The Social Media and Democracy Reader

The Social Media and Democracy Reader provides students with a curated collection of articles that explore the implications of hyperpersonalization in social media. By critically engaging with selections in this anthology, students are invited to develop a more nuanced understanding of their own social media use and the ways in which social media influence our everyday reality.

Unit I provides students with an introduction to issues regarding technology and how humans have related to technology throughout history. The readings examine human interaction, both in reality and online; whether the lines of authentic human interactions are being blurred by social media use; and the phenomenon of technology taking on a life of its own. In Unit II, readings offer various ways of understanding the self. Students explore the intricacies of both using and being shaped by social media, some of the negative effects social media can have on our perceptions of ourselves, and the differences between our real selves and what we put online. Unit III discusses how social media and our social media-saturated selves should be understood in a democratic context. Readings cover fake news and propaganda, social media as entertainment and an escape from contemporary issues, the creation of digital echo chambers, and the effects of social media on activism.

Timely and enlightening, The Social Media and Democracy Reader is an ideal resource for courses and programs in philosophy, political science, sociology, psychology, and communication.