When the people speak : deliberative democracy and public consultation
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
When the people speak : deliberative democracy and public consultation
Oxford University Press, 2011
- : pbk
Available at / 8 libraries
-
Library of Education, National Institute for Educational Policy Research
: pbk311.8||28151102975
-
No Libraries matched.
- Remove all filters.
Note
Originally published: 2009
Includes bibliographical references and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
All over the world democratic reforms have brought power to the people - but under conditions where the people have little opportunity to think about the power that they exercise. Do we want a democracy inspired by Madison or by Madison Avenue? A democracy animated by deliberation or by manipulation? This book examines each of the principal democratic theories and makes the case for a democracy in which the people offer informed judgments about politics or policy. It
then goes on to show how this form of democracy can be made a reality. When the People Speak describes deliberative democracy projects conducted by the author with various collaborators in the US, China, Britain, Denmark, Australia, Italy, Bulgaria, Northern Ireland, and in the entire European
Union. These projects have resulted in the massive expansion of wind power in Texas, the building of sewage treatment plants in China, the crafting of budget solutions in a region in Italy, and greater mutual understanding between Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland. Critics of deliberative democracy say that it will privilege the more educated or that the public is incompetent when it comes to understanding policy issues, and should not be consulted. Others argue that it will
increase polarization. Fishkin offers rebuttals for each of these arguments. Combining theory and practice he shows how a more deliberative politics is both practical and compelling.
Table of Contents
- 1. Democratic Aspirations
- 2. The Trilemma of Democratic Reform
- 3. Competing Visions
- 4. Making Deliberative Democracy Practical
- 5. Making Deliberation Consequential
- 6. Deliberating Under Difficult Conditions
- Appendix: Why We Need Only Four Democratic Theories
by "Nielsen BookData"
