Democracia deliberativa e guerras culturais na era digital deliberative = Democracy and culture wars in the digital age

Abstract

This article begins by explaining and analysing Jürgen Habermas's proposal of "deliberative democracy", a concept that serves as a trigger for an exploratory critical reflection on some pressing current issues from the perspective of Cultural Studies. The original concept of deliberative democracy (1998) is revisited, addressing some of the criticisms that have been levelled at it, and its recent revisiting (2023) is explored, particularly in the light of the digitalisation of contemporary societies. This analysis is the starting point for examining the implications of the idea of deliberative politics and, to a lesser extent, the public sphere for key themes in Cultural Studies, particularly in the context of identity and othering, with a focus on the challenges posed by the digital age, such as the fragmentation of public discourse, the existence of a context of 'culture wars'