(iPoster) Charismatic Authority in the Age of Audience Democracy

• In Event: Poster Sessions: Foundations of Political Theory II & Autocratic Politics and Democracy
  In Poster Session: Poster Session: Foundations of Political Theory II

Abstract

Democratic legitimacy is being reshaped by the interaction of charismatic leadership and advanced mass media. This paper develops a Weberian account of how “audience democracy,” as theorized by Bernard Manin, alters the conditions under which authority is recognized, sustained, and contested. I argue that contemporary media environments change the balance between rational-legal legitimacy and charismatic appeals by shifting political representation away from party-mediated accountability toward leader-centered visibility, performance, and direct communication.

The paper makes three contributions. First, it clarifies how Weber’s concept of charismatic authority operates under audience democracy, where media visibility and perceived authenticity become central resources of legitimation. Second, it explains how plebiscitary dynamics can be intensified in digital and broadcast environments, allowing leaders to bypass intermediary institutions while maintaining a persistent claim to exceptional authority. Third, it identifies the institutional consequences of this transformation: audience democracy can expand responsiveness and mobilization, but it can also destabilize rational-legal authority by weakening the mediating role of parties, legislatures, and professionalized administrative norms.

The analysis is primarily theoretical, using contemporary cases as illustrative evidence to show how charismatic legitimation is produced and maintained through mediated attention rather than through institutionalized channels alone. The argument helps connect classic debates in democratic theory to current concerns about political communication, leader personalization, and the resilience of democratic institutions.

Author

• Edward (Edan) Daniels, Columbia University