Populism, extremism and media : Mapping an uncertain terrain
(2016) In European Journal of Communication 31(1). p.46-57- Abstract
Aiming to critically review key research on populism, extremism and media, this article examines some definition aspects of populism as a concept, its relation to ‘the people’ and points to future directions for research in mainstream – and social media – the terrain where so much of the political is played out. An individualisation of civic cultures has emerged in tandem with the growth of mediated populism through the use of new technologies, with a tendency towards personalisation in the public domain. While the new technological affordances exemplified by Web 2.0 may have contributed to intensified forms of popular engagement, they have been less successful in promoting democratic values, as shown by the results of the May 2014... (More)
Aiming to critically review key research on populism, extremism and media, this article examines some definition aspects of populism as a concept, its relation to ‘the people’ and points to future directions for research in mainstream – and social media – the terrain where so much of the political is played out. An individualisation of civic cultures has emerged in tandem with the growth of mediated populism through the use of new technologies, with a tendency towards personalisation in the public domain. While the new technological affordances exemplified by Web 2.0 may have contributed to intensified forms of popular engagement, they have been less successful in promoting democratic values, as shown by the results of the May 2014 European Parliamentary elections. Thus, the question as to the type of publics that are ‘possible and desirable in present circumstances’ (Nolan, 2008: 747) remains valid, for publics can espouse anti-democratic values while nevertheless remaining ‘publics’. The fact that the link between the new media and right-wing extremism has been comparatively explored at greater length than that of a religious bend indicates the need to invest in the latter, especially due to home-bred Islamic terrorism increasingly seen as threatening the multiculturalism of various European societies. Several avenues for research are presented to this effect, with a final reflection on the challenge posed by new media to the concept of media populism, both in terms of the Net’s market logics and the specificity of its architecture.
(Less)
- author
- Alvares, Claudia and Dahlgren, Peter LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2016-02-01
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Civic cultures, democracy, extremism, media, populism
- in
- European Journal of Communication
- volume
- 31
- issue
- 1
- pages
- 12 pages
- publisher
- SAGE Publications
- external identifiers
-
- wos:000370699600005
- scopus:84957935736
- ISSN
- 0267-3231
- DOI
- 10.1177/0267323115614485
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- cfa93c9d-72aa-449d-8fbe-bc1cc781523b
- date added to LUP
- 2016-07-19 08:47:22
- date last changed
- 2024-04-19 06:20:50
@article{cfa93c9d-72aa-449d-8fbe-bc1cc781523b,
abstract = {{<p>Aiming to critically review key research on populism, extremism and media, this article examines some definition aspects of populism as a concept, its relation to ‘the people’ and points to future directions for research in mainstream – and social media – the terrain where so much of the political is played out. An individualisation of civic cultures has emerged in tandem with the growth of mediated populism through the use of new technologies, with a tendency towards personalisation in the public domain. While the new technological affordances exemplified by Web 2.0 may have contributed to intensified forms of popular engagement, they have been less successful in promoting democratic values, as shown by the results of the May 2014 European Parliamentary elections. Thus, the question as to the type of publics that are ‘possible and desirable in present circumstances’ (Nolan, 2008: 747) remains valid, for publics can espouse anti-democratic values while nevertheless remaining ‘publics’. The fact that the link between the new media and right-wing extremism has been comparatively explored at greater length than that of a religious bend indicates the need to invest in the latter, especially due to home-bred Islamic terrorism increasingly seen as threatening the multiculturalism of various European societies. Several avenues for research are presented to this effect, with a final reflection on the challenge posed by new media to the concept of media populism, both in terms of the Net’s market logics and the specificity of its architecture.</p>}},
author = {{Alvares, Claudia and Dahlgren, Peter}},
issn = {{0267-3231}},
keywords = {{Civic cultures; democracy; extremism; media; populism}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{02}},
number = {{1}},
pages = {{46--57}},
publisher = {{SAGE Publications}},
series = {{European Journal of Communication}},
title = {{Populism, extremism and media : Mapping an uncertain terrain}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0267323115614485}},
doi = {{10.1177/0267323115614485}},
volume = {{31}},
year = {{2016}},
}