Incessant public-opinion polling and increasingly sophisticated interactive telecommunications devices make government instantly aware of, and responsive to, popular will – some say, too responsive for the good of the nation. As the elect seek to respond to every twist and turn of the electorate’s mood, the people at large are taking on a more direct role in government than the Founders ever intended. This democratic political transformation is being propelled largely by two developments – the 200-year-long march toward political equality for all citizens and the explosive growth of new telecommunications media, the remarkable convergence of television, telephone, satellites, cable, and personal computers.
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: ”As we approach the 21st century, America is turning into an electronic republic, a democratic system that is vastly increasing the people’s day-to-day influence on the decisions of the state. New elements of the direct democracy are being grafted on to our traditional representative form of government, transforming the nature of the political process and calling into question some of the fundamental assumptions about political life that have existed since the nation was formed more than 200 years ago … Incessant public-opinion polling and increasingly sophisticated interactive telecommunications devices make government instantly aware of, and responsive to, popular will – some say, too responsive for the good of the nation. As the elect seek to respond to every twist and turn of the electorate’s mood, the people at large are taking on a more direct role in government than the Founders ever intended. This democratic political transformation is being propelled largely by two developments – the 200-year-long march toward political equality for all citizens and the explosive growth of new telecommunications media, the remarkable convergence of television, telephone, satellites, cable, and personal computers.”
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: Introduction
Quote Type: Direct quote
Page number or URL of document at time of study:
Pages 3, 4
This data was logged into the Elon/Pew Predictions Database by: Guarino, Jennifer Anne