THE DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION BY LOCAL-AUTHORITIES ON THE WORLD-WIDE-WEB

Local authorities (LAs) exist to provide a variety of services to thei r citizens, and they have a responsibility to communicate information, in increasing quantities, to the people within their locality. This c ommunication has traditionally been paper-based, but information techn ology may offer some advantages. The aims of this study were to survey the use of the World Wide Web by LAs, to identify the reasons for its adoption, the benefits and disadvantages, and the types of informatio n being disseminated by this means. The survey was conducted by questi onnaire, sent to 161 LAs, mainly by electronic mail. All the Web sites were observed and assessed for relevance and quality, and four LAs we re used as case studies. Adoption of the Web by LAs increased sharply during 1996, as it was perceived as a medium for improving communicati ons and disseminating information. Some LAs have discovered the value of the medium for promoting their area to a wider, national and intern ational audience, especially for tourism and economic development.