Tom 43 (2022): Zeszyt 1 (January 2022)

Increasingly, the means of engaging young people in constructive public debate and democratic society has shifted to online digital media platforms. This assumes that participants have the necessary media literacy skills to engage in a meaningful way. We discuss how and to what extent responses in an online blog elicited by two different scenes from the popular youth television series Skam [Shame] demonstrate agonistic deliberation and media literacy in digital dialogue spaces. Our study includes an analysis of the rhetorical characteristics of the dialogues; the mapping of key themes that characterise reactions of blog commentators in the online discussions; and a discussion of the characteristics of – and degree of deliberation in – online comments. We propose that narratives which employ agonistic deliberation around pertinent social themes are most likely to encourage and elicit public engagement that moves beyond emotional outbursts, reflecting a deeper consideration of the themes and topics.

Information and communication technologies enable migrants to maintain bonds with multiple communities. Little is known about the association between migrants’ connections to their country of origin and different integration practices in online and offline communities in the receiving society. We draw on a survey conducted amongst migrants in Iceland (N = 2,139) and conduct three regression analyses to identify determinants of migrants’ use of media and social media from their country of origin. Contrary to other studies, we do not find evidence of reactive transnationalism (i.e., migrants seeking out connections to their places of origin due to dissatisfaction with life in the receiving society) as a response to negative attitudes towards the receiving society. We identify distinct patterns of online and offline integration: Migrants with frequent contact with their countries of origin are less integrated locally in terms of offline activities. However, they are more integrated in digital communities of the receiving society, and use receiving-country media more frequently, thus following a strategy of digital biculturalism.

A “body activism” movement, with roots in fat activism and body positivity, has developed in Sweden during the last decade. As new forms of activism emerge, boundaries and approaches are being negotiated. Who is the movement for? Who can engage in it, and how? Through semi-structured interviews, we seek to understand how young Swedes who follow and engage in “body activism” on social media experience and reflect on the activism, belonging and entitlement, and their own participation. The informants discussed activism in terms of inclusiveness and political potential, where the most accessible activism is also the one ascribed with the least political potential. Entitlement is linked to collective identity, where an active participation requires belonging to the marginalised group. This article highlights the significance of boundary work in movements, where too narrowly drawn boundaries can lead to decreased participation and result in an unexploited potential for social change.

This article investigates the media's construction of public perceptions of future human–machine relationships related to artificial intelligence (AI) development and reflects on how such perceptions play a role in shaping strategies for the use of AI in Denmark. Through a critical discourse analysis of 253 newspaper and magazine articles published from 1956 to 2021, it shows how conflicting discursive positions are constructed, representing what I refer to as public AI imaginaries. The analysis shows that newspapers and magazines tend not to distinguish between futuristic descriptions of the human–machine relationship of AI and the human-centred principles of intelligence amplification (IA). Furthermore, it demonstrates how principles of IA are reflected in the Danish strategies for AI in practice. While the discursive ambiguity has fuelled public debate, it leaves the term AI relatively vague, thereby creating uncertainty rather than possibilities for a form of human-centered AI in empirical reality.

This article presents findings from a study of how the public service television (PSTV) companies DR and TV 2 in Denmark are changing their scheduling practices to address the competition from transnational streaming services. We focus on a comparative analysis of how television documentaries are scheduled and argue that the documentary genre is part of an editorial prioritisation of productions with high degrees of linguistic and national proximity targeting a mainstream audience. Furthermore, we argue that new scheduling practices support a merger of linear and non-linear modes of watching television indicative of a transformation in which the video-on-demand (VoD) services are the new entry points to PSTV. This transformation might be a vital part of how Nordic PSTV companies adapt to the changes in the television industry and to new viewing habits.

This article investigates why and how women use independent podcasting and social media platforms to challenge norms afflicting their own personal lives. Extending previous studies of independent podcasting as a tool of empowerment, this article analyses semi-structured interviews with the hosts of two podcasts: the mental health and personal journals podcast A Seat at The Table and the parenting podcast Our Different Family [Vores Anderledes Familie]. The podcasts are norm-challenging but, at the same time, illustrative of a gendered podcasting sphere in which women primarily podcast about what has traditionally been considered female domains, such as mental health, personal journals, and parenting. The study finds that podcasting’s lack of visuals and unrestricted, conversational format allow for creating and distributing in-depth realisations about personal norm-challenging issues. Simultaneously, it finds that the participatory affordances of social media platforms are essential for receiving feedback, content ideas, and emotional support from like-minded listeners when the podcasters challenge oppressive norms.

In this article, we analyse mediated representations of elite and non-elite voices about climate change, by juxtaposing two Swedish non-fiction television series: one narrates the work of environmental scientists, the other discusses climate change with diverse citizens in a vox pop format. We argue that the discursive practices of these programmes reproduce the antagonistic subject positions of experts and ordinary people, allocating them radically different positions of power in relation to climate change. Whereas the experts are presented as actors of change with the knowledge to solve the crisis, ordinary people are shown as passive recipients of advice and moral judgment, in need of change. In addition, we highlight the role of media professionals in these articulations. The article shows how these subject positions support persuasionist strategies, but also how the elite/non-elite juxtaposition tends to exclude the latter from a meaningful engagement on equal terms.