When people think about issues in their communities, they
usually frame those issues through practical questions they
would like to see addressed. Is the town budget too high or too
low? Are teachers doing a good job? Are the streets safe? Do
emergency responders have the right training? How can traffic
congestion be eased? Does the library have the best technology
for patrons? Do zoning rules work the best way? Are all the
people in the community getting fair access to social services?
The way that people address questions like those is to gather,
share and act on information. Yet there is not much knowledge
about how the parts of a community's information system work and
fit together. Believing it would be useful for communities to
examine how well their own information systems were performing,
the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation asked the Monitor
Institute to explore key components of local information systems
in three communities with advisory help from the Pew Research
Center's Internet & American