ISSR Social Science Research Scholar - Biography
Martha Fuentes-Bautista
Assistant Professor
University of Massachusetts AmherstÂ
Department of Communication
Can Technological and Democratic Innovations Measure Up? Examining the Relations Between Community Cyber-Infrastructure and Local Governance Structures
This project examines the relation between the development and use of next-generation, high-speed information and communication services by municipal governments and local decision-making processes. Arguably, decisions about the configuration of community cyber-infrastructure are enmeshed in the politics of expertise and the political economy of ICT markets that ultimately shape the material conditions for citizen participation. This project investigates these dynamics and their implications for democratic governance, inclusion, and community life in western Massachusetts.