Even Jamaica’s getting in on the ‘two way’ action!!

According to Tench and Yeomans ‘a democracy is or should be a two-way process, giving multiple opportunities for members of the public to communicate their own interests and concerns to the government at all levels of influence and sometimes transform public policy’ (Tench and Yeomans, 2006, p. 90). The previous People’s National Party (PNP) government of Jamaica mainly interacted with political opponents, international officials, high-powered investors and the media. Its relationship with the ‘ordinary’ Jamaican citizen was relegated to confirming lunch orders and an onslaught of political promises during election periods.

Today, both of the island’s main political parties have finally recognized the importance of interactivity and reciprocal communication with Jamaican nationals. The ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has established a website, which not only seeks to provide valuable information but also encourages feedback through chat rooms, blogs, emails and participation in several social media sites including Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and Flickr.

Additionally, the current Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, hosts a monthly, interactive talk show, Jamaica House Live, which provides citizens based locally and abroad to call in and discuss their concerns directly with the PM. The show has enjoyed overwhelming success resulting in its broadcast on 10 of the country’s radio stations and an extension of its time slot from an hour to an hour and a half.

The opposition PNP also utilizes the internet, which is currently accessibly by 55% of the population, to engage its supporters by providing news content, press releases, event calendars and streaming online video.

Despite their efforts, there is still development to be made in the country’s online political communications sector. A major deterrent of both parties’ websites is a lack of an efficient updating system as much of the content is outdated.

Both the JLP and PNP should be lauded for their attempts at improving contact with the island’s citizens. It’ll be interesting to see if all this ‘conversation’ turns into any form of beneficial action or if it is simply just another publicity campaign...

References

Jamaica Gleaner (2008). Internet usage shoots to 55%: 1.5 million Jamaicans surf the Web; Mullings aims for full penetration. [online] Available from: <http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20080629/business/business1.html> [Accessed 25 February 2009]

Tench, R. and Yeomans, L., (2006). Exploring Public Relations. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.