The Paradox of Democracy: Free Speech, Open Media, and Perilous Persuasion
- Authors
- Zac Gershberg & Sean Illing
- Publisher
- University of Chicago Press
- Tags
- pol065000 political science , political process , media & internet , pol000000 political science , general , pol007000 political science , political ideologies , democracy , soc052000 social science , media studies
- Date
- 2022-06-10T00:00:00+00:00
- Size
- 0.55 MB
- Lang
- en
A thought-provoking history of communications that challenges ideas about freedom of speech and democracy.At the heart of democracy lies a contradiction that cannot be resolved, one that has affected free societies since their advent: Though freedom of speech and media has always been a necessary condition of democracy, that very freedom is also its greatest threat. When new forms of communications arrive, they often bolster the practices of democratic politics. But the more accessible the media of a society, the more susceptible that society is to demagoguery, distraction, and spectacle. Tracing the history of media disruption and the various responses to it over time, Zac Gershberg and Sean Illing reveal how these changes have challenged democracyoften with unsettling effects. The Paradox of Democracy captures the deep connection between communication and political culture, from the ancient art of rhetoric and the revolutionary role of...