise cost a mere $180; using the post and long-distance telephone calls
might have cost $2000, and made the effort impractical
(Economist 4)."
The affordability of communication through electronic networks, then,
can unsettle traditional hierarchies in government,
business and society.
Individuals and other groups can more fully participate in the democratic
process without barriers or external coercion.
|