Virtual sounding boards: how deliberative is online political discussion?

Abstract

Cyberspace represents another place in which people can communicate politically. Through new venues, people can engage in many sorts of political activity, such as joining interest groups, voting in elections, or participating in political forums. Habermas (1996) suggests that civil society acts as a ‘sounding board’ for the articulation of political issues to be addressed by government. Thus, those people who discuss political issues in cyberspace can ostensibly raise concerns and express ways of addressing these problems. Of course, political forums ought also to be deliberative, whether they be in cyberspace or face-to-face, since substantive messages must be exchanged in order for the political themes developed in civil society to be translated into items for collective action. The question for empirical research is: how useful are these virtual sounding boards in enabling deliberation in the public sphere? As a corollary to this question, what are the appropriate conditions for enhancing deliberation, so that these forums can more effectively inform and influence the policy process?

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