Contents
- Index
Inventory of Questions for Advocacy Net Leaders (Top)
Part I. Specifically with reference to Moveon.org
1. How did MoveOn attract so many people so fast in the early going?
2. Are there any regrets about the name now that it has gone far beyond the Censure and Move On and will we remember campaigns? (How important is a name to a widely based grass roots action group?)
3. How is MoveOn able to be so effective with a staff of 5?
4. How is MoveOn distinguishable from other groups such as the ACLU online, True Majority, United for Justice, etc.?
5. What is the relationship of MoveOn to other such groups? Is there agreement on certain actions?
6. If so, who negotiates the agreements? If not, why not?
7. Is concerted action necessary to be truly effective?
8. Could there be a multiplicity of MoveOn groups that tend to focus on certain areas, e.g., the environment, or should a group have a more complete agenda?
9. To what extent are MoveOn's action appeals based on input from members and to what extent are they top down?
10. Is the Moveon Action Forum effective?
11. Who manages The Moveon Action Forum? Is it self-managing in that certain issues bubble up according to some key word or other sorting device?
12. How much leadership is necessary to MoveOn's effectiveness and what does leadership mean in this context?
13. How does MoveOn see its role? Issue oriented? A change agent that affects politics and government and alters the politics as usual situation?
14. To what extent has MoveOn become a partisan organization despite its efforts to remain non-partisan?
15. Has it done so simply because of the need to get Bush out of the White house or is there some inevitability regarding associating with a political party or political philosophy if such a group is to continue?
16. To what extent does MoveOn rely on offline activities?
17. What drives the resort to newspaper ads, etc.? Is doing so consistent with the criticisms of the mainstream media?
18. How important are contributions? To wider impact? To sustaining the organization itself? Who are the contributors?
19. Does PAC status impede MoveOn's effectiveness? If so, how?
20. Who monitors what MoveOn does to be sure it is in compliance?
21. Are there concerns about the regulatory structure, substantively or in application?
22. How has MoveOn developed its e-mail list?
23. How does it monitor communications to be sure that those who receive messages can trust them and vice versa?
24. Does MoveOn share its list?
25. Does it get lists from others (e.g., from some of the generally available sites)?
26. Does MoveOn attempt to assess whether it is successful or not? Generally? On specific issues? Who makes the assessment? According to what measures?
27. If Dean had mustered a majority of the votes in the MoveOn primary would it have been a good thing for MoveOn to endorse his candidacy?
28. Would that have changed the nature of MoveOn?
29. Suppose Dean then failed to be nominated? To be elected?
30. To what extent does MoveOn consider it has a role in educating the public or its members?
31. Does the "Five minute activism" model preclude education?
32. Could Moveon transition into a more deliberative (polling) organization? Should it? How?
33. Which of MoveOn's campaigns have been the most "successful"?
34. Have the actions of the media watch group had measurable effects?
35. What would it take to allow MoveOn to become as effective as the "liberal bias" watch groups of the conservatives? $$? More?
36. To what extent is the "digital divide" an obstacle?
37. Is it a matter of time?
38. Would it be better to follow the European and Japanese, etc. models of communication using text messages and text messaging devices?
39. Does the relatively high cost of cell phones in the U.S. preclude such a switch?
40. Who does MoveOn look to for advice on how to improve its reach and impact?
41. How were these persons identified?
42. Does MoveOn offer advice to particular candidates for public office?
43. If so, how are they chosen?
44. Does MoveOn get "political" advice? If so, from whom?
45. What do you consider your most successful campaign?
46. How is Moveon different from other advocacy groups?
47. Do you think that on-balance Moveon has been the most successful advocacy group?
48. What is it about Moveon that most accounts for its success?
49. How does Moveon differ from other advocacy groups in "business plan."
50. Does Moveon have a charter of mission statement?
51. How would you describe Moveon organizational structure?
52. What other advocacy group is closest to Moveon?
53. Do you consider that Moveon has a democratic organizational structure?
54. Do you consider that Moveon is a partisan organization?
55. Does the political persuasion of Moveon tend to change with the times?
56. Does the political persuasion of Moveon tend to change with issues?
(Top)
Part II. With Reference to Public Advocacy Groups in General and the Grass roots Cyberspace Movement
1. How would you describe general grass roots activity in the last five years?
Unprecedented in volume and intensity in history
Just another reaction to political frustration like the Vietnam War
2. What do you think is the future of the grass roots phenomenon?
3. The mainstream public can affect national level public policy only at election times.
Agree/Disagree
4. Commercial interest groups exclusively dominate the attention of legislators
Agree/Disagree
5. Which statement comes closest to your opinion?
Traditional democratic institutions have failed to serve the public interest
Traditional democratic institutions are having difficulty serving the public interest
Traditional democratic institutions are working fine
Traditional democratic institutions are outdated for today's realities
Traditional democratic institutions are being circumvented by big money
6. Which of the following do you think is the major source of national problems today?
The separation of powers
Political parties
Two-Party system
Winner-take-all system
The Electoral College System
Judicial review
Commercial interest groups
Public interest groups
Politicians
The House of Representative
The Senate
The educational system
The capitalist economic system
The global marketing system
Religion
The Democratic Party
The Republican Party
Third Parties
Parents
7. What would a crisis in American democracy look like?
8. What would a collapse of American democracy look like?
9. How would you describe the ability of the public to govern itself now compared to early days?
Very Much More able
About the same
Less able
Very Much Less Able
10. Why should citizens participate in civic matters?
Civic obligation
Enable decision-makers
Self-realization
Prevent tyranny
All of the above
11. Which statement is closest to your opinion about direct democracy?
Should be used to as a check on other powers
Should be used when legislatures fail to address an issue
Should be used to get around legislatures
Should never be used
12. Which statement is closest to your opinion about the relationship between the public and the government?
Should be adversarial
Should be cooperative
Should be collaborative
Should be consensual
Should be passive
Should be enabling
Should be one and the same
13. Do you think that the Internet will change the relationship between people and government?
Yes/No
If Yes,
14. In what ways do you think the Internet will change the relationship between people and government?
Staff roles?
More interaction with constituents?
Defensively?
Public interest group leaders will become mediators
15. Will new power to people bring about institutional reform?
16. Will partisanship fade away?
17. Will ideologies face away?
18. For each of the following statements, indicate whether you agree or disagree.
"Large-scale participation facilitated by the Internet holds the key to making American political institutions work again without a constitutional convention or radical reform."
Agree/Disagree
19. "Professionalization of American society and the invention of the Internet make large-scale political participation possible - a stymied political system makes it imperative."
Agree/Disagree
20. "Participatory Democracy as large-scale citizen engagement in politics is the only antidote to big-money aberrations of traditional democratic institutions."
Agree/Disagree
21. "The confluence of an overwhelmed political system, a large population of computer savvy professionals and the coming of the Internet, is changing politics as usual and portends the first major institutional change in the American political system since the advent of political parties."
Agree/Disagree
22. Media and political experts are reporting large-scale disengagement of the public from politics, as indicated in low turnouts at the polls. Which of the following statements is closest to your opinion why this is happening.
People distrust the government
People think there is no difference between the major parties
People think money controls the government
People are too preoccupied with making money
People are too lazy
People think elections are meaningless
People are too busy to participate
23. What evidence is there of a permanent change in the dynamics of American democracy since the Internet?
24. What is the organizational structure of public interest groups?
25. How do public interest groups influence government and other organizations?
Targets: media, legislatures, judiciary, executive, committees, government organizations, general populace, other groups, candidates.
Strategies: litigation, petitions, letter writing campaigns, ads, banners, signs, lobby, polling, voter registration drives, rallies & demonstrations, boycotts, strikes, education campaigns, consciousness raising, initiatives, civil disobedience. (develop)
26. What are the legal/constitutional foundations and limits of Participatory Democracy?
Public interest and grass roots groups must operate completely within the tenants of the American Constitution and American political institutions.
They have no governmental or official sanctions separate from freedom of speech, the right to assemble, and the right to petition the government.
The ultimate authority for these groups is the sovereignty of the people.
27. What are the limits on public interest group actions? What body of law is most relevant?
28. Which kinds of groups have been most successful?
29. What is the membership composition of public interest/grass roots groups? How much
variation among groups?
30. How well do groups individually and collectively represent the general public?
31. Which of the following statements is closest to your opinion about the effect of the Internet on American politics?
Cut costs
Cut time required
32. Indicate your level of agreement with the following statement:
Those who claim that recent surges of grass roots activity signal new form of participatory democracy
Disagree completely
Disagree somewhat
Neutral
Agree somewhat
Agree completely
33. What event in Moveon experience best supports the idea of a trend toward participatory democracy?
Departure from politics-as-usual
Impeachment
Presidential Primary
FCC ruling reversal
Support for swing candidates
Proliferation of similar groups
34. What is the significance of the "digital divide?"
35. Indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statement:
Regular participants tend to be more deliberative and engaged and have deliberated issues such as war with Iraq.
Non-participants tend to be turned off by the system, apathetic, and disengaged and look to papa government to tell them how to think about these kinds of issues.
Public opinion polling is influenced by the government's definition of issues so questions are asked in such a way as to be biased toward the government's positions.
Public interest group participants are less vulnerable to this phenomenon and so their opinions will general differ.
36. Indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statement:
If people participated and deliberated issues and if they were not exposed to government propaganda, there would not be much difference in political opinions. In this important sense, members of public interests groups do represent the people.
37. Are those who believe in participatory democracy narrowly partisan?
38. Are there conservatives who believe in participatory democracy?
39. What is the political leaning of members of public interest groups?
40. Is that a contradiction to the principle of unfettered information and the free competition of ideas?
41. Do you think that if the government turned hard left in policies, public advocacy groups would tend to move to the right?
42. Do you think scientific studies of democracy can be non-partisan?
43. Do you think that there are economic factors that work against extending political participation?
44. If a government moves sharply in the direction of the political dispositions of the membership of a public advocacy group, will the group disband?
45. If a public advocacy group moves in the opposite direction to governmental trends toward extremes, which of the following statements best applies.
Members' attitudes will change
Membership will change
Both
Neither
46. Do you believe uses of the Internet to restrict the freedom of information is a serious threat?
47. Do you think the take over of the Internet by despotic powers is a serious threat?
48. Which of the following are the most serious threats to the Internet?
Claims of intellectual property
Censorship under the guise of eliminating Spam
Censorship on moral grounds
Restrictions through taxing Internet transactions
Unfair partisan attempts to change or distort communications (dirty tricks)
Attempts to treat the Internet as a medium equivalent to traditional media and subject it to government control
Eaves-dropping under the guise of fighting terrorism
Marshall law or heightened security measures in response to terrorist attacks or threats
None of the above
All of the above
49. Do you believe that those who believe in participatory democracy are narrowly partisan?
50. Do you believe that there are conservatives who believe in participatory democracy?
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51. What do you think is the dominant political leaning of members of public interest groups?
52. Is that a contradiction to the principle of unfettered information and the free competition of ideas?
53. Do you think that if the government turned hard left in policies, public advocacy groups would tend to move to the right?
54. Do you think scientific studies of democracy can be non-partisan?
55. Do you think that there are economic factors that work against extending political participation?
56. If a government moves sharply in the direction of the political dispositions of the membership of a public advocacy group, will the group disband?
57. If a public advocacy group moves in the opposite direction to governmental trends toward extremes, which of the following statements best applies.
Members' attitudes will change
Membership will change
Both
Neither
58. Do you believe uses of the Internet to restrict the freedom of information is a serious threat?
59. Do you think the take over of the Internet by despotic powers is a serious threat?
60. Do you think the following are serious threats to the Internet?
Claims of intellectual property
Censorship under the guise of eliminating Spam
Censorship on moral grounds
Restrictions through taxing Internet transactions
Unfair partisan attempts to change or distort communications (dirty tricks)
Attempts to treat the Internet as a medium equivalent to traditional media and subject it to government control
Eaves-dropping under the guise of fighting terrorism
Marshall law or heightened security measures in response to terrorist attacks or threats
61. What forces do you think threaten the growth of participatory democracy?
62. Do you think the Internet will give certain groups unfair advantage over others?
63. Should the Internet be open to those who would use it to restrict information and participation?
64. Do you think that the use of the Internet by terrorists is a serious problem?
65. If so, why?
66. Do you think that "direct democracy is a bad thing?
67. Do you think that ego trips, self-aggrandizement, and power hunger are serious problems for public interest groups?
68. If participatory democracy takes hold, what kind of relationship between public interest groups and the government?
Adversarial
Consensual
Cooperative
Partnership
Facilitator
Loyal Opposition
Antagonist,
As in game theory
69. Do you think the grass roots cyberspace movement will become a separate political institution?
70. Which of the following are the most important preconditions for a separate institution?
Self-awareness,
Public awareness
Government awareness
Awareness by other centers of powers
A common mission statement and set of values
Integration of groups
Role differentiation and specification
71. Do you think the grass roots cyberspace movement is already a separate institution?
72. Do you think the grass roots cyberspace phenomenon is a permanent phenomenon?
73. If so, which of the following best fits your opinion regarding the future impact of this phenomenon?
More effective government
Kinder Government
Less government
No government
The end of ideology (left/right)
Will reform institutions
Will enhance civic culture
Will enhance personal growth of individuals
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