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Virtual worlds and civic engagement: Obama’s health care policy discussed in Second Life

Posted on January 10, 2009 by


Draxtor Despres's latest dispatch from the virtual world examines how people are using Second Life to speak this country's health care policy, as part of Obama's online policy dialogues. Here's organizer Siri Vita (sp?) describing why a Second Life consultation works:

One of the most amazing things was how people were willing to open up with their personal stories the way they might in real life in someone's living room.  They really spurred the discussion to a much deeper level… It offers access to people who would not normally be able to get up and get out to a meeting in real life.  People with disabilities and chronic illness. People whose life is truly impacted by health care policy in America. Here they are having their voices heard.

And as you can see from the video, people are literally speaking with their voices, using the VOIP capabilities of Second Life.  This can be really powerful for people to be in a simulated room with other people and telling their stories together, brainstorming, expressing support for each other. The experience is qualitatively different from posting to an online forum, commenting on a blog post, or uploading a YouTube video.  And you can maintain some level of anonymity, as opposed to a real life gathering.  Which for sensitive subject matter like this can be an important factor.

For those who have never been to one of these kinds of virtual gatherings, it can be hard to express how moving and emotional these experiences can be.

1 thought on “Virtual worlds and civic engagement: Obama’s health care policy discussed in Second Life”

  1. RomanRJ says:
    January 13, 2009 at 8:25 am

    http://www.rj-team.org/Partner

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