Excellence Cluster „Normative Orders“, Goethe University Frankfurt
Fellow at CAIS from September 2017 to February 2018
“Fake news” is increasingly seen as a problem for democracies, and especially for the holding of fair elections. It is feared that freely invented events or falsified reports can influence public debate and thus ultimately election outcomes, with the main focus here being on the illegitimate influence exerted by other nations. Another risk is deemed to be the promotion of racist and sexist attitudes.
Given the potential dangers, there are frequent calls for greater control over the dissemination of fake news. However, this poses a dilemma for democracies. Can the negative effects of fake news be prevented without (state) censorship? Who should decide what is deemed fake news and what is not? What role do global communication companies play?
This project addresses these questions from the perspective of democratic theory, examining the tension between freedom of expression and censorship, and the relationship between the public sphere, the media and politics. The project uses as a normative yardstick John Dewey’s democratic theory.
