Last week saw civic tech research on links between e-government and corruption, analysis of protest signs, and a nice case study on what kind of research is most effective for influencing health policy. Plus there's some excellent responsible research resources, research overviews on blockchain and governance, and Uganda levies a social media tax. Yes, there's also that.
Findings Civic Hall is tracking how new movements organize and communicate during rapid growth. Reports from six groups suggest that everyone is using everyday tools to communicate, but no one is satisfied with them. Meta data and data format are the most important characteristics of open government data for African media practitioners, according to survey administered in 5 African countries...
What a week… Papers & Findings Political tech: A survey of Swedish NGOs (n=907) suggests that civil society needs lots of human resources to use social media effectively in campaigns, which raises the bar for entry, and strengthens an elite cohort of civil society organizations. Tech was shown to directly help voters, however, as new research strengthens the claim that information apps...