خلاصة:
Over the past two decades, with the rapid development and evolution of "computer-mediated communications" (CMC) worldwide and the increasing access of nations to the internet and computer networks, researchers in the fields of political science, sociology, and communication have raised the question of whether computer-mediated communication on the internet can provide a basis for political development and strengthening democracy by reviving the "public sphere" within the conceptual framework presented by "Jurgen Habermas"? Various authors have each focused on certain dimensions of the concept of the public sphere and used it to examine the relationship between the internet, politics, and power, and their mutual influences. These investigations suggest that the concept of the public sphere is considered a suitable theoretical model by most researchers, but it needs revision, modification, or adaptation to the specific conditions of societies, taking into account the possibilities and risks of using computer-mediated communication.
ملخص الجهاز:
Another question that we will seek to answer in this writing is what methods and criteria have been used in academic studies and scientific research conducted in recent years on the political and social role and impact of the internet and computer-mediated communication using the public sphere model; what achievements have been made, and to what extent have they been successful in explaining the subject?
“Alinta Thornton” is another researcher in the field of political communication who, in her investigation, using the concept of the public sphere, seeks to answer the question: “Does the internet create democracy?” In her book, Thornton, like Rheingold, uses Habermas’s theoretical model and his explanation of the idea of the public sphere; but she bases her work on criticizing and examining his views and analytical results.
While rejecting the views of a group of researchers whom she calls “Utopists,” she assessed the possibility of applying Habermas’s theory of the public sphere to the study of political communication on the internet as unlikely and, referring to her observations and perceptions of interpersonal communication on this network, emphasized that firstly, “Habermas’s model of the public sphere is not effective for analyzing and understanding this type of communication,” and secondly, “the issue of individual identity and group decision-making is unsolvable on the internet, and therefore the necessary space for serious and face-to-face debate among citizens, as occurs in real-world conditions, does not exist in the virtual state” (Rooksby, 1997: p.
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