New methods and new systems must be devised to enable ordinary citizens to reach responsible and informed judgments. Since information has become “society’s main transforming resource,” the public’s ability to receive, absorb, and understand information no longer can be left to happenstance … Without a conscious and deliberate effort to inform public judgment, to put the new interactive telecommunications technologies to work on behalf of democracy, they are more likely to undermine the democratic process than enhance it. With citizens an active branch of the government in the electronic republic, they need to know enough to participate in a responsible and intelligent manner. That will not happen without a great deal of work, systematic planning, and significant policy reform.
Predictor: Grossman, Lawrence K.
Prediction, in context:In his 1995 book “The Electronic Republic: Reshaping Democracy in the Information Age,” Lawrence Grossman, former president of NBC News and PBS, writes: ”In the electronic republic, as citizens at large gain the power of self-governance, the need to inform and educate the American people about … complex issues and about the workings of our political systems has become, if anything, more important than ever … it is obvious that an informed and interested public is key to successful self-governance. With the public at large playing a critical part in the government’s decision-making process, it is essential that the public know what political alternatives are available and what their costs and consequences will be. New methods and new systems must be devised to enable ordinary citizens to reach responsible and informed judgments. Since information has become ‘society’s main transforming resource,’ the public’s ability to receive, absorb, and understand information no longer can be left to happenstance … Information about public issues can be made immediately accessible to every citizen in a form and at a level to suit each individual’s needs. Without a conscious and deliberate effort to inform public judgment, to put the new interactive telecommunications technologies to work on behalf of democracy, they are more likely to undermine the democratic process than enhance it. With citizens an active branch of the government in the electronic republic, they need to know enough to participate in a responsible and intelligent manner. That will not happen without a great deal of work, systematic planning, and significant policy reform.”
Biography:Lawrence Grossman wrote the book “The Electronic Republic: Reshaping Democracy in an Information Age” (Penguin, 1995). The former executive at NBC and PBS urged people to realize that digital communications had altered how things can and should be done. (Author/Editor/Journalist.)
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Global Relationships/Politics
Subtopic: Democracy
Name of publication: The Electronic Republic (book)
Title, headline, chapter name: Chapter 1: Transforming Democracy – An Overview
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
Pages 31, 32
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Guarino, Jennifer Anne