democracy.com? Governance in a Networked World edited by Elaine Ciulla Kamarck and Joseph S. Nye, Jr. ISBN 1-884186-10-6 224 pages, paperback $17.95

“This is the best essay collection yet on a topic of critical importance: how the Internet is shaping and changing public life. These leading scholars ask all the right questions in a jargon-free style that will provoke academics, wake up policy-makers, and even engage everyday readers. A much-needed contribution.” — Andrew L. Shapiro, author of The Control Revolution: How the Internet Is Putting Individuals in Charge and Changing the World We Know

“The central lesson of technology in our time is this: The Internet Changes Everything! The lesson applies to the economy, education, community, individualism and—as this book brilliantly explains—democracy. Whether the Internet Effect renews our democracy or challenges the success of the famous American experiment is the subject of these important essays. Every citizen should mark these insights and act on their guidance if the 21st century is to be the greatest era of opportunity, equality, and egalitarian governance in the history of humanity.” — Reed Hundt, former Chairman, Federal Communications Commission

Ever wondered what James Madison would tell us if he could send us e-mail from beyond the grave? Well, now you can find out, in democracy.com? Governance in a Networked World, a new book forthcoming from Hollis Publishing in April 1999.

A collection of papers and commentaries originally produced for a faculty retreat in July 1998 hosted by the Kennedy School’s Visions of Governance Project, democracy.com? examines the impacts information technologies are having on various aspects of democratic governance—such as representation, community, politics, bureaucracy, and sovereignty. Fifteen scholars, primarily but not exclusively from the Kennedy School and from a variety of disciplines, offer a balanced and sometimes skeptical look at the transformations that the proliferation of information and the ubiquity of computer networks are making in our basic institutions and processes of governance.

Arthur Applbaum, for example, speculates about the effects of the Internet on the ideal of deliberative or “Madisonian” democracy. Demonstrating the power of this new medium, “James Madison” (a.k.a. Professor Dennis Thompson) fires off a response—from the domain founding.gov—correcting Applbaum’s interpretation of his views on faction and the ability or inability of new technologies to mitigate its deleterious effects.

William Galston takes a skeptical view of the ability of true communities—relationships among groups of people characterized by affective ties and mutual obligation—to form on the Internet. Pippa Norris and Elaine Kamarck use empirical research to explore whether use of the Internet is changing political campaigning, for candidates or voters. Jane Fountain and Jerry Mechling write about the evolving nature of bureaucracy, from a Weberian system of control to a networked model. Joseph Nye and Robert Keohane discuss the implications of the information revolution for world politics, in particular the notion that “the information revolution creates a new politics of credibility in which transparency will increasingly be a power asset.”

The essays in democracy.com? are meant to provoke thought and further research about issues and choices which will be critical to the future of democratic governance.

“The Net is transforming commerce, business models, and the economy. Expect changes of similar scope in the business of government, the nature of governance, and the relationship between citizens and the state. If you care about democracy, read this book! And send another copy to someone in government who represents you!” — Don Tapscott, author of Paradigm Shift, The Digital Economy, and Growing Up Digital

“Drawing on studies of online campaigning, digital bureaucracy, electronic globalization, and even an emailed contribution by James Madison himself, Kamarck and Nye have assembled a timely and provocative analysis of the challenge to democratic governance in the Information Age.” — W. Russell Neuman, Annenberg School, University of Pennsylvania

Elaine Ciulla Kamarck is Director of the Visions of Governance for the Twenty-First Century project at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. She also directs the Innovations in American Government program and lectures in public management at the School. Previously, Dr. Kamarck served as Senior Policy Advisor to the Vice President of the United States, Al Gore. She joined the Clinton/Gore Administration in March of 1993 and, working directly with Vice President Gore, created the National Performance Review, a new White House policy council designed toreinvent government. Prior to joining the Administration, Dr. Kamarck was a senior fellow at the Progressive Policy Institute, the think tank of the Democratic Leadership Council.

Joseph S. Nye, Jr. is Dean of Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and Don K. Price Professor of Public Policy. He has a special interest in U.S. foreign policy and in the causes of and potential solutions to public disaffection with government. As Dean of the school, Nye launched Visions of Governance for the Twenty-First Century, a major project to examine and debate the role of government in the next century. Nye returned to Harvard in December of 1995 after serving as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, where he won two distinguished service medals, and as Chairman of the National Intelligence Council. His most recent books are Why People Don’t Trust Government, Understanding International Conflicts and Bound to Lead: The Changing Nature of American Power.