Part I: Comparative Politics and the Internet

Required Readings

January 8 - Course logistics and Introduction

January 10 - Introduction to the Internet

Bruce Sterling, “A Short History of the Internet"

Tim Berners-Lee, “The World Wide Web: A Short Personal History”

Kollock and Smith, pp. 3-9 from “Communities in Cyberspace,” in Kollock and Smith, Communities in Cyberspace (London: Routledge, 1999).

Note: Make sure your computer skills meet the standards outlined on page 2 of the course syllabus. If not, please complete the following:

WhatsIT: An Introduction to Information Technology - sections on GUI, Web browsing, Email, and Word Processing. (WhatsIT requires the Flash plugin, and runs better on faster computers, so you may need to complete this in a campus computer lab.)

If you do not have an e-mail account, please visit the UBC I.T. Services web site for information on setting up an account.

January 15 - Comparative Politics and Political Science Methodology

Download Jan. 15th study questions in PDF form. (Requires Adobe Reader)

Ch. 1, “Why Compare Countries?” in Landman, Issues and Methods in Comparative Politics (London: Routledge, 2000).

January 17 – Lab Class: Net research skills

Download Jan. 17th study questions in PDF form. (Requires Adobe Reader)

“Criteria for Evaluating Internet Resources”

Sharf, “Beyond Netiquette: The Ethics of Doing Naturalistic Discourse Research on the Internet” in Jones, Doing Internet research : critical issues and methods for examining the Net (Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications, 1999).

to Part II:

Political Alignments

Additional Links

Internet and Politics Portals and Overviews

Comparative Politics and Government Internet Resources and Links

This site provides links to many political party web sites around the world, as well as general information on different systems of government.

Democracy and Participation Project

A wide-ranging set of links to information about the Internet and politics, with particular emphasis on projects that promote political participation. Includes many academic sources.

PoliticsOnline -- Fundraising and Internet Tools

This is the pre-eminent American site for information on political uses of the Internet. The focus is on party politics, campaigns, and advocacy.

Bimber: Information Technology and the "New" Politics

A short overview of some of the ways that the Internet challenges conventional ideas about politics, from one of the foremost researchers in the field. A good piece to read if you want a preview of some of the issues we'll cover in the course.

Steve Clift - Democracy is Online 2.0

A survey of the major developments in e-democracy so far, including online campaigning, online voting, and online consultation. Clift is the founder of Minnesota e-democracy, the first major e-democracy project, started in 1994.

History of the Internet

All About The Internet from ISOC

The Internet Society (ISOC) sets the protocols for the Internet. Many of the key players in shaping the Internet have contributed to this set of histories.

Hobbes' Internet Timeline

Life on the Internet: Net Timeline

Comparative politics and political science methodology

Internet research skills

Columbia Guide to Online Style

Evaluating Internet Information

Evaluation of Internet Information - Why and How

Google

Political Science: A Basic Guide to Library Research

UBC Library: Political Science Resources