Birkbeck Politics Research: Does more data make for better politics?
When:
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Venue:
Online
Long title: There are now multiple sites that allow you to see how MPs or Peers voted, what expenses they claimed or what they have done in Parliament, with the new data regularly reported in the mainstream and social media. A central claim for this greater transparency is that politicians will behave better, whether through the effect of being watched or thinking they are being watched. Much of the hoped for effect hinges on how politicians respond.
Based on data from a Birkbeck Politics project on the monitoring of the UK Parliament and expert knowledge from the IFG and mySociety, this panel will discuss if more data equals ‘better’ behaviour. Does it depend on who is watching or how it is used? Can the new data driven democracy also lead to manipulation or gaming? Does the new data, in a highly charged environment, become a tool for political point scoring rather than understanding?
Contact name:
Daniel Parnell
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Alex Parsons - mySociety
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Alex joined the mySociety Research team in September 2016. With his degree in Politics, an MSc in Democracy and Democratisation, and experience in both research and web development, he could hardly be better placed to help our Research team as they trawl through data to find some solid truths about this thing we call civic tech.
Previously a freelancer, Alex has conducted research and development around such areas as letting agent fees, truth in politics, and and how often people say the word ‘crisis’ in Parliament: “Lots! But more often recently”.
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Alice Lilly - Institute for Government
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Alice is a senior researcher, leading Parliamentary Monitor, a new project taking a data-driven look at the work of Parliament and its performance in improving the effectiveness of government. She also works on the Institute’s Performance Tracker project, focusing on criminal courts, police, and prisons. Since joining the Institute in 2016, Alice has also worked on projects on improving tax policy making, and on local public services.
She holds an MA and PhD in American Studies from the University of Nottingham, and a BA in History from Cambridge.
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Cat Morgan - Birkbeck Politics
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Research Assistant, Birkbeck - Department of Politics