The political pot of gold at the end of the rainbow seems reachable within the foreseeable future, given a commitment to universal access at least through publicly available terminals and computer-assisted education. This makes the Networld an attractive conduit for democratic discourse.
Predictor: Branscomb, Anne Wells
Prediction, in context:In her 1995 paper “Anonymity, Autonomy and Accountability,” published in the Yale Law Journal, Anne Wells Branscomb writes: ”Many users and proponents of online computer communication tout its capability as the best means by which to achieve the goals of a democratic society. With the opportunity for anyone with access to a computer connected to a modem and a telecommunications system to reach anybody or everybody else so equipped at any time, anywhere, the many-to-many form of communication outperforms all other existing media in its potential utility for electronic democracy. Far from the mass-media mode of newspapers and broadcasting, with their limited interactive responses through letters to the editor and talk television, computer-mediated communication offers open access to uploading messages (speech) and open access to downloading information (also speech). True, there may be a cost associated with this capability, although it is essentially no different from the price of newsprint or television sets. Nonetheless, the political pot of gold at the end of the rainbow seems reachable within the foreseeable future, given a commitment to universal access at least through publicly available terminals and computer-assisted education. This makes the Networld an attractive conduit for democratic discourse.”
Biography:Anne Wells Branscomb, an expert in technology and the law, was the author of “Who Owns Information? From Privacy to Public Access” (Basic Books, 1994), and the 1995 Yale Law Journal article “Anonymity, Autonomy, and Accountability as Challenges to the First Amendment in Cyberspaces.” (Legislator/Politician/Lawyer.)
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Global Relationships/Politics
Subtopic: Democracy
Name of publication: The Yale Law Journal
Title, headline, chapter name: Anonymity, Autonomy, and Accountability: Challenges to the First Amendment in Cyberspaces
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
http://web5.infotrac.galegroup.com/itw/infomark/25/937/33272584w5/purl=rc2_EAIM_1_Anonymity,+autonomy,+and+accountability_________________________________________________________&dyn=sig!1?sw_aep=ncliveec
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Bricker, Erin E.