Rethinking digital rights through systemic problems of communication

Introduction: Recent policy and expert debates surrounding problems in the digital environment have promoted different conceptualizations of digital rights. However, current problems of digital communication are often discussed separately from earlier debates pertaining to the democratization of the media. This article argues for the re-grounding of digital rights debates to address systemic communication problems. Methodology: Intended as a conceptual contribution, this article connects recent critical research on digital rights to the body of literature on democratic media activism through an analysis of problem representations. The article draws on the “What is the problem represented to be?” approach to study problem representations in the academic accounts of mobilizations and to identify common themes that describe systemic problems of communication. Results: The results identify problem representations that have emerged in and been defined by mobilizations over time and illustrate persistent themes with examples from the digital and mass media eras, including inequalities in the distribution of communicative resources, ownership and economic model of the communication system, and problems of participation and exclusion. Discussion: Focusing on problem representations enables identification of alternatives to current dominant discourses and offers grounds for collaboration at the nexus of activism and scholarship. Conclusions: Future research can benefit from a further dialogue between the framework of democratic media activism and rights-based approaches to the digital communication environment.