The post-lunch session at the Bots Building Bridges workshop starts with Lars Rinsdorf, whose focus is on regaining the initiative in defending pluralistic society. Pluralistic democracy is built on diversity and inclusion, and seeks to empower all citizens to participate in societal processes and structures; but this also implies an intense debate on the challenges and frictions of diverse society.
Such processes are threatened by societal polarisation and disintegration; these undermine trust in societal institutions, and lead to dysfunctional public debate and the rise of counter-knowledge orders. How can we push back against such disinformation, and enhance the resilience of pluralistic democracy, then?
Lars’s project explored this for Telegram, both analysing platform content and conducting interviews and focus groups with experts to identify possible approaches to fighting disinformation. What emerged were a number of relevant areas for action: strategies to counter such dysfunction need to be founded in political and social values; be implemented in dialogue with civil society; create sensitive and sensible narratives which do not simply only react to counter-narratives but put forward their own ideas; and provide systemic solutions that must also involve law enforcement where relevant.
In all this, it is important to take seriously the crises that the anti-democratic counter-narratives claim to exist – the fears and anxieties that their proponents have need to be addressed. Further, this cannot be limited to a social media or even a media environment: the mediatised part of these anti-democratic narratives is only one part of the lifeworld of the people who promote and adhere to them. There is a strong emotional aspect to this, too: the need for a sense of belonging is a central motivator for people who become part of counterpublics.
But any such pro-democratic and pro-pluralistic initiatives need to be proactive, too: they cannot only defensively react to the anti-democratic counterpublics, but must actively promote pluralistic democratic values. And this must address everyone: media and civic literacy programmes are needed for adults just as much as for young people.
