Democracy via the Internet

The internet has become a huge part of our lives as students living in Canada. We constantly turn to the internet as a source of news, entertainment and also as a communication device. The internet has the ability to connect people from all over the world through common interests and views, which would have never been possible before the popularity of the internet. We are exposed to vast amounts of information about virtually any topic one could think of. With the rise of the internet as a source of information we have the ability to organize and discuss our own views on any topic. I believe the internet can also be used as a tool to maintain and strengthen democracy in Canada.

In another class I’m taking this semester, Sociology of Communication, we have discussed the way in which our news is owned by a few large corporations which leads to the distortion of the news. Because of this the media is subjected to filters, biases and advertisers’ influences, which affects the way we create beliefs and the actions we take because of these learned beliefs. Does this really reflect what democracy means though? If we are unable to receive an unbiased version of the story, we cannot, as citizens, accurately make decisions based on altered information. How are we supposed to uphold and maintain democracy in Canada with the concentration of media ownership?

I think the internet has become the answer. It has been a tool in challenging the mainstream media. More people are now turning to blogs and creating websites to give an alternate view of politics and issues in the world. There is no censorship or real control over the internet, and the result is that people can now participate more actively in the democratic process. Ordinary citizens with access to the internet can go online and read about issues and problems to stay informed and develop opinions about these topics without a bias. I think the impact with the internet maintaining democracy has the potential to affect younger people the most, because we have been raised with the internet and use it almost daily. With more access to the internet, the younger generations can get involved with the democratic process more easily. In the last election, voter numbers were low, with few young people voting. The internet could be an effective tool to engage young people to get involved. Websites have now been developed to keep people informed of different political platforms and issues so that people can go to one website and make a decision with what they support and believe, instead of spending hours watching debates on television.Also there have been discussions about online voting, which I think could be really effective in getting more people to vote.

The internet has the capacity to bring people together across time and space. I also believe it has the power to maintain democracy because it has the ability for people in Canada to challenge the mainstream media. Without it, I don’t think it is possible to have a proper democracy because of the media ownership concentration.