Is the internet just for shopping? Campaigners using web communications technology would say not, showing how the left can make as much impact in cyberspace as big business. Gary Flood reports
Making the web work
Books, music, holidays, information, beer, porn. You can buy just about
anything online these days.
But although big business has turned the web into a big, shiny, cyber
strip mall, thousands of organisations – including trade unions –
are putting online communications to a far more worthy use.
Take drug and alcohol treatment charity Addaction as one example. It’s
hard to see how its serious and challenging work with clients has anything
to do with bits, bytes, and spam.
But as its IT manager James White explains, this is far from the whole
picture. “We have some 50 projects ongoing across the UK and find
technology vital to be able to link together our efforts and support our
400 staff,” he says.
The problems with inadequate technology included the lack of a central
database of client details, which made reporting and updating that information
time-consuming. The organisation was also highly vulnerable on its existing
simple network to those other huge time-wasters – viruses and spams.
Many charities scrape by on out of date or donated PCs. Addaction decided to buck the trend by investing in new equipment and sophisticated internet-based secure network technology.
“This has given us the right secure platform to build for the future,”
says White.
But using new communications technologies such as the web isn’t
just happening in the non-profit sector, of course.
Many unions as well as charities and campaign groups increasingly use
cyberspace as a medium to raise awareness of issues and organise. That’s
in addition to the now well-established use of websites as a focus for
activists (see box).
A good recent example of this is by the National Farmer’s Union
(NFU). Its new media manager Rachana Patel explains how the union’s
then fledgling web presence came into its own during the foot and mouth
crisis of 2000-01.
“We had a standard set of sites for members, consumers, and the
press, as many unions had. But during foot and mouth we were able to use
this as a channel for the most up to date information, the latest policy
guidelines, and news that was directly relevant and useful for our members.”
The so-called extranet – a website that links different organisations'
websites together to foster exchange of information and services –
became the first port of call for many people involved in the crisis,
including many members of the government, she says.
It also provided a welcome and unexpected benefit: so impressed were
some farmers with the union’s information and seven-day-a-week commitment
it can be said to be partly responsible for a most welcome extra 11,000
members who – naturally - signed up online.
The users of another interesting new union website are already members
of unions – in fact they’re the most active members, activists.
These are the folks who have signed up for a TUC-organised site for activists
wanting to share information or get advice. It’s already been so
successful it has signed up 2,400 users since its launch in August, says
John Wood, TUC new media officer.
Users of the site are able to share problems and tips, and enter debates
with reps from different workplaces, different unions, and different regions.
The TUC says discussion topics have already been very wide-ranging -
from ways to enforce minimum temperatures and recommended development
courses for reps to what to do with rusting shopping trolleys (!) and
tips for better communications with branch members.
“This step was taken after Congress’ action call to provide
better information for members,” says Wood.
“We weren’t sure how well people would take to it but the take
up and positive feed back been very encouraging. Clearly there are many
ways to interact with your union than just face to face, and as the latest
government figures show 49% of the UK population now has some sort of
Internet access at home this is a medium we can no longer ignore.
“This is also a way to make a great impact without spending an awful
lot of cash,” he adds.
That’s got to be music to the ears of anyone who wants to use the
power and connectivity of the web to get their campaign off the ground.
The lesson’s clear: technology is for use by all sorts of groups, not just big business or web heads – so get clicking and organising.
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