Mídias sociais e as disrupções da democracia

Abstract

“Disruption” is a buzzword used to represent the impacts of digital media over areas such as economy and communication. However, what is not clear are the effects of the centrality of social media over public spaces and, therefore, over the basic rights to information and communication that are necessary for the legitimacy of democratic institutions. In this text we discuss these impacts by mapping social media usage tendencies in the globe, the current discussions on the tensions with legacy media, and through the analysis of specific issues, such as public information, the meaning of “public” and “social”, and transparency and access to information. We argue that social media have the responsibility of engaging themselves in a multi-sectorial and international process of digital governance, which includes the discussion on harmful speech online, Internet freedom, algorithmic transparency, and access to information. Otherwise they will risk their political and even economic trustworthiness.