Research into the citizen political participation via social media is dominated by two grand narratives. In the first, new media are seen as empowering society, while the second portrays the Internet as the State’s ultimate tool for manipulating citizens. This research employed content analysis, critical discourse analysis and interview to compare and contrast the nature of political participation and deliberation on Weibo in [Hong Kong and mainland] and by [VIPs and causal users] on 2012 Hong Kong Chief Executive Election, and how the online censorship shaped their political participation and deliberation regarding this case. Mixed methods used with theoretical framework (e.g. democracy, digital democracy, deliberative democracy, e-participation and citizenship) in this research has demonstrated the role of Weibo both ‘tool’ ‘forum’ and ‘object’ to understand deliberative democracy while citizens used for political participation and deliberation. Dynamic forms of self-censorship demonstrated how the online censorship shaped the citizens’ political participation and deliberation through dynamic explicit or implicit ways on Weibo in this case.

[pt] O presente trabalho tem por objeto a análise das contribuições apresentadas pela teoria do discurso de Jurgen Habermas à discussão sobre a formação da identidade no espaço público deliberativo; pretende-se analisar a possibilidade de consenso em meio às diferenças das sociedades multiculturais. Nessa perspectiva, as democracias contemporâneas passam a ter como desafio a garantia de representação e participação das minorias. Por isso, a identidade e os vínculos associativos nas sociedades pós-convencionais são influenciados pelas diversas formas de interação. Sob o paradigma da intersubjetividade, Habermas propõe uma fundamentação procedimental dos direitos fundamentais. Pretende-se por meio da idéia de democracia deliberativa e de políticas de reconhecimento reconstruir os argumentos de Habermas acerca da coesão interna entre Estado de Direito e Democracia. / [en] This paper is aimed to analyses the contribution presented by the Haberma’s discourse theory and its point over the identity formations in a deliberative and public space. It’s intended to analyses the possibility of a consensus among multicultural differences in our society. From this perspective, the current democracy is happen to be challenged to guaranty the representation and participation of the minority groups. Thus, the identity and the associative links in a post conventional society are influenced by many forms of interaction. Under the intersubjectivity paradigm, Habermas proposes a procedural foundation of fundamental rights. It’s intended through a deliberative idea and political acknowledgment rebuilt Habermas’s points over the inner cohesion between State Law and Democracy.

Magister Administrationis - MAdmin / This study is an investigation into how the Site C, Action Committee Against Xenophobia (SACAX) in Khayelitsha was able to mobilise the community, community based organisations, and governance structures alongside national and international Non-Governmental Organisations working with refugees to successfully challenge prejudice towards African immigrants in the period leading to the World Cup 2010. The primary objective of this mobilisation was to raise consciousness about the plight of African immigrants; prevent a new round of attacks; and also to ensure that state officials were better prepared to intervene in future outbursts. The various stakeholders that took part in this cogovernance space are unanimous that the SACAX programme ushered in a new era of creating awareness and civic education that changed significantly the perception of the community towards African immigrants during the World Cup 2010. The thesis will also show how SACAX also encourage a more active citizenship and also built network between civil society including national and international NGOs and local state. These efforts created a new set of relations and saw the construction of new sets of relations in terms of capacity building across civil society, the state and local and international actors. This resulted in both the creation of an early warning mechanisms and also networks to coordinate efforts in future outburst. This was an example of a Co-governance space or nascent „participatory sphere‟. The example of SACAX is thus a case of civil society deepening democracy in three ways: expanding democratic values, building democratic citizenship and creating new participatory institutional capacity. This then elucidates the role civil society can play in influencing citizens directly, government and public policy. Indeed, to the extent that this network forms the basis of a substantive partnership between state and civil society from local to international levels, such co-governance around the policy issues can be seen as a nascent form of participatory space as identified by Cornwall and Coelho (2007:1).

This essay studies the climate of discussion during the US Presidential election debates 2016 from a perspective of Deliberative democratic discussion criteria. It uses a statistical analysis to examine and describe the climate of discussion during the debates. The criteria are based on the theoretical work of James S. Fishkin and Robert C. Luskin, which closely points out five compontents/factors needed to get a healthy and reasonable climate of discussion. The essay suggests that the climate of discussion during the US elections has taken place on two different “battleground” (Outside and Inside formal debating forums). It further suggests that outside climate of discussion has been dominated by ugly tricks and “dirty talking” and the inside formal debating forums climate of discussion has been reasonable and healthy. The results of the analysis show that the US Presidential election debates have broken this pattern, mainly due to the republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump.

Esta pesquisa se insere no projeto “Democracia Deliberativa e Proteção Ambiental”. Adere à linha de pesquisa sobre Direito Ambiental, políticas públicas e desenvolvimento socioeconômico da Universidade de Caxias do Sul. Debate a legitimidade das normas jurídicas ambientais baseada na ética do discurso de Jürgen Habermas. Questiona quem são os sujeitos das deliberações jurídicas, e quem pode ou deve participar para conferir legitimidade e aceitação às demandas sociais e, principalmente, quais são os seus pressupostos éticos, atentando para a consideração dos ausentes à deliberação. Toma como pressuposto o enunciado ou princípio discursivo D‟:somente têm validade as normas que possam contar com a concordância de todos os envolvidos na condição de participantes ativos de um discurso prático. Utiliza o conceito de ausentes à deliberação de Leonardo Rocha de Souza e mostra preocupações éticas com os rumos da democracia. Discute os conceitos de Hannah Arendt sobre a banalidade do mal, e propõe a banalidade do mal ambiental. Trata da ocupação do espaço deliberativo público como necessário contraponto à banalidade do mal. Aborda temas da Teoria do Agir Comunicativo de Habermas. Tem como recorte a consideração dos ausentes à deliberação. Usa metologia multidisciplinar com abordagem histórico-teórica. Adota o enunciado D` da ética do discurso de Habermas somado à consideração dos ausentes à deliberação como lente teórica. Dialoga com os estudos de Hannah Arendt na obra Eichmann em Jerusalém. Interpreta a banalidade do mal como um conteúdo comum entre os autores trabalhados. Aborda a crítica que Habermas dirige a Hannah Arendt. Fundamenta existir um consenso comunicativo de conteúdo entre ambos, localizado no mundo comum de Arendt e o mundo da vida de Habermas. Propõe a utilização da Ética do Discurso de Habermas para instrumentalizar a evolução da democracia participativa para a democracia deliberativa. Discute a eficácia das modalidades democráticas em vigor. Aborda o abandono da tradição. Trata do o espaço público deliberativo, dos sistemas e da mediação do direito, sob pena de ocorrer a “colonização do mundo da vida”. Indaga o paradigma ecológico perante a dignidade humana. Agrega à discussão da consideração dos ausentes à deliberação a categoria das gerações passadas (e do passado da civilização). Defende a argumentação racional do direito democrático com base na Dignidade da Pessoa Humana e na consideração do meio ambiente como espaço comum transgeracional. Explica que o direito produzido como poder procedimental de mediação e permanente argumentação pode ser exigido legitimamente. Formula que a própria defesa da vida e do ambiente são tomados como consenso universal de partida. Atende ao objetivo geral de verificar a viabilidade teórica da consideração das gerações passadas como categoria jurídica de ausentes à deliberação ambiental. Focaliza a ética do discurso de Habermas e a deliberação ambiental em sociedades complexas. Relaciona a ética do discurso com e a banalidade do mal na obra Eichmann em Jerusalém. Busca uma possível (re)definição das categorias de ausentes à deliberação ambiental, destacando as gerações passadas. Avalia a consideração das gerações passadas como categoria de ausentes a serem considerados nas deliberações ambientais presentes. Contribui com a discussão teórica que procura entender o fenômeno da legitimação das normas jurídicas. Procura uma noção mais exata de quem é o outro que compartilha o mundo e tenciona expressamente dar voz argumentativa presente a gerações passadas como forma de combate permanente ao mal banal que aviltou para sempre o Século XX. / This research was conducted in the biennium 2014/2015 in the course of Master of Law at the University of Caxias do Sul, focused in Environmental Law. The work is part of research project "Deliberative Democracy and Environmental Protection", coordinated by Prof. Dr. Leonardo da Souza Rocha, guiding this work, and adhere to the line of research on environmental law, public policy and socioeconomic development. Jürgen Habermas, under the theory of discourse, contemplated such questions in your statement or discursive D principle ', whereby only have validity standards that can count on the agreement of all those involved in the condition of active participants in a practical discourse. This statement is the starting point of this study in order to know if it is feasible to use theory to create a theoretical proposal for a legitimate solution to the dilemmas (trans) generational ecological. The general objective is to verify the theoretical feasibility of consideration of past generations as a legal category of missing environmental decision based on Jürgen discourse ethics Habermas, justifying the importance of this to the right in dialogued perspective with studies of Hannah Arendt about the nature of evil that sustained the totalitarianism of the twentieth century, exemplified in the Eichmann trial. Deepening the discussion from the point of view of law and democracy theory, we also have the following specific objectives: (a) focus on the study of Habermas's discourse ethics and its possible theoretical feasibility to face the environmental resolution in complex societies; (b) relate to the ethics of Habermas's speech with arendtianos studies on the banality of evil totalitarianism of the twentieth century, specifically in Eichmann work in Jerusalem, taken from the perspective of discourse ethics and action in facing public to environmental law; (c) pursue a possible (re) definition of who are all caegorias missing in environmental decision, highlighting past generations (that do not close the list but are the focus of this study) whose argument was withheld over time for events overwhelming the same omission and undemocratic banal misidentified totalitarianism of the twentieth century; (d) reflexively proposing the importance of consideration of past generations as a category of missing to be considered in environmental decisions present as unavoidable historical influence, necessary political argument and legitimacy requirement for the outcome of any legal decision. This study takes care to propose a cultural and transgenerational paradigm in application of discourse ethics in deliberative understanding of processes, enhancing the most of their ability to add players to the pubic space of argument. In the work of Habermas democracy it is above all an ethical issue of participatory rational communication in the public sphere. Democratic enlargement of the more accurate a picture as possible of who the others who share the world is the problem of this research, it intends to expressly give voice argumentative present to past generations, and therefore gain legitimacy to also speak to future generations, without having to let Young sad testimonies of banal evil forever defiled the twentieth century.

This thesis lies in an analysis of a participative budget realization at the Prague 10 municipal district in a context of deliberative democracy. This is a case study stemming from a qualitative research based on an analysis of key documents and semi- structured interviews. Deliberative and participatory democracy - whose features are the crucial elements in a participatory budgeting process - serve as a theoretical basis of this thesis. In the empirical part the thesis focuses on causes of the participatory budgeting implementation and the laid down methodology approved by the Prague 10 municipal assembly in June 2015. Neither rules for proposal submissions nor the time schedule of the process are omitted. The thesis deals with different phases and the future outlook as well. An integral part of the thesis is the analysis of the actors who played key roles in the process. Apart from the case study the thesis maps the use of the participatory budgeting both abroad and in other Czech towns and cities.

The aim of this study is to examine perceptions among civics teachersactive in upper primary and secondary schools in Sweden regardingdisinformation. In particular, the study focuses on ways in which disinformation inthe classroom interacts with media literacy as well as deliberative democraticideals. The study design is based in qualitative research and has been conductedthrough a series of interviews with said teachers, analyzed mainly through thetheory of deliberative democracy with focus also on media literacy. In terms ofresults, perceptions among teachers on the subject of disinformation generally linesup with established research in the fields of disinformation, deliberativedemocracy and media literacy. In particular, teachers of both primary andsecondary school in my sample calls for increased efforts when it comes to medialiteracy as the modern digital media landscape calls for extensive knowledge andskill in discerning credible sources from fake news. / <p>21-01-20</p>

The amount of global greenhouse gas emissions needs to be significantly reduced in order to reach the Paris agreement target of 1.5°C by 2050. Contemporary representative political systems have failed so far in adequately addressing the complex problem of climate change. This study looks at potential alternative or complementary decision-making and knowledge producing methods, more specifically the deliberative democratic method of citizens’ assemblies. The three core concepts discussed in this thesis are citizens assemblies, wicked problems and sustainable transformation. By critically discussing and combining these three concepts, this thesis sets out to analyze a specific Citizens’ Assembly, namely the one held in Ireland 2016-2018. The thesis analyzes both the Irish Citizens’ Assembly model proper and its recommendations. The model is analyzed through the theoretical lens of wicked problems, in order to determine to what extent the salient characteristics of the Irish Citizens’ Assembly model address complexity. In addition, the theoretical concept of sustainable transformation is used to analyze the Assembly’s recommendations, in order to determine how strong or weak they are in relation to this theory. A directed content analysis was used to help categorize the recommendations. The result of the study shows that the Irish Citizens’ Assembly model exhibited positive aspects in relation to appropriately addressing complexity. The transdisciplinary approach to knowledge production and the deliberative aspect of the Assembly process enhanced the reliability of the knowledge produced. The Assembly’s recommendations are, however, concluded to be weak as seen from a sustainable transformation perspective. The limited amount of time given to the topic of climate change by the Irish Citizens’ Assembly as well as the narrow focus of the information provided to the Assembly members are important factors in influencing this finding. Additional research is needed on the link between citizens’ assemblies, wicked problems and sustainable transformation. On the basis of the research presented in this thesis it is argued that the citizens assembly model might play a crucial part in how people and communities can deal with complex problems in the future

Public deliberations are organised by governments and other large institutions to take the views of citizens around controversial issues. Increasing public demand and the associated burden on public funding make the quality of public deliberation events and their outcomes critical to modern democracies. This paper focuses on technology developed around streams of computational argument data intended to inform and improve deliberative communication in real time. Combining state-of-the-art speech recognition, argument mining, and analytics, we produce dynamic, interactive visualisations intended for non-experts, deployed incrementally in real time to deliberation participants via large screens, hand-held and personal computing devices. The goal is to bridge the gap between theoretical criteria on deliberation quality from the political sciences and objective analytics calculated automatically from computable argument data in actual public deliberations, presented as a set of visualisations which work on stream data and are simple, yet informative enough to make a positive impact on deliberative outcomes.

Democracy in Sweden is facing a plethora of serious challenges. The ability of political parties to engage and activate non-political citizens have been greatly reduced over the last 50 years, meanwhile the risk of increased polarization the coming years is prominent and alarming. This essay attempts to combine modern representative democracy with the ideal of deliberative democracy. The aim is to investigate if deliberation can contribute to the solution of these problems. This is accomplished through a study inspired by James Fishkin’s Deliberative Poll. Local politicians in Sweden have been invited to answer a questionnaire after which they participate in deliberation before answering a second questionnaire. The difference in results between the two questionnaires are then compared to show the effect of deliberation. There is a clear visual difference between the politician’s answers in the two questionnaires. Nevertheless, this difference is only statistically proven in one out of the 22 tests that were run. Therefore, this study cannot draw any conclusions regarding the true effect of deliberation. Nevertheless, deliberation among local politicians in Sweden seems to be successful based on a visual comparison of the results from the two questionnaires and further study is deemed desirable.