In Axel Bruns article ‘The Future is User-Led: The Path Towards Widespread Produsage’ there is a section entitled ‘Produsing Democracy’ in which he delves into the way in which Produsage can, and is, being utilized to change the face of democracy (Bruns, 2007, 9). The active participation of produsers across the board is seen as a sign that this increased participation can be used for the betterment of the democratic process. This viewpoint, while not without a fair degree of merit, is also a little too premature and perhaps a little to optimistic to truly be seen as the second coming of democracy.
Democracy is defined as a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections. A government by the people then, so ideally, for a government such as this to be truly representative the active participation of the people involved is essential. We do not live in a perfect world, however, and politics is still often seen as the domain of a ‘higher class’ of citizen. This viewpoint has roots in the beginnings of the process, for example, in the first forty years of American Congress the newspaper clippings which followed politics “were read by literate, relatively affluent, and politically active persons who could afford the price of a newspaper subscription,” and this was only about five to ten per cent of the population (O’Blanchard, 1974, 78). So while the concept of a large scale political following does not exactly have history behind it, history does seem to suggest that the new opportunities opened up to citizens through Produsage will definitely make a difference to the political process.
For the advent of the radio allowed political news to reach many more then it had in print media alone allowing for a more efficient and ideal form of democracy which is still a primary, if often overlooked, source of political news (Drew & Weaver, 2006, 25). The same can be said of television as it emerged as the number one source of political information, all of which bodes well for the ability of interactive technologies and Produsage to improve the democratic process. It is important not to get ahead of ourselves, however, for the evidence suggests the effect of these new technologies is less then one may think. While using the internet to obtain and engage with party members is beginning to be seen as a worthwhile approach “on its own it won’t have much effect on political support” and as such “Internet popularity does not yet make or break elections” (Bartlett, 2008). And while the numbers of internet users and produsers engaging with politics is rising evidence from the 2004 federal election suggests that this activity is coming from a small amount of extremely active users who, in all likelihood, would be engaging politically regardless. So while it is clear that Produsage and the internet will have an effect on democracy it is the extent to which this technology will change the structure of the system that is most contentious – it seems unlikely to serve in galvanizing citizens and lead to a new era in democracy. This new era was tagged by Bruns as “Demodynamics” which he defines as being “based on molecular politics. It comes into being from the cycle of listening, expression, evaluation, organization, lateral connection, and emerging vision … a people in labor, a people yet to come” (Bruns, 2007, 9).
The evidence suggests, however, that these ‘people in labor’ have a little while to wait yet, for as recently as 2004 (an election in which the internet was widely available for) only a little over sixty percent voted in the presidential election. This voter apathy extends to Australia also where despite compulsory voting there are many who choose to donkey vote, which is a method of making their vote invalid. It is relatively clear that no matter the improvements in technology there will always be those who are too disillusioned or just not interested enough to participate in the political process.
Bartlett, A. (2008) Using the Internet for Politics The
Bruns, A (2007) The Future is User-Led: The Path towards Widespread Produsage PerthDAC Conference
Drew, D. & Weaver, D. (2006) Voter Learning in the 2004 Presidential Election: Did the Media Matter? Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly
O’Blanchard, R. (1974) Congress and the Press: An Historical Sketch Journal of Communication
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