E-Government and E-Activism

Abstract

John F. Kennedy’s masterful images on television, the new medium in the 60’s, helped him defeat then Vice President and Republican candidate Richard Nixon in the 1960 U.S. presidential election. Those who heard their first debate on the radio pronounced Nixon the winner, but the majority of the 70 million Americans who watched the televised debate perceived Kennedy as the clear champion (1).

“We are the nation that put cars in driveways and computers in offices; the nation of Edison and the Wright brothers; of Google and Facebook.”

– President Barack Obama (January 2011)

“We must use technology to build stronger connections between constituents and their elected officials by incorporating social media into daily Congressional operations.”

– Majority Leader Eric Cantor (December 2011)

“In the face of everything else that’s screwed up in Washington, we the American people can fix things.”

– Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian (May 2012)

“We are only a drop in this world … but the rain starts with a single drop.”

– Saudi Arabian Activist Manal al-Sharif (May 2012)

“If there is an Internet connection, my camera is more powerful [than my AK-47].”

– Syrian dissident Abu Ghassan (June 2012)

“The future is sharing – open data, open participation, open source, open everything, and it must happen at every level.”

– Lieutenant Governor of California Gavin Newsom (February 2013)