The Dynamic Nature of Policy Capacity: Internet Policy in Italy, Belarus and Russia

Abstract

This chapter examines internet regulation policy in three very different countries—Russia, Belarus and Italy—to explore how the balance of state and society capabilities affects policy outcomes and examine the effectiveness of the states ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ capabilities towards media and internet regulation. The chapter considers policy capacity as a dynamic characteristic that can be attributed to different social organizations, and state and non-state actors, that are involved in certain policy process or affected by policy outcomes. The policy capacity of an actor is created, sustained and developed in a lively public sphere, among a multiplicity of business and non-profit citizen organizations with their own social goals and often their own specific policy agendas. The chapter also examines the distinction between ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ capabilities. ‘Hard’ capabilities are supported by state coercive power and can be exercised by state structures, who impose them on other social actors and individuals, while ‘soft’ capabilities (including ‘communication’, ‘argumentation’, and ‘negotiation’) require other actors to be involved in the process. The success of policy implementation depends not just on the strength of coercive mechanisms, but on an ability to understand the complexity of the regulatory system and recognize other important actors and their qualities, including skills of engaging in dialogue with other policy actors, target publics and a wider range of stakeholders.