Synopses & Reviews
'In 1995, RAND published a book exploring the feasibility and societal implications of providing universal access to electronic mail within the United States (Robert H. Anderson et al., Universal Access to E-Mail: Feasibility and Societal Implications). Among the nine policy conclusions and recommendations in that report were these: It is critical that electronic mail be a basic service in a national information infrastructure; it is important to reduce the increasing gaps in access to basic electronic information services, specifically, access to electronic mail services; there are no fundamental technical barriers to providing universal access to electronic mail services. This book explores the possibility for expanded citizen-government personalized electronic communication. Of particular interest are interactions between government agencies and individual citizens--interactions involving personal information, iterated communications between an individual and a government agency, and the use of a personal electronic mailbox for the individual. It provides an informal survey of current state uses of such communication, supplemented by two case studies of potential use. It also uses 1997 Current Population Survey data to update the electronic access trends in the United States that were highlighted in the 1995 study.'
Review
'The authors put together a convincing argument for the use of e-mail in government...the use of e-mail will only become more pervasive and will afford governments the opportunity to provide better services and save costs.
Government Finance Review
The authors make their recommendations for how the government should restructure paper-flow with e-mail not only in the postal service, but in other government agencies. This is an interesting report on a relatively unexplored topic.
Today\'s LibrarianThe report addresses a very timely and important topic. The information regarding the use of electronic mail as a communication method between government and citizens is useful and well researched. The case studies give specific examples of instances in which electronic mail could be a very useful or a somewhat cumbersome communication tool. Overall, [this book] is a worthwhile, important and useful publication with relevance for a wide range of users.
Nancy Marshall
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Synopsis
Sending Your Government a Message explores the possibility of expanded personalized citizen-government electronic communication.