Karen Mossberger

"Digital Citizenship," in addition to offering a well-researched and finely-documented snapshot of the state of Internet use in the first few years of this century, opens with a great definition: "'Digital citizenship' is the ability to participate in society online" (p. 1). Chapters covering benefits of various aspects of society online (economic opportunity, civic engagement, and political participation) lead us to discussions of the digital divide, the impact of broadband on increases in digital citizenship, and public education and universal access--with an acknowledgement of the important roles libraries have played in making the Internet accessible to those who might otherwise not find their way to online resources. Through the writers’ work, we are treated to reminders that "[n]ot only is Internet use more widespread but creative new methods of online organizing emphasize political community rather than isolation" (p. 51); that the use of online news sources 'encourages civic engagement" (p. 62); and that online discussions "suggest the discourse of the salons of the 1890s that the early proponents of deliberative democracy idealized" (p. 72)--although personal experience provides plenty of examples of online discussions being comparable to a pie fight or a mud-wrestling match. Not surprisingly, "Digital Citizenship", like any book about the Internet, began showing its age as soon as it was published; it does, however, remain well worth reading for its views on how Internet use can foster a sense of civic inclusion--and how much remains to be done to create a fully-engaged and fully-informed digital citizenship.… (mer)