Information revolution technologies enable citizens of prospective democracies to learn more about how other societies operate. If they discover that others living elsewhere live better thanks to democratic governance, they are likely to seek democratization. At the same time, information revolution technologies empower citizens anywhere to broadcast charges that their own governments have violated inalienable human rights. Thus, world pressure can be brought to bear against repressive regimes unable to hide their misdeeds as successfully as before.
Predictor: Kedzie, Christopher
Prediction, in context:In a 1995 research presentation, Christopher Kedzie, then a doctoral fellow at RAND Graduate School, discussed democracy and new technologies. Prior to his arrival at RAND, he was a founder and director of organizations in both Ukraine and Uzbekistan which exploited information technologies to support economic and political reform. He writes: ”It is the globe as a whole … that is ‘shrinking’ in the wash of information flows. The worldwide expansion of democracy may have less to do with how these technologies favor domestic democratic processes than with how they spread democratic ideals internationally. Information revolution technologies enable citizens of prospective democracies to learn more about how other societies operate. If they discover that others living elsewhere live better thanks to democratic governance, they are likely to seek democratization. At the same time, information revolution technologies empower citizens anywhere to broadcast charges that their own governments have violated inalienable human rights. Thus, world pressure can be brought to bear against repressive regimes unable to hide their misdeeds as successfully as before.”
Date of prediction: January 1, 1995
Topic of prediction: Global Relationships/Politics
Subtopic: General
Name of publication: RAND publications online
Title, headline, chapter name: International Implications for Global Democratization
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
http://www.isoc.org/HMP/PAPER/134/html/paper.html
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Anderson, Janna Quitney