The information ecology of parliamentary monitoring websites: Pathways towards strengthening democracy

Abstract

This paper investigates the monitoring of parliamentarians by independent parliamentary monitoring organizations (PMOs). Three parliamentary monitoring websites (PMWs) in Germany, the United Kingdom, and France are compared regarding their contribution to strengthening democracy. An information ecology perspective reveals the interrelationships between the national institutional context, the democratic values pursued by the initiators, and website design. Two types of PMWs can be distinguished. One type focuses on enabling citizens to discharge their monitorial role, whereas the other type combines this focus with an explicit reformist stance. PMWs seem to have positive effects on various aspects of transparency and accountability. However, a better understanding is needed about what these websites entail for the quality of parliamentary work.