The document discusses the emergence of a "Fifth Estate" enabled by networked individuals on the Internet. It presents findings from surveys showing increasing use of social networks and user-generated content. It proposes that networked individuals, if they reach a critical mass, can hold institutions accountable in new ways outside of the traditional Fourth Estate of journalists and media. However, realizing this potential requires engaging rather than resisting regulation that could undermine trust and access online.

1. William H. Dutton Oxford Internet Institute (OII) University of Oxford www.ox.ac.uk Realizing Governance 2.0 Capturing the Value of Networked Citizens a nd the Fifth Estate Presentation for Instituto de Comunicación y Nuevas Technologías, Universidad Mayor, Santiago, Chile, 29 July 2011.

15. Citizen Opinion Expert Advice Engaging Networked Individuals Citizen Consultation, Polling, ePetitions Distributed Intelligence through Collaborative Network Organizations Individuals, Interest Groups and Lobbies Meetings, Hearings, Letters, Petitions, Elections Paid Consultants, Representatives of Interest Groups

21. Sermo

25. “ [Edmund] Burke said there were Three Estates in Parliament; but, in the Reporters’ Gallery yonder, there sat a Fourth Estate more prominent far than they all. It is not a figure of speech, or witty saying; it is a literal fact – very momentous to us in these times.” Thomas Carlyle (1831), Heroes and Hero-Worship , at www.gutenberg.org.etext/1091 The Fourth Estate

26. Feudal Estates into the 21 st Century Estates Feudal Modern Clergy Public Intellectuals Nobility Business, Industry and Economic Elites Commons Government ‘ 4 th Estate’ Press Journalists and the Mass Media Mob Civil Society, Individuals, … ?

27. The Fourth Estate Depends on an Independent Press – Independent in Relation to Other Estates The Fourth Estate : News of the World Case

31. Pattern of Findings Supporting Conception of Networked Individuals

33. “ Wael Ghonim, a 30-year-old executive from Google, was the administrator of an anti-torture page on Facebook, the social networking website, that is widely credited with organising the first day of protest [in Egypt] on January 25.” Jon Swaine, The Telegraph, 11 Feb 2011

34. Networked Institutions v Networked Individuals of the Fifth Estate Arenas: Networked Institutions Networked Individuals News Online journalism, BBC Online, Live Micro-Blogging Citizen Journalists, Bloggers, Netizens Posting Videos Democracy E-Democracy, E-Consultation, e-Voting Obama campaign, Networking the Pro-Democracy Protests Education Online Learning, Multimedia Classrooms Backchannels, informal learning Health and Medical NHS Direct, e-mailing safety alerts Going to the Internet for health information, Sermo

36. Percentage of Internet Users Across Regions of the World

37. Regions as Percentage of the Worldwide Population of Users

38. 18th Century Estates: 21st Century Enemies 18th Century Estates 21st Century: Enemies of the 5th Estate Attacks Clergy Public Intellectuals ‘ Culture of Amateurism’, individualist consumerism Nobility Business, Industry and Economic Elites Vertical Integration; Monopoly over Search; Three Strikes Commons Government and Regulatory Agencies Filtering; Content Regulation; Identification; Surveillance; Disconnection Press Journalists and the Mass Media Echo Chambers; but Co-opting, Imitating, Competing, and Supporting Mob Spammers, Fraudsters, Cyberstalkers, … Undermining Trust and Confidence; Fostering Regulation of Content

39. Centrality of the Internet, Trust in Government and Attitudes toward Internet Regulation over Time OxIS 2003: N=2,029; OxIS 2005: N=2,185; OxIS 2007 N=2,350. OxIS 2009: N=2,013

43. Selected References: Dutton, W. H. (2008), ‘The Wisdom of Collaborative Network Organizations: Capturing the Value of Networked Individuals’, Prometheus , 26(3), September, pp. 211-30. Dutton, W. H. (2009), ‘The Fifth Estate Emerging through the Network of Networks’, Prometheus , Vol. 27, No. 1, March: pp. 1-15. Dutton, W. H. (2010), ‘Networking Distributed Public Expertise: Strategies for Citizen Sourcing Advice to Government’, Occasional Paper Series in Science & Technology, Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPI), Institute for Defense Analyses, Washington DC.