OpenGovRadio 3/16/10: Are We in an "OpenGov Bubble"?

Here's what we'll talk about on OpenGovRadio during this week's show (2-3pm ET, Tuesday, March 16th).  We invite you to listen and, if you wish, join the conversation by calling in with your comments and questions (917) 388-4210.

We briefly touched on Tom Bryer's concern during our March 2nd show when we talked with him and two other authors whose papers appeared in a special issue of the Int'l. Journal of Public Participation about the Obama administration's "Open Government" initiative.

Is the "Open Government Initiative" of the Obama administration creating a "democracy bubble" where the expectations of "OpenGov" advocates and other citizens have been raised to an overly optimistic level?

Here's a short intro to that special issue of the IJP2 is described (below) by IJP2 Editor Steven N. Pyser:

The International Journal of Public Participation (IJP2) brings together academicians and practitioners interested in a multidisciplinary forum for the exchange of information among researchers, practitioners, decision makers, and citizens about public participation and its impact around the world. We seek to provide a scholarly record through intellectual contributions to the literature for research, practice and teaching.


This Special Symposium issue (Volume 4, Number 1) examines, among other things, what, if any influence electing Barack Obama has had on the field of public participation. Through a commitment to continuous improvement and sharing innovative approaches, IJP2 continues to offer intellectual contributions that support multidisciplinary-based scholarship, the public interest, practice and learning as well as professional preparation.


At the same time, these materials add a necessary public participation voice to the political discourse and a resource for consideration by political leaders, public managers, citizens and all those who help to shape and implement public policy and national/local governance.

Thomas A. Bryer is an assistant professor of public administration in the Department of Public Administration at the University of Central Florida. His research interests include civic engagement, collaborative public management, and bureaucratic responsiveness.  For his paper in the IJP2, click on this link:


1.  "President Obama, Public Participation, and an Agenda for Research and Experimentation" by Thomas A. Bryer



SPECIAL NOTE:  As promised earlier, I will be hosting a separate show for each of the other two authors, so that we (i.e., including our callers) can delve more deeply into each of their papers (below). -- SB

2.  "Practicing a Participatory Presidency?: An Analysis of the Obama Administration’s Open Government Dialogue" by Stephen P. Konieczka

3.  "Deterring Fake Public Participation" by J. H. Snider, Ph.D.


Some other relevant OpenGov references:

4.  President Obama's Memorandum on "Transparency and Open Government (1/21/09)

5.  White House's Open Government Directive (12/8/09)

6.  The IAP2's "Core Values for the Practice of Public Participation"


================================
Short URL for this posting:  http://bit.ly/djU7z2