Contending Perspectives On Digital Democracy

The quasi-universal spread of the social media has profoundly modified the equation between citizens and the state and has given rise to hopes for a transformation of democracy into a more direct and participatory digital form of government. However optimistic predictions about the potential of social media to improve governance have been partly proven wrong by the disruptive rise of inchoate populistic and divisive demands and expectations that are increasingly met with attempts at state and corporate censorship whereas they often lead to social turmoil and political instability. The author surveys the opportunities and problems associated with social media which facilitate mass surveillance and control, thus becoming instruments of majority repression by powerful minorities.