Interactivity as Ideological Dilemma: A Socially Situated Reading of Interactivity Discourse in Three Civic Sites in the Italian Context

Abstract

In debates about the potential role of the Internet in promoting civic engagement, interactivity is often seen to be synonymous with democratic participation and collaborative learning. The present article assesses whether online interaction is seen as something desirable in lived experience by analyzing the formation of interactivity discourse as an ideological dilemma. The article illustrates how the young Italian producers of three civic websites use and make sense of interactive applications in the context of their experiences and aims. In interviews with these producers, interactivity emerged as a problematic issue to deal with rather than a key feature of the medium in involving citizens in civic action and debate. The combination of the interactive nature of the Internet, the unequal power relations characterizing the online domain, and a potential openness to adversarial views can lead to the paradox of a further restriction of (online) participation by those who intend to promote it. Consequently...