Julie Freeman

The Multi-layers of Digital Exclusion in Rural Australia

Despite many policy interventions, Australias rural areas continue to be at a digital disadvantage. With the increasing penetration of information and communication technologies (ICT) into all public and private realms, there is a need to examine the deeply rooted digital divide and how it relates to multiple dimensions of infrastructure, services and demand in rural communities. This paper reports findings from a workshop with seven rural local governments from the State of New South Wales, Australia. The findings suggest that rural digital exclusion results from a multi-layered divide where elements of infrastructure, connectivity and digital engagement are intertwined.

Digital Civic Participation in Australian Local Governments: Everyday Practices and Opportunities for Engagement

Digital technologies and social media platforms are changing civic expectations surrounding interaction with government. Local governments hold key positions in the development of digital spaces for civic participation in the issues that directly impact citizens’ everyday lives. However, local practices largely prioritise information and services over reciprocal dialogue with citizens. This chapter explores digital civic engagement in Australian local governments. It draws from a nation-wide survey of councils’ digital practices to highlight that opportunities for civic participation are increasing, particularly through social media. However, substantial discrepancies exist between the digital practices of rural and urban local governments. This discrepancy is further examined through comments from seven rural councils that participated in a workshop on digital engagement, and the views of urban citizens (through focus groups) whose local government offers advanced digital practices. For the rural authorities, key challenges to digital development include limited connectivity, capacity, and financial resources, as well as the different expectations that citizens have in relation to social media use. For the (urban) citizens, participation in online spaces has gone unanswered by their government, which is creating a sense of disenfranchisement. While there is evidence of innovation in Australian digital local government, civic demand and government use largely fail to align. Councils need to reconceptualise current approaches to digital engagement by considering the purpose of participatory spaces and integrating their use into everyday operations. Moreover, greater government receptivity and responsiveness is required to enable civic participation to inform local decision-making. Such involvement allows citizens to develop a sense of connection with local government and facilitates increased civic engagement.

Rural realities: Digital communication challenges for rural Australian local governments

Purpose – This article explores challenges for rural Australian local governments during the transition to high-speed broadband infrastructure. Despite the National Broadband Network’s promised ubiquitous connectivity, significant access discrepancies remain between rural and urban areas. Design/methodology/approach – Empirical findings are drawn from a full-day workshop on digital connectivity, which included participants from seven rural local governments in New South Wales, Australia. Thematic analysis of the workshop transcript was undertaken to extrapolate recurring nuances of rural digital exclusion. Findings – Rural communities face inequitable prospects for digital inclusion, and authorities confront dual issues of accommodating connected and unconnected citizens. Many areas have no or poor broadband access, and different digital engagement expectations are held by citizens and local governments. Citizens seek interactive opportunities, but rural authorities often lack the necessary resources to offer advanced participatory practices. Research limitations/implications – While this research draws from a small sample of government officials, their insights are, nonetheless, heuristically valuable in identifying connectivity issues faced in rural Australia. These issues can guide further research into other regions as well as civic experiences of digital inclusion. Practical implications – There is a need to reconceive Australia’s current policy approach to broadband. Greater rural digital inclusion may be achieved by focusing on connectivity as a public interest goal, targeting infrastructure developments to suit local contexts and implementing participatory digital government practices. Originality/value – The actions suggested would help ensure equity of digital inclusion across Australian municipal areas. Without such changes, there is a risk of rural citizens facing further marginalisation through digital exclusion.

Balancing the digital democratic deficit? E-government

This article responds to Thomass (2004) call for investigation into how the internet and World Wide Web are changing government in Australia. It first discusses e-government principles and policies at the federal level, and then investigates initiatives and events in one of Australias most populous municipalities, the City of Casey in Melbournes southeast. The objective of this approach is to understand the broader context of e-government policy formulation in Australia, and connect this to the level of local government in order to understand the features and dynamics of existing e-government mechanisms. The evidence generated from this approach reveals an imbalance between service delivery and civic engagement in e-government strategies, with the emphasis on consumer-oriented service delivery far outweighing civic participation and political dialogue. The analysis that follows outlines actual and potential political problems flowing from this imbalance — or ‘digital democratic deficit’ — and offers suggestions on how equilibrium might be restored.

Energy and communication infrastructure for disaster resilience in rural and regional Australia

ABSTRACT Energy and communication infrastructure for disaster resilience in rural and regional Australia. Regional Studies. Australias rural and regional areas are prone to frequent natural disasters with extensive socio-economic impacts. Resultant damage to large-grid energy and communication networks can lead to widespread, lengthy outages, signalling the need for alternative infrastructure developments to aid disaster risk reduction and resilience-building (DRRR). Distributed smart renewable energy micro-grid systems can mitigate adverse impacts through outage prevention and rapid service restoration, increase rural and regional resilience, and offer communities opportunities for socio-economic development. However, renewable energy and digital communications policy uncertainty currently adversely affects disaster preparedness and investment in alternative infrastructure, undermining rural and regional futures.

Making inroads: a critical examination of the ABC’s commitment to local news

This article examines the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABC) provision of local news to rural and regional communities. Drawing on critiques of the public sphere and its relationship to public service media, it analyses submissions to a Parliamentary Bill to include rural and regional amendments in the ABC’s Charter. The analysis reveals three key concerns: resourcing and restructuring of rural/regional newsrooms, declining local news content and voices, and inequality of access to the ABC. The submissions indicate that geography continues to shape understandings of issues that matter and how news is received. However, amid ABC funding cuts and digital adaptations, the quality of local news is relegated in favour of promoting national identity and universal appeal. This article contends that the ABC’s current Charter resonates with outdated conceptualisations of a singular public sphere. A framework enabling construction of geographically targeted localised communication spaces would instead direct resources where they are needed most in rural and regional locations.

E-Government in the context of monitory democracy: public participation and democratic reform

In a networked environment characterised by communicative abundance, there are new opportunities for citizens to scrutinise and contest government actions and decisions. Governments are subsequently facing increasing civic demand for greater transparency, responsiveness and accountability. This article suggests that e-government mechanisms offer contexts through which governments can respond to growing external pressures and adapt to changing notions surrounding democratic participation. It explores efforts undertaken during Iceland’s constitutional reform process, where nation-wide public involvement was encouraged through a combination of digital and traditional political participation methods. The initiative undertaken in Iceland signals a shift away from the transactional activities often associated with government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) towards more open and responsive e-government practices. This article argues that, to be effective, civic engagement through e-government should be an ongoing process that is integrated into the everyday operations of governments to support and supplement existing democratic practices.

Communication life line? ABC emergency broadcasting in rural/regional Australia

ABSTRACT As an emergency broadcast provider, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has a perceived duty to ensure communities are informed during natural disasters through its radio network. This obligation is tested by issues of diversity and distance across rural and regional Australia as well as the structural and resourcing changes taking place within the ABC. This article examines public submissions to a Parliamentary Bill to amend the ABC’s Charter with greater provisions for rural/regional media coverage. The analysis reveals two key concerns regarding emergency radio broadcasting: access inequities including issues with digital replacement technologies; and how the frequency, timeliness, and accuracy of emergency news suffer from decreasing ‘localness’. Upon reviewing the submissions, we argue that the ABC’s Charter and Memorandums of Understanding with state/territory emergency service agencies are currently insufficient in meeting the media access and content needs of rural and regional communities during disasters. We conclude that the proposed Charter amendments would help the ABC to better account for how local contexts shape the effectiveness of its emergency broadcasting.