Reclaiming Citizenship in the Post-Democratic Condition

Abstract

ledge and its as soon d profits without the ain investigation also entation in its current narrative technique., period e entry into force and art of the literary porUniversity, 2 Pei-Ning University, 2 Pei-Ning er.This work is ives 4.0 License. Research Article Open AccessEugenia Siapera* Reclaiming Citizenship in the Post-Democratic Conditionhttps://doi.org/10.1515/jcgs-2017-0003Abstract: This article reviews the central problematique of citizenship, arguing that the challenges imposed by neoliberal globalisation involve the loss of political, social and civil rights. By negating the mediations performed by citizenship between the people and the state, post-democracy renders citizenship meaningless. The article traces two main responses to this, a reactionary and a progressive one, none of which can address the problems of citizenship. The grains of a new response are found in three developments: a new ontology of the citizen, brought into being through digital acts; the existence of dual power, creating new forms of governance and social reproduction from below; and between these, the development of new procedures that directly engage with state power. Taken together, these considerations indicate a new possibility for the radicalisation of citizenship rather than a return to the former state of affairs.

Scraping the demos. Digitalization, web scraping and the democratic project

“…We should, however beware of technological quick fixes to long-standing democratic deficits and democratic fatigue. Even though digital technologies facilitate political engagement at the transnational level, 96 they cannot save democracy. In a scenario where the whole population seems to be accessible via web scraping, unequal political participation and power relations should not be addressed merely on a methodological level.…”

Adapting Traditional Media to the Social Media Culture: A Case Study of Greece

“…In his work, Castells has analyzed some of the changes that are taking place in politics due to this technology. This new kind of politics, linked to new media and technologies, is decentralized and unbound to traditional territorial boundaries or national political structures (Siapera 2017). It is a globalized politics, driven more by citizens than by politicians, and gives a new impetus to activist politics, as we have seen in recent years (Siapera 2017).…”

“…This new kind of politics, linked to new media and technologies, is decentralized and unbound to traditional territorial boundaries or national political structures (Siapera 2017). It is a globalized politics, driven more by citizens than by politicians, and gives a new impetus to activist politics, as we have seen in recent years (Siapera 2017). Essentially, Castells argues that we now live in a hybrid world, an Internetworld that incorporates both global communication networks and social networks (Castells 2013).…”

“…Thirdly, they offer opportunities for debates on important issues in the public sphere (Siapera 2017). Digital technologies provide citizens with new opportunities to express their views and contribute to public information in historically unprecedented ways (Chadwick 2013).…”

Articulating Networked Citizenship on the Russian Internet: A Case for Competing Affordances

“…This power can be conveyed through restrictions on citizen agency such as surveillance, censorship, filtering and blocking, and other “information controls” (Deibert et al, 2010). Still, these competing forces ultimately result in a new ontology of the citizen, as described by Siapera (2017)—one brought into being through digital acts and claims to new kinds of digital rights (Isin & Ruppert, 2015).…”