I mentioned in a prior post that on-line activity in elections was heating up (Turkey, for example). The elections of the future can and will be decided by the online campaigning. In the pursuit of open debate, we can hope to see lots of online chatting, blogging, etc., on the candidates in the run up to elections.
Australia is taking the bull by the horns by creating a Google
platform for “2007 Australian Federal Elections” for electors to read up on the candidates, use Google maps, games and gadgets. The Google site (no longer functional) provides an aggregation of information that, if mismanaged, could certainly go bad (and bring Cory Doctorow’s vision of the future just a little closer.
Here’s the story from Google’s own blog. “At Google, we believe that democracy on the web works, and also that the web can work for democracy,” says the company on its Australian blog.
There you go!
It takes an American who sounds like an Englishman who lives in Paris to tell an Australian that Google are doing a special on the Australian elections!
I knew about the You Tube stuff–it’s been a great treasure of fun for the political journalists, but never have I heard about the Google one till now!
I think the incumbents are in for a real hiding. They’ve been in long enough and told enough lies although they did do excellent economic management. Just too close to George W Bush. Like the PM is much too close.
Australians like Americans. In fact I’d say they love Americans. Nevertheless, few have any time for the American President and even fewer for the Vice-President. For our PM to be seen so close to George is nothing short of political suicide, but their mutual back-slapping just doesn’t stop.
We are in interesting times, Minter.