Three Faces Of Electronic Democracy

The debate on the impact of the information and communication technologies (ICT) on contemporary democracy has lasted in political science since the beginning of the information revolution. Two dominating and antagonistic standpoints present the electronic democracy as either the cure for democracy crisis, or the factor deepening major problems of democracy. The text questions such a simplified perspective and proves that the overall assessment of the ICT influence on democracy is ambiguous. If the focus of the analysis is on the process of political mobilisation or the electronic service delivery, major consequences of electronic democracy are positive. They are e.g. lowering the barriers to entry into political market and making the state apparatus more responsive towards citizen’s expectations. From the perspective of the unequal access to the ICT and possible introduction of the electronic plebiscitary democracy, new technologies seem harmful for the principles of democracy. Finally, if someone observes the impact of e-democracy on the overall level of political participation, he can advocate the thesis of no significant impact of the ICT on contemporary democracy. Consequently, there are three different faces of e-democracy. Doubtless, acceptance of such a model must determine directions of future research.