The Future of Democracy

nterested in learning about how technology is changing our democracy? How have YouTube debates, bloggers, iReporters, and political mashups impacted the presidential election? Can technology reinvigorate our democracy by connecting more people to the political process?

The Digital Union presents "The Future of Democracy," a panel discussion with Peter Shane, Professor of Law and a leading figure in the field of cyberdemocracy, and Dan Shellenbarger, director of the Ohio Channel and an Emmy award winning producer. This event will take place in the Learning Collaboration Studio (SEL 060) from 2:30-4 pm on Wednesday October 29th. RSVP to gjestvang.1@osu.edu.

Peter M. Shane, Jacob E. Davis and Jacob E. Davis II Chair in Law, Moritz College of Law: One the nation's foremost authorities on the law of the presidency, Professor Shane is also a leading figure in the newly emerging field of cyberdemocracy, which studies the use of the Internet and other information technologies to facilitate citizen participation in politics and government. His work in this field includes research funded by the NSF on the development of software to structure community-based discussions on complex policy issues. He has edited "Democracy Online: The Prospects of Political Renewal Through the Internet" and published widely on the topics of voting rights, redistricting, and reapportionment.

Dan Shellenbarger, The Ohio Channel: Dan Shellenbarger is an Emmy Award winning video director and editor who helped found and currently manages the Ohio Channel. A new concept in public affairs programming, the Ohio Channel combines Statehouse coverage with locally produced PBS programs to give a statewide perspective on issues that affect all Ohioans. In addition, the Ohio Channel encodes, hosts, and streams all coverage of state government proceedings for distribution on the Internet. Using Flash, RSS, and web tools, the Ohio Channel seeks to provide vitual access to all aspects of state government. Shellenbarger also serves as a technical editor and reviewer for the video publishing industry and is a video arts instructor for the art department at The Ohio State University.