Internet and Politics: From Local to Global Politics

The Section aims to explore Internet and Politics across its multiple dimensions in a global and comparative perspective. While the research area of Internet and Politics initially focused primarily on the influence of digital technologies on political participation, more recently a growing body of work looks at the relation between digital technologies and politics in a wide range of political regimes, institutions and civic groups, as well as geographical locations. This is making it increasingly clear that multiple dimensions from local, national to international politics traverse the field, and means that such diverse issues as digital privacy and cybersecurity, the role of digital technologies in challenging and sustaining autocratic regimes, or the position of internet governance in the broader context of global governance now also appear as key research concerns. Meanwhile, much of the emerging scholarship shares the challenge of developing frameworks and methods adequate to analysing politics under fast-moving and complex conditions. This Section therefore seeks to establish clear lines of dialogue between the multiple dimensions and diverse theoretical frameworks and methodological approaches characterizing the study of Internet of Politics. To achieve this goal, it hosts panels addressing: 1. Novel conceptual and theoretical frameworks helping us to better understand and systematize the multiple dimensions of Internet and Politics; 2. Methodological issues, discussing both quantitative and qualitative, digital and conventional research approaches able to solve the challenges encountered in the field; 3. Empirically grounded research and results that shed light on the multiplex relations between Internet and Politics across different regimes, forms of politics, and across different geographical contexts. Section Chairs’ Short Bio Andrea Calderaro is a Lecturer in International Relations at Cardiff University. His research centres on Internet and International Politics. He serves as Editor of the “Digital Technologies and Global Politics” Book Series at Rowman&Littlefield, and as Convener of the ECPR Internet & Politics standing group. He holds his PhD and MRes in Social and Political Science from the European University Institute. Alexandra Segerberg is Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Stockholm University, and editor of ECPR Press, the publishing imprint of the European Consortium for Political Research. She is the co-author of The Logic of Connective Action: The Personalization of Contentious Politics (Cambridge University Press 2013, with W. Lance Bennett).