[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]
How Internet Is Ruining Representative Government (fwd)
This is from a First Amendment list. Cokie Roberts, in a column, complains
that the Internet will ruin representative democracy. Of course, I should
point out that she comes from a family full of Louisiana politicians, so
maybe she's got a vested interest -- as the response at the bottom points
out. But does she have a valid point? I don't think so, but then again, I
believe in full access to public information and I've seen firsthand what
Louisiana politicians are capable of.
Joey
>Forwarded for educational purposes only.
>
>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>*Date: Fri, 11 Apr 1997 17:49:03 -0400 (EDT)
>*From: James Love <love@tap.org>
>*To: Multiple recipients of list <info-policy-notes@essential.org>
>*Subject: Cokie Roberts on How Internet Is Ruining Representative Government
>
>This is a real syndicated column by Cokie Roberts. It is not a spoof.
>Cokie interviewed me about how the Internet is changing the relationship
>between citizens and government agencies, after she read about the FTC's
>decision to take email comments on the Staples merger. She then wrote
>this astonishing column with her husband, Steven Roberts. At the end of
>Cokie's column is a letter to the editor sent by Susan Ashdown, a reader
>of the Salt Lake Tribune, which is one of newspapers which ran the column.
>Since Susan brought this to my attention, I am including her letter.
>Cokie and Steven Roberts column, and Susan's letter to the editor, are
>redistributed with permission. Jamie Love (love@tap.org, 202.387.8030
> http://www.cptech.org
>
>
>Salt Lake Tribune, April 5, 1997, Page A-11
>
>Internet Could Become a Threat To Representative Government
>
>Cokie Roberts and Steven Roberts
>
>United Features
>
>Cyber seduction, cult by computer, kids caught in an indecent web! The
>headlines have been scary of late as we learn more about the dangers of
>the brave new world of the Internet.
>
>To be sure, the experts keep assuring us that the World Wide Web does more
>good than harm-that it can help young people find facts, police officers
>hunt down clues, and citizens communicate with their government.
>
>"If you're on-line, you're inside the Beltway," in the opinion of Graeme
>Browning, author of the book Electronic Democracy, which argues that the
>Internet is making individuals more politically powerful. Sounds good,
>but is it?
>
>For many parents, the idea of yet another influence in their children's
>lives over which they have no control is threatening. The horrible
>thought that, in the privacy of your own home, your child could be the
>target of some sick predator was frightening enough. Now, since reading
>the news recently, the fear of recruitment to some kooky cult must be
>added to the list of computer concerns.
>
>Responding to those worries, Congress passed the Computer Decency Act,
>aimed at blocking pornography on the Internet. The law was immediately
>challenged as an unconstitutional abridgement of free speech, and last
>month the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the case. In their
>questions the justices revealed the same wide-eyed wonder we feel when
>hearing about the latest form of communication. What is this thing
>anyway? How does it work and what can it do?
>
>One thing it clearly can do is bring citizens more into the
>decision-making processes of government. That came home to us recently
>when we heard that the Federal Trade Commission was accepting electronic
>mail on the question of whether Office Depot stores should be allowed to
>merge with Staples. The FTC has so far received thousands of comments and
>a spokeswoman says that, although the merger decision won't be based on
>what the agency hears from the public, she thinks the e-mail is a good
>idea. The FTC decided to do it, she admitted, because of pressure from
>the Consumer Project on Technology.
>
>"The Internet is the best thing in my lifetime for grassroots organizing,"
>exults the Project's director, Jamie Love. He's managed to use the system
>to influence various government agencies, and to educate the public. Love
>argues that this type of organization and communication cuts through the
>special interest politics that he believes rules Washington. "I think
>there's a general sense that people who can hire a guy and game the system
>have a leg up," says Love.
>
>Somewhere between 250,000 to 350,000 people check into the site dealing
>with congressional activities every day. And then many of these people
>get in touch with their representatives, by e-mail, of course.
>
>They also get in touch with each other on public policy issues. According
>to Love, it's like an electronic town meeting. That analogy makes our
>blood run cold. Remember, that was Ross Perot's big idea. Let's just all
>get together, via computer, and let the politicians know what we want, so
>then they will do it! No more pandering to the big contributors, no more
>deals between members, just the voice of the people will be heard!
>
>We hear that and shudder. To us it sounds like no more deliberation, no
>more consideration of an issue over a long period of time, no more
>balancing of regional and ethnic interests, no more protection of minority
>views.
>
>The Founders were clear in their advocacy of representative democracy as
>opposed to direct democracy. In The Federalist, James Madison asserted
>that "the public voice pronounced by the representatives of the people
>will be more consonant to the public good than if announced by the people
>themselves convened for that purpose."
>
>But representative government is under attack. "We've been electing
>people for years and never been in worse shape and felt more
>disconnected," says Barbara Vincent of the National Referendum Movement.
>Her organization wants to put initiatives and referenda on the ballots of
>every state so that the people can decide "the really important issues"
>while Congress can handle "everyday affairs." And Ms. Vincent has public
>opinion on her side. In a bipartisan poll, fully three-quarters of the
>people said they favored putting national issues on ballots across the
>country.
>
>Computers could make that possible. And, if we're not careful, they
>might. Jamie Love is right that people think the game is fixed, and
>Barbara Vincent is right that the voters feel disconnected. The best
>thing the lawmakers can do to fix that is to call a halt to the money
>chase, to show constituents that they count. If that doesn't happen,
>congress could eventually find its very existence threatened, thanks to
>the Internet. And that would make the current debate over pornography
>seem like small potatoes.
>
>
>-------------------
>
>
>Date: Fri, 11 Apr 1997 14:31:21 -0600
>From: Sue Ashdown <zero@xmission.com>
>
>
>To the Editors of the Salt Lake Tribune & United Features:
>
> Now I've heard everything. The Internet is nothing but a
>cyber-sewer, full of smut, cults, and now an even greater danger: easy
>access to government officials. Cokie Roberts and her husband say their
>"blood runs cold" at the idea of citizens emailing their opinions directly
>to the Federal Government instead of channeling them through their
>"representatives". They argue that it would mean the end of reasoned
>consideration of a variety of views, and worse, it might bring us closer
>to direct instead of representative democracy - not what the Founding
>Fathers intended. (The Founders weren't too keen on emancipation either,
>but never mind.)
>
> Talk about the end of reason. I fail to see how the direct
>expression of public opinion logically leads to the destruction of careful
>deliberation. Perot wasn't my choice for President, but the mere fact
>that "electronic town meetings" were his "big idea" does not automatically
>make them meritless.
>
> Personally my blood runs cold when I think of the representative
>democracy Cokie has in mind. Her brother, Tommy Boggs, of the Washington
>law firm Patton, Boggs & Blow made quite a name for himself as a lobbyist
>arguing strenuously on behalf of erstwhile Guatemalan dictators and death
>squad financiers in the 1980's and early 1990's. If as the Roberts claim,
>a halt to the money chase is a far better solution to voter discontent
>than the airing of public opinion through the Internet, then presumably
>this means that Tommy's firm will find better uses for its generous cash
>donations to candidates across the political spectrum. I can understand
>Cokie standing up for her brother's interests - I'd do the same for mine,
>who's done reasonably well as an Internet Service Provider, but at least
>I'd reveal my motives.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Sue Ashdown
> Salt Lake City, Utah
>
*************************************************************
* Joey Senat *
* Doctoral Student *
* School of Journalism & Mass Communication *
* University of North Carolina @ Chapel Hill *
* *
* Voice: (910) 584-6172 *
* E-Mail: jsenat@email.unc.edu *
* *
* 1849 Stratford Road *
* Burlington, NC 27217 *
* *
*************************************************************
Follow-Ups: