Final Paper Topics

Note: These topics are just suggestions, intended to give you some possibilities and to suggest the type of topic you might want to pursue. I encourage you to develop your own topic, though I ask to you to e-mail it to me for approval before March 21.

The Canadian Debate over Free Speech Online: Is there a distinctly Canadian perspective on the debate over free speech on the Internet?

Environmental Organizations on the Internet: How are environmental groups using the Internet to build membership, increase public awareness, or affect public policy?

Social Democratic Parties Online: Are there any commonalities in the way that Social Democratic parties in different countries are using the Internet to increase their electoral strength or alter their public image?

Electronic diasporas: How does the Internet connect geographically scattered ethnic communities? How does this affect ethnic politics in different countries?

Interest Group E-mail Networks: How are interest groups using e-mail to increase member involvement, inter-organizational coordination, or public awareness?

The Gendered Internet: Are there gender differences in the way men and women use the Internet? How could this shape the Internet’s impact on political participation?

The Future of Intellectual Property Rights: What are the major approaches that have been taken to the protection of intellectual property online? Which of these approaches is likely to dominate in the future?

Grassroots Mobilization Online: What online strategies are new social movements using to get their supporters to directly pressure politicians for policy change?

The Internet and Social Capital: Does the Internet increase or decrease social capital? A review of the current academic debate.

A political history of the Electronic Frontier Foundation: Has EFF been an effective organization for the protection of online rights? How?

The Debate over Online Voting: Will online voting increase voter turnout? A review of the current debate among academics and practitioners.

Anti-globalization activism online: Has the Internet played a role in building the membership or profile of the anti-globalization movement? How?

Online political participation in Canada: Has the Internet increased political participation in Canada? How?

Online policy consultation: Which online tools are governments using to solicit citizen input into policy decisions? Which tools are most effective, and under what circumstances?

Hacking China: Does hacktivism pose a challenge to Chinese firewalls? How could this affect the Chinese government?

Online privacy and health information: How do different governments balance the goal of electronic health records management with concerns about online privacy? Which approach is likely to predominate?

The International Digital Divide: Should expanding Internet access be a priority for the developing world? Why or why not?

The Digital Divide in BC: Who is online in BC? What strategies could increase the number of people with Internet access?

Local Community Networks: Does the local community networking movement help to bridge the digital divide? How?

African Telecentres and Community Economic Development: Do telecentres provide economic development opportunities for African communities? How?

Campaign sites: How do candidates use the Internet as a campaign tool? Has a web site yet helped to decide an election result?

If you are developing your own topic, here are some questions to ask yourself:

1. How does this topic relate to the course material? Which week or topic would it fit into?

2. Which of the broader themes of the course does this topic address? What theoretical issues does it raise?

3. Is there research available on this topic?

4. What examples or evidence would bear on this topic?

5. Does this topic raise an interesting or controversial question that I can investigate?