German Chancellor Angela Merkel has agreed to answer the 10 most popular questions made by German citizens via the Internet over a period of three days on YouTube. This initative seeks to engage in dialogue with the citizens.1,790 questions were submitted, however, none of the top ten were related with the current priorities of the German government: the eurozone debt crisis, but with otehr topics such as legalization of cannabis or why parlamentaries can decide their own wedges.
There have been many critics about this idea of creating a virtual dialogue. Some people like Christoph Bieber, an expert on the Internet of the University of Giessen, think that this idea is not innovative but old- US President Barack Obama answered questions from people around the world in April 2011, in a live interview conducted by Mark Zuckerberg-
Some other arguments that criticise this YouTube idea are that it is not a really lively dialogue- due to the fact that the questions are determined beforehand and that the interview is recorded- or whether the government has to be answering questions that are less urgent than the current euro crisis.
Bieber also added that one of the reasons why the government is taking initiatives such as the YouTube one is because of the "shock that the established parties have experienced in relation to the internet", such as the rise of the Pirate Party or the release of secret information by WikiLeaks.
Finally, the expert on the Internet says that it's time for the Internet to be viewed as a normal field to create and improve political engagement.
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In my opinion, I think that the YouTube initative is a good idea, even if it could be considered old by the Internet experts.
I agree that a really lively and controversial dialogue should be one in which citizens could rise queries and then be able to ask follow up questions. However, I think that initiatives like the one that Angela Merkel had are also important to know the worries and doubts that the people have.
Regarding to the topics, I don't think that the questions had to be necessarily related to the euro crisis. German citizens also concern about other issues and would like to hear their Chacellor's answers.
Finally, I also agree with the last statement made in the article about the necessity of using the Internet in order to improve the political engagement with the population. The Internet is a part of our everyday life, and it could be a good tool to let the people be more active in politics.
