Opinion-Leadership in the Digital Public Sphere

• In Event: Habermas's Structural Transformation of the Digital Public Sphere

Abstract

Despite the persistence of economic interests in most mass media organizations, Habermas’ latest work on The New Structural Transformations of the Public Sphere emphasizes the meaning of mass media journalism for contemporary democracy. Non-professional actors are primarily described as a potential source of fake news in more and more fragmented communication networks. Many empirical indicators support these notions – still, more and more recipients chose to rely on information given by “influencers” instead of focusing on established media. In my presentation, I will analyze reasons for their re-orientation. I will use the concept of opinion-leadership to understand and interpret such behavioral patterns and discuss the potential of institutional attempts (like the EU’s Digital Services Act) to steer and regulate political communication on online platforms.

Author

• Claudia Ritzi, University of Trier