Public Engagement In E-Government Platforms: A Mass Communication Perspective: A Case Study Of Wonorejo Village, Karanganyar Regency, Central Java

Abstract

The advancement of information and communication technology has transformed the relationship between governments and citizens, making e-government platforms increasingly central to public service delivery and democratic participation. However, meaningful citizen engagement remains limited, particularly in rural and peri-urban communities in Indonesia where digital literacy, connectivity, and institutional responsiveness are uneven. This study examines the communicative dimensions of public engagement in e-government complaint platforms, focusing on Wonorejo Village, Gondangrejo District, Karanganyar Regency, Central Java, as a case study. Employing a qualitative-descriptive approach grounded in a critical-interpretive paradigm, this study applies systematic content analysis to 87 digital complaint records from the LAPOR! platform and 214 WhatsApp communication threads from the village government over January 2022 to December 2023. Three theoretical frameworks inform the analysis: agenda-setting (McCombs & Shaw, 1972), framing theory (Entman, 1993), and interactivity in computer-mediated communication (Rafaeli, 1988). Findings indicate that citizen engagement with formal e-government platforms at the village level is constrained by a communicative gap rooted in limited digital literacy, low government response quality (70.1% reactive responses), and the cultural preference for informal communication channels. The study argues that effective e-government engagement requires substantive, dialogic government responses and culturally sensitive interface design. These findings contribute to mass communication scholarship on mediated public spheres and have practical implications for inclusive e-government design in Indonesian village governance.