The Public Opinion Programme (POP) at the University of Hong Kong was established in June 1991. Our main objective is to serve the community by providing useful opinion data to academics, journalists, policy makers and members of the general public alike. From a broad perspective, POP is itself an opinion platform whereby scientific opinion data is provided to the community.
Between 1991 and 2000, POP regularly released its research findings in the form of print documents, including various kinds of research reports, journal articles, news releases, column articles and regular newsletters. By June 2000, riding on the rapid development of the internet, POP established the online "POP Site", in order to disseminate its research findings using multi media modes. The idea of online platform also germinated at that time.
In 2003, people's power grew rapidly in Hong Kong. "POP Site" also opened online interactive platforms for people to submit their opinions. These people were usually invited randomly from participants of different mass rallies and demonstrations since 2003, to give their opinions sometimes freely sometimes structurally by completing some online questionnaires available at the POP Site. Sometimes, invitations were extended to participants of other activities. In 2005, webpages called "Opinion Platforms" were added to the POP Site to organize and present these opinions systematically.
In 2007, as Hong Kong SAR prepares for its tenth anniversary, POP further develops the concept of "opinion platform" by setting up a new website called "Hong Kong People's Opinion Platform" at http://hkpop.hk to conduct various types of independent and systematic consultations, in addition to gathering opinions through the POP Site at appropriate times.
"Opinion platforms" are new. How successful they will finally become is something for future to tell. However, there is no doubt whatsoever that POP will continue to explore new grounds for opinion expression, in order to create more channels of opinion expression on top of traditional opinion surveys.
Of course, POP will continue to hold dearly to its commitment to research autonomy and community ownership, in order to cultivate the spirit of science and professionalism.
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