Digital Politics

Course scope
In the age of the internet, political representation is increasingly mediated and shaped by information and communication technologies (ICTs). Are new technologies radically transforming democracy, or are they simply reinforcing existing patterns in the way citizens interact with their representatives? Some scholars claim that digital networks and internet-based mediation foster political participation and trigger substantial policy innovation. Others, instead, fear the emergence of technologically strengthened governments and a ‘database state’. This course examines the impact of ICTs on democratic politics, and considers whether the developing of these technologies serves to reinforce, undermine or otherwise alter traditional models of political representation and communication.

Course Topics

• Democracy and the internet
• Government and digital governance
• Cybersecurity and cyber threats in IR (Guest speaker Hugo Meijer, CNRS/Sciences Po CERI)
• Party organization, party membership and the internet
• Politicians and party leaders on social media
• Electoral campaigning and ICTs
• Polarization and digital populism
• Digital media and collective action
• Mobilizing for democracy in the digital age
• Digital media, radicalization and disinformation
• Can internet save democracy?

Specific Course Aim
The goal of this course is to understand whether ICTs are serving or breaking democratic politics. For this, the course combines classic conceptual frameworks in political science and communication, as well as emerging techniques in data science to shed light on how the internet relates to: 1) government; 2) political competition; 3) civil society.

Face-to-face/hybrid teaching, lectures, collective work sessions based on the readings, class discussions about ongoing/real-world cases.

Contribution to the teaching profile

Learning Outcomes
Students who complete this course should be able to:

• Critically asses the impact of the internet on contemporary politics
• Understand how ICTs transform the political landscape through their use by political actors
• Apply theories of political science and communication to understand real-world events, comparing across countries and political actors

References, bibliography, and recommended reading

The mandatory and suggested readings will be made available on the virtual campus.

Other relevant references:

• Chadwick, A. (2006) Internet Politics: States, Citizens and New Communication Technologies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Jungherr, A., Rivero, G. and Gayo-Avello, D.(2020): Retooling Politics: How Digital Media Are Shaping Democracy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
• Phil Howard (2015) Pax Technica: How the Internet of Things May Set Us Free or Lock Us Up. New York: Yale University Press.
• Vaccari, C. and Valeriani, A. (2021) Outside the Bubble Social Media and Political Participation in Western Democracies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Chris Bail (2020) Breaking the Social Media Prism: How to Make Our Platforms Less Polarizing. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press
• Chadwick, A. (2017) The Hybrid Media System Politics and Power. Oxford: Oxford University Press
• Anduiza, E. Jensen, M.J. and Jorba, L.(2012). Digital media and political engagement worldwide. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
• Napoli, P.M. (2019). Social Media and the Public Interest: Media Regulation in the Disinformation Age. New York: Columbia University Press.

Contacts

pietro.castelli@ulb.be

Campus

Solbosch

Method(s) of evaluation

• written examination
• Group work

written examination

Group work

The course evaluation rests on 3 grades:

1. Participation (10%): students are expected to actively participate to the debate of each class, by asking questions and by trying to answer to, and comment on, the presentation and readings.
2. Group assignment (40%): students will animate discussion in class and prepare a written list of points for debate using the compulsory readings, class material and real-world events. Important: Group assignments are given an identical mark for the entire group. The material is submitted under the responsibility of the entire group.
3. Final take-home essay (50%) Each student is expected to write a final paper/essay on a topic selected from the syllabus (maximum 5000 words, spaces, footnotes, and references included). The paper must be submitted before 09/05/2022 at midnight (electronic format). Late submission will not be graded.

Final papers must include:

• A research question problematizing the topic at stake using class material and references to ongoing events (Why is this topic interesting/relevant?);
• A literature review showing that the paper builds upon and contributes to what we already know about digital media and political communication, and a research design illustrating the case studies and data used to address the RQ
• A discussion showing that the student has acquired the tools to disentangle scientifically and critically the problem at stake
• A full bibliography referencing the works and sources cited in text
• The final paper is evaluated on the following criteria:
• Format, style and referencing (refer to guidelines in the Vade Mecum of the Department);
• Structure (organization and formal presentation of main argument);
• Preparation and research (aim, focus, issue and summary status of knowledge);
• Accuracy and critical character of the argument.

Mark calculation method (including weighting of intermediary marks)

Participation : 10%
Group assignment : 40%
Final take-home essay : 50%
Retake sessions: Students can decide at their own risk to retake the final take-home exam. The grades for class participation and continuous evaluation remain the same for the retake sessions.
Plagiarism – or the direct copying without citation of others’ thoughts (written or not) – is a very serious issue and will not be tolerated: plagiarizing means failing the course. Note that a specialized software will be used systematically to detect eventual cases of plagiarism in students’ assignments.

Language(s) of evaluation

• english