[open-government] New post Open Data, Technology and Government 2.0 – What Should We, And Should We Not, Expect

Thu Sep 13 16:15:03 UTC 2012

To some extent, this may be a byproduct of our/my overexposure to the space
and the more fabulous claims made within it. Most of these claims are
within the realm of economic development and improved government efficiency
-- I've personally witnessed people promise that open data would yield
financial returns greater than the cost of the most recent Iraq War, for
instance (this individual had no background that would enable him to make
such a claim). US CTO Todd Park regularly cites $90bn as the economic
benefit yielded by civilian GPS (which I'd argue is a fairly strained
and/or unusual open data exemplar), with the obvious implication that
future releases will generate similar returns. And in the US, at least,
it's not uncommon to see breathless accounts of how platforms like Liquid
Feedback or the technology used by Americans Elect will revolutionize civic
participation, democratic deliberation, and usher in a post-partisan,
technocratic order.

I *really* don't want to be a needlessly wet blanket.  Although the numbers
are often hyperbolic, I suspect that everyone on this list believes the
benefits of these datasets and methods of experimentation to be real and
worthwhile -- and not yet fully achieved. But we need allies, and I've
watched time and again as valuable and sympathetic figures -- most
recently, in that CT roundtable, Beth Noveck and Clay Shirky -- became
alienated by the seemingly unrealized promises that this movement has made.

It is entirely possible that I'm overly sensitive to this danger, though.
Most people couldn't tell you what open data is even if pressed to do so at
gunpoint. Presenting an optimistic case as people are introduced to the
topic strikes me as totally justifiable -- it's just the shifting of elite
opinion among policymakers that motivates my worry.

On Thu, Sep 13, 2012 at 10:44 AM, Josh Tauberer <tauberer at govtrack.us>wrote:

>   There’s a *danger if open data is seen as a panacea that will magically
> solve climate change or eliminate corruption because it will inevitably
> fail to do so and hope and enthusiasm will be replaced by disappointment
> and dis-engagement*.
>
>
> I agree entirely with the conclusion. But...
>
> There has been a lot of writing on this lately (the Crooked Timber series
> w/ the Tom [S]lee's etc. [1], John Wonderlich's response [2]). All of this
> so far, including your post, has worked through tough issues and I've
> learned a lot from it all. But where is open data actually seen as a
> panacea? Where is this problem coming from?
>
> Open data advocates almost never make big promises. We know that data !=
> change. Who is raising expectations too high?
>
> [1] http://crookedtimber.org/2012/07/17/open-data-seminar-2/
> [2]
> http://sunlightfoundation.com/blog/2012/07/06/open-data-creates-accountability/
>
> - Josh Tauberer (@JoshData)
> http://www.govtrack.us | http://razor.occams.info
>
> On 09/13/2012 09:25 AM, Rufus Pollock wrote:
>
> Hi All,
>
> I've just put up post on Open Knowledge Foundation blog entitled
> "Managing Expectations: Open Data, Technology and Government 2.0 –
> What Should We, And Should We Not Expect":
> <http://blog.okfn.org/2012/09/13/managing-expectations-ii-open-data-technology-and-government-2-0/> <http://blog.okfn.org/2012/09/13/managing-expectations-ii-open-data-technology-and-government-2-0/>
> <https://twitter.com/OKFN/status/246219882436378625> <https://twitter.com/OKFN/status/246219882436378625>
>
> This distils some accumulated thinking (over the last couple of
> years!) and I'd very much welcome any thoughts or feedback people
> have.
>
> Regards,
>
> Rufus
>
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