Defining Democracy in a Digital Age: Political Support on Social Media

by B. Lutz, P. Toit

Overview

The internet has created a new social base where governments are ever more critically examined and measuring public sentiment expressed on social media is crucial to gauging ongoing support for democracy. This book illustrates a methodology for doing so, and considers the impact of this new public sphere on the future of democracy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781137496188
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan UK
Publication date:	11/14/2014
Edition description:	2014
Pages:	138
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.02(d)

About the Author

Barend Lutz is a political/security risk analyst and big data analyst with a background in Value and Policy Studies and International Relations. His research is focused on integrating next-generation internet technology and political science. He is an alumnus of Stellenbosch University, the MIH Media Lab, University of Hong Kong and Sciences-Po grande école Paris.

Pierre du Toit is Professor in the Department of Political Science at Stellenbosch University, South Africa. His latest book, co-authored with Hennie Kotzé, is Liberal Democracy and Peace in South Africa. The Pursuit of Freedom as Dignity. (2011). His latest edited work, with Nicola de Jager, is Friend or Foe? Dominant Party Systems Southern Africa (2013).

Table of Contents

List Of Tables And Figures Acknowledgements List Of Abbreviations 1. Democracy In The New Digital Age Notes 2. Twentieth Century Democracy And Its Social Base The Civic Culture Citizen Effectiveness Political Culture Social Cohesion And Social Capital Political Cohesion At National Level Mass Society The Third Wave Television And The Decline Of Social Capital Conclusion Notes 3. The Development Of Methods For Measuring Expressions On Democracy The Value Of Measuring Expressions On Democracy Traditional Methods Of Measuring Public Expressions Democracy The World Values Survey Voice Of The People Regional Research Projects Afrobarometer Latinobarometer (Latinobarómetro) Twitter As A New Public Sphere Emerging Methods Of Measuring Public Expression Conclusion Notes 4. Measuring Support For Democracy On Twitter Introduction Operationalisation The Measuring Instrument: Data Processing Platform Public Expressions Sentiment Classification Data Collection Representation Of Measured Expressions On Democracy From Twitter Measurement Validity Of The Instrument Discussion Of Results Error Range In Chatterbox Classification Feasibility Of Measuring Public Expressions About Democracy On Twitter Other Findings Future Research Conclusion Notes 5. New Imagined Communities In The Digital Age The Internet: Current Impact The Politics Of Revolt New Social Movements New Imagined Communities Stable Content Dynamic Contextualisation And Aggregation Symbolic Representation The Internet: Future Impact Personal Identity Personal Identity And Regime Types The Changing Social Base Opium Of The People Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index

Editorial Reviews

'Social media has dramatically changed the flow and availability of information in society. Lutz and Du Toit present a fascinating view on the new public spaces that have emerged, and how computational linguistics can help us make sense of them. This highly accessible text will be of interest not just of scholars in this field, but of anyone interested in how communication shapes democracy.'

G. J. Van Rooyen, MIH Media Lab Director, Stellenbosch University, South Africa

'A fascinating book dealing with the core attributes of democratic stability and the value of traditional measurement of expressions on democracy. Twitter is investigated as a new form of the public sphere useful for gauging public expressions of democracy, concluding with an overview of the likely future impact of the digital age on modern democracy.

A must-read for anyone interested on the effect of digital media and the Internet on the evolution of democracy and modern society'.

H. A. Engelbrecht, MIH Media Lab Director, Stellenbosch University, South Africa

From the Publisher