Critically understanding the platformization of the public sphere

Abstract

The platformization of the public sphere refers to the increasing dominance of digital platforms in shaping public discourse, access to information, and the production and dissemination of political content. The public sphere, where citizens inform themselves and engage in political debates, is being transformed by global private corporations like Alphabet and Meta. Their platforms exercise control over cultural producers, political actors, and the distribution of information and communication resources. At the same time, in a context of multiple crises of liberal democracies under capitalism, they offer personalization of content, services, and experiences contributing to the fragmentation of the political landscape. Thus, the platformized public sphere bears a fundamental contradiction in that it emerges through the dialectics between concentration and fragmentation. This has significant implications for freedom of expression, journalism, and the way public discourse is constructed and disseminated. The aim of this issue is to shed light on these fundamental stakes.