Book Review: William J. Drake and Ernest J. Wilson III (eds), Governing Global Electronic Networks: International Perspectives on Policy and Power (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2008, 680 pp., £37.95 pbk)
| DOI | 10.1177/03058298110400011217 |
| Author | Jean-Marie Chenou |
| Date | 01 September 2011 |
| Published date | 01 September 2011 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
214 Millennium: Journal of International Studies 40(1)
The book also includes a systematic overview of the legal and political context in
which intelligence operates, discussing some of the major issues with respect to emer-
gency powers and the limitations placed on intelligence activities when the security of the
state itself is challenged. In order to show how intelligence services and the perception of
their legitimacy change over time, Chesterman describes three cases: the increasing reli-
ance on private actors in US intelligence activities during the last decade, Britain’s diffi-
culties in passing legislation on privacy after significant public investments in surveillance
by closed-circuit television, and the valuable but problematic practice of intelligence-
sharing in the UN system as a way to overcome transnational challenges. While address-
ing some of the problems concerning the use of intelligence and the possible privacy
implications, these examples effectively underline that intelligence powers should be
accountable and grounded in the rule of law; moreover, they emphasise that the debate
should be focused on the use of information rather than on its collection. Although his
analysis mainly discusses the US and British contexts, it is not a book narrowly focused
on these countries and his argument can easily be extended to other democracies.
One Nation Under Surveillance is a stimulating read that offers a synthetic overview
of the use of intelligence, the legal regime governing it and the major political issues
involved. For all these reasons, this book should spur an open and genuine debate on the
proper equilibrium between privacy and security, as well as on the fundamental role of
the media and new technologies in both informing the public and limiting the power of
governments. Despite the complexity of the subject matter and an occasional overabun-
dance of data and examples, the book has the merit of being widely accessible to a broad
range of readers, and it will surely stimulate debate among scholars and practitioners
interested in intelligence law, constitutional law and security studies.
Anita Lavorgna
Anita Lavorgna is a PhD candidate, School of International Studies, University of
Trento, Italy.
William J. Drake and Ernest J. Wilson III (eds), Governing Global Electronic Networks:
International Perspectives on Policy and Power (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2008, 680 pp., £37.95 pbk).
While the significance of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in the
development of globalisation is widely acknowledged, few studies explore in a compre-
hensive way the governance of ICT in the global political economy. Global telecommu-
nications are governed through a complex network of specialised forums and institutions
that are representative of new technical and semi-privatised forms of governance.
Governing Global Electronic Networks embraces a wide range of issues related to the
governance of global electronic networks and provides a useful overview of the actors,
institutions and processes of ICT governance.
The book brings together 18 contributors, most of them actively involved both in the
study and in the practice of global electronic network governance. The chapters mix dif-
ferent academic fields and epitomise William Drake’s assumption that there cannot be a
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