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MCP 14 (3) pp. 317–331 In ellec Limi ed 2018
In e na ional Jou nal o Media & Cul u al Poli ics
Volume 14 Numbe 3
© 2018 In ellec L d A icle. English language. doi: 10.1386/macp.14.3.317_1
SuSana Salgado
Uni e sidade de Lisboa
online media impac on
poli ics. Views on pos -
u h poli ics and pos -
pos mode nism
abS ac
Mos o wha is conside ed pos - u h poli ics e e s o known ea u es o poli ics
and poli ical p opaganda. These a e old phenomena boos ed by echnology, and in
pa icula by social media. To examine he backg ound and genesis o pos - u h
poli ics, his a icle in eg a es in he analysis he impac o online media and he
ela i ism o pos mode ni y, in which he u h is always a discu si e cons uc ion,
ne e a disco e y. I also examines populism in he ligh o his app oach. The
analysis concludes ha all hese elemen s play a de ini e ole in pos - u h poli ics
and ha he so-called pos - u h e a is no simply a by-p oduc o populism;
ela i ism, he media and he uses o echnology also play an impo an ole.
In oduc Ion
Pos - u h ‘ ela es o o deno es ci cums ances in which objec i e ac s a e
less in luen ial in shaping public opinion han appeals o emo ion and
pe sonal belie ’ (Ox o d Dic iona ies 2016). I includes si ua ions in which
ab ica ed un u hs a e masque aded as u h and si ua ions in which some
Keywo dS
pos - u h poli ics
pos mode nism
online media
social media
u h
manipula ion
jou nalism
populism
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Susana Salgado
318 In e na ional Jou nal o Media & Cul u al Poli ics
elemen s o u h a e combined wi h he y doses o exagge a ion in o de
o cause s i . A common ea u e hough, is he exace ba ion o he one and
con en o he message. The poli ical deba es ha domina ed he 2016 p esi-
den ial elec ion in he Uni ed S a es and he Eu opean Union e e endum in
he Uni ed Kingdom a e usually p esen ed as p ime examples o pos - u h
poli ics. I s mos dis inc i e ea u e is he p imacy o emo ions o e ac s
and subs an i e, ha d in o ma ion. Language is selec ed o igge emo ional
eac ions; emo i e, in lamma o y, con o e sial sen ences a e used o in ol e
emo ionally and o p o oke speci ic eac ions. Appeals o emo ions a e
cen al in poli ical discussions and deba es. The main objec i e o his kind
o poli ical communica ion is o con ey c edible in e p e a ions o eali y, no
necessa ily ac s.
An in e es ing aspec o he no ion o pos - u h poli ics is ha i high-
ligh s he li le signi icance o he u h in poli ics, as well as he g owing
ela i ism in wes e n socie ies. None o his is exac ly new, hough. This is also
no he i s ime ha he de ini ions o deba e and knowledge ha e changed
due o he media. Pos man ([1985] 2005) o example, no ed a simila p ocess
ap opos o ele ision in he 1980s. The no el y is he much as e pace o he
impac o echnology on poli ics and socie y.
This a icle in ends o discuss he so-called pos - u h poli ics by ocusing
on oday’s p ominence o online media and by in eg a ing in he deba e he
con ibu ions o he li e a u e on pos mode nism and ela i ism, by Foucaul ,
Lyo a d and Ro y. Wi h he objec i e o decons uc ing he backg ound and
meaning o pos - u h poli ics, i is di ided in o h ee main pa s/a gumen s.
Fi s , i add esses he issue o manipula ion o in o ma ion and o he media
o in luence public opinion and achie e poli ical goals. Second, i examines
he main p oposals o pos mode nis heo ies and analyses how pos - u h
poli ics i s in o his amewo k. Finally, i assesses he impac o online media
on poli ics.
he newneSS o old: ManIpula Ion, polI IcS and MedIa
Recen changes in echnology, media and poli ics can eshape eali y a a
as e pace han e e be o e. Howe e , i is impo an o no e ha he co e
a gumen s pu o wa d by he no ion o ‘pos - u h poli ics’ a e no exac ly a
no el y in poli ics and media. Manu ac u ing and manipula ing in o ma ion
o achie e poli ical goals is no hing new in i sel . In ac , i should be as old
as poli ics. The same way ha decep ion and dishones y in poli ics is no hing
new oo: e en i wi h di e en le els o success, he e ha e been known cases
in he his o y o e e y coun y in Eu ope and elsewhe e. Hannah A end w o e
ex ensi ely on i (see e.g., A end 1967 and 1972). Analysing decep ion and
‘de ac ualiza ion’, A end desc ibed he ‘delibe a e denial o ac ual u h’ and
he ‘capaci y o change ac s’. Acco ding o he , ‘ u h ulness has ne e been
coun ed among he poli ical i ues, and lies ha e always been ega ded as
jus i iable ools in poli ical dealings’ (A end 1972: 4).
Wi h he excep ion o he media en i onmen , which has some new key
elemen s ( he nea ubiqui y o social media and in e ac i i y) he ea u es o
poli ics and poli ical communica ion ha a e oday known as pos - u h do no
ep esen new phenomena. Thinking abou poli ical p opaganda, manipula-
ion o in o ma ion, poli icians lying o win elec ions o o con inue in go e n-
men , image-building, conspi acy heo ies, spin, public ela ions, he use o
emo ions in poli ical deba es, we see ha none o hese s a egies and ac ics
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a e ac ually new; he e a e examples ha illus a e hese di e en si ua ions in
di e en momen s in his o y and in di e en coun ies.
In 1928, Be nays w i ing on P opaganda ([1928] 2005) explained: ‘ he
conscious and in elligen manipula ion o he o ganized habi s and opinions
o he masses is an impo an elemen in democ a ic socie y’. In his opinion,
he masses we e no compe en enough o make wise poli ical decisions. And
be o e Be nays, Lippmann, in 1922, had al eady desc ibed, in his book Public
Opinion ([1922] 1997), he ‘manipula ion o he i a ional masses by expe s’
as an essen ial poli ical ea u e in democ a ic socie ies o ensu e social cohe-
sion and o uphold democ acy. And closely ela ed o his iew, is Lippmann’s
belie ha he media we e highly ulne able o manipula ion and ha ac s
we e usually a anged o induce speci ic in e p e a ions o eali y ha se ed
speci ic in e es s, public in e es s as well as p i a e in e es s. Thinking abou
wha pos - u h poli ics is and means oday, i is possible o iden i y simila i-
ies wi h A end ’s iew o poli ics and Lippmann and Be nays’s app oach o
poli ical p opaganda and democ acy.
Accu a e news media co e age and he use o he media o achie e poli i-
cal objec i es a e also old conce ns. The ins umen aliza ion o he media by
poli ical pa ies and poli icians has been deba ed in a numbe o si ua ions,
including when i is delibe a e (e.g. pa y-p ess and pa isan media in gene al,
o e en in he case o communi y media and o he models o media o social
change); and he de elopmen o esea ch on media e ec s (e.g. agenda-
se ing, aming, p iming, o example) has highligh ed how objec i i y and
impa iali y a e mainly ideals ha should guide jou nalis s, bu di icul o
achie e in p ac ice.
The complexi y o jou nalis ic objec i i y has long been acknowledged
(Tuchman 1972). To deal wi h he issue, jou nalis s a e ained o disclose wha
lies benea h he news s o y (poli ical in luences, sponso ships, e c.), so ha
audiences can decide o hemsel es whe he o accep hei e sion o ac s.
Howe e , his does no always happen and ensu ing igo ously his p ocedu e
o en means o jou nalis s loosing impo an sou ces o in o ma ion (o icials
and o he s).
Ko ach and Rosens iel (2007) obse ed ha , in he nine een h cen u y,
jou nalis s alked abou ealism, no objec i i y. O e ime, he in insic alue
o objec i e epo ing was no abandoned, bu jou nalis s de eloped mo e
awa eness o he ine i able p esence o subjec i i y in hei own wo k, which
mo i a ed he esou ce o p o essional ou ines applied o emula e he scien-
i ic me hod. In e es ingly, his happened a a ime when scien i ic disciplines
we e s a ing o ques ion he no ion o u h as some hing ha could be e i-
ied al oge he .
The e is also a undamen al dis inc ion be ween accu acy and u h in
jou nalism: accu acy is ela ed o objec i i y and e i ica ion, and o he
dis inc ion be ween ac s and opinion, bu i is no he same as u h, as i is
possible o epo accu a ely an un u h. Lippmann ([1922] 1997) had al eady
no ed ha news and u h we e no he same. Mo e ecen ly, Umbe o Eco
(2016) explo ed he idea o he dis inc ion be ween jou nalism and u h and
analysed he limi s o he u h in jou nalism in he no el Nume o Ze o.
In Nume o Ze o, Eco’s main cha ac e c ea ed a new newspape , Domani,
which was a ake newspape (e go a ake news ou le ), o gain ad an ages
h ough h ea s o de ama ion. Eco ques ions jou nalism’s mos e e ed p in-
ciples and explains how hose p inciples and ou ines can be used o decei e,
ins ead o being pu a he se ice o u h. Fo example, quo ing is p esen ed
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320 In e na ional Jou nal o Media & Cul u al Poli ics
as an ac o manipula ion, because jou nalis s ake speci ic passages om he
sou ces’ s a emen s o suppo hei own iew. Eco also d aws a en ion o
he ac ha he ules and p ac ice o jou nalis ic w i ing ca y a me alinguis-
ic unc ion, which on i s own a ibu es c edibili y and u h ulness o news
con en . Bu hese p ocedu es can be used o pu poses o he han achie ing
and con eying he u h, as i was demons a ed wi h Domani.
Allan (2010) also ocused on his issue, bu o ejec any possible con e -
gence be ween p opaganda and news. Acco ding o him, he p opagandis
delibe a ely in ends o decei e, conceal he u h ‘so as o di ec public opin-
ion in a pa icula way h ough manipula i e ac ics, de ices and s a egies’
(Allan 2010: 23). The in en is di e en in p inciple, howe e decep ion migh
also be p esen in jou nalism unin en ionally and indi ec ly (and some imes
e en di ec ly), when o example o he s a emp o manipula e he media
agenda and con en o achie e speci ic goals. And he e a e a numbe o cases
h oughou his o y p o ing ha jou nalism is no in ulne able o p essu e and
manipula ion.
Ko ach and Rosens iel (2007) explain ha jou nalis s pu sue a unc ional
u h ha in ol es no only ge ing he ac s igh , bu also making sense o
he ac s. In some cases, his can include a ype o jou nalism’s sel - e lec i i y
and me acommunica ion abou manipula ion, as o he au ho s ha e poin ed
ou (see e.g., Pa e son 1993; Ke bel 1998). In any case, he sea ch o he
u h is always a p ocess loaded wi h ela i i y, in Ko ach and Rosens iel’s
iew (2007). This p ocess de elops o e ime be ween he ini ial s o y and
he in e ac ion be ween he public and jou nalis s, as a con e sa ion in which
jou nalis s should be awa e and lag any misin o ma ion, disin o ma ion, o
sel -p omo ing in o ma ion. This app oach is s ongly suppo ed by he media
uses-and-e ec s heo ies and ecep ion s udies ha pu he emphasis on
he he e ogenei y o audiences and explain how messages a e ecei ed and
pe cei ed di e en ly by di e en people. A ele an implica ion o his is ha
news consume s in gene al will mos o en see only wha hey can o wan o
see, ega dless o ac -checking and objec i i y p ocedu es.
Con empo a y jou nalism i sel has also played a ole in he e oding in lu-
ence o ac -based u h (Golds ein 2007). Golds ein no es ha elling he
u h has been iden i ied as one o he oldes ail ies o jou nalism (e.g. he
jou nalis s’ own biases, sou ces may lie, in o ma ion may be misunde s ood).
Golds ein acknowledges ha i is no possible o quan i y whe he jou nal-
is s a e ge ing be e a elling he u h, bu e uses o see jou nalism as an
‘aspec o pos -mode n sensibili y ha accep s he impossibili y o de e -
mining he u h’ (Golds ein 2007: 6−9). Acco ding o him, mo e should be
expec ed o jou nalism.
The way in which in o ma ion is ea ed in news s o ies h ough news
aming o he p esen a ion o ac s h ough he posi ions o he ac o s
in ol ed, o example, sugges s some deg ee o ela i ism inhe en o jou nal-
is ic echniques and p ac ices. Each ac o has i s own e sion o he ac s and
hese a e o en con adic o y e sions. This means ha in news s o ies, eali y
and ac s a e p oduced h ough discou se and ep esen a ion ha o en leans
owa ds he posi ion o he mos powe ul (see e.g., he highe p e alence o
o icial sou ces in he media co e age o poli ics).
The dis inc ion be ween ac s and ic ion has also become inc eas-
ingly blu ed due o hyb id gen es, such as docud amas ha blend ac s and
ic ion, eali y TV, en e ainmen alk shows ha discuss poli ics, as well as
hyb id media o ma s and pla o ms, which ha e de eloped mainly due o he
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In e ne and social media. Today, audiences gain much o hei unde s anding
o cu en a ai s om docud amas and ic ion, and om social media, ins ead
o ha d news in legacy news media o ma s. This ul ima ely also con ibu es o
g owing ela i ism. Fu he mo e, he po en ial o in o ma ion and communi-
ca ion echnologies and he g owing a ailabili y o use gene a ed con en in
social media, ci izen jou nalism, o example, also b ough back o he co e o
he deba e he issues o u h and us in he media.
De elopmen s in he media ha e con ibu ed o he p oduc ion and p oli e -
a ion o all kinds o in o ma ion, somehow u he obscu ing he bo de be ween
news and p opaganda. These de elopmen s ha e hus inc eased he scale o
phenomena such as he dissemina ion o alse and biased, manipula ed in o -
ma ion, including heo ies o conspi acy and populis discou ses, quick sp ead
o umou s; bu ha e also p omo ed o he , mo e sophis ica ed uses o echnol-
ogy, as o example digi al da a ha es ing wi h he objec i e o launching a ge
campaign messages o manipula e opinions and a i udes (including o e in
elec ions, as he Camb idge Analy ica and Facebook scandal has shown).
These a e di e en examples o wha could be called a discu si e cons uc-
ion o ac s (and ul ima ely o he u h) in news p oduc ion and consump ion,
as well as in dis ibu ion (e.g. online news media, social media, algo i hms), as
we will see u he ahead. The epis emic na u e o ac s and in o ma ion has
he e o e become aile and mo e con es ed. In his p ocess, social media a e
playing a signi ican ole, bu hey a e mainly enhancing exis ing ends, no
ini ia ing s uc u al shi s.
a poS Mode n app oach o poS - u h polI IcS
Changes in he s a us o he u h and an e en g ea e suppleness o e hi-
cal alues in poli ics can also be in e p e ed in he ligh o he ela i ism o
he pos mode ni y e a. Pos mode nism has had a conside able impac on he
a s, philosophy and social sciences since he mid wen ie h cen u y. Wha ole
does he u h ha e in he pos mode nis app oach?
A dis inc i e ea u e o pos mode nism is ela ed o he inexis ence o de i-
ni e meanings and absolu e u hs. Reali y does no p e-exis i s in e p e a-
ion, which is de eloped in ela ion o he cus oms o a speci ic con ex and
o he indi idual assessmen s ha a e in luenced by pe sonal expe ience and
belie s. No only mo al no ms (good and bad, igh and w ong, e c.), bu also
wha is conside ed u h and un u h depends on he con ex and is he e o e
subjec o di e se in e p e a ions and meanings.
In sum: no absolu e and de ini e u hs exis and alues, knowledge, and
ul ima ely eali y a e ela i e o discou se and in e play, which o en gi es ise
o con adic o y in e p e a ions o eali y and alues coexis ing alongside and
some imes clashing wi h each o he . The di e ence be ween mode ni y and
pos mode ni y lies p ecisely in he p oposal o an on ology o eali y e sus
a cons uc ion o eali y, ha is, i eali y p e-exis s o be disco e ed o i i is
ins ead cons uc ed h ough subjec i e discou se and in e p e a ion.
This app oach o eali y and knowledge, and consequen ly o he u h, is
e lec ed in he wo ks o se e al in luen ial hinke s, such as Ro y, Foucaul
and Lyo a d. Bu pos mode n easoning was also in luenced by p agma ism
and by some o he mos au ho i a i e p agma is s, such as William James and
Cha les Sande s Pei ce.
Acco ding o Ro y (1991), eali y and knowledge a e always ela i e o
discou se and ep esen a ion, and objec i i y is ega ded as in e subjec i i y.
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Susana Salgado
322 In e na ional Jou nal o Media & Cul u al Poli ics
He a gues o a p agma is iew o he u h, in which he u h is a p ope y
o ou ep esen a ions o he wo ld. The u h can be in e p e ed in mul iple
ways and canno be simply ound in he wo ld. The e o e, knowledge is no a
ma e o u h o alsi y, bu o acqui ing habi s o ac ion (in he sense Pei ce
desc ibed: belie s and meanings as ehicles o cogni ion, apud Thaye 1982: 44)
o make sense o and o deal wi h eali y.
Inspi ed by Foucaul , pos mode nism also sus ains ha knowledge
is always in luenced by conside a ions o powe . Pos mode nism is, o a
g ea ex en , a eac ion o mode ni y’s dominan discou ses ha , acco d-
ing o pos mode nis s such as Lyo a d (Pos mode n Condi ion, [1979]
1991), we e la gely con olled by he eli es and he e o e e lec ed mos ly
he eli e’s in e es s and alues. Foucaul ([1969] 2002) c i ically aced he
his o y o mode ni y and analysed he link be ween powe and knowledge,
o conclude ha powe shapes knowledge and he accep ed u hs, as he e
is no absolu e u h. Following he p inciples o social cons uc ionism, he
u h is a cons uc ion, in Foucaul ’s iew. He also ejec ed o he ypes o
uni e sali y (e.g. mo ali y) and a gued ha cul u al hegemony ine i ably
leads o exclusion and iolence.
Acco ding o Foucaul , powe plays a c ucial ole in de e mining wha is
pe cei ed as he u h and conside ed ue in any gi en momen . The u h is
he esul o discou se, powe ela ions and con ex . Foucaul sees he u h as
a s uggle be ween compe ing sys ems o discou se, and wha is ue is ul i-
ma ely de e mined by which sys em is dominan and no by which sys em is
co ec (1980: 132). This also means ha he e is no such hing as a alue- ee
scien i ic language, in his iew. The e a e seeds o his line o hough long
be o e he mid-la e wen ie h cen u y’s pos mode nism pe spec i e in he
wo ks by p agma is William James, o example, who only belie ed in ela i e
u hs. As William James explained in he beginning o he wen ie h cen u y,
he u h always eme ges om some kind o ag eemen be ween ideas and
eali y (1978: 42).
The pos - ac ual ela i ism o pos mode nism eme ged as a eac ion and
esponse o he ‘dogmas’ o mode nism, cha ac e ized by he p edominance o
he p inciples o science and objec i i y, and by he us ha scien i ic me h-
ods could achie e uni e sal u hs abou he wo ld. In his pe spec i e, eason
can disce n wha is good and bad, wha is igh and w ong, and wha is ue
and alse. And language does no ca y subjec i i y in i sel , i is a ional and
objec i e, in he sense ha i p esupposes a unique link be ween he objec s
o pe cep ion and he wo ds used o name hem, in o he wo ds, be ween
signi ie and signi ied.
Acco ding o Lyo a d ([1979] 1991), s abili y and o de we e main ained
in mode n socie ies h ough wha he called ‘g and na a i es’ (me a-ideol-
ogies, me a- heo ies), and pos mode nism is he eac ion o hese ‘g and
na a i es’. Tha is why pos mode nism o e s unde s andings o he wo ld
ha a e si ua ional, con ingen and p o isional. Knowledge does no lead o
absolu e u hs; ins ead i is ela ional, unc ional and ocused on a u ili a -
ian app oach. Consequen ly, pos mode n poli ics deals wi h si ua ions as luid
and in luenced by ends. While heo izing pos mode nism, Lyo a d ([1979]
1991) included in he analysis elemen s ha a e key o unde s anding poli i-
cal changes, such as he ones ela ed wi h he cu en deba e abou ‘pos - u h
poli ics’: echnology and he con ol o in o ma ion lows.
Rega dless o he ongoing deba e on whe he i makes sense o p esume a
di ide o a con inui y be ween mode ni y and pos mode ni y, subs an ia ed in
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he ac ha many elemen s o mode ni y s ill pe sis in cu en socie ies (see,
e.g., Giddens 1990), he e was an undeniable shi in wes e n socie ies, which
has esul ed in an g owing ela i ism in di e en aspec s o li e, including in
poli ics. The e a e o cou se di e en deg ees o ela i ism o acknowledge; in
some cases i is discussed as being o al (especially in heo e ical discussions),
bu in o he cases i only encompasses ma e s o mo ali y and no ma e s o
science, o example. In any case, in con empo a y wes e n socie ies, i is e y
likely o ind si ua ions in which he on ie s o wha is knowledge and belie ,
and o wha is u h and alsi y a e blu ed. No only e hics and mo al became
mo e ela i e o speci ic poin s o iew, as also did he concep o u h and on
some occasions e en he discou ses on scien i ic indings hemsel es (see e.g.,
T ump’s posi ion abou global wa ming). The e is mo e lexibili y, which is also
wha Bauman means wi h ‘liquid’ imes (2007).
Bauman iden i ies he di e ences be ween a p e ious e a and ou cu en
e a as he passage om solid (s able) o liquid (unce ain) imes. The emphasis
is no longe on he ‘g and na a i es’ (Lyo a d [1979] 1991), bu on he p ag-
ma ism ha esul s in agmen a ion and di e si y; and on he pa iali y o
discou ses abou he u h and eali y, which includes knowledge ha becomes
ine i ably biased because i is a cons uc ion, and no longe a disco e y.
This shi has implica ions o poli ics as well: mo e han dicho omies
be ween igh and w ong, and u h and alsehood, he e a e di e en in e -
p e a ions. E en ac s a e in e p e ed and he e o e hey a e a cons uc ion, in
he same way ha e hics and mo al a e also ela i e o pe sonal opinion. The
emphasis is hen placed on subjec i ism, indi idualism and di e ence. A angi-
ble consequence o ela i ism is he e o e indi idualism and sel -cen aliza ion,
which in u n encou ages he pe cep ion o each one’s unde s anding o ac s
as mo e alid han he iews o o he s. This a i ude, howe e , is no wi hou
isks o con empo a y socie ies and poli ics, g ea e pola iza ion and exclusion
a e jus some o i s mos mani es , immedia e e ec s.
Consequen ly, one impo an ques ion is whe he inc easing le els o indi-
idualism a e sus ainable in wes e n poli ics and socie y. On he one hand,
indi idualism ep esen s eedom, because i is also a libe a ion om social
con ol; bu , on he o he hand, i has implici he isk o agmen a ion (see
e.g. Pu man’s Bowling Alone [2000]), which he In e ne and mainly social
media ha e u he deepened. In an in e iew o newspape El País, Bauman
e e ed o he nega i e poli ical e ec s o social media, because people only
‘see e lec ions o hei own ace’ (Que ol 2016). Acco ding o him, he eal
dialogue is wi h di e ence, no wi h people who belie e in he same hings as
we do. And wi h social media i is oo easy o a oid con o e sy.
In an a emp o ind an explana ion o he people’s suppo o he wen-
ie h cen u y o ali a ianism (namely ascism and communism), Nisbe (1953)
po ayed i as a esponse o he p e ious ad ance o indi idualism ha ended
up p oducing i s own an i hesis. The absence o a sense o communi y and
solida i y esul ed in he iden i ica ion wi h mass mo emen s and na ional-
ism. In a ime when indi idualism has become (again) so di used and poli ics
has o en ailed o mee people’s expec a ions, he lack o a sense o belong-
ing migh be leading once mo e o i s opposi e, now embodied in populis
app oaches o poli ics. And he e is also an impo an sense o unce ain y
associa ed o ela i ism and indi idualism, which has been success ully
exploi ed by populis s. As Bauman (1997) saw pos mode n socie y, secu i y
ga e way o eedom, which has p o oked a sense o cons an unce ain y and
has led o he exclusion o speci ic ca ego ies o ou side s om socie y.
04_MCP_14.3_Salgado_317-332.indd 323 11/28/18 8:07 AM
Susana Salgado
324 In e na ional Jou nal o Media & Cul u al Poli ics
C i ics o pos mode nism see i s ocus on ambigui y and ela i ism as a
sign o decay and co up ion in poli ics. Bu a di e en eading is also possi-
ble: because i enhances indi idual eedom, pos mode nism migh s imula e
mo e ci izen pa icipa ion and mo e accoun abili y, as people a e mo e likely
o ques ion he ac ions o go e nmen s.
Di e si y, plu ali y o meanings and in e p e a ions a e essen ial elemen s
in pos mode ni y. Value judgemen s, especially hose conce ning u h and
mo ali y, a y be ween imes and places, socie ies, social g oups, social s a a
and be ween one pe son and ano he (Boudon apud Ja ie 2008). To ha
ex en , ela i ism p omo es democ a ic alues in he same way ha plu al-
ism leads o ela i ism (Moo e 2009). Howe e , al hough pos mode nism
can be linked o he p e alence o plu ali y, i can – o he same eason – be
seen as a cause o some ypes o con empo a y populism (e.g. igh -wing
na ionalism), which eme ged as a eac ion o wha is pe cei ed as an o e -
whelming di e si y by some (embodied in mul icul u alism, o example).
I can also be in e p e ed as a esponse o he sense o loss o secu i y, he
absence o sha ed meanings, and he coexis ence (wi h simila ace alue)
o o en-con adic o y meanings and in e p e a ions o ac s ha a e key
ea u es o pos mode ni y.
In o he wo ds, impo an cha ac e is ics o pos mode nism (plu ali y
and dissimili ude, ela i ism, eac ion agains dominan discou ses) could be
deemed esponsible o phenomena such as he ones associa ed o di e -
en o ms o populism, which pu o wa d a discou se and a gue o a iew
o socie y and poli ics ha is in many espec s an an i hesis o pos mode n-
ism’s main ea u es. This is e lec ed in some o he main elemen s o populis
o ms o discou se (o en linked o pos - u h poli ics): an o e -simpli ica ion
o issues (Manichaeism: good e sus bad, he us e sus hem he o ic, e c.;
scapegoa ing and blame shi ing ac ics), an i-eli ism and an i-es ablishmen ,
he ejec ion o media o s eplaced by hose on speak on behal o he people,
he ejec ion o ou -g oups (o di e ence), o e en he no ions o an idealized
na ion and o a uni o m e sion o he people (Salgado 2018).
In sum, pos mode nism ounda ions p o ide a good insigh in o he
p e ailing ela i ism o con empo a y wes e n socie ies ha in u n con ib-
u es o explaining on he one hand, some o ms o populis discou se, and on
he o he hand, why ac -based e idence is no ha ele an o an inc eas-
ing numbe o people and ac ual in o ma ion is seen as a ma e o opinion
so o en. The idea o pos -pos mode nism is in ended he e o emphasize he
ampli ica ion o some o hese elemen s, mainly caused by he apid de elop-
men o he In e ne and i s impac on poli ics and socie y.
New e ms, such as hype mode nism (Lipo e sky 2005), digimode n-
ism (Ki by 2009), pos -pos mode nism (Nealon 2012), jus o men ion a ew
examples, ha e ied o signal he di e ences o oday’s socie y mainly caused
by digi al cul u e, discussing wha comes a e he pos mode n. The e a e
se e al di e en in e p e a ions o pos -pos mode nism, including some ha
a e mo e o less con lic ing and ha ouch upon di e en aspec s o pos mod-
e nism (e.g. ela i ism, esen men o capi alism), bu in mos o hem he e is
an a emp o heo ize he e ec s o he In e ne . The pu pose he e is o s ess
he in ensi ica ion and ampli ica ion o some o he main ea u es o pos -
mode nism, as Nealon’s (2012) no ion o pos -pos mode nism does, indica -
ing a di e ence no in kind, bu in in ensi y, ha is, e en mo e agmen a ion,
indi idualism, lexibili y, ela i ism. And he pace o change has accele a ed
signi ican ly.
04_MCP_14.3_Salgado_317-332.indd 324 11/28/18 8:07 AM
Online media impac on poli ics
www.in ellec books.com 325
Pos - u h poli ics is ela ed o, bu goes beyond he impac o he In e ne
and social media in poli ics ( u he analysed in he nex sec ion). E en hough
hese a e key, mainly because hey enable di ec communica ion channels
wi hou he in ol emen o he adi ional s uc u es o media ion (ga ekeep-
e s in jou nalism, bu also o he ins i u ions o ep esen a i e democ acy),
he analysis o wha pos - u h poli ics is and means mus be also ela ed
wi h he p e ailing ela i ism in wes e n socie ies, ha is, he no ion ha
wha he u h is depends on he con ex . Including ela i ism (a consequence
o he pos mode n a i ude o dis us owa ds uni e salism) in he analysis as
a b oade ame allows a be e unde s anding o he issues ha a e usually
ela ed wi h pos - u h poli ics.
In wha we could call a b oade con ex o pos mode n ela i ism, ac ual
in o ma ion is o en seen as a ma e o opinion and subjec o poli ical
deba e, in which me e opinions – no backed by scien i ic knowledge and
e i ica ion – a e p esen ed as ac s. This pos - ac ual ela i ism i s well wi h
se e al con empo a y poli ical campaigns and emo ionally biased poli ical
discou ses (e.g. B exi campaign, Donald T ump’s posi ions on immig a ion)
and has become much mo e p onounced wi h he de elopmen o social media.
onlIne MedIa and polI IcS
Wi h he In e ne and pa icula ly social media, mains eam poli ical ins i u-
ions and news media ha e los an impo an pa o hei s a us in poli ical
eali y cons uc ion, due o he mul iplica ion o con en p oduce s. Because o
his, he In e ne was ini ially pe cei ed as a democ a iza ion ool (e.g. A ab
Sp ing, o he ue embodimen o Habe mas’s public sphe e), bu i s mos
ecen e ec s on poli ics and socie y ha e been showing ha he impac is
complex and ha some imes has nega i e consequences o democ acy.
The e a e si ua ions in which social media migh in ac e ode democ-
acy (see, e.g., Bauman 2016; Suns ein 2017). By selec ing and manipula -
ing in o ma ion, social media can deepen agmen a ion and pola iza ion o
public opinion, a p ocess ha P io (2007) had al eady no ed in ele ision
audiences. Chadwick e al. (2018) ound ha sha ing abloid news on social
media was a signi ican p edic o o democ a ically dys unc ional misin o -
ma ion and disin o ma ion beha iou s. And his is an e a in which emo ions
seem o ma e mo e han ac s o many people (in di e en ypes o popu-
lis discou se and a gumen s, in which he eso o emo ions, such as he
exploi a ion o ea and esen men , ou weighs easoned a gumen s). Tha is
o say, objec i e ac s a e o en less in luen ial in shaping public opinion han
appeals o emo ions and belie s. In his sense, we could say ha pos - u h
poli ics is mo e a symp om o he cu en social and poli ical s a us o he
u h han i is i s cause.
This does no mean ha he u h does no exis anymo e; i jus d aws
a en ion o he ac ha consensus abou wha he u h is mo e di icul o
achie e when di e en in e p e a ions a e ea ed as ha ing a simila alue.
Th oughou his o y, he e ha e always been con lic ing e sions ( u hs) on
a a ie y o subjec s, bu an impo an aspec ha dis inguishes he p esen
ime is he weake au ho i y o mains eam poli ics and mains eam media
( he ‘es ablishmen ’) o de e mine he main in e p e a ion o ac s. A g ea e
amoun o poli ical and social ac o s (including hose ha had been excluded
om mains eam poli ics and media) can now bypass he adi ional s uc u es
o powe and deli e hei messages di ec ly o ci izens (disin e media ion).
04_MCP_14.3_Salgado_317-332.indd 325 11/28/18 8:07 AM
www.in ellec books.com
To o de his book online isi ou websi e:
ISBN 978-1-78320-925-5
304 pp | £30, $40
Pape back | Fall 2018
230 x 170 mm
eBook a ailable
The Fu u e o Humani y seeks o answe he ques ion: ‘Wha kind
o global ci iliza ion should human beings pu sue and wha do
we ha e o do collec i ely?’ a ques ion ha has p eoccupied
schola s, philosophe s and poli icians o cen u ies. In doing so, he
book ackles concep s as monumen al as he keys o happiness,
noncon en ional in elligence, immo ali y, mo ali y and China’s ole
in joining in his global discussion.
To na iga e hese many and complex opics Jin combines he
spi i ual insigh s o ancien Chinese hinke s wi h a deep espec o
he accomplishmen s and disco e ies o mode n wes e n science,
explo ing and explaining he dis inc ision o wha a be e , u u e
ci iliza ion could be.
The Fu u e o Humani y
Global Ci iliza ion and China’s Reju ena ion
By Zhouying Jin
04_MCP_14.3_Salgado_317-332.indd 332 11/28/18 8:07 AM