Visual events and electronic government: What do pictures mean in digital government for citizen relations?

E-government is becoming more picture-oriented. What meaning do stakeholders attach to visual events and visualization? Comparative case study research show the functional meaning primarily refers to registration, integration, transparency and communication. The political meaning refers to new ways of framing in order to secure specific interests and claims. To what the institutional meaning relates is ambiguous: either it improves the position of citizens, or it reinforces the existing bias presented by governments. Hence, we expect that the emergence of a visualized public space, through omnipresent penetration of (mobile) multimedia technologies, will influence government–citizen interactions.

► Images in electronic government are used in a functional meaning to recode and to create transparency but do often not facilitate communication, this potential is neglected.
► In a political meaning images in e-government are used for motivational and prognostic framing, however increased transparency is questioned by citizens as well as the government.
► A co-producing citizen in this sense is not being pursued by the government while using images.
► Institutionally speaking the use of images in e-government leads to changing positions of citizens but still governments initiate applications.