10 Dec 2009
A new project which will examine how the internet affects political participation and campaigning in elections is to start next year.
Rachel Gibson, Professor of Political Science at The University of Manchester has been awarded a Fellowship by the Economic and Social Research Council to look into the issue.
'The Internet, Electoral Politics and Citizen Participation in Global Perspective' will concentrate on the UK and Australian parliamentary elections in 2010 and French and U.S. presidential elections in 2012.
The researcher based at the University’s Institute for Social Change said: “This project focuses on the uptake of web 2.0 tools by parties, candidates and voters.
“It will ask if this process is fostering a new type of networked political activism - citizen-campaigning - that challenges established modes of election behaviour and management.
“The research questions are explored using a range of original data including campaign sites, elite and public opinion surveys and new and innovative methodologies developed specifically for web 2.0 platforms."
Professor Gibson will examine if blogs, online video and social networking sites enable 'ordinary' voters to play a greater role in the coordination and communication of campaigning
She will also ask if the form engagement will strengthen the representative model government or encourage a more direct style of involvement by citizens and a by-passing of intermediaries.
She added: ”Do these new media shift power away from established elites, party members and activists?
“If so, what factors help to promote this new type of activism at the individual, organisational and institutional level and what does it mean for parties, participation and the wider political system?”
Notes for editors
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