Get Email Updates
02/22/2007

http://www.freedomofexpression.org.uk/about

The Freedom of Expression project is an exploration of the challenges and opportunities for freedom of expression in the modern world. How the human right to freedom of expression is realised depends on the various means through which people communicate, exchange ideas and express themselves.

These means of communication are undergoing significant changes throughout the world as a result of the emergence of a networked communications environment, characterised by the increasing intensity and speed of global communications and supported by interconnected and converging internet-based technologies. As the communications environment changes, so will the prospects for protecting and advancing freedom of expression.

This website acts as a forum for discussion and debate, providing a resource for people interested in these issues. It will also assist Ford Foundation programme officers working in the fields of democracy, human rights, governance, academic freedom, and cultural expression. It will help to identify policy trends in the field, potential programs and grantees and also help identify and attract new donors to this field of work.

This project will examine the drivers of change in the emerging networked communications environment, and also assess the implications of these changes for freedom of expression. It will do this through addressing four key questions:

  1. Does the networked communications environment democratise the public sphere through increasing access to information and participation in the media?
  2. Does the networked communications environment increase the capacity of civil society organisations to achieve positive social change?
  3. Does the networked communications environment hail a new era of democracy, offering opportunities for improved government service delivery, transparency and accountability?
  4. Does the networked communications environment promote cultural diversity through increasing opportunities for artistic production and consumption?
footer