Is eBay really a model for civic discourse?

The IPPR Manifesto for a Digital Britain seems strangely in favour of online trading models as a way to stimulate and help "citizens connect to one another in civic, non-market interactions" as Will Davies put it in his paper for an event last week. Jo Twist's report for the BBC certain picks up the flavour of the discussion:

Existing services such as eBay could provide a good blueprint for such services, says the think-tank.
Although the net is becoming part of local and central government, its potential has not yet been fully exploited to create an online "commons" for public debate.
In its report, Is Online Community A Policy Tool?, the IPPR also asks if ID cards could help create safer online communities.

We ranged over Government-funded work on social software at mySociety, development work of museums and libraries, and also ideas for a government-supported "civic commons" for political discussion. The BBC fielded a strong team from iCAN! its own excellent civic space for discussion and campaigning.
However, the model that attracted most attention was National E-markets, a sort of eBay for trading time proposed by Wingham Rowan. It's an interesting idea - and Wingham was loquacious in presenting it's virtues - but I'm not sure that Goverment guarantees to underpin online trading in services is what we need in this case.
I threw into the discussion the challenge of how - for example - online community could help address problems faced by people in poorer neighbourhoods, where new bureaucracies are failing to deliver. Campaigning via iCAN! is one route, because BBC presence gives people leverage. There were also at the event a few enthusiasts for local websites and discussion forums. Back in the late 1990s there was great hope for local community initiatives, and still quite a few around. The recent paper on E-neighbourhoods reviews the issues...even if a bit detached from current practice.
Maybe we need one good forum to talk about supporting online communities for social benefit even if, as I believe, there's a lot of virtue in having many different places for the issues themselves. Or maybe it's a matter of more and better blogging, with good cross links, as the Manifesto blog is beginning to achieve.

Comments

[ian]

The record of governments on major IT projects doesn't fill you with confidence that this would be any better. Local LETS schemes do this sort of thing already, although probably with a bias towards aromatherapists and the like. Bringing LETS out of the 'alternative culture' ghetto into a wider market would be a good start, which might be something for the many community planning partnerships to tackle. It would be quite something to see an LSP taking it one!