Johnson Congress Online

Bridging the Gap Between Citizens and their Representatives
Erscheinungsjahr 2013
ISBN: 978-1-135-93935-9
Verlag: CRC Press
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 256 Seiten

While more than a million e-mails clog the inboxes of Congress each day, some legislators can't even find their own websites without the help of their staffers. In fact, laptops aren't even allowed on the floor of the House or Senate.

But, as Dennis W. Johnson demonstrates in Congress Online, there are some savvy legislators who are taking advantage of new media to expand their power and influence-and the Congressional communications revolution is just beginning. Born out of a Pew Charitable Trusts research project of the same name, Congress Online is the definitive guide to electronic politics, pointing the way to a system that could forge a new and more immediate connection between legislators and the American people.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Johnson, Dennis W.

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politische Systeme Politische Parteien

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Acknowledgments
List of Tables
Introduction
Who Uses E-Mail and the Internet
How Congress Communicates with the Public
Different Audiences
Forms of Communication
Part One: The Wired Citizen
1. The New Grassroots Citizenry
Information at the Click of a Mouse
Connecting with Other Citizens
Direct Electronic Advocacy
2. Rise of Electronic Advocacy
Where Do All the E-Mails Come From?
Attraction of E-Mail as an Advocacy Tool
The Perfect Communication Tool
Websites as Advocacy Tools
Electronic Advocacy Business
Electronic Grassroots and Future Advocacy
3. Electronic Government
Transformation of Government
State and Local Governments Go to the Web
Promise of Websites
Examples of Best Websites
Interesting Features
Opportunities and Issues with Government Websites and E-Mail
E-Democracy at the Local Level
The Federal Government on the Web
Opportunities and Challenges
Electronic Government and Congress
Part Two: Congress Responds
4. Old Communications and New
Adapting to New Technologies
CyberCongress
Internal Review and Criticism of New Technology
Computers, E-Mail, and Websites
5. E-mail Overload
Current State of Congressional E-mail
Who Reads the Mail?
E-mail Issues
After September 11th
Reaching Out to Constituents
The Promise of Electronic Mail
6. Congressional Websites
Evaluating Congressional Websites
Member Websites
Outstanding Features
Problems Persist
Committee and Leadership Websites
What Is Not on Congressional Websites
A Congressional Portal
Part Three: Online Democracy and Communication
7. Challenges and Opportunities
Spending More Time in the District
Access to Committee Hearings
60-Day Rule
A Congressional Chief Information Officer
Communication after September 11th and Anthrax
Digital Information
Learning from State Legislatures
8.Congress and the Deliberative Process
A Virtual Congress
Communicating Across the Divide
Appendixes
A. Research Methodology and Best Practices
B. Best Websites in Congress
C. Other Government Websites
D. Citizen-Oriented Websites
E. Congressional Website Statistics
F. Project VoteSmart: National Political Awareness Test
Notes
Index

Über Autor(innen)

Dennis W. Johnson, Associate Dean of the Graduate School of Political Management at George Washington University, is the Principal Investigator of the Congress Online Project. A leading expert on political life inside the beltway, he is author of No Place for Amateurs. He has been interviewed about his current work in the New York Times, in the Washington Post and on NPR.