PHI THETA KAPPA

How does information affect governments and public policy?

Study Questions

1. How does information contribute to civilization building?
2. What factors contribute to transparency in governmental decision making? To what extent is an open society a prerequisite for transparent governance?
3. How has access to information affected formal political organizations versus grassroots political organizations?
4. How much information does a government have the need to collect, keep, and track on private individuals and businesses and for what reasons or purposes?
5. Does the public have a right to know everything about public figures?
6. Does the world need an “Information Clearinghouse” to counter such things as terrorist threats or information warfare?
7. How has information driven regime changes around the world?
8. How has access to information engaged people in governing processes? Does information overload prevent effective participation in governance?
9. What’s the difference between “spin” and misinformation or propaganda? How are the parameters set for public figures regarding responsible dissemination of information?
10. How is the balance between civil liberties and state interests determined?
11. When is it okay to censor information? What are the legal arguments for and against censorship? What are the ramifications of censorship for citizens and for a government? When is access to information considered harmful and who decides?
12. To what extent should governments assist victims of identity theft if they have been careless?
13. Can policies be too “data-driven”?

Honors in Action

Smart Energy Use

Investigation of the Honors Study Topic (Research): Smart meters are energy meters that provide more information than traditional meters. Since deregulation of the electrical industry, government regulators have been looking for ways to make energy use match energy generation. The smart meter is a first attempt to give consumers some ability to address that situation. Many power companies are installing meters or have plans to do so. How will the installation of these meters affect the information about our energy use available to business and local governments?

Leadership Role(s): Work with college administrators and public utilities officials to determine the ways you can best reach members of your college and community to share what you learn about smart meters.

Leadership Development: Work with your chapter advisors to consider “A Question of Leadership: What Can Leaders Do to Avoid Groupthink” from Phi Theta Kappa’s Leadership Development Studies: A Humanities Approach. Discuss what you have learned about thinking creatively and utilize the skills you develop from your workshop as you develop your Smart Energy Use project.

Action: Determine the extent to which smart meters are present in your community. If they are not, organize an energy forum and invite a representative of the local power provider to address your campus. If from your research you determine there is an opportunity for influencing the decision, research smart meter technology and cost and make a determination if it is economically feasible to advocate for widescale installation in your community.

If meters are in place, become familiar with the type of information the meters provide and develop materials to supplement power company brochures or rewrite them for a different audience. If you have a large Latino population, join forces with the Hispanic Students Club or Spanish classes on your campus to translate information for that community. If there is no near-term plan for smart meters to be installed in your community, research and present information on energy-saving practices that will fit easily into a family’s lifestyle or a business’s routine with a minimum of adjustment.

Collaboration:

• Chapter members
• Students on your campus
• Community members and utility company officials

Reflection: Organize a forum for chapter members and students on your campus to discuss the ways in which learning more about smart meters has changed the way you view and use energy on a daily basis. What challenges did you face when talking to people about smart meters? How did you grow as scholars and leaders? Where will you go from here with your research and community action?

Who Might Be Being You?

Investigation of the Honors Study Topic (Research): Explore the significance of identity theft and plan an informational talk on campus. Determine the logistics—when, where, who? Develop a timeline. What all needs to be done before hosting the event? Research identity theft—how prevalent is it, how at risk are we, what is the economic impact? What is the penalty for those who steal other people’s identities? What role does government play in the prosecution of these crimes? Research ways to keep your personal information more secure, including the information that you put on social networking sites. How is your personal information kept secure on campus, online, and by various institutions with whom you have working relationships? How secure is this information really? By what means can our personal information be hijacked and used for fraud? What information is the most valuable to criminals? With whom on campus could you meet to discuss this topic and campus cyber security?

Leadership Role(s): Meet with local banking officials to discuss their procedures and safeguards. Plan for these meetings by determining what questions you should ask. What information are you seeking? Meet with the manager of a local store to discuss how identity theft affects that business and, in turn, its customers. Contact the local police department to determine who is in charge of identity theft crimes and meet with him or her to discuss these issues. How common is this crime in your area? What is the usual scenario? If you are a victim of identity theft, how much will it likely cost you to clear your record? What steps must you take? Out of the experts with whom you have met, determine whom to invite to be your speaker. What information will you use to determine who would be the most effective speaker?

Leadership Development: Organize a workshop on creating a leadership journal in which you will keep a matrix and regular schedule for monitoring personal information. Share what you learn as you develop your Honors in Action project.

Action: Design an informational flier for your campus and have an expert check it for accuracy. Distribute your flier at the discussion. Provide copies to the people with whom you met so they may also distribute your flier at their locations. Ask your college administrators if the information can be posted to the college website. Evaluate your own situation. Are you doing all that you can to avoid identity theft? Encourage members to check their credit reports every six months to check for fraud. Organize a workshop at a regional Phi Theta Kappa conference to share what you have learned about identity theft with fellow members.

Collaboration:

• Chapter members
• Students on your campus
• Members of Phi Theta Kappa beyond your chapter
• College administrators
• Community officials

Reflection: What did you learn about the power and peril of the democratization of information? Discuss what you have learned about protecting your documents and personal information. Share the personal plans you have developed to safeguard your identity.

Bibliography

Friere, Paulo. Pedagogy of Freedom: Ethics, Democracy, and Civic Courage. 1998.
Friere calls for a universal code of ethics to help establish better communications and education in the 21st century. He looks at the reasons people should feel optimistic about change as well as the reasons we should never rest in the quest for greater freedom and the uptapped possibility in all of us.

Gosling, Sam. Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You. 2008.
Gosling explores what the things we collect and keep with us at home and work say about us, including our political leanings, intellectual interests, and personal lives. Gosling contends our stuff even reveals not only the image we hope to present to the world, but our personal fears about ourselves and our world as well.

Siegel, Marc. False Alarm: The Truth about the Epidemic of Fear. 2008.
H1N1, terrorist attacks, looming financial meltdowns, and who knows what else? In a world with so many alleged dangers, how do we make sense of what is and what is not a threat? In this solid companion piece to Barry Glassner’s The Culture of Fear, Siegel looks at and deconstructs the culture of fear and the ramifications involved.

Shirky, Clay. Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations. 2008.
Shirky discusses the ways in which social networking, blogs, and other new forms of mass media are changing the way people organize themselves politically. He explores the role of the tools used to organize people without formal organization, the success of those tools in bringing people together, and the perils and promise inherent in such methods of organization.

Sunstein, Cass R. Republic.com 2.0. 2009.
Sunstein examines the effects of mass media, 24-hour news cycles, and other forms of technology on public discourse. He looks at the effect of the changes in that discourse on the political landscapes, particularly what he considers a move from democratic solidarity to polarization.

Wright, Lawrence. The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11. 2006.
Wright examines the successes and failures of Islamic militants in the post-World War II era. He discusses the communication failures and lack of communication between agencies that led to 9/11 despite sloppiness on the part of Al Queda and its operatives.