Economic Development and Communication: Problems for Governance under Globalisation

Because the art of communication is central to the art of democracy, it is fundamental to economic development. Specifically, freedom and the ability to participate fully in economic governance, and in the corresponding democratic knowledge and learning processes, would reflect and be reflected by a parallel freedom and ability in communication. The issues are explored by comments on art, and on the influence of transnational corporations in education and the media. We suggest that good economic governance needs discussion and reason-giving in the public domain, a form and structure that enables and fosters deliberation and debate, a freedom to be exposed to diverse opinions and a wide range of issues. As for new communication technologies, our conclusion is that there are severe challenges to be overcome if they are to be the servants of inclusive development. In particular, there are questions over universality of access, filtering mechanisms, censorship and Internet governance.-1