Pew Internet and American Life Project recently published this report on government online and how Americans use government website, finding that:

“As government agencies at all levels bring their services online, Americans are turning in large numbers to government websites to access information and services. Fully 82% of internet users (representing 61% of all American adults) looked for information or completed a transaction on a government website in the twelve months preceding this survey.”

Many of these visits were information seeking or transactional (activities like paying fines, renewing a license). Both these activities are no doubt important, but there is opportunity here to capture true engagement online between citizens and government – not just a one way flow of information, but an opportunity for meaningful, two-way conversation about the policies and processes that affect people where they live and work. And, the internet can’t yet be the only focus for government interaction -  “Americans tend to interact with government using a mix of online and offline methods. Internet users prefer contacting government online, but the telephone remains a key resource for government problem-solving.”

This study also draws attention to demographic differences in the populations accessing this information – “high-income and well-educated internet users are much more likely to use government services and information online,” and there are also racial differences in accessing government online to be mindful of.