Next Generation Democracy

Mats Engstrom

British Council Brussels & Weber Shandwick Public Affairs

November 2002

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Without open and common political arena, confidence in European institutions will remain low, no matter how they are designed. This pamphlet examines how digital technologies such as the internet can help develop European political spaces. It includes twenty concrete proposals for action.

There is a choice to be made. One way is open dialogue in electronic commons. Another possibility is a division of citizens in privately-owned networks where entertainment and scandal are the main elements of politics, and only an elite use the new technology to influence decisions. A political strategy is urgently needed to make digital technologies contribute to a more democratic Europe.