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Democratic innovations: a yet-to-be-explored response to post-truth politics in Europe?

Democracy
European Union
Political Theory
Communication
P039
Luis Bouza
Universidad Autònoma de Madrid – Instituto de Políticas y Bienes Públicos del CSIC
Hans-Jörg Trenz
Scuola Normale Superiore

Building: Colégio Almada Negreiros, Room: A13

Friday 16:00 - 17:30 BST (21/06/2024)

Abstract

From an origin in concerns about foreign interference and the decline of the business model of traditional journalism concern about post-truth politics has rapidly moved to the core of concerns about the future of liberal democracy. Post-truth politics is an example of what social science usually calls "wicked problems": these disruptions can hardly be addressed by an increase in trust since it builds on the colonisation of the sources of citizen trust. Most salient policy initiatives in the EU have attempted to regulate technology and re-empower media freedom, but EU efforts at innovating democracy have only been linked to post-truth politics recently. The EU Democracy Action Plan of 2020 clearly considers this dimension, but democratic experiments such as the EU citizens’ assemblies and similar national initiatives have not been used or studied as part of a systemic response of the EU to issues of public distrust or where disinformation is more prevalent. This is paradoxical given the strong potential of deliberative democracy to underline the role of evidence in the formation of citizens’ decisions, trust in institution and connection between public and political agendas. The panel will consider both theoretical and empirical contributions analysing the potential of deliberation to address challenges to democracy in the EU as well as potential explanations for its small salience so far in policy agendas on the subject.

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