ICTs, Democracy and Development

We are aware today that notions such as 'knowledge §economy' and 'information society', which dominated §the discourses of the 1990s, were ideological §constructions. But for millions of people in poor §parts of the world they still mean unfulfilled §promises of progress and modernity in the face of a §technological version of the Washington Consensus. §This book wants to demystify these promises in light §of critical theory and empirical evidence, so these §people can move towards a more rational §understanding of digital and interactive §technologies in the context of their own political §systems and development aspirations. Using §comparative analysis between different nations, the §book explores the links between ICTs, development §and democracy. It aims to make a distinctive §critique of the role of these technologies in §society; identifying transformational elements, §national realities and particular socio-economic, §cultural and political conditions. In so doing, the §book explores how ICTs has helped to construct a §particular version of progress and modernity; one §that more often than not excludes those who were §supposed to help.