Julie Freeman - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Julie Freeman
The International Journal of Press/Politics, Jul 5, 2022
This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals... more This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals the complex ways that community groups and activism, hyperlocal news media, and political power intersect through rural environmental disputes. An important but under-recognized feature of such conflicts is the unique role performed by notions of rurality in the construction of environmental protests, discourses, and decisions; that is, the ways in which rural communities’ conservation efforts can be unfairly characterized as “backwards” and “anti-development”. Through a series of interviews and focus groups with protestors and residents, our case study examines a controversial boat ramp development that had a marked environmental impact on the isolated coastal town of Mallacoota (population 1,000) in the state of Victoria, Australia. We show that the environmental activism of protesters lifted the issue's visibility to the level of regional, state, and national news and politics. But the community consultation processes that occurred in response to protests raise significant concerns about government decision making that fails to acknowledge and negotiate the diverse understandings of place and rurality that exist within a community. The outcomes of struggles for power in this small town are lamentable and lasting, damaging the hyperlocal news environment and undermining the community newspaper's reputation among citizens.
Review(s) of: Media Consumption and Public Engagement: Beyond the Presumption of Attention, by Co... more Review(s) of: Media Consumption and Public Engagement: Beyond the Presumption of Attention, by Couldry, Nick, Livingstone, Sonia and Markham, Tim, Palgrave Macmillan, Hampshire, 2007, ISBN 9 7814 0398 5347, 247 pp., A$143.00.
Media International Australia
This article presents responses from a range of Australian scholars on communication research and... more This article presents responses from a range of Australian scholars on communication research and teaching in the context of a roundtable in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Australian Communication Association (ACA), the precursor organisation to the Australian and New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA). Emphasising the range and diversity of approaches and epistemologies in this field, the roundtable invited a ‘situated’ response to questions considering scholarship, frameworks, and theoretical perspectives useful in thinking through the near and mid-term challenges facing the area. Emerging from the exercise is a snapshot of different agendas for research and teaching, many of them future-oriented and reformist in their emphasis on responsible practice and social change.
Media and Communication, Apr 28, 2023
The International Journal of Press/Politics
This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals... more This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals the complex ways that community groups and activism, hyperlocal news media, and political power intersect through rural environmental disputes. An important but under-recognized feature of such conflicts is the unique role performed by notions of rurality in the construction of environmental protests, discourses, and decisions; that is, the ways in which rural communities’ conservation efforts can be unfairly characterized as “backwards” and “anti-development”. Through a series of interviews and focus groups with protestors and residents, our case study examines a controversial boat ramp development that had a marked environmental impact on the isolated coastal town of Mallacoota (population 1,000) in the state of Victoria, Australia. We show that the environmental activism of protesters lifted the issue's visibility to the level of regional, state, and national news and politics. B...
This paper examines the role of information and communication technology (ICT) policies in shapin... more This paper examines the role of information and communication technology (ICT) policies in shaping the participatory nature of local e-government. It suggests that civic involvement through e-government practices requires a combination of direct and indirect ICT policies (Cohen, van Geenhuizen and Nijkamp, 2005). Direct policies focus on ICT infrastructure development and enhance civic adoption and use of ICTs. ICTs also support policies indirectly through data organisation, information dissemination and the provision of spaces for discourse, deliberation and contributions to decision-making processes. Drawing from policy examples from Australia and the United Kingdom (UK), this paper suggests the need to combine federal guidance with local knowledge, while using policies to support ICTs and using ICTs to support policies. Such a cohesive and integrated policy relationship between federal and local government bodies is needed if local e-government is to advance to facilitate civic e...
This paper explores government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facili... more This paper explores government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facilitate civic involvement in democratic reform. It suggests that e-government offers the platforms needed to address increasing external pressures for greater government transparency and responsiveness, and to adapt to changing notions of political representation and participation. This paper draws from Iceland’s constitutional crowdsourcing to illustrate how it encouraged nation-wide public participation in democratic reform through both traditional and online methods. The initiative undertaken in Iceland signals a shift away from the transactional activities often associated with government ICT use, towards more open and responsive egovernment practices that inform democratic decision-making. This paper suggests that, to facilitate civic engagement, such participatory e-government should be an ongoing process that is incorporated into the everyday operations of governments to support and ...
This paper examines digital engagement through local e-government. Drawing from a local governmen... more This paper examines digital engagement through local e-government. Drawing from a local government case study, it suggests that limitations to online civic involvement are often the result of insufficient government reception of, and responses to, citizens’ views. Interviews with local representatives illustrate inadequate digital education and broad reluctance towards civic inclusion in political processes. Nevertheless, the local government established a consultation website to facilitate increased citizen discussion and participation in decision-making. Examination of this website reveals intermittent and generic government responses, with little feedback on how civic views inform the actions undertaken. Citizens’ posts demonstrate disenchantment due to scarce government involvement and identify that the website may be a tokenistic attempt to placate the community. In addition to providing frameworks for online participation, e-government engagement requires governments to consid...
This paper explores government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facili... more This paper explores government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facilitate civic involvement in democratic reform. It suggests that e-government offers the platforms needed to address increasing external pressures for greater government transparency and responsiveness, and to adapt to changing notions of political representation and participation. This paper draws from Iceland's constitutional crowdsourcing to illustrate how it encouraged nationwide public participation in democratic reform through both traditional and online methods. The initiative undertaken in Iceland signals a shift away from the transactional activities often associated with government ICT use, towards more open and responsive egovernment practices that inform democratic decision-making. This paper suggests that, to facilitate civic engagement, such participatory e-government should be an ongoing process that is incorporated into the everyday operations of governments to support and supplement existing political practices.
The Australian Journalism Review, 2016
The study of digital media and political action must consider variations in media ecologies to ac... more The study of digital media and political action must consider variations in media ecologies to account for the ways in which contextually specific circumstances influence the character of local democratic participation. This article argues for this need by synthesising the disconnected literatures on Australian communications infrastructures, municipal governments and local news media. It reveals uneven levels of connectivity, restricted digital government practices and a decreasing capacity of local newsrooms and journalists to cover local politics. These problems coalesce to create risks of ill-informed citizenries, illegitimate local decision making, and minimally accountable local governments. This situation contributes to the democratic marginalisation of communities, with political power remaining embedded within the hierarchal decision making system of Australian local government.
This paper provides an empirical account of public participation within an Australian local gover... more This paper provides an empirical account of public participation within an Australian local government context. It seeks to determine the ways civic discourse is articulated and how (if at all) this facilitates civic connection with local government. Through in-depth interviews and focus groups with local citizens from the Victorian municipality of the City of Casey, this paper explores citizens' understandings, experiences and expectations in relation to participation with local government. Citizens conveyed a strong desire for engagement, as well as frustration that the local government is disinterested in civic input and fails to keep the community adequately informed. Participants suggested that this situation is creating both a sense of disconnection from government and civic reluctance to further engage in local political matters. These civic insights reveal a precarious state of local politics, and highlight the complexities and tensions in the relationship between local ...
Digital network technologies aid the socioeconomic prosperity of rural communities, particularly ... more Digital network technologies aid the socioeconomic prosperity of rural communities, particularly through agricultural innovation to improve productivity and competitiveness. However, internet access is imperative to benefit from the full functionality of digital technologies and connect to wider markets and services. To date, Australia’s national broadband plans have not ensured parity in service provision between urban and rural areas, which results in uneven opportunities based on remoteness and regionality. Forms of connectivity fundamentally shape the activities pursued online and areas with higher quality broadband hold a competitive advantage. Rural users of Australia’s satellite and mobile wireless connections are constrained by poor coverage, unreliability and slow speeds, which are compounded by high costs, limited consumer choice of providers, and restricted data allowances. These constraints mean the potential of digital technologies for rural socioeconomic development re...
Deakin University's submission to the inquiry into 'Bringing the arts, news and other ser... more Deakin University's submission to the inquiry into 'Bringing the arts, news and other services to rural and regional Australia' by the Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts of the Parliament of Australia. The submission was one of fifty-five submissions and twelve supplementary submissions presented to the committee. The article contributed to the final report 'Arts and the news to rural and regional Australia: inquiry into broadcasting, online content and live production to rural and regional Australia’ published by The Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia.
Information and communication technologies (ICTs) offer opportunities for greater civic participa... more Information and communication technologies (ICTs) offer opportunities for greater civic participation in democratic reform. Government ICT use has, however, predominantly been associated with e-government applications that focus on one-way information provision and service delivery. This paper distinguishes between e-government and processes of edemocracy, which facilitate active civic engagement through two-way, ongoing dialogue. It draws from participation initiatives undertaken in two case studies. The first highlights efforts to increase youth engagement in the local government area of Milton Keynes in the United Kingdom. The second is Iceland’s constitutional crowdsourcing, an initiative intended to increase civic input into constitutional reform. These examples illustrate that, in order to maintain legitimacy in the networked environment, a change in the culture of governments to facilitate open and responsive e-democracy practices is required. Moreover, when coupled with trad...
The ABC’s decision this week to reinvigorate regional journalism is a positive step. The challeng... more The ABC’s decision this week to reinvigorate regional journalism is a positive step. The challenge now is to embed journalists where they are needed most. This will be no easy feat for city-based ABC managers trying to navigate regional and rural Australia’s changing, uneven and largely uncharted news terrain beyond the capital cities. Rural and regional media outlets face increasing economic pressures in the digital media environment and the ABC is not immune. It has experienced significant government funding cuts, shed jobs and centralised regional news offices. However, this week ABC boss, Michelle Guthrie, announced up to 200 staff in management positions will depart by June this year as part of a major restructure. The public broadcaster says a highlight of this move is the creation of 80 new positions in regional areas within 18 months. The initiative is designed to “increase the ABC’s digital and video output from rural and regional Australia”. The timing of this announcement...
Media International Australia, 2017
The International Journal of Press/Politics, Jul 5, 2022
This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals... more This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals the complex ways that community groups and activism, hyperlocal news media, and political power intersect through rural environmental disputes. An important but under-recognized feature of such conflicts is the unique role performed by notions of rurality in the construction of environmental protests, discourses, and decisions; that is, the ways in which rural communities’ conservation efforts can be unfairly characterized as “backwards” and “anti-development”. Through a series of interviews and focus groups with protestors and residents, our case study examines a controversial boat ramp development that had a marked environmental impact on the isolated coastal town of Mallacoota (population 1,000) in the state of Victoria, Australia. We show that the environmental activism of protesters lifted the issue's visibility to the level of regional, state, and national news and politics. But the community consultation processes that occurred in response to protests raise significant concerns about government decision making that fails to acknowledge and negotiate the diverse understandings of place and rurality that exist within a community. The outcomes of struggles for power in this small town are lamentable and lasting, damaging the hyperlocal news environment and undermining the community newspaper's reputation among citizens.
Review(s) of: Media Consumption and Public Engagement: Beyond the Presumption of Attention, by Co... more Review(s) of: Media Consumption and Public Engagement: Beyond the Presumption of Attention, by Couldry, Nick, Livingstone, Sonia and Markham, Tim, Palgrave Macmillan, Hampshire, 2007, ISBN 9 7814 0398 5347, 247 pp., A$143.00.
Media International Australia
This article presents responses from a range of Australian scholars on communication research and... more This article presents responses from a range of Australian scholars on communication research and teaching in the context of a roundtable in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Australian Communication Association (ACA), the precursor organisation to the Australian and New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA). Emphasising the range and diversity of approaches and epistemologies in this field, the roundtable invited a ‘situated’ response to questions considering scholarship, frameworks, and theoretical perspectives useful in thinking through the near and mid-term challenges facing the area. Emerging from the exercise is a snapshot of different agendas for research and teaching, many of them future-oriented and reformist in their emphasis on responsible practice and social change.
Media and Communication, Apr 28, 2023
The International Journal of Press/Politics
This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals... more This article presents an in-depth case study of large-scale conflict in a small town, and reveals the complex ways that community groups and activism, hyperlocal news media, and political power intersect through rural environmental disputes. An important but under-recognized feature of such conflicts is the unique role performed by notions of rurality in the construction of environmental protests, discourses, and decisions; that is, the ways in which rural communities’ conservation efforts can be unfairly characterized as “backwards” and “anti-development”. Through a series of interviews and focus groups with protestors and residents, our case study examines a controversial boat ramp development that had a marked environmental impact on the isolated coastal town of Mallacoota (population 1,000) in the state of Victoria, Australia. We show that the environmental activism of protesters lifted the issue's visibility to the level of regional, state, and national news and politics. B...
This paper examines the role of information and communication technology (ICT) policies in shapin... more This paper examines the role of information and communication technology (ICT) policies in shaping the participatory nature of local e-government. It suggests that civic involvement through e-government practices requires a combination of direct and indirect ICT policies (Cohen, van Geenhuizen and Nijkamp, 2005). Direct policies focus on ICT infrastructure development and enhance civic adoption and use of ICTs. ICTs also support policies indirectly through data organisation, information dissemination and the provision of spaces for discourse, deliberation and contributions to decision-making processes. Drawing from policy examples from Australia and the United Kingdom (UK), this paper suggests the need to combine federal guidance with local knowledge, while using policies to support ICTs and using ICTs to support policies. Such a cohesive and integrated policy relationship between federal and local government bodies is needed if local e-government is to advance to facilitate civic e...
This paper explores government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facili... more This paper explores government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facilitate civic involvement in democratic reform. It suggests that e-government offers the platforms needed to address increasing external pressures for greater government transparency and responsiveness, and to adapt to changing notions of political representation and participation. This paper draws from Iceland’s constitutional crowdsourcing to illustrate how it encouraged nation-wide public participation in democratic reform through both traditional and online methods. The initiative undertaken in Iceland signals a shift away from the transactional activities often associated with government ICT use, towards more open and responsive egovernment practices that inform democratic decision-making. This paper suggests that, to facilitate civic engagement, such participatory e-government should be an ongoing process that is incorporated into the everyday operations of governments to support and ...
This paper examines digital engagement through local e-government. Drawing from a local governmen... more This paper examines digital engagement through local e-government. Drawing from a local government case study, it suggests that limitations to online civic involvement are often the result of insufficient government reception of, and responses to, citizens’ views. Interviews with local representatives illustrate inadequate digital education and broad reluctance towards civic inclusion in political processes. Nevertheless, the local government established a consultation website to facilitate increased citizen discussion and participation in decision-making. Examination of this website reveals intermittent and generic government responses, with little feedback on how civic views inform the actions undertaken. Citizens’ posts demonstrate disenchantment due to scarce government involvement and identify that the website may be a tokenistic attempt to placate the community. In addition to providing frameworks for online participation, e-government engagement requires governments to consid...
This paper explores government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facili... more This paper explores government use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to facilitate civic involvement in democratic reform. It suggests that e-government offers the platforms needed to address increasing external pressures for greater government transparency and responsiveness, and to adapt to changing notions of political representation and participation. This paper draws from Iceland's constitutional crowdsourcing to illustrate how it encouraged nationwide public participation in democratic reform through both traditional and online methods. The initiative undertaken in Iceland signals a shift away from the transactional activities often associated with government ICT use, towards more open and responsive egovernment practices that inform democratic decision-making. This paper suggests that, to facilitate civic engagement, such participatory e-government should be an ongoing process that is incorporated into the everyday operations of governments to support and supplement existing political practices.
The Australian Journalism Review, 2016
The study of digital media and political action must consider variations in media ecologies to ac... more The study of digital media and political action must consider variations in media ecologies to account for the ways in which contextually specific circumstances influence the character of local democratic participation. This article argues for this need by synthesising the disconnected literatures on Australian communications infrastructures, municipal governments and local news media. It reveals uneven levels of connectivity, restricted digital government practices and a decreasing capacity of local newsrooms and journalists to cover local politics. These problems coalesce to create risks of ill-informed citizenries, illegitimate local decision making, and minimally accountable local governments. This situation contributes to the democratic marginalisation of communities, with political power remaining embedded within the hierarchal decision making system of Australian local government.
This paper provides an empirical account of public participation within an Australian local gover... more This paper provides an empirical account of public participation within an Australian local government context. It seeks to determine the ways civic discourse is articulated and how (if at all) this facilitates civic connection with local government. Through in-depth interviews and focus groups with local citizens from the Victorian municipality of the City of Casey, this paper explores citizens' understandings, experiences and expectations in relation to participation with local government. Citizens conveyed a strong desire for engagement, as well as frustration that the local government is disinterested in civic input and fails to keep the community adequately informed. Participants suggested that this situation is creating both a sense of disconnection from government and civic reluctance to further engage in local political matters. These civic insights reveal a precarious state of local politics, and highlight the complexities and tensions in the relationship between local ...
Digital network technologies aid the socioeconomic prosperity of rural communities, particularly ... more Digital network technologies aid the socioeconomic prosperity of rural communities, particularly through agricultural innovation to improve productivity and competitiveness. However, internet access is imperative to benefit from the full functionality of digital technologies and connect to wider markets and services. To date, Australia’s national broadband plans have not ensured parity in service provision between urban and rural areas, which results in uneven opportunities based on remoteness and regionality. Forms of connectivity fundamentally shape the activities pursued online and areas with higher quality broadband hold a competitive advantage. Rural users of Australia’s satellite and mobile wireless connections are constrained by poor coverage, unreliability and slow speeds, which are compounded by high costs, limited consumer choice of providers, and restricted data allowances. These constraints mean the potential of digital technologies for rural socioeconomic development re...
Deakin University's submission to the inquiry into 'Bringing the arts, news and other ser... more Deakin University's submission to the inquiry into 'Bringing the arts, news and other services to rural and regional Australia' by the Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts of the Parliament of Australia. The submission was one of fifty-five submissions and twelve supplementary submissions presented to the committee. The article contributed to the final report 'Arts and the news to rural and regional Australia: inquiry into broadcasting, online content and live production to rural and regional Australia’ published by The Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia.
Information and communication technologies (ICTs) offer opportunities for greater civic participa... more Information and communication technologies (ICTs) offer opportunities for greater civic participation in democratic reform. Government ICT use has, however, predominantly been associated with e-government applications that focus on one-way information provision and service delivery. This paper distinguishes between e-government and processes of edemocracy, which facilitate active civic engagement through two-way, ongoing dialogue. It draws from participation initiatives undertaken in two case studies. The first highlights efforts to increase youth engagement in the local government area of Milton Keynes in the United Kingdom. The second is Iceland’s constitutional crowdsourcing, an initiative intended to increase civic input into constitutional reform. These examples illustrate that, in order to maintain legitimacy in the networked environment, a change in the culture of governments to facilitate open and responsive e-democracy practices is required. Moreover, when coupled with trad...
The ABC’s decision this week to reinvigorate regional journalism is a positive step. The challeng... more The ABC’s decision this week to reinvigorate regional journalism is a positive step. The challenge now is to embed journalists where they are needed most. This will be no easy feat for city-based ABC managers trying to navigate regional and rural Australia’s changing, uneven and largely uncharted news terrain beyond the capital cities. Rural and regional media outlets face increasing economic pressures in the digital media environment and the ABC is not immune. It has experienced significant government funding cuts, shed jobs and centralised regional news offices. However, this week ABC boss, Michelle Guthrie, announced up to 200 staff in management positions will depart by June this year as part of a major restructure. The public broadcaster says a highlight of this move is the creation of 80 new positions in regional areas within 18 months. The initiative is designed to “increase the ABC’s digital and video output from rural and regional Australia”. The timing of this announcement...
Media International Australia, 2017