The Return of the Enlightenment
In Chapter 12 of Campaigning Online, Bimber and Davis discuss political theories about engagement and knowledge. They say, "The increasing complexity and interconnection of public life since (Walt) Lippman's time, along with the dramatically expanded volume of communication and information, means that voters are even less well positioned than at the end of the Progressive Era to fulfull a Jeffersonanian ideal of knowledge and engagement." Basically, they feel that life today is too complex for people to take in everything they need to know to make an informed decision before voting. But the Internet stands to alter this, by allowing people to be exposed to more information and absorb it better.
Even though people can get the information easier, it does not mean that they will want to. Because it is an active medium, which requires the subject to be engaged, people can decide whether or not to find the information. Unlike TV and newspapers, the Internet cannot make as big an impact yet.
Can the Internet reach the same level of as TV and other media in terms of saturating large audiences? Or will the nature of the Internet as an active medium hinder it from ever matching them?