Tutorial: Citizens, politics, and social media - trends, impacts and lessons learnt

Summary form only given: With globalization and technological innovations, participatory processes are being challenged like never before. The traditional role played by the media in democratic societies used to be high in the researchers' agenda with focus on media as informers, watchdogs and as facilitators for discussion and deliberation [1]. Nevertheless, these roles were significantly influenced by many variables as technological innovations and globalization [2], [3]. How citizens nowadays interact and engage with public issues, in public and private spheres, is constantly changing and digital technologies play a crucial role in this process ([4]). While digital technologies and digital media impact citizen's engagement and transform e-participation, the concrete consequences and qualitative assessment of those forms of interaction is not obvious. This leads us to international remarks focusing on the evolving technology which continuously requires `chasing the digital wave' [5]. Although it seems that politics and political parties are compelled to be online and to be digital [6], this implies adaptation mechanisms and practices, which may be found hard to accomplish [7], [8]. In addition, it is quite challenging to find correspondence between online intentions and/or reactions and offline practices [9]. Indeed, digital media are prominent contributors to the “hybridization of the organizational practices of parties, movements and interest groups” [10], with both positive [11] and negative impact [12]. This tutorial combines a theoretical and practical perspective by approaching e-Participation and digital media considering the following outline: 1) theoretical background and approaches to the topic; 2) literature and policy review of the impact of digital technologies and digital media in citizens' engagement in politics; 3) the impact of social media in citizens' engagement with politics with reference to international orientations and best practices; 4) emphasis on digitally-enhanced political parties.