Are there any implementations of Online Deliberation?

Question

Wikipedia says Online Deliberation is the

practice and research related to the design, implementation and study of deliberative processes that rely on the use of electronic information and communications technologies.

Deliberation is the

process of thoughtfully weighing options, usually prior to voting.

Though, with my intent, "prior to voting" would mean always.

A google search on the term returns research papers, but nothing stands out as an implementation.

Stack Exchange is probably the closest, most popular example I can think of, but it is meant for FAQ.

In more detail, I'm looking for a forum that centers around topics or initiatives. Each would have credible information gets voted up, has references, logic, structure, surveys... whatever is needed to help ensure people that they are taking in objective information that is free from bias and influence. It would need to be interactive, and cured by the community in much the way Stack Exchange sites are - not just a website that employees writers and editors (aka news).

But, for starters, anything that meets the definition of Online Deliberation above would also suffice.

Does anyone know of such efforts that exist already or are in the works?

Answer 1

There are two kinds of such communities: political ones and ones dedicated to debates.

The first kind are usually intended as tools for liquid democracy, which is basically a form of dynamic representative democracy. You can dynamically vote yourself or give your vote to a trusted representative that will vote for you. These systems include tools for debate, prior to voting. They were invented by parties for political matters and current installations are generally linked to the respective party.

However, the software can be used for general debates. Examples are LiquidFeeback and DemocracyOS. Though, you will have to create your own community if you want to use them for general debates.

The second kind is simply a community powered by a custom software for debates or frequented by people dedicated to rational debate.

An example of the first type is the website Debate.org.

An example of the second type is a website for the rationalist community: LessWrong. The website itself is quite simple: you post stuff and people comment on it. However, the people that frequent it are rational and open to an honest debate.