<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>The digital transformations of contemporary media systems have had severe consequences for democracy and public debates. This introductory article addresses key challenges of what we refer to as varieties of “digital disintegration” within democratic societies. The eight contributions in the special issue are thematised in three parts. The first part explores disintegration within the context of political communication during elections, including data-driven campaigning, populism, and politicised forms of news production. The second part delves into the role of alternative news curators, audience polarisation, and issues of self-censorship in digital information environments. The third part centres on deliberative norms connected to content moderation of user comments within legacy media and the consequences digitalisation has had on journalistic sourcing practices and source diversity over time. The contributions offer valuable empirical insights, as well as new lines of thinking concerning democracy and digital and disintegrative transformations in the Nordic region and beyond.</p>
</abstract>

The digital transformations of contemporary media systems have had severe consequences for democracy and public debates. This introductory article addresses key challenges of what we refer to as varieties of “digital disintegration” within democratic societies. The eight contributions in the special issue are thematised in three parts. The first part explores disintegration within the context of political communication during elections, including data-driven campaigning, populism, and politicised forms of news production. The second part delves into the role of alternative news curators, audience polarisation, and issues of self-censorship in digital information environments. The third part centres on deliberative norms connected to content moderation of user comments within legacy media and the consequences digitalisation has had on journalistic sourcing practices and source diversity over time. The contributions offer valuable empirical insights, as well as new lines of thinking concerning democracy and digital and disintegrative transformations in the Nordic region and beyond.

Democracy and digital disintegration: Platforms, actors, citizens

Nordicom Review

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

{"article-title":"Democracy and digital disintegration: Platforms, actors, citizens"}

The digital transformations of contemporary media systems have had severe consequences for democracy and public debates. This introductory article addresses...

Democracy and digital disintegration: Platforms, actors, citizens

Published Online: Mar 12, 2024

Page range: 1 - 14

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/nor-2024-0005

Keywords
democracy, disintegration, platforms, election campaigns, alternative media, political communication, audience fragmentation, polarisation, journalism

© 2024 Andreas Widholm et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Democracy and digital disintegration: Platforms, actors, citizens

Published Online: Mar 12, 2024

Page range: 1 - 14

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/nor-2024-0005

Keywordsdemocracy, disintegration, platforms, election campaigns, alternative media, political communication, audience fragmentation, polarisation, journalism

© 2024 Andreas Widholm et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Keywords
democracy, disintegration, platforms, election campaigns, alternative media, political communication, audience fragmentation, polarisation, journalism