There are some pioneers in this area. One of my favorite is Chicago Talks, a nuts and bolts neighborhood information hub that keeps its digital ear to the ground on everything from housing foreclosures to bike lanes. Fueled by citizen journalism, the site is constantly receiving and regurgitating the latest information about crime control, school budgets, and library hours.
But such work is tough to keep going, and even tougher to keep funded. “In a democracy, the very idea of second-class citizenship is unacceptable,” Informing Communities warns. “Yet, for many, second-class information citizenship is looming.”
