"Global Voices Online: Blogging for Independent Journalists, Concerned Citizens, and Activists," part of the larger conference Internet & Society 2004: Votes, Bits & Bytes, took place December 10 and 11, 2004, at Harvard Law School. Hosted by the Berkman Center for Internet and Society, the conference examined the role of information and communications technologies in political transformation. The "Global Voices Online" track was made possible with help from the Open Society Institute Information Program.

The conference s first day had a formal structure, with meetings attended by all participants. GVO Saturday participants were also invited to attend all Internet and Society Friday events.

Day two was organized into smaller, informal workshop and discussion tracks. "Global Voices Online" was one of four tracks. This daylong discussion focused on the use of weblogs and other new technologies to enhance online global dialogue and political advocacy. Participants included international webloggers, journalists, and activists with an interest in online communication techniques. A major focus of the meeting was to develop strategies for spreading the use of online participatory media by civil society, activists, and journalists in places generally ignored by the mainstream international media. The meeting was designed to lead to more extensive dialogue and mentoring relationships between international political bloggers and journalists/activists who are considering using weblogs and other new technologies for advocacy in their own regions.

Proposed discussion topics included the following.

1. The global conversation: blogs as bridges
2. How to build a blogosphere
3. Tools: software and hardware, what s out there, what s needed
4. Manifesto for a better global conversation