Democracy, Action, and the Internet After 9/11

Abstract

This study examines the role of the Internet in challenging the state after 9/11. Drawing on interview data with members of the Internet-based group MoveOn.org and participant observation data collected at MoveOn events, the authors argue that the Internet provides citizens an opportunity to lodge democratic challenges against the state during hostile political climates. There are at least three features of the Internet that make it a useful tool for challengers after political shocks such as 9/11: (a) it provides a free space for challengers to form oppositional points of view away from dominant groups; (b) it allows individuals to participate anonymously and, thus, buffers challengers from the high costs of activism; and (c) it moves challenges from the virtual to the real world by engaging citizens in intermediary forms of activism. In short, the Internet engages individuals in a broader range of activities—and this has important implications for democratic processes.

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