How the Internet is Changing Democracy

by Kiersten Marek

In early November 2003, lots of people called Senator Lincoln Chafee's office. They wanted to demand that he veto the energy bill being put forth by the Bush administration because it was chock full of pork-barrel giveaways for corporate America. Many of the people who called Senator Chafee did so after receiving an email from the influential new nonprofit organization, Moveon.org, informing them about the pending vote. After receiving many phone calls, on November 21, 2003 Senator Chafee voted against the bill, along with 40 other Senators, and the Bush-Cheney Energy Bill was rejected.

Ten years ago this wasn't happening. Ten years ago it was harder to get ahold of droves of people all over the country and quickly inform them about an important piece of pending legislation. Moveon.org estimates that 20,000 people responded to the energy bill email alert campaign, demonstrating an amazing mass of voters concerned about the direction that the Bush administration is trying to take the nation on energy policy.

Because of organizations like Moveon.org, the Union for Concerned Scientists, and FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting), ordinary citizens are becoming more active in local, state, and national politics, and are holding both politicians and journalists more accountable.

 

FAIR to Journalists: Quit Sucking Up!

Since 1986, FAIR has advocated for accurate and independent journalism as an essential underpinning of a functional democracy. While FAIR is a professional watchdog organization rather than a citizen activism organization, it plays an important complementary role to political action organizations like Moveon.org.

Recently, FAIR studied the media coverage of the Iraq war and found that only 3% of guests on major network talk shows voiced an antiwar opinion, while polls showed that 27% of Americans were against the war. Consequently, FAIR has done action alerts to prod the network media into providing coverage that more accurately reflects the American public.

"Rather than sucking up to those in power, we ask that journalists go to those in power and hold their feet to the fire," says Steve Rendall, a Senior Analyst for FAIR, who has been with the nonprofit organization since 1988. FAIR recently did an action alert about NBC's decision to no longer provide coverage of the democratic presidential candidates Dennis Kucinich, Carol Moseley Braun, and Al Sharpton. While NBC did not change its plans to stop covering these candidates, FAIR's action alert caused them to explain their decision, and might influence future decisions on when and how candidates are narrowed out of the field.

Rendall says that he sees an improvement in Fair's ability to contact members and involve them in action alerts in the past few years as more people have gotten online and the internet has started its post-bubble resurgence.

Donations to FAIR are tax-deductible, since they are a 501(c)(3) organization. This is an important distinction for middle-income people like me who want to donate to a cause for which they can get a tax deduction. You can learn more about FAIR by visiting their website at fair.org.

Get a Moveon.org

Some of the most successful Internet-based action campaigns are being conducted by Moveon.org. According to Eli Pariser, the Campaign Director for Moveon.org, the organization now has about 1.5 million members, all able to log on and be called to action on various issues. In 2003, Moveon.org had successful campaigns to stop the FCC from loosening regulations that keep media monopolies from getting too big, to stop the Bush-Cheney Energy Bill, and to raise Frequent Flyer miles to give to soldiers in Iraq so they can come home for the holidays.

In a recent introductory speech of Former Vice President Al Gore, Mr. Pariser described Moveon.org as a "loud and important voice for common sense in national affairs." Vice President Gore also acknowledged the value of Internet-based organizations in providing a robust debate on national issues of importance. "This methodology (Internet-based organizing) represents one way to try to fix things," said Gore, to an audience that included over 500 Moveon.org members.

Moveon.org is actually three organizations in one, a "501(c)(4) organization primarily focused on education and advocacy on important issues," a Political Action Committee, and a third part called Moveon.org Voter Fund, a 527 organization which "primarily runs ads exposing President Bush's failed policies in key 'battleground' states." To learn more, go to Moveon.org.

Union of Concerned Scientists

The Union of Concerned Scientists was founded in 1969 by a group of MIT faculty members and students who were worried about the misuse of science and technology in society. As a member of the Union of Concerned Scientist Online Action Network, members receive emails about important legislative initiatives that involve science. For example, in 2003, the UCS had an action to write to your Congressperson and urge support of the Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act, to help eliminate the unnecessary and harmful use of antibiotics in livestock. In concert with this political action campaign, the UCS persuaded McDonald's to adopt a new policy for reducing the overuse of antibiotics by its poultry suppliers.

The UCS is a 501(c)(3) organization like FAIR, and therefore donations are tax-deductible. You can learn more about the Union of Concerned Scientists or participate in one of their actions by going to ucsusa.org.

Non-Profit Computer Geeks Needed: Apply Within

Computer programmers, webmasters, and technicians are important (indeed essential) engines to the growth of nonprofit action and education organizations. Computer literacy on the part of young citizens will likely continue to fuel this new form of democratic communication.

The hoped-for result of these organizations is enhanced participation in democracy and the consequential improvement in government and media. The fear is that every special interest on the planet will bombard politicians and journalists with email, and that conservatives will use this new form of communication in a more aggressive and cut-throat, and consequently effective, way than liberals. Right now organizations like Moveon.org, FAIR, and the Union of Concerned Scientists appear to have a leg up on conservatives with accessing people online and mobilizing them on key issues. Let's hope it lasts.