Mediated Democracy
August 24, 2005, Danish Architecture Center, Strandgade 27B, DK-1401 Copenhagen
Participation is free. Registration is required no later than August 15, aykj@hum.ku.dk
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Abstract
Jens Hoff: Virtual capital? - Media use and political participation in Denmark
Recent discussions about the ‘network society’ (Castells 1996, 2001) and ‘the creative class’ (Florida 2002) point towards knowledge as the most important source of productivity and power today. However, knowledge is not a stable commodity, but something which must be continuously maintained and renewed. In this process computers and the internet have come to play an increasing role as an enormous reservoir for finding, combining and exchanging information in new ways, thereby potentially speeding up the knowledge creation process and enabling more creative problem solving. Some have started to speak about the added value of knowledge being generated by the use of computers and the internet as “virtual capital” (Tobiasen 2004). Departing from data of a Danish nationwide survey on media use, internet and political participation, this presentation will argue firstly that it does make sense to talk about virtual capital as a new form of capital distinct from already existing forms of capital such as economic, educational and organizational capital. Secondly, the presentation will explore if and how possession of this new type of capital translates into political influence on an individual level. This will be investigated by looking at the relations between virtual capital and different forms of political participation and political efficacy.
Castells, M. (1996): The Rise of the Network Society. Blackwell Publishers Ltd.: Oxford.
Castells, M. (2001): The Internet Galaxy. Oxford University Press: Oxford.
Florida, R. (2002): The Rise of the Creative Class… and how it’s transforming work, leisure, community and everyday life. Basic Books: New York.
Tobiasen, M. (2004): “Digital Divide” i Danmark. Skriftserie Følgeforskningsindsatsen – Det Digitale Nordjylland. Arbejdspapirer 2001-5, nr. 3 (www.socsci.auc.dk/digdem).
About the speaker
Jens Hoff is Professor in the Department of Political Science, University of Copenhagen.
His research focuses on questions of power and democracy in relation to the use of information technology in politics and political processes, and on questions of citizen participation and local democracy. He was director of the Centre for Public Organization and Management (COS) from 1996 to 1998, and chairman of COST Action A14 on ’Government and Democracy in the Information Age’ from 1998 to 2003. Since 2002 he has been a member of the steering group of MODINET.
Among his recent publications are Democratic Governance and New Technology, Routledge 2000 (with Ivan Horrocks & Pieter Tops), Democracy and Citizenship in Scandinavia, Palgrave 2001 (with Jørgen Goul Andersen), Danmark som informationssamfund. Muligheder og barrierer for politik og demokrati, Aarhus Universitetsforlag 2004, and Magtens nye ansigt. Netværkspolitik, kulturstyring og ny elitisme, DJØF Forlag 2005 (with Henrik Bang & Torben Dyrberg).
RELATEREDE LINKS
Associate Professor Jens Hoff