Designing Technology for Local Citizen Deliberation

Citizen participation in democratic processes in the United States has been facilitated and enhanced since the mid-1990s with the diffusion and adoption of computer networking. In its current form, however, the web strongly favors information consumers over information producers. Emerging technologies, such as web logs and wikis, seek to address this deficiency. In a series of focus group interviews, adult residents in Blacksburg and Montgomery County, Virginia reported on their needs, awareness, and other aspects of the use of these new tools.