Governance and Information Technology

The editors of Governance and Information Technology have assembled a strong juxtaposition of general overviews and concrete case studies to critically examine ways in which information and communication technologies are reconfiguring access to information both within government and between governments and citizens. This book not only challenges the idea that new technologies are democratizing access, but also presents alternative conceptions, such as the development of an 'information class', that will shape debate and research on the political implications of e-government.

Professor William H. Dutton, Director, Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford

Through a rich set of essays by leading thinkers, this book advances the next generation of ideas about information technology and government, moving the literature beyond the original, transactional conception of 'electronic government.' The authors bring up to date a thesis extending back to Federalist thought in the U.S., which is that flows of information are central to the exercise of power and indeed form one of the foundations of government.

Bruce Bimber, University of California, Santa Barbara

This book, which is primarily for scholars and interested students of political communication and new information technologies, shifts the focus of e-government studies from technology to information transmission. The latter addresses communication relations between citizens and government as well as among government actors. I am heartened by the authors' effort because the emphasis of works on e-government too easily descend into highly technical treatises that forget the role of politics and the function of technology as another (and hopefully better) means to facilitate information exchange. Instead, the writers and editors of Governance and Information Technology keep their attention on the technology as a means and not as an end.

Richard Davis, Department of Political Science, Brigham Young University

So you thought information technology in the form of 'e-government' would save taxpayer dollars, improve government performance, increase transparency and accountability, and promote democratic participation–and all in a hurry too? Some first-rate scholars of the subject show how the several truths about these matters are much more complicated, and the reasons for them sometimes paradoxical.

Eugene Bardach, UC Berkeley

The e-governance revolution has transformed the way that governmentcommonly delivers basic services. But has it transformed democracy? This isa first-class study of the complex processes of information flows betweencitizens and government. Drawing upon well-known experts and a diverserange of cases, the study provides provocative and important insights intoprocesses of political communications, the uses and limits of informationtechnologies, and the transformation of modern governments.

Pippa Norris, United Nation Development Programme

Information is the foundation of government. These essays provide a deeper understanding of the ways information flows within government and between government and citizens. If knowledge is power, this is a powerful book.

Joseph S. Nye Jr, Distinguished Service Professor, Harvard University, and author of Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics