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FRIHUMSAM-Fri prosj.st. hum og sam

Online media participation and the transformation of the public sphere

Tildelt: kr 1,5 mill.

The project's overall research question is: what are the consequences of online media participation for the structure of the public sphere? To answer it, the project compares communicative forms online with traditional mass media. In so doing, the project develops and utilizes two interrelated analytical tools: (1) a revised, operationalized normative notion of the public sphere; and (2) the concepts of dissemination and dialogue. These tools are needed to critically reframe discussions of fragmentation a nd transnationalization of the public sphere, and to assess the transformative potential of online media participation. For its empirical analyses, the project operates with hypotheses about (a) the geographical and linguistic borders of the networked pub lic sphere, and (b) the dialogical form of its communication. The project employs a twofold methodological design to test these hypotheses. This design combines large-scale quantitative analytical mappings with investigate qualitative analyses. The projec t provides a first comprehensive and critical mapping of the blogosphere from a Norwegian perspective, complemented by detailed study of innovative web applications. As such, the project will contribute both new applied insights, empirical data about an u nder-researched aspect of public communication, as well as basic interpretational concepts to grasp the ongoing transformation of the public sphere. In the present situation, an understanding of how novel possibilities impinge on democratic life is decisi ve - also for actual public communicators ranging from the mass media, via the business community, to political and governmental actors.

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FRIHUMSAM-Fri prosj.st. hum og sam

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