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E‐GOVERNANCE AND E‐PARTICIPATION VIA ONLINE CITIZEN BUDGETS AND ELECTRONIC LOBBYING: Promises and Challenges

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  • Davin J. Baxter

Abstract

Proponents of e‐government, e‐governance, and e‐participation are particularly excited about the inclusive and empowering nature of some of their recent platforms. Critics nevertheless remain skeptical about how empowering these technologies really are and to what extent they fruitfully contribute to direct democratic processes. This essay reviews online initiatives in two areas (citizen budgets and facilitating citizen lobbying practices) intended to enhance e‐participation and e‐government strategies in the United States and beyond. I suggest that although clear progress has been made in the innovation of e‐governance and information and communication technologies with websites like LobbyForMe and online citizen's budget initiatives, a long road lies ahead before any notable milestone can be acknowledged in respect to full‐blown e‐democracy. Los que apoyan la gobernanza y participación electrónica están particularmente emocionados por la naturaleza inclusiva e inspiradora de sus plataformas recientes. Los críticos, por otro lado, permanecen escépticos acerca de qué tan inspiradoras son estas tecnologías, y de hasta qué grado contribuyen al proceso democrático. Este ensayo revisa iniciativas online en dos áreas (presupuestos ciudadanos online y lobbying electrónico) que intentan ampliar la participación y estrategias de e‐gobierno en los estados unidos y otros países. Sugiero que, a pesar de que se haya progresado mucho en la innovación de la gobernanza electrónica y las TICs en páginas web como LobbyForMe y presupuestos ciudadanos, hay todavía que recorrer un largo camino antes de que cualquier meta importante pueda ser reconocida respecto a la democracia electrónica completa. 电子治理的支持者对其平台的包容性和授权性十分满意。而批评者依然怀疑电子技术的授权能力真正如何，以及这些技术能在多大程度上促进民主进程。本文分析了两个通过实施一系列电子政府平台而”取得民主进步”（democratically progressive）的国家，从而对整体文献进行了补充。文章以其他研究中的实证调查为重点，证明了尽管电子治理和信息通信技术取得了巨大成就，但在承认其具备里程碑式的进步，即电子民主充分发展之前，还有很长一段路要走。本文通过承认电子治理在例如”LobbyForMe”等网站上所取得的进步，进而促进了全球背景下的电子治理研究，同时还强调了这些网络平台在民主政府下的限制，后者在实践中更多实行寡头政治。

Suggested Citation

  • Davin J. Baxter, 2017. "E‐GOVERNANCE AND E‐PARTICIPATION VIA ONLINE CITIZEN BUDGETS AND ELECTRONIC LOBBYING: Promises and Challenges," World Affairs, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 180(4), pages 4-24, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:woraff:v:180:y:2017:i:4:p:4-24
    DOI: 10.1177/0043820018771137
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    2. Anthony Downs, 1957. "An Economic Theory of Political Action in a Democracy," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 65(2), pages 135-135.
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