Internet petition
Encyclopedia
An Internet petition is a form of petition
posted on a website
. Visitors to the website in question can add their email addresses or names, and after enough "signatures" have been collected, the resulting letter may be delivered to the subject of the petition, usually via e-mail
.
or closure of a store
.
Because it is easy to set up, it can attract frivolous causes, or jokes framed in the ostensible form of a petition.
Without safeguards online petitions may to be abused if signers don't use real names. This may invalidate the legitimacy of the petition itself. Verification, for example via a confirmation e-mail
can prevent padding a petition with false names and e-mails and many petition sites now have such safeguards to match real world processes such as local governments requiring protest groups to present petition signatures, plus their printed name, and a way to verify the signature (either with a phone number or identification number via a driver's license
or a passport
) to ensure that the signature is legitimate and not falsified by the protestors.
There are now several major web initiatives featuring online petitions, for example Change.org
, Avaaz.org
, Petitions.GoodEasy.info, Internet Petition
and 38 Degrees
. These are growing in popularity and in their ability to achieve political impact. The Economist comments that Avaaz has had "some spectacular successes" but raises questions about what objective measures can be used to assess "the reach of a global e-protest movement".
Some legitimate non-governmental organization
s (NGOs) shun online petitions for various reasons. The track record of online petitions is also another reason why some NGOs shun them, as there are few examples of this form of petition achieving its objective, and critics frequently cite it as an example of slacktivism
.
In February 2007 an online petition against road pricing and car tracking on the UK Prime Minister
's own website attracted over 1.8 million e-signatures from a population of 60 million people. The site was official but experimental at the time. Shocked government ministers were unable to backtrack on the site's existence in the face of national news coverage of the phenomenon. The incident has demonstrated both the potential and pitfalls of online e-Government petitions. It remains to be seen if policy will be permanently affected.
, requesting that its users forward them to a large number of people in order to meet a goal or to attain a falsely promised reward. Other times the message will contain a form to be printed and filled out, or a link to an offsite online petition which the recipient can sign. Usually, the e-mail petition focuses on a specific cause that is meant to cause outrage or ire, centering on a timely political or cultural topic. E-mail petitions were among the earliest attempts to garner attention to a cause from an online audience.
as a platform for commerce, activism and discussion, an opportunity to garner attention for various social causes was perceived by various players, resulting in a more formalized structure for online petitions; one of the first web-based petition hosts, PetitionOnline
, was founded in 1999, with others such as thePetitionSite.com, iPetitions, GoPetitions and others being established in the years since. Petition hosts served as accessible external locations for the creation of a wide variety of petitions for free by users, providing easier interfaces for such petitions in comparison to the previous e-mail petitions and informal web forum-based petitions. However, petition hosts were criticized for their lax requirements from users who created or signed such petitions: petitions were often only signed with false or anonymous nomenclatures, and often resulted in disorganized side commentary between signers of the same petition.
The rise of online social networking in the later 2000s, however, resulted in both an increase of Internet petition integration into social networks and an increase of visibility for such petitions; Facebook
, Change.org
, Care2
, Avaaz.org
and other sites serve as examples of the integration of Internet petitions as a form of social media
and user-generated content
. Such networks may have proven to be more fertile ground for the creation of, signing of and response to online petitions, as such networks generally lack the heightened level of anonymity associated with the earlier dedicated petition hosts.
Some parliaments, government agencies and officials, such as The Scottish Parliament
with the e-Petitioner
system (from 1999), the Queensland Parliament in Australia, German Bundestag
(from 2005) and Bristol City Council in the U.K have adopted electronic petitioning systems as a way to display a commitment to their constituents and provide greater accessibility into government operations.
Under the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 the petitions duty requires all principal authorities to provide a facility for people to submit petitions electronically. This requirement will come into force on December 15, 2010.
The White House originally required petitions to gather 5,000 signatures within 30 days, after which time policy officials in the administration would review the petition and would issue an official response. However, as of October 3, 2011, petitions must gather 25,000 signatures in 30 days in order to get reviewed by Administration officials. After more than 12,000 people signed a petition in October 2011 asking if the U.S. government had contact with aliens, the White House issued an official statement via the White House Office of Science and Technology. The statement said that the White House has found no evidence that extraterrestrial life exists in our universe or that another life form has made contact with our planet. According to spokesman Phil Larson: “In addition, there is no credible information to suggest that any evidence is being hidden from the public's eye.”
Other groups are attempting to establish electronic petitioning as a way to streamline and make more accessible, existing citizens' initiative
processes.
, Internet petitions are both a popular resort of web-based activism and a target of criticism from those who feel that such petitions are often disregarded by their targets because of the anonymity of petition signers; Snopes.com, for example, sides itself against the usage of Internet petitions as a method of activism. On the other hand, the creators of petition hosts, such as Randy Paynter of Care2
and thePetitionSite.com, have defended web-based petitions as being more feasible, credible and effective than e-mail petitions, claiming they are not fairly judged as a method of activism by their critics.
Petition
A petition is a request to do something, most commonly addressed to a government official or public entity. Petitions to a deity are a form of prayer....
posted on a website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
. Visitors to the website in question can add their email addresses or names, and after enough "signatures" have been collected, the resulting letter may be delivered to the subject of the petition, usually via e-mail
E-mail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
.
Pros and cons
The format makes it easy for people to make a petition at any time. Several websites allow anyone with computer access to make one to protest any cause, such as stopping planned development of a wetlandWetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
or closure of a store
Retailing
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
.
Because it is easy to set up, it can attract frivolous causes, or jokes framed in the ostensible form of a petition.
Without safeguards online petitions may to be abused if signers don't use real names. This may invalidate the legitimacy of the petition itself. Verification, for example via a confirmation e-mail
E-mail
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
can prevent padding a petition with false names and e-mails and many petition sites now have such safeguards to match real world processes such as local governments requiring protest groups to present petition signatures, plus their printed name, and a way to verify the signature (either with a phone number or identification number via a driver's license
Driver's license
A driver's license/licence , or driving licence is an official document which states that a person may operate a motorized vehicle, such as a motorcycle, car, truck or a bus, on a public roadway. Most U.S...
or a passport
Passport
A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth....
) to ensure that the signature is legitimate and not falsified by the protestors.
There are now several major web initiatives featuring online petitions, for example Change.org
Change.org
Change.org is an online platform for social change launched on February 7, 2007 by current CEO Ben Rattray and Mark Dimas, and certified as a B Corporation in January, 2011. Its stated mission is to "empower anyone, anywhere to start, join, and win campaigns for social change."...
, Avaaz.org
Avaaz.org
Avaaz.org is a global civic organization launched in January 2007 that promotes activism on issues such as climate change, human rights, corruption, poverty, and conflict...
, Petitions.GoodEasy.info, Internet Petition
Internet petition
An Internet petition is a form of petition posted on a website. Visitors to the website in question can add their email addresses or names, and after enough "signatures" have been collected, the resulting letter may be delivered to the subject of the petition, usually via e-mail.-Pros and cons:The...
and 38 Degrees
38 Degrees
38 Degrees is a UK non-profit, progressive, political activism organisation that campaigns on a diverse range of issues, such as protecting the environment and tackling climate change, democratic media ownership, child poverty and political reform...
. These are growing in popularity and in their ability to achieve political impact. The Economist comments that Avaaz has had "some spectacular successes" but raises questions about what objective measures can be used to assess "the reach of a global e-protest movement".
Some legitimate non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
s (NGOs) shun online petitions for various reasons. The track record of online petitions is also another reason why some NGOs shun them, as there are few examples of this form of petition achieving its objective, and critics frequently cite it as an example of slacktivism
Slacktivism
Slacktivism is a portmanteau formed out of the words slacker and activism. The word is usually considered a pejorative term that describes "feel-good" measures, in support of an issue or social cause, that have little or no practical effect other than to make the person doing it feel satisfaction...
.
In February 2007 an online petition against road pricing and car tracking on the UK Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
's own website attracted over 1.8 million e-signatures from a population of 60 million people. The site was official but experimental at the time. Shocked government ministers were unable to backtrack on the site's existence in the face of national news coverage of the phenomenon. The incident has demonstrated both the potential and pitfalls of online e-Government petitions. It remains to be seen if policy will be permanently affected.
E-mail petitions
A similar form of petition is the e-mail petition. This petition may be a simple chain letterChain letter
A typical chain letter consists of a message that attempts to the recipient to make a number of copies of the letter and then pass them on to as many recipients as possible...
, requesting that its users forward them to a large number of people in order to meet a goal or to attain a falsely promised reward. Other times the message will contain a form to be printed and filled out, or a link to an offsite online petition which the recipient can sign. Usually, the e-mail petition focuses on a specific cause that is meant to cause outrage or ire, centering on a timely political or cultural topic. E-mail petitions were among the earliest attempts to garner attention to a cause from an online audience.
World Wide Web
With the rise of the World Wide WebWorld Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
as a platform for commerce, activism and discussion, an opportunity to garner attention for various social causes was perceived by various players, resulting in a more formalized structure for online petitions; one of the first web-based petition hosts, PetitionOnline
PetitionOnline
PetitionOnline is an Internet petition service founded and trademarked in 1999 by Artifice, Inc., and now operated by Change.org, that allows users to create and sign petitions. When enough signatures on a petition are collected, the creator of the petition can send it towards its intended target,...
, was founded in 1999, with others such as thePetitionSite.com, iPetitions, GoPetitions and others being established in the years since. Petition hosts served as accessible external locations for the creation of a wide variety of petitions for free by users, providing easier interfaces for such petitions in comparison to the previous e-mail petitions and informal web forum-based petitions. However, petition hosts were criticized for their lax requirements from users who created or signed such petitions: petitions were often only signed with false or anonymous nomenclatures, and often resulted in disorganized side commentary between signers of the same petition.
The rise of online social networking in the later 2000s, however, resulted in both an increase of Internet petition integration into social networks and an increase of visibility for such petitions; Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
, Change.org
Change.org
Change.org is an online platform for social change launched on February 7, 2007 by current CEO Ben Rattray and Mark Dimas, and certified as a B Corporation in January, 2011. Its stated mission is to "empower anyone, anywhere to start, join, and win campaigns for social change."...
, Care2
Care2
Care2 is a social network website that was founded by Randy Paynter in 1998 to help connect activists from around the world. It has a membership of more than 17 million people....
, Avaaz.org
Avaaz.org
Avaaz.org is a global civic organization launched in January 2007 that promotes activism on issues such as climate change, human rights, corruption, poverty, and conflict...
and other sites serve as examples of the integration of Internet petitions as a form of social media
Social media
The term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,...
and user-generated content
User-generated content
User generated content covers a range of media content available in a range of modern communications technologies. It entered mainstream usage during 2005 having arisen in web publishing and new media content production circles...
. Such networks may have proven to be more fertile ground for the creation of, signing of and response to online petitions, as such networks generally lack the heightened level of anonymity associated with the earlier dedicated petition hosts.
E-government petitions in Europe and Australia
The UK government e-petitions system was suspended in April 2010 but then reopened in a new guise in August 2011, with time allocated for parliamentary debate a possibility for petitions attracting more than 100,000 signatures.Some parliaments, government agencies and officials, such as The Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
with the e-Petitioner
E-Petitioner
e-Petitioner is an online petition system that allows citizens to raise and sign a petition, read background information on the issue, and add comments to an online forum associated with each petition...
system (from 1999), the Queensland Parliament in Australia, German Bundestag
Bundestag
The Bundestag is a federal legislative body in Germany. In practice Germany is governed by a bicameral legislature, of which the Bundestag serves as the lower house and the Bundesrat the upper house. The Bundestag is established by the German Basic Law of 1949, as the successor to the earlier...
(from 2005) and Bristol City Council in the U.K have adopted electronic petitioning systems as a way to display a commitment to their constituents and provide greater accessibility into government operations.
Under the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 the petitions duty requires all principal authorities to provide a facility for people to submit petitions electronically. This requirement will come into force on December 15, 2010.
E-government petitions in the United States
On September 22, 2011, President Obama's administration created We The People, a platform that gives all American citizens a way to create and sign petitions on the White House web server, https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions. Any American 13 or older, after creating a WhiteHouse.gov account, can make or sign a petition asking the Obama Administration to take action.The White House originally required petitions to gather 5,000 signatures within 30 days, after which time policy officials in the administration would review the petition and would issue an official response. However, as of October 3, 2011, petitions must gather 25,000 signatures in 30 days in order to get reviewed by Administration officials. After more than 12,000 people signed a petition in October 2011 asking if the U.S. government had contact with aliens, the White House issued an official statement via the White House Office of Science and Technology. The statement said that the White House has found no evidence that extraterrestrial life exists in our universe or that another life form has made contact with our planet. According to spokesman Phil Larson: “In addition, there is no credible information to suggest that any evidence is being hidden from the public's eye.”
Other groups are attempting to establish electronic petitioning as a way to streamline and make more accessible, existing citizens' initiative
Initiative
In political science, an initiative is a means by which a petition signed by a certain minimum number of registered voters can force a public vote...
processes.
Debate over efficacy
As is the case with public perceptions of slacktivismSlacktivism
Slacktivism is a portmanteau formed out of the words slacker and activism. The word is usually considered a pejorative term that describes "feel-good" measures, in support of an issue or social cause, that have little or no practical effect other than to make the person doing it feel satisfaction...
, Internet petitions are both a popular resort of web-based activism and a target of criticism from those who feel that such petitions are often disregarded by their targets because of the anonymity of petition signers; Snopes.com, for example, sides itself against the usage of Internet petitions as a method of activism. On the other hand, the creators of petition hosts, such as Randy Paynter of Care2
Care2
Care2 is a social network website that was founded by Randy Paynter in 1998 to help connect activists from around the world. It has a membership of more than 17 million people....
and thePetitionSite.com, have defended web-based petitions as being more feasible, credible and effective than e-mail petitions, claiming they are not fairly judged as a method of activism by their critics.
Free Internet petition scripts
- EzyPetitions http://ezypetitions.ultraventus.info/
- Petition script http://petitionscript.net/
See also
- e-ParticipationE-participatione-participation is the generally accepted term referring to "ICT-supported participation in processes involved in government and governance". Processes may concern administration, service delivery, decision making and policy making...
- Virtual volunteering / online volunteeringVirtual volunteeringVirtual volunteering is a term describing a volunteer who completes tasks, in whole or in part, off-site from the organization being assisted, using the Internet and a home, school, telecenter or work computer or other Internet-connected device. Virtual volunteering is also known as online...