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Topics:
Civic Communication
Community
Networks
Building a New Participatory Medium
by
Douglas Schuler, 1994
I know of no safe depository of the ultimate power of the society
but the people themselves, and if we think them not enlightened
enough to exercise their control with a wholesome discretion,
the remedy is not to take it from them, but to inform their discretion.
-
Thomas Jefferson
1. Community
The well-being
of communities contributes to the well-being of the commonweal
but the importance of community is no longer taken for granted.
Communities are distinguished by lively interaction and engagement
on issues of mutual concern but there is a growing view that the
strands of community life are unraveling - violence, alcohol and
drug use, crime, alienation, degradation of the political process,
and ineffectual social institutions
are increasingly accepted as inevitable "givens." Computers and
communication technology are often touted as saviors of the modern
age but the benefits of the "computer revolution" are unevenly
distributed and the lack of access to communication technology
contributes to the widening gulf between socio-economic classes
[9].
Some advocates believe that computer technology in concert with
other efforts, could play a role in rebuilding community by improving
communication, economic opportunity, civic participation, and
education. Whether these aims are realized will depend to a large
degree on computer professionals whose experience and expertise
make them vital participants in the development of future systems.
1.1 Community Networks
Community
members and activists all over the the world have developed and
are developing community-oriented electronic bulletin boards or
community networks with a local focus. These community networks,
some with user populations in the tens of thousands, are intended
to advance social goals such as building community awareness,
encouraging involvement in local decision-making, or developing
economic opportunities in disadvantaged communities. They're intended
to provide "one-stop shopping" using community-oriented discussions,
question and answer forums, electronic access to government employees
and information, access to social services, electronic mail, and
in many cases, Internet access. These networks are also beginning
to integrate services and information found on existing electronic
bulletin board systems and on other remote systems. The most important
aspect of community networks, however, is their immense potential
for participation (Sidebar
1).
1.2 The Community Network Movement
An ad-hoc
alliance of librarians, educators, network and bulletin board
systems users, community activists, social service providers,
government
agencies, and concerned computer professionals is developing around
the
community network issue. Several distribution lists now exist
on the
Internet (Sidebar 2) providing active forums on these issues.
There are an
increasing number of conferences and workshops on these topics
including two influential roundtables organized by Richard Civille
for Computer
Professionals for Social Responsibility and for the Center for
Civic
Networking. Organizations increasingly are rallying around this
issue
(Sidebar 3).
In the "Apple Library of Tomorrow for 1993" call for proposals,
Steve Cisler noted, "In 1992 it can honestly be called a movement.
In many people's minds the model of a citizens-based, geographically
delimited community information system has taken hold" [6].
As of this writing, community networks are planned or are in operation
in over 100 locations in the United States.
2 A Sampling of Community Networks
Several existing
systems are briefly presented below to illustrate the wide-range
of motivations, services, and approaches to community networking.
2.1 Community Memory - A Virtual People's Park
Community
Memory of Berkeley, California, created by Efrem Lipkin, Lee Felsenstein,
and Ken Colstad, was the first community network [14].
Initially started in the mid 70's as a follow up to experiments
conducted in 1972 and 1973 on unmediated two-way access to a message
database through public computer terminals, Community Memory was
conceived as a tool to help strengthen the Berkeley community.
Their brochure states that "strong, free, non-hierarchical channels
of communication - whether by computer and modem, pen and ink,
telephone, or face-to-face - are the front line of reclaiming
and revitalizing our communities." Their commitment to serving
those without ready access to information technology is demonstrated
by numerous training programs and their insistence that all Community
Memory terminals be in public places: terminals can be found in
libraries and in Laundromats but can't be reached via modem or
from the Internet. Community Memory has adopted a creative approach
to funding: They offer coin-operated terminals which are free
to read, but require 25 cents to post an opinion and a dollar
to start a new forum.
Community Memory has pushed its principles to their logical limits.
Anonymity, for example, is possible because users are not required
to use their own name or register to use the system. Perhaps the
most noteworthy of their convictions is that all of the information
on the system is community generated. This has two important implications.
The first is that no central authority of any kind establishes
what information is available. The other is that information (such
as Internet newsgroups) is not imported from other sites. One
of their most noteworthy projects is the "Alameda County War Memorial
Project" in which information on every deceased veteran in Alameda
County is stored on the system. According to their newsletter,
"Friends and family can share their thoughts and reminiscences
at the memorial screen of their friend or relative. This unique
capability enables the Alameda County Veteran's Memorial to become
a growing piece of community history."
2.2 Cleveland (and other) Free-Nets
Electronic Infrastructure for the 21st Century City
The Cleveland
Free-Net, operating out of Case-Western University, has over 35,000
registered users and over 10,000 logins per day and is probably
the largest community network in the world. It originated as "St.
Silicon's Hospital and Dispensary" in 1986, in an electronic question
and answer forum devoted to medical topics. This format still
persists and is a major part of the system. Doctors, lawyers,
automotive mechanics and others answer questions on-line. The
Free-Nets all use a "city" metaphor to orient users (Figure 1).
One has to go to the appropriate "building" to find the desired
information or services. Supreme Court decisions, for example,
will be found in the Courthouse building. Free-Nets now exist
in Peoria, Illinois, Denver, Colorado, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada,
Youngstown, Ohio and many other locations and are linked into
a National Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN) (Sidebar
4) which includes national as well as international sites.
2.3 Big Sky Telegraph
Western Ingenuity Overcoming Rural Long Distances
Frank Odasz
of Western Montana University in Dillon started the Big Sky Telegraph
[17] in 1988 by electronically linking one-
and two- room school houses across Montana. Now a fully distributed
system consisting of "Big Skies" and "Little Skies", Big Sky Telegraph
is an "action-oriented rural telecomputing testbed" designed to
overcome some of the problems of the rural American west related
to sparse population and long distances between communities. Big
Sky Telegraph's approach is appropriate technology to demonstrate
"low-cost, low-tech, high-imagination, scalable networking models."
Education is the key and economic opportunity and sufficiency
are the goals. Big Sky Telegraph offers 600 K-12 lesson plans
and serves as a "telecurricular clearinghouse" for K-12 projects
running on networks all over the world. It uses the telegraph
metaphor, an approach reflecting the influential communication
technology of the last century. As their brochure on "Homesteading
the Educational Frontier" states, "Teachers in rural Montana serving
as Circuit Riders, Community Telegraphers, and Teletutors have
used modems to overcome time, distance, and economic limitations
to empower rural education and community survival through the
Big Sky Telegraph network."
2.4 Public Electronic Network (PEN)
A New Urban Polis
The Public
Electronic Network (PEN) in Santa Monica, California is a
computer system designed to promote community-oriented participatory
democracy. Citizens can converse with public officials and city
servants as
well as with each other. It was established in 1989 and has over
3000
registered users and over 500 user logons per month. PEN provides
access to
city government information such as city council agendas, reports,
public
safety tips and the library's on-line catalog and to government
services
such as obtaining permits. PEN also provides e-mail and conferences
on a
wide variety of local civic issues. PEN has served as an early
test-bed for
many ideas related to "electronic democracy" and Pamela Verley
[24] has
documented some of the problems that have surfaced using this
medium.
2.5 Electronic Cafe International
Cultural Explorations with Video Technology
The Electronic
Cafe in Santa Monica, California, serves live multimedia cultural
events with participants at remote sites as well as food. Using
affordable technology such as slow-scan television over voice-grade
telephone lines, Kit Galloway and Sherry Rabinowitz, have hosted
a multitude of real-time encounters. Most notable, perhaps, was
their 1984 linking of eight family-owned restaurants in the Los
Angeles area into a shared video, audio, text, and "sketch" space.
This cultural exploration was widely enjoyed by community residents
and was a pioneer "groupware" application. Other cafes have been
set up at the Telluride IDEAS festival (July, 1993) and at CPSR's
annual meeting in Seattle (October, 1993). The Electronic Cafe's
explorations into multimedia, cultural diversity, international
communications, and aesthetics serve as excellent reminders of
creative opportunities that transcend conventional text and discussion-based
approaches.
2.6 A Clearinghouse of Community Networks Information
Assessing
the size and scope of the Community Networking Movement is difficult
due to the scarcity of data and the rapidly changing situation.
This lack of data prevents researchers from adequately investigating
the movement and inhibits communication between community network
developers. To begin to address these needs I developed a survey
which was sent to system administrators and electronic distribution
lists (Sidebar 5). Of the over 100 systems that are either operational
or planned, completed surveys on over 30 systems (in addition
to the survey form and instructions) are available electronically
(Sidebar 6). Each completed survey is dated and developers are
encouraged to submit updated surveys when the system changes,
so that an informal record of system evolution will be available.
From the limited data, some observations can be made. Approximately
63% of the systems are operational with the remainder in the planning
or prototype stage. With the exception of the Big Sky Telegraph
the systems serve urban or suburban populations and are distributed
all over the United States and Canada. In the majority of cases
(51%) a university is associated with the community network. Libraries
have some sort of association with many of the systems (45%).
Of the operational community networks the access methods vary:
1 (5%) relies on list servers in which e-mail is sent to the server
and is distributed electronically to the list subscribers; 16
(76 %) have Internet connections of some kind; 19 (90 %) have
dial-up connections and two of these, the Boston Peace and Justice
Hotline and RTK Net contain audio information only and a touchtone
telephone is the user terminal; Finally Community Memory in Berkeley
has public access, dedicated terminals only.
3.
Addressing Community Needs
As Langdon
Winner [25] has pointed out artifacts, being
the result of human conscious and subconscious design, necessarily
have "politics" that encourage certain attitudes and values and
discourage others. As with other designed artifacts, input at
early stages has stronger and more long-lasting influence on the
system than input at later stages. As Winner explains, "Because
choices tend to become strongly fixed in material equipment, economic
investment, and social habit, the original flexibility vanishes
for all practical purposes once the initial commitments are made."
He goes on to say that, "The same careful attention one would
give to the rules, roles, and relationships of politics must also
be given to such things as the building of highways, the creation
of television networks, and the tailoring of seemingly insignificant
features on new machines." Community networks are no exception.
In fact, the issue of attitudes and values - the politics of community
networks - makes participation in community network development
important.
The "politics" that are "designed-into" community networks must
address community needs. In accordance with that philosophy the
Seattle Community Network (Sidebar
8) developed five interrelated needs and summary statements
that apply to the community at large as well as smaller communities
within the larger community.
Community Cohesion
Communities need to be more cohesive, safer, healthier, and more
caring.
Opportunities for participation must be developed for all people,
and
disadvantaged neighborhoods need improved economic opportunity.
The Informed Citizen
People need and want to be well-informed. They need high-quality,
timely, and reliable information. They are interested in a wide
range of opinions from a wide variety of sources.
Access to Education and Training
People need training to use technology effectively. People need
to be able to learn independently over the course of their lifetimes.
Strong Democracy
People need an inclusive, effective, ethical and enlightened democracy.
An Effective Process
People need a process by which the above needs can be met.
For each need, the SCN group generated a specific measurable objective,
a procedure for attaining the objective, an evaluation procedure
and a budget. This needs analysis can then be used as the basis
of specific proposals.
3.1
Community Cohesion
Developers
must work with community activists and community development organizations
to design new projects and to support and extend existing services
electronically. In Seattle, for example, an "electronic pen-pals"
project to promote communication between school children in diverse
neighborhoods has been proposed. In either case, Participatory
Design principles and techniques of strong user participation
in design are applicable [22].
To truly support community cohesion access must be universal.
The barriers
of cost, availability, literacy, and physical disabilities must
be bridged.
Connecting to community network services must be inexpensive and
easy, and
use open standards. No-cost or minimal cost use from the home
as well as
publicly accessible terminals are required. Potential locations
include
already existing community locations such as libraries, schools,
community
nd senior centers, and parks. Places where people traditionally
congregate
such as bars, coffee houses, laundromats, bus stations, and shopping
malls
are also good candidates. Terminals must become as ubiquitous
as
telephones for use to become a natural, everyday occurrence.
Ray Oldenberg argues in "The Great Good Place" [18]
that people need a
"third place" away from their home - the "first place" - and away
from their
place of work - the "second place." Third places are characterized
by their
location on "neutral ground," a "leveling" tendency where social
and
economic standings (as well as physical characteristics) are greatly
diminished, and as a place where "conversation is the main activity."
Although Oldenberg's "third place" is a physical location such
as a coffee
house or a tavern many attributes of third places can be applied
to
community networks [REF to Rheingold].
3.2
The Informed Citizen
As Paul Resnick
and Mel King explain [20], "There is no such
thing as a poor
community. Even neighborhoods without much money have substantial
human
resources. Often, however, the human resources are not appreciated
or
utilized, partly because people do not have information about
each other and
about what their neighborhood has to offer. For example, a family
whose oil
heater is broken may go cold for lack of knowledge that someone
just down
the block knows how to fix it." Community-oriented "want-ads"
could address
this need. Other useful information includes calendars of events
that are
searchable by topic and date; bus schedules and routes; disaster
preparation; carpool information; question and answer forums conducted
by
doctors, nurses, lawyers, recycling experts, and automotive mechanics;
community maps; and community resources including social services,
job
banks, and after school activities for kids.
3.3
Access to Education and Training
Community
networks can promote education in structured and unstructured
ways. Providing access to community information and network resources
helps people to pursue their own education. More structured approaches
coordinated by professional educators are also possible. Curriculums
and network projects can be shared and both students and teachers
can participate in forums. Big Sky Telegraph and NPTN's Academy
One are involved in many innovative projects. Community networks
can also provide a convenient initial access point for training
the computer-naive as well as the computer-phobic.
Community Networks provide important areas of research (Sidebar
7) but research need not be confined to universities. Community
members themselves can propose and conduct meaningful research
using Participatory Action Research (PAR) techniques. PAR 11]
is an approach to scientific inquiry in which the scientific method
is employed to conduct research while simultaneously bringing
about desired change, such as improving the quality of political
dialogue in a forum. PAR explicitly acknowledges that the dictates
of "normal science" such as repeatability, control variables,
and closed world assumptions are irrelevant in real-world situations
involving people [2]. Findings, for example,
which are related to current community networks may not be applicable
to future systems. Users are full-partners in PAR making it particularly
appropriate in the community network context.
3.4
Strong Democracy
Signs that
the public is interested in pursuing "electronic democracy"
include calls for "Electronic Town Meetings", electronic mail
to President
Clinton, and the popularity of radio and television call-in shows.
Community networks can increase public participation by improving
access to
elected officials and agency employees through e-mail and electronic
forums
[10]. They can also improve access to government
information and services
and be the home of dozens of community-created forums on local
issues. The
technology by itself, however, can't ensure a more strongly democratic
culture - thus the policies and processes that we create deserve
critical
attention.
Voting [13] and other types of democratic participation
are practiced
infrequently in the United States [19]. More
disturbing is the common
attitude that politics is inherently vile and all politicians
are corrupt
[19]. This polarization into "us" and "them"
undermines democratic
potential by discouraging participation. Sad, too, is the evidence
that the
media that is supposed to help citizens make informed decisions
may actually
be contributing to degradation of the political process. For example,
network television's reliance on "sound bites" (averaging 8.5
seconds in
1992 according to the New York Times (10/31/92)) trivializes the
process. A
more serious charge is that of systematic bias. Some critics charge
that
the media is so structurally biased that democratic "consent"
is actually
"manufactured" [REF - Herman & Chomsky]. To counter these
discouraging
trends, increasing media diversity, citizen participation and
access to
communication channels is necessary. It is only then, that the
dream of a
"strong democracy" [1] marked by the "pleasure
of participation" and the
"fellowship of civil association" can become realizable.
3.5
An Effective Process
As community
networks are intended to be developed and maintained by
citizens, we must pay special attention to the process that
institutionalizes them. The process must guide participation in
three major
ways: (1) network design and development; (2) the on-line community;
and (3) governance.
Network Design and Development
The community network organization must develop a shared vision,
a shared
plan, and a shared voice. It must also establish how work will
be
organized, assigned, evaluated, and sanctioned. To this end, the
SCN Project
established five committees - hardware/software, policy, outreach,
services,
staff and facilities - and a steering committee. Communication
approaches
that are informative and inclusive are needed to support both
internal
development and community outreach.
Developing basic documents is another important responsibility.
Documents
include FAQ's (Frequently asked questions), statement of purpose,
principles, business plan and budget 2). Other important documents
include the policy statement which addresses a wide range of complex
issues including censorship, privacy, dealing with grievances,
establishing groups, and other areas and the organization's by-laws
which are legally required and form the basis for system governance
over the years.
The On-Line Community
Participation in the on-line community can take two forms. Basic
participation means participating in forums, including those specifically
devoted to discussing the system and how well it meets community
needs.
Extended use means modifying services, developing new services,
or hosting
forums.
Network Governance
Opportunities for participation extend to roles and responsibilities
that
transcend using the system. These will include (paid) staff roles,
board
members, advisory board members, and volunteers. Areas of responsibilities
include users services such as training and documentation development;
system administration, including user accounts and software installation;
outreach including publicity, fundraising, and communication;
and
executive, including strategic planning, evaluating, and co-designing.
4.
A Model for Community Networks
Community
networks that address the above needs must be developed within
existing social and technological contexts. Pertinent aspects
of the
contexts of community networks are reflected in a model consisting
of two
superimposed architectures. The first architecture (Figure 2a)
depicts the
human context of community networks: how people interact and how
social
systems (including legal, political and economic) influence them.
The
second (Figure 2b) depicts the system's technological infrastructure.
4.1
Social and Political Architecture
There are
five components of the social and political architecture: the
on-
line community; individual and organizational participants; influencing
organizations; the community network organization; and infrastructure
providers.
4.1.1 On-line
Community
The group
of people who use the community network constitutes the "on-line
community." The on-line community is at the center of the social
and
political architecture - if this element is deficient the system
is
deficient. There are three main influences on the on-line community:
the
medium itself - essentially the technical specifications of the
system
including what information and services are available and the
nature of the
interaction approach (forums, "chat", or e-mail, for example);
the user
population or demographics including number and characteristics
of users as
well as formal and informal roles assumed by users; and the resulting
on-
line community or society with its conventions, folkways, interaction
patterns and cast of characters.
John Coate, who worked for the WELL (The "Whole Earth 'Lectronic
Link") for many years, compares a community network to an inn
[7]. While visiting an inn people may talk with
people whom they know or with people that they
encounter. To Coate, facilitating an on-line community is like
"innkeeping"
- the innkeeper encourages interchange between patrons but sometimes
problems arise and order has to be restored. Much has been written
about
proper on-line interactions or "netiquette" but Henry Sedgewick's
seven
rules on the art of conversation (Sidebar
9) may be the most succinct.
4.1.2 Individual and Organizational Participants
Organizations, such as community associations, can provide information
or
services that further their goals. This may echo what they already
disseminate in paper form. Lack of resources or technical expertise
may
inhibit their participation although the promise of increased
penetration,
reduced communication costs, and the desire to "computerize" their
operations may promote participation. Furthermore, organizations
that are
considering making their information or services available electronically
may reduce their costs considerably by not developing an independent
system. An existing community network also makes it easier for
potential clients by providing a common access point.
4.1.3 Influencing Organizations
A wide range of organizations influence community network development
and
coordination. The government's potential for involvement is strongest
- it
can act as both regulator and supporter. Advocacy groups may include
library or educational groups as well as other groups such as
NPTN, CPSR or the Center for Civic Networking. Recently the Corporation
for Public
Broadcasting has launched an initiative to help develop community
networks.
Other organizations may offer a competitive influence, including
the
telephone companies, cable television companies, and various other
media and communication companies. These companies are well-positioned
to address community needs but have not prioritized it.
4.1.4 The Community Network Organization
The network organization is the primary mechanism that ensures
that the
community network is functioning well from technical and social
points-of-
view. It must see that the five needs are being adequately addressed.
It
must be involved with day-to-day operations, including system
maintenance
and administration, as well as community outreach, fundraising,
and
participation in the political process. The organization itself
may be a
nonprofit organization, a nonprofit / government cooperative venture,
a
governmental organization, or a (if certain guidelines are met)
a for-profit
organization. The network could also be allied in coalitions,
cooperatives,
or associations with other organizations. Each of these approaches
carries
with it a set of values, perogatives, and methods and with those
a set of
advantages and disadvantages for participatory community networking.
4.1.5 Infrastructure Providers
Infrastructure providers including Internet providers, telephone
companies,
and cable television companies influence individual community
networks
directly through their rates and policies. Their influence is
more global,
however, largely due to their strong role in public policy through
lobbying
and public relations work. The relations between companies of
this
magnitude have the potential to swamp issues of access and participation.
4.2
Technological Architecture
The technological
architecture roughly parallels the social and political
architecture. The computer system (including software, CPU's,
memory, and
interface devices) is at the core of the system, surrounded by
different
types of users - developers, participants, administrators, information
providers, and other on-line information and services - which
are connected
through delivery channels and interfaces. A few of the most relevant
aspects are listed below.
4.2.1 Hardware
The hardware may be the least complicated component in the model.
The
community network computer needs to be an extremely reliable,
multiprocessing machine whose main role will be gathering input
from users,
accessing data from disk, and presenting output back to users.
The
community network computer must also be configured to communicate
with a
potentially large number of devices. If e-mail and additional
storage are
offered to participants disk drives with gigabytes of storage
will be
required.
4.2.2 Software
A community network at its current state of evolution is essentially
a very
large electronic bulletin board that ideally can accommodate hundreds
of
simultaneous users and a user base of tens of thousands. The software
services that community networks often provide are forums (moderated
and
unmoderated); access to static information contained in files;
e-mail;
download-upload capabilities; chat; remote login; search capabilities;
and
database facilities. In addition, a simple menu structure with
which to
navigate information and services is often used. Furthermore,
the system
must easily incorporate new capabilities, such as search engines,
multimedia
applications, or wide area information servers, as they become
available.
The user interface should be easy to use, consistent, and resistant
to user
input errors. The requirement that the system be accessible from
a wide
variety of terminals argues for a simple, text-based interface.
The
Cleveland Free-Net and other Free-Nets use a city metaphor to
organize the
contents (Figure 1). Placing the information into "buildings"
is
straightforward and users generally know where to look. One question
is how
far can or should the metaphor be taken. As the amount of information
grows
larger, say in the case of legal decisions, one might want to
divide the
buildings into "floors" and the floors into "rooms." As the system
grows
larger the metaphor by itself (i.e. without additional "directories")
will
fail. However, the city metaphor offers user portability: users
who are
familiar with the city metaphor in his or her own community will
be
comfortable with it in another.
4.2.3 Delivery Channels
The term "delivery channel" is applied loosely to the physical
medium plus
the protocol plus the interfaces that allow information to pass
back and
forth between the community network computer and users and other
machines.
It is important to think of delivery channels in a general sense
because the
physical substrate, protocols, and policies are currently in a
state of
flux. Because of this community network proponents must be active
participants in all decisions concerning public uses of delivery
channels
including voice-grade telephone, ISDN, cable television, or radio
transmissions.
5.
Near Term Issues and Decisions
The community
network movement is currently marked by strong interest and
activity. Several issues, however, must be addressed in the short
term if
community networks will have an effective and long-lived influence.
Identifying and addressing these issues is essential to determining
what
steps - including political action - must be taken to ensure the
long-term
health and survival of community networks. The following paragraphs
offer
glimpses of some of these issues.
Funding
Funding is needed for computer and communication equipment as
well as office space and office expenses. Funding is also needed
for administration,
outreach, software development and maintenance. Volunteers and
donated
space and equipment can not meet the need for professional service
over the
long run. On the other hand, funding for community networks so
far has been sporadic and unreliable. Equitable, reliable, and
replicable funding
approaches from indirect and/or direct participants (Figure 3)
must be
developed.
Access and Use
Community network developers speculate that community networks
in the 21st Century will become as common as public libraries
are now. Currently they are available only in few locations and
accessible to relatively few users.
To promote universal use community networks must be easy to use,
easy to
access, and free of structural barriers to their use. In addition,
the
systems must be reliable and responsive; the user interface intuitive
and
non-intimidating; and special purpose interfaces must be developed
for those
with special needs.
While public terminals are critical, penetration into the home
is also
important. People must be able to easily and inexpensively participate
using one or more delivery channels. Telephone, cable television,
radio
transmissions or other approaches are all possible delivery channels
and a
certain percentage of the spectrum should be reserved for public
use.
Community networks must also be able to communicate with each
other and with other electronic services using high-quality, low-cost
technology.
Policy
An information policy must anticipate and address questions and
issues like
the following:
How private is my e-mail?
Can you ever deny me access to the community network?
Can I post "adult" material?
Do I have to use my real name?
How can I register a complaint against a moderator?
I'm receiving abusive e-mail. Can you put an end to it?
I'd like to use the network to advertise my product. Is that OK?
I have a commercial database service. Can you let people login
to it?
The doctor in your question and answer forum gave bad advice.
I'm suing
you!
Someone reprinted my posting in a magazine without my permission!
Somebody on your network posted stolen credit card numbers. We're
confiscating your equipment.
These types of issues reflect in large part the tension that exists
between
individual and community rights. They aren't unique to community
networks
though its status as a new medium means that some community network
issues are unresolved.
We can begin to devise policies based on other media but the analogy
is
often strained. Community networks like libraries must be champions
of free
speech. But disagreements in libraries are between library users
and
contents of books - not between two (or more) library users. Furthermore,
libraries don't officially disallow material but the space limitations
on
their shelves provide implicit constraints unlike those of cyberspace.
Community networks, like telephones, provide a medium for discourse
-
discourse that is sometimes acrimonious. Phone calls, however,
are
fleeting, private, and have few participants. Some "discussions"
in public
electronic forums are more like fist fights involving potentially
large
numbers of participants and spectators - and every spectator optionally
can
record the session which can be disseminated still further.
National Information Infrastructure (NII) and Political Action
The commercial sector is proposing a plethora of innovative programs
which
have become prominent in national media (see, for example, Time
Magazine
cover story on the "Information Superhighway" April 12, 1993).
Nearly absent from this coverage is any mention of public-interest,
truly interactive,
participatory, civic, or community-owned and operated networks.
Large
computer, telecommunications, and media companies are involved
in formal and informal discussions on the future of the NII (in
the Commerce Department's Information Infrastructure Task Force,
for example) but there is little effort to involve citizens in
either education or consultation. Citizens
are largely unfamiliar with the issues that their tax dollars
helped engender and critical decisions may be framed, debated,
and resolved without their input. To redress this oversight the
government should convene a series of local and regional meetings
before critical and potentially irreversible actions are taken.
Encouraging public education and debate at all levels is paramount.
This is
probably addressed most easily by working with local or national
groups (see
sidebar) and by making your concerns known via individual correspondence
and testimony. These groups and others are currently developed
vision statements as well as policy recommendations on these issues.
Another critical area calling for The development of free on-line
services and information should accompany these efforts. Developing
such services benefits community network participants directly
while generally strengthening the community network movement.
By providing high-quality, free services commercial information
and service providers must increase the value of their products.
6.
Directions and Implications
The world
is emerging from a long cold-war that has profoundly influenced
the thinking and behavior of its leaders and citizens. To some
degree the
ending of the cold war has brought with it an unsureness of thought
and of
motivation [5], which prevents us from tackling
problems of national purpose
to address current and future needs with compassion, confidence
and
creativity. As with the section above this section can only offer
glimpses
of the issues facing us in the long-term.
Universal Access and Equitable Participation
Universal access and equitable participation must not erode over
time. We
cannot rely on commercial interests to make the necessary guarantees.
The
overriding concern of profitability, responsibility to shareholders
- not
citizens - and a closed decision-making process argue strenuously
against
it. Furthermore, as Sandra Schickele has demonstrated [23],
the
requirements of the free market mechanism are not met in the case
of the
Internet. She concludes that public subsidy is essential if network
resources are to be made widely available. The need for accountability,
public participation, and visibility clearly point to public ownership.
Increasing the role of government, however, is viewed skeptically
by many.
Government can be corrupt, beholden to special interests, inefficient,
unresponsive, or antagonistic to citizen participation and oversight.
Lack of funds, technological expertise, and experience further
limit government's effectiveness. Nevertheless, community networks
in democratic societies
must ultimately have a close relationship to a government, which
in turn is
controlled by citizens. Osborne and Gaebler's prescriptions for
"reinventing government" [19] particularly those
involving "community-owned
government", "mission-driven government", and "decentralized government"
are particularly relevant in considering the role of government.
Consequences for Democracy
"Electronic democracy" can open new doors for participation but
it is no
panacea - nor is it impervious to abuse. Democracy is vulnerable
to many
threats and "electronic democracy" may be even more vulnerable.
Democracy
without democratic processes is just a word. New processes will
need to be
developed say "Roberts Rules of Order - Revised for Electronic
Participation" - to ensure equity. With many systems, for example,
a single individual or group can monopolize a discussion. A powerful
group could possibly bombard the community network in a sustained,
orchestrated, and persistent manner designed to overwhelm any
opposition. In an even more paranoid scenario, powerful interests
could attempt to shut down the entire community network if they
objected to certain postings.
A Global Community
A global network is quickly becoming a reality. The Institute
for Global
Communications, awarded the Norbert Wiener award by CPSR for its
work in developing network technology to empower previously disenfranchised
individuals and groups working for progressive change, offers
PeaceNet,
EcoNet, ConflictNet, LaborNet, and access to several international
partner
organizations to subscribers in over 70 countries. With truly
global networks impending, it's not too early to begin considering
the prospects of a global community of communities. NPTN affiliates,
for example, already are active in Canada, Mexico, Finland and
Germany. The Community Network Movement should welcome international
partners. We should establish "sister networks", hold joint congresses,
co-develop electronic services and generously share information.
Reports of the birth of a golden age based on global networking
are exaggerated but any relief from humankind's long history of
suffering, death, environmental degradation, and waste that can
be promoted through global networking should be welcome.
New Technologies
New technologies including display devices, wireless, multimedia
and the
like, coupled with new applications and modes of interacting such
as MUDs
[8] and conversational E-mail [REF-Borenstein]
have strong implications for
usability, service providing, and participatory democracy. Technical
innovations should be introduced into community networks when
they will increase the ability to meet user needs; Adopting new
technology, however,
will necessarily introduce some unfamiliarity or resistance. This
translates into disruptions in the user community as prior conventions
and patterns of interactions will require modification. Being
cognizant of these implications will help alert network developers
to the need for training, user preparation, usability testing,
and participatory design.
The incorporation of new technology shouldn't dilute universal
access.
Low-cost text-based terminals must not, for example, be made obsolete
with
the introduction of new graphics technology. The solution probably
will
require multiple user interfaces, resulting in an "interface gap"
but not
sacrificing the basic level of universal access.
Control of Technology
We - in a collective sense - do have some control over technology
and its
effects on us. We attempt to influence the influence and direction
of
technology through its physical design and through policies surrounding
its
use. The idea of "controlling" community networks, however, makes
little
sense. An iterative process of imagining, discussing, prescribing,
monitoring, and evaluating is more in line with our aspirations,
our
limitations, and our habits.
Conclusion
The Community network movement with its great potential for renewed
participation in community life is rapidly gaining momentum. While
the
potential is significant, the realization of this potential will
depend on
active, compassionate, creative, and persistent participation
of computer
professionals and others in technical, social, and political roles.
With
your help community networks will play a part in a revitalized,
richer, and
more inclusive future.
Sidebar 1
Sidebar 2
Sidebar 3
Sidebar 4
Sidebar 5
Sidebar 6
Sidebar 7
Sidebar 8
Sidebar 9
References
1.
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CA. 1984.
2. Baskerville, R. and Wood-Harper, T. A Critical
Perspective on Action
Research as a Method for Information Systems Research, Technical
Report,
State University of New York, Binghamton, NY.
3. Bagdikian, B. The Media Monopoly. Beacon Press,
Boston, Mass 1992.
4. Borenstein, N. Computational Mail as Network
Infrastructure for
Computer-Supported Cooperative Work, In Proceedings of 1992 ACM
Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work, Toronto, Canada.
5. Chapman, G. The National Forum on Science and
Technology Goals:
Building a Democratic Post-Cold War Science and Technology Policy.
This
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6. Cisler, S. Apple Library of Tomorrow Proposal,
Apple Computer
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for Social
Responsibility, Palo Alto, CA.
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- Social Equity
Considerations, forthcoming.
10. Elgin, D. Conscious Democracy Through Electronic
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Earth Review Summer, 1991.
11. Foote Whyte, W. Participatory Action Research.
Sage Publications,
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12. Herman, E. and Chomsky, N. Manufacturing
Consent - The Political
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13. Levine, M. et al. The State and Democracy:
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14. Levy, S. Hackers: Heroes of the Computer
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NY 1984.
15. National Public Telecomputing Network. videotape,
"If it plays in
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OH.
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16. National Public Telecomputing Network. A
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Free-Net Community Computer Systems. National Public Telecomputing
Network. Moreland Hills, OH. 1993.
17. Odasz, F. Big Sky Telegraph. Whole Earth
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18. Oldenberg, R. The Great Good Place. Paragon
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19. Osborne, D., and Gaebler, T. Reinventing
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NY. 1993.
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of Advanced
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Professionals for Social Responsibility, Palo Alto, CA.
21. Rheingold, H. The Great Equalizer. Whole
Earth Review. Summer, 1991.
22. Schuler, D. and Namioka, A. (eds.), Participatory
Design: Principles
and Practice. Lawrence Erlbaum and Associates, Hillsdale, NJ.
1993.
23. Schickele, S. The Economic Case for Public
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Distributed at the "Public Access to the Internet" conference
held at the
Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass.
May 26
and 27, 1993.
24. Verley, P. What's really happening in Santa
Monica? BCS Impact! December, 1992.
25. Winner, L. The Whale and the Reactor - A
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Acknowledgements
I'd like
to thank Ray Alis, Alan Borning, Steve Cisler, Richard Civille,
Andrew Clement, Carl Farrington, Miles Fidelman, Stephanie Fowler,
Dave Levinger, Doug McLaren, Todd Newman, Helen Nissenbaum, Andy
Oram, Evelyn Pine, David Tallan, and Terry Winograd for lots of
helpful suggestions.
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