Digital Politics

This paper explores why a group of Global South middle powers has adopted stances on the Ukrainian war that diverged from the positions of the United States under President Joe Biden, the European Union and the broader NATO/Western alliance. I claim that these disparities are partially explained by the affiliation these states have with the notion of non-alignment that has been re-signified in the context of the conflict in Ukraine. I argue that 'non-alignment' has, over the years, provided postcolonial states with a sense of common purpose and ontological security. This was done through a set of institutionalised practices and narratives anchored on principles such as autonomy, anti-Western colonialism and equality that provided them with a sense of identity in the unstable context of the Cold War conflict and beyond. The claim, therefore, is that these states' positions are not necessarily related to developments in the war itself, and the undeniable fact of Russia's aggression. Instead, they are rooted in a sense of ontological (in)security and historical resentment towards the exclusions and hierarchies of the Western-led international order. I engage with the cases of India, Brazil and South Africa as representative democratic middle powers and leaders in the Global South. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

This appendix develops a generational framework (G⁰–G³) to decode the historical and symbolic logics of global power. It links classical theories of international relations with contemporary algorithmic infrastructures, showing how legitimacy evolves from tribal and theological authority to industrial, globalized, and finally symbolic-algorithmic governance. By integrating political, financial, technical, and social layers, the framework provides a structural grammar for analyzing legitimacy, resistance, and systemic crises in international relations. This work forms part of the Third Generation in IR project

[IT] Il contributo, connotandosi per la sua interdisciplinarietà, propone un'analisi delle moderne tecniche di profilazione della persona mediante i c.d. Big e Smart Data, finalizzate non soltanto alla "ricerca", ma ad una vera e propria "costruzione" del consenso politico-elettorale. Lo scritto, in particolare, intende offrire al lettore delle nozioni tecniche preliminari per comprendere come oggi, nell'epoca dell'onlife, i dati personali rappresentino un vero e proprio valore economico e le tecniche di profilazione impiegate per la loro rielaborazione e il loro utilizzo possono produrre importanti conseguenze rispetto ai diritti e alle libertà della persona. Sul punto, ci si sofferma dapprima sulla divaricazione tra identità personale e profilo digitale-alla base di quello che Stefano Rodotà già tempo addietro aveva definito «il rischio di fraintendimenti dell'identità per effetto del divorzio tra mondo delle determinazioni consapevoli e mondo dell'elaborazione automatica»-per poi passare all'utilizzo della profilazione a scopi elettorali e concentrandosi, quindi, sul diritto-dovere di voto. L'attenzione, infine, sarà rivolta, in una prospettiva sistematica, alle origini del sistema politico nonché al crescente indebolimento del potere pubblico, all'affermazione di nuovi poteri privati (ancora una volta legati all'ambito del digitale) e alla c.d. disintermediazione democratica, con il rischio concreto di una perdita di coordinate dell'azione politica. Title: The construction of the political-electoral consensus and the use of social media in the "democratic disintermediation" era Abstract

[EN]: The paper, characterized for its inter-disciplinary nature, suggests an analysis of modern techniques of person profiling through the so-called Big and Smart Data, aimed not only at "research", but at a real politicalelectoral consensus "building". The paper, in particular, intends to offer the reader some preliminary technical notions in order to understand how today, in the onlife era, personal data represent a true economic value and the profiling techniques employed for their reprocessing and use can produce important consequences with respect to the rights and freedoms of the individual. Further to this point, this paper first dwells on the separation between personal identity and digital profile-the basis of what Stefano Rodotà long ago defined "the risk of misunderstanding of identity as a result of the divorce between the world of conscious determinations and the world of automatic processing"-and then moves on to the use of profiling for electoral purposes, consequently focusing, on the voting right/duty. Finally, the attention will turn, in a systematic perspective, to the origins of the political system as well as to the weakening of public power, the affirmation of new private powers, once again linked to the digital sphere, and the so-called "democratic disintermediation", with the real risk of losing the coordinates of the political action.

This book examines the ways that political agency can be understood in digitally dominated media environments. Kramer shows how emotional work on the online-active self is both culturally and institutionally embedded. Filling a gap in the scholarship on the affective conditions of agency, this book conceptualizes political agency online through case studies that center on the creativity of—and difficulties faced by—Indian Muslims who run popular handles on social networking sites. The book will appeal to scholars and students interested in affect and emotion, digital and political ethics, media anthropology, South Asian studies, mediation and Muslim politics in India.

Background: Over the past two decades, online platforms in Europe have shifted from being relatively passive intermediaries to powerful actors that influence information flows, public opinion, and digital markets. Early voluntary initiatives failed to deliver consistent transparency or accountability, which led the EU to introduce binding frameworks-the Digital Services Act (DSA) and Digital Markets Act (DMA). Both build on the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and national laws such as Germany's NetzDG, with the shared goal of tackling societal risks and limiting market dominance. Their effectiveness, however, depends not only on legal provisions but also on whether users can interpret and apply the information these rules require platforms to provide. Materials and Methods: The study combines analysis of EU legislation, regulatory guidance, and academic literature. It traces the transition from self-regulation to binding legal regimes and examines how the DSA and DMA approach transparency, user rights, and systemic risk management. The assessment also considers overlaps with other legal instruments, national enforcement disparities, and the role of digital literacy in making transparency measures effective. Results: The DSA and DMA introduce stronger safeguards-including clearer explanations of algorithmic processes, opt-out possibilities, and structured risk assessments. Yet practical barriers remain: national enforcement capacity varies, compliance costs weigh more heavily on smaller platforms, and technical disclosures often fail to reach or engage the average user. Without communication formats tailored to different literacy levels, transparency may end up as a formal requirement rather than a tool for user empowerment. Conclusion: By replacing voluntary commitments with enforceable standards, the DSA and DMA mark a turning point in EU platform governance. Their long-term success will rely on ensuring that transparency is accessible and actionable, supported by consistent oversight and targeted education so that all users-not only the digitally skilled-can benefit from the protections these laws intend to provide.
This work was supported by the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund, provided by the Hungarian Ministry of Culture and Innovation, under Grant NKKP STARTING_24 (STARTING 150399) programme.

The study addresses the critical gap between the rapid practical adoption of autonomous AI systems in corporate governance and the lack of a theoretical and methodological basis for their development. Although companies such as ADNOC, Dictador, and NetDragon have already implemented AI systems in leadership positions, no country has adopted comprehensive legislation regulating such systems, which creates significant economic and existential risks. We propose a reference model for the development and implementation of autonomous AI systems for corporate governance based on the synthesis of computational law, dedicated operational context, controlled generation of synthetic data, game theory (for strategy calculation), explainable AI technologies, and machine learning algorithms. The model takes into account the fundamental difference between social systems (human collectives) and technical systems (AI), ensuring their effective interaction in mixed boards. Key findings include: (1) a taxonomy of autonomous AI systems for corporate governance, identifying digital command centers, personalized virtual systems, and humanoid robots as the main types, with hybrid systems emerging; (2) a methodology for developing algorithmic law that translates legal and ethical requirements into mathematically precise formulations; (3) a framework for creating a specialized operational context that allows AI systems to operate within well-defined parameters, while humans operate within traditional political constraints; (4) methods for using supervised synthetic data generation to correct for historical biases and train AI systems to make ethical decisions; (5) an application of game theory to calculate strategies; and (6) interface design principles for effective human-AI collaboration in corporate settings.

This paper examines the transformative impact of social media platforms on contemporary social movements, focusing specifically on how digital technologies have fundamentally altered the speed and scale of collective action. Through comparative analysis of pre-digital and digital-era movements, this study demonstrates that social media platforms have created unprecedented capabilities for rapid mobilization, global coordination, and mass participation that operate beyond traditional organizational constraints. The research analyzes key case studies including the Black Lives Matter movement, #MeToo, Arab Spring, and climate activism to illustrate how digital infrastructure enables movements to achieve massive scale within compressed timeframes. While acknowledging significant challenges including platform dependency, misinformation, and digital divides, this paper argues that social media has permanently altered the landscape of social movements by democratizing organizing capabilities and creating new forms of networked resistance. The findings suggest that contemporary movements represent a hybrid model combining digital acceleration with traditional organizing principles, fundamentally reshaping how collective action emerges, spreads, and achieves impact in the twenty-first century.

Цель. Выявить идеологическую природу цифровой децентрализации как системного вызова традиционному государственному суверенитету и определить риски для современного государства в условиях технологической трансформации. Процедура и методы. Основное содержание исследования составляет анализ ключевых идеологий цифровой децентрализации (криптоанархизм, киберсиндикализм, шифропанкизм), их технологических оснований и практик реализации. Осуществлён сравнительный анализ программных манифестов криптоанархистов и шифропанков (Т. Мэй, Э. Хьюз), обобщён опыт эволюции децентрализованных движений. Результаты. Проведённый анализ показал, что синтез технологий и внесистемных идеологий формирует параллельные системы управления, подрывающие монополию государства на регулирование финансов, информации и права, а также на осуществление власти. Установлено, что угрозы для современного государства включают: эрозию доверия к институтам власти, использование децентрализованных цифровых ресурсов для протестной мобилизации, обход санкций через криптовалюты, а также рост числа регистраций граждан в виртуальных юрисдикциях, не подчиняющихся национальному праву. Теоретическая и практическая значимость. Сформулированы предложения по адаптации государственного управления: переход от запрета технологий к диалогу с IT-сообществом и разработке превентивных мер. Введена авторская трактовка цифровой децентрализации как «инженерной автократии», где власть алгоритмов заменяет политикоправовые механизмы. Актуализирована проблематика государственного суверенитета в контексте конкуренции с децентрализованными антисистемами.
КЛЮЧЕВЫЕ СЛОВА государственный суверенитет, децентрализованные автономные организации, идеологии цифровой децентрализации, цифровые технологии

The article reveals the specific features of using artificial intelligence technologies in modern information wars and conceptualises the political phenomenon of «smart polemos». Within the framework of the new concept of «smart polemos», it is proposed to focus the attention of researchers on the practices of using algorithms in information confrontation, including armed conflicts. A wide range of «smart polemos» technologies is shown (from digital manipulations, digital propaganda, crea ting deepfakes to combat operations support systems and cyberweapons use practices). It is concluded that, despite the challenges and risks of developing «smart polemos» in the field of supporting information and combat operations, intelligent systems are more often used in digital psychological manipulations. Cases of political intrigue created through the use of artificial intelligence in information operations are studied; the use of a multi-move strategic scenario, the presence of a customer, his goals and a «target»-victim in the structure of these intrigues are noted. In response to the challenges, threats and risks of «smart polemos», an ecumenical approach is proposed which implies the formation of a digital ecumene of the state and its allies.

This article is devoted to determining the role and place of the EU in the international information space, as well as identifying problematic aspects and existing challenges that the EU faces in implementing its digital strategy in the field of data governance and protection. In the context of the growing influence of such key political figures as, for example, the USA and China, which have dominant influence on the digital economy, the issue of proper ensuring the digital sovereignty of the EU in the field of global data governance comes to the fore. This is due to the fact that it is the digital sovereignty that should guarantee the strategic autonomy of the EU in the digital world in the context of the EU's increasing dependence on foreign technologies and services and a shortage of investments in the digital sector. In this research, the authors focus on the need to develop and use a model of multilateral participation in the field of data governance and protection in the digital world, which, in turn, implies prevention of weakening the role of the state in regulating the digital market, since it is the states (including the EU) that are the primary guarantors of human rights protection in the digital world.

Following the 2007–8 financial crisis, far-Right conservatives
advanced a reactionary political turn, seeking to replace the
prevailing political order, what Nancy Fraser calls “progressive
neoliberalism,” with an overtly exclusionary and rapacious form of
capitalism. This article investigates how entrepreneur Peter Thiel
sought to shape this transition, adopting a messianic rhetoric to
return capitalism to its essential principles. Employing Giorgio
Agamben’s study of Saint Paul, I argue that Thiel employed a
Pauline stance to realize a plērōma, or fullness, of capitalism,
preserving the profit motive while jettisoning neoliberalism’s
deployment of progressivism. In this analysis, I build upon
rhetorical scholars’ exploration of contemporary neoliberal
discourse, framing the billionaire rhetor as a uniquely agentive
figure in twenty-first-century capitalism and positing
neoliberalism as an eminently versatile rhetorical logic capable of
operationalizing arguments from across the political spectrum.

As the world was introduced to “post-truth”, the impacts of misinformation and disinformation in politics became evident. Investigations into the Brexit referendum and the election of Donald Trump revealed how social media – used for manipulation and influence – has reshaped how people engage with one another. South Africa wasn’t immune, with the notorious Twitter (now X) “Gupta Bot” army and Bell Pottinger’s PR campaign working to legitimise large-scale corruption. Although the players and tactics behind these operations have changed, the influence of misinformation continues to shape South Africa’s political landscape. This book, through case studies from 2019–2020, explores these shifts, their impact, and how the country can address the ongoing threat.

This article analyses how the notion of 'digital sovereignty' (DS) was constructed in public, semi-public and hidden discourses in Czechia. We show that the Czech government initially viewed DS with suspicion, but that its approach gradually shifted to a more pragmatic one. This happened through a process of selective adaptation, which we understand as an outcome of the interaction of different narratives of DS, which occurred mostly out of the public sphere. We contribute to the scholarship on DS and the role of Central and Eastern European (CEE) states in EU politics in three ways. First, we provide the first case study of the politics of digital sovereignty in Czechia. Second, we contribute to the debate on national variation in EU digital politics by focusing on small states and dependent economies in CEE, thereby moving beyond the literature's focus on the large states of the EU's economic core. Third, by bringing in the otherwise invisible discourse of Czech officials, we push beyond the dominant focus on the 'noisy' public rhetoric in DS scholarship. In contrast, we show that the existing studies miss the level of 'quiet' bureaucratic politics, a dimension that is crucial for understanding Czechia's politics of DS.

The past decade of digital transformation processes, enormously
accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, have starkly exposed the benefits as well as the risks that the massive adoption of digital technologies
may entail. In this period of intense and frequently turbulent technological evolutions, it has become commonly accepted that meaningful
connectivity and well-functioning and inclusive and cybersecure digital
(public) services are essential to unleash sustainable development.
However, very few countries and stakeholders seem to have a clear
vision and a sound strategy to achieve their digital transformation, understanding the need for a system approach to digital technologies, and
being able to mitigate, and ideally avoid the risks that accompany the
use of digital technologies.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution is reshaping the global economy, driven by rapid advancements in artificial intelligence, robotics, the Internet of Things (IoT) etc.. These technological transformations are creating new paradigms for economic growth, societal organization, and global competitiveness. Yet, for the European Union (EU), this age of disruption presents both significant challenges and unprecedented opportunities.
As the EU seeks to maintain its relevance on the global stage, it must confront critical questions about how to adapt its regulatory frameworks, ensure digital sovereignty, foster innovation, and address the socio-economic inequalities exacerbated by technological change. “The Fourth Wave: Europe’s Future in the Age of Disruption” explores and analyses these complex dynamics, under three key themes:
1. Technological Sovereignty and Digital Leadership
Europe’s ambition to achieve technological sovereignty is crucial in the face of growing competition from the United States and China. The article will examine the EU’s strategy to reduce dependence on external technology providers and foster homegrown innovation.
2. Regulating Disruption: The EU’s Balancing Act
The EU has positioned itself as a global leader in digital regulation, but how can it balance the need for innovation with the protection of fundamental rights and values?
3. Geopolitics of the Digital Age
In a world where technological competition increasingly defines global power dynamics, Europe must navigate a complex geopolitical landscape. This section explores how the EU’s approach to digital diplomacy, cybersecurity, and transatlantic cooperation will shape its future role on the global stage.
The article concludes with a forward-looking approach on how Europe can overcome current challenges and embrace the opportunities of the 4th Industrial Revolution.

Communication has been one of the factors highlighted for its importance in the political world, and in recent times, its relevance has increased due to the rapid development of society. This article analyzes various scientific paradigms of studying political communication-classical, structural, institutional, behavioral, and digital approaches. It should be noted that each paradigm is unique in its own way, and therefore they study political communication from different perspectives. The article also analyzes the development of political communication and the impact of globalism on its paradigms. The article emphasizes the importance of paradigms to adapt to the changing policy environment and the communication channels used therein.

This paper analyses the challenges associated with the co-regulatory arrangement of Articles 34 and 35 of the Digital Services Act (DSA) for the mitigation of the risks posed by harmful but legal content. Filling a gap in the existing literature, this paper focuses on the implications of the public-private cogeneration of content moderation policies for harmful but legal content resulting from the implementation of the DSA. This paper highlights three challenges deriving from the ‘’hybrid’’ public-private governance of harmful speech in the context of the DSA. First, the potential lack of transparency on public influence over private content moderation policies. Second, the risks of unaccountability of public bodies who are able to steer private content moderation policies to pursue public policy objectives. Third, the lack of effective redress available to users against interferences with their legal speech. Building on these considerations, this paper puts forward two main arguments. First, the governance model for online speech of the DSA poses challenges that are not addressed by the current legislative framework. Second, the public-private dichotomy of EU fundamental rights law is not fit for purpose in the face of hybrid regulatory models. Based on the identified challenges, the paper discusses the main shortcomings of the legislative framework, with the aim to define a path for future research.

In recent years, the concepts of resentment and ressentiment have experienced a resurgence within journalistic and academic spheres. Events such as Brexit, the Trump presidency, and the rise of right-wing governments in Europe have reignited discourse on these and similar emotions, often as tools to interpret diverse forms of behavior. Both terms have largely been framed through Euro-and US-centric model cases. Whereas resentment tends to address issues arising predominantly within (Western) liberal contexts, Nietzsche's notion of ressentiment appears more applicable to many illiberal environments of the global South. Engaging with ressentiment, the author explores what unfolds when we dismantle the conceptual hierarchy between ethnography and philosophy, allowing empirical case studies from illiberal settings to confront the cultural history of ressentiment by generating new problematics. Drawing on his extensive work with marginalized Hindu communities in Pakistan, the author argues that survival, rather than spite or rancor, is the principal catalyst for opportunistic creative expressions of ressentiment. The author shifts the focus-both Nietzsche's and his later readers'-from the "priest's" role in cultivating rancor to exploring what it means to be creative within the context of cultural and political dependence on a dominant elite.

We explore the tactics of becoming visible and their relationship to alleviating or exacerbating precarious forms of life for minorities in South Asia. These tactics emerge from and respond to three interdependent moments: The frames that define how minorities can become visible, the interplay between limits and thresholds of visibility, and how capture fragments articulations and makes them easy to appropriate.

Bu çalışma, 21. yüzyılın ikinci çeyreğiyle birlikte siyasal kültürde belirginleşen "post-truth" (hakikatötesi) olgusunun bireylerin bilgiye olan güveni, hakikat algısı ve siyasal tutumları üzerindeki etkilerini incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Günümüzde siyaset, yalnızca bilgi temelli tartışmalardan değil; duyguların, inançların ve kişisel kanaatlerin öne çıktığı bir bağlamda şekillenmektedir. Bu bağlamda bireylerin hakikate dair değerlendirmeleri, yalnızca nesnel gerçeklikten değil; medya alışkanlıkları, siyasal kimlikler ve dijital ortamlarda karşılaştıkları içeriklerden etkilenmektedir. Araştırma, Türkiye'nin üç büyük şehri olan Ankara, İstanbul ve İzmir'de 243 katılımcıyla anket ve 61 katılımcıyla yarı yapılandırılmış görüşmeler yapılarak karma yöntemle yürütülmüştür. Katılımcılardan elde edilen veriler, bilgi güveni, post-truth algısı ve siyasal tutumlara yönelik ölçekler aracılığıyla analiz edilmiştir. Ölçeklerin güvenirliği ve geçerliliği yüksek bulunmuş, SPSS ve MAXQDA yazılımlarıyla istatistiksel ve içerik analizleri gerçekleştirilmiştir. Kuramsal çerçeve olarak Jean Baudrillard'ın simülasyon kuramı, Michel Foucault'nun hakikat rejimi anlayışı ve Jürgen Habermas'ın iletişimsel akıl ve kamusal alan kuramı temel alınmıştır. Bu kuramlar aracılığıyla bilgi ile inanç, gerçeklik ile temsil, medya ile kamusal akıl arasındaki ilişkiler açıklanmaya çalışılmıştır. VII. BASKENT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON MULTIDISCIPLINARY STUDIES 20-22 June 2025 Ankara, Türkiye eleştirel düşünme becerilerinin yaygınlaştırılması ve toplumsal güvenin yeniden inşası, post-truth çağda demokratik bilinç için temel gereklilikler olarak öne çıkmaktadır.

This paper examines Vice President J.D. Vance’s speech at the Munich Security Conference as an event signaling a profound philosophical divide within the West between concepts rooted in classical Enlightenment and the emerging Dark Enlightenment. Through a rigorous analysis of the ideas of classical Enlightenment and Dark Enlightenment thinkers, the study illuminates how the latter group fundamentally challenges liberal democratic assumptions by reconceptualizing human nature, will, freedom, and progress through a techno-authoritarian lens that prioritizes hierarchical efficiency over egalitarian participation. This challenge may signal the beginning of a new historical era, one whose tenets are no longer tied to the ideals of the classical Enlightenment and that reinterprets the will as its core faculty.
Special attention is devoted to Peter Thiel’s philosophical position, his legitimation of techno-authoritarianism, his critique of Enlightenment rationalism, and his alternative vision for securing freedom through technological advancement and corporate structures rather than democratic processes. These ideas are effectively expressed in political discourse through Thiel’s long-term mentorship of U.S. Vice President Vance. The paper also illustrates how European reactions to Vance’s speech align with various philosophical perspectives, with mainstream “liberal nationalist” officials defending classical Enlightenment principles while conservative commentators endorse aspects of Vance's critique regarding immigration, institutional responses to populism, and limitations on free speech.
This analysis ultimately reveals how the Dark Enlightenment challenges liberal democratic governance by redefining freedom, progress, reason, will, and human nature. This challenge may be more significant than merely presenting an authoritarian alternative to mainstream progressivism and liberal democracy at large, as it operates within familiar vocabularies of liberty and progress while promoting a vision of society governed as a corporation rather than as a democracy. The author suggests that the identified division may indicate the onset of the Age of Will, as hypothesized by Maija Kule.

Memetics, as a scientific framework for cultural evolution, must be integrated into the communication process to remain viable. This paper explores whether communication is better explained through memes and whether memes act as autonomous agents. While communication can be understood without memetics, applying a memetic framework offers deeper heuristic insights into communicative phenomena. By examining concepts such as news, meaning, language, reading, listening, writing, silence, lateral thinking, and teaching, this paper demonstrates that memetic fields structure and reshape communication. Drawing from thought experiments and interdisciplinary references, it argues that memes actively reconstruct their environment, making them more than passive replicators. Additionally, the study extends McLuhan's "medium is the message" thesis to social media, where user-generated submedia function as memetic ecosystems that redefine intersubjectivity. The analysis raises an evolutionary question: are humans the agents of memes, or are memes the true agents of cultural evolution? While full validation of memetic agency remains open, this paper advances a model in which memes influence, constrain, and direct human cognition in ways previously unexplored.

We examine the digital party model using the Czech Pirates as a case study. The party was initially organised through an online platform and characterised by ad-hoc, informal decision-making. However, an election breakthrough and institutionalisation were secured only by a shift towards the offline sphere and organisational adaptation involving investment in structures, paid facilities and partial professionalisation, and by adopting detailed internal rules. The effect was a significant move away from the digital model, which increased the party's organisational resilience and reduced the risks of disintegration. Simultaneously, these measures strengthened the power of the party's politicians in public office.

The Routledge Handbook of Political Campaigning provides an essential, global, and timely overview of current realities, as well as anticipating the trajectory and evolution of campaigning in the coming years. Offering a comprehensive analysis, the handbook is structured into seven thematic sections, including the campaign environment; rhetoric and persuasion; campaign strategies; campaign tactics and platform affordances; news and journalism; citizens and voters; and civil society. The chapters within each section reflect on the latest societal, technological, and cultural developments and their impact on campaigning, on democratic culture within societies, and on the roles that campaigns might play in both facilitating and impeding political engagement. Key trends and innovations are examined alongside case studies and examples from a range of nations and political contexts. Issues around trust and representation are further reflected in a focus on the wider campaigning environment and the rise in importance of grassroots and pressure groups, social movements, and movements that coalesce within digital environments. The Routledge Handbook of Political Campaigning is an essential resource for scholars, students, and practitioners in political communication, media and communication, elections and voting behavior, digital media, journalism, social movements, strategic communication, social media, and more broadly to democracy, sociology, and public policy.

India's vision of becoming a developed economy by the year 2047 following the path of Viksit Bharat 2047 is a new trend. However, digital start up ecosystems in India embraces the digital transformation by playing a supportive role in shaping future economy. Start up ecosystems enables entrepreneurs in leveraging emerging technologies by providing creative solutions, enhancing supply chain efficiency and enhancing access to digital services. A digitally empowered nation can be built by promoting start up ecosystem leading towards the goal of achieving Viksit Bharat 2047 and making India compete globally. The present theoretical study discuss about critical role of start up ecosystem in building Viksit Bharat 2047 by examining the factors which help in growth of economy as well as their role in impacting economic and societal transformation. The study also highlights imperative role of supportive policies, infrastructure and collaboration for sustainable growth.

Nel mondo contemporaneo le sfide per l’essere umano aumentano sempre più invece che diminuire, come dovrebbe piuttosto essere. Sempre più la tecnologia e l’Intelligenza Artificiale stanno sostituendo molte cose che, fino a qualche anno fa, erano prerogativa dell’essere umano. [...]
Questo avanzamento tecnologico, dunque, ha reso ancora più difficile distinguere quelle che potevano essere riconosciute come notizie reali da quelle che, a volte in modo evidente, a volte con un po’ più di lavoro e approfondimento, vengono bollate giustamente come fake news.
Ma le fake news non incidono solamente sulla vita di tutti i giorni bensì ed in modo preoccupante sulla vita politica di ogni Paese ed ogni territorio. Propagandare notizie false spacciandole per vere rischia di minare la Democrazia dei Paesi ed il pensiero democratico di ognuno di noi [...].
L’intenzione di queste poche pagine sarà quella di invitare a riflettere sull’impatto che le fake news possono avere sulla vita politica e democratica di ognuno di noi.
Se nel primo capitolo si farà un breve excursus sulla rete e le fake news, cosa sono e come nascono, nel secondo si entrerà nel vivo della questione analizzando l’ingerenza internazionale attraverso le fake news e l’impatto che essa ha sulle democrazie e sulle istituzioni democratiche. Nel terzo capitolo, invece, si analizzerà un caso specifico italiano (quello delle Elezioni Politiche del 2018) analizzando brevemente anche l’impatto dell’ingerenza internazionale sulla politica italiana.

The mobile telecoms market in Africa is highly competitive and have significant footprint hence the focus on these sectors. The impact of digital adoption was assessed on the performance of MTN Nigeria Communications Plc and Airtel Africa Plc, which are two mobile communication providers that are listed on the Nigerian Exchange Group as of 2023 an important market in Africa. An Ex Post Facto research design was adopted and secondary data were obtained from official company financial statements, the Nigerian Communications Commission, and another reliable information source for the period of 2018 to 2023. The Pearson's Correlation Coefficient test was used to establish the level of relationship between the independent variable, namely, revenue from digital payment channels, with the dependent variable, namely, net profit. From the above analysis, it can be deduced that the digital payment revenue of MTN Nigeria was on average at ₦44.8 billion while that of Airtel Africa was ₦45 billion with moderate volatilities. However, the net profit for both companies showed much variance due to operational and external influences it was also higher at ₦213.225 billion and ₦226.8 billion respectively. The Pearson coefficient in correlating digital payment revenue and net profit is 0.969 for MTN (signifying significance at a confidence level of 0.031) and 0.859 for Airtel but this is insignificant at a confidence level of 0.141 due to the small sample size. The analyses also highlight the significance of digital payment channels as a key to profitability. It is clear that though net profit was fluctuating more significantly, the increase in digital payment revenue indicated stability and the potential it has for steady income generation. The study suggests more focus on building the infrastructure for digital payments, the use of AI and blockchain, and extending Branchless Banking for bettering revenues and profitability. Other critical factors include operational efficiency and management of strategic actions to changes in economic policies and global markets. This work shows the significance of the research focusing on the impact of digitalization in the telecommunication sector and its implications for the key players

Disiplinlerötesi (transdisciplinary) yaklaşım, güncel ve kolektif bilginin uygulamaya geçiş aşamasında kendini göstermeye başlayan, çok yönlü hiper bir alanın yeni bir paradigmasına geçişi olarak tanımlanabilir. Sanat ve tasarım bağlamında disiplinlerötesi uygulama nedir? Bir çalışmanın disiplinlerötesi bir yaklaşım benimsediğini nasıl anlayabiliriz? Bu makalede, bu sorular üzerinden, yaratılan nesnenin bilinçdışından kökenlenip sanat pratiklerine dönüşümü, malzeme ontolojisi bağlamında incelenmiştir. Disiplinlerötesi yaklaşımın sanat ve tasarım bağlamında nasıl uygulandığını ve bu yaklaşımın sanat ve tasarımda kullanılan malzemelere olan etkilerini 1Bu makale, Yıldız Teknik Üniversitesi SBE Sanat ve Tasarım Yüksek Lisans Programında Prof. Dr. Rıfat Şahiner danışmanlığında yürütülen tezden üretilmiştir..

The enormous amount of data exchanged daily in cyberspace has directed states to review and implement different types of surveillance mechanisms to defend their national interests against harmful cyber activities. The implementation of security requirements by states implies the extension of the concepts of borders and sovereignty from the real world to cyberspace, which means developing a suitable interpretation of these concepts to adapt their traditional legal notions to the technical nature of cyberspace, since the traditional interpretation of these concepts contradicts the rapidly changing nature of cyberspace. The research seeks to elaborate on the scholarly evolution concerning conceptualising borders and sovereignty in cyberspace. Therefore, it contributes to knowledge by providing an acceptable legal interpretation of the concepts of borders and sovereignty in cyberspace and proving their adaptability to the particular nature of this technological sphere of universal interaction. To achieve this objective, the research adopts a doctrinal approach that reviews relevant literature to conclude scholarly interpretations of these concepts in cyberspace.

The Internet, initially celebrated as a bastion of freedom and openness, is increasingly becoming a domain of control, surveillance, and regulation by both states and private entities. The rise of state control and regulation of the Internet, along with the private sector's expanding control over information, poses significant challenges to the ideals of freedom and openness that once defined the Internet. This article examines the transformation in Internet governance from a state of minimal regulation to a heavily controlled environment by both governments and corporations and explores how the blockchain technology and decentralised architecture underlying Web3 promise to redefine Internet governance and resist censorship. Through a mixed-method approach that synthesises insights from computer science, political science, and legal studies, the paper argues that public blockchains challenge Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers' (ICANN) traditional control over DNS and significantly reduce the ability of centralised entities to exert control over content and communication, thereby enhancing freedom of expression and resisting censorship. The ability of Web3 to fully realise this potential is, however, dependent on overcoming complex technical and regulatory challenges.

Dal 2016, la letteratura scientifica ha registrato una drastica crescita dell’interesse per il tema delle fake news e ha dimostrato la responsabilità dei progettisti nel supportare fenomeni di polarizzazione. L’applicazione malevola di principi di psicologia cognitiva alla progettazione delle interfacce digitali, detta deceptive design, persegue la manipolazione dell’utente e gioca un ruolo chiave nella diffusione delle fake news: questo contributo offre un insieme di strumenti utili all’identificazione di notizie false, testati in fase di popolazione del database di news per l’addestramento di un algoritmo di verifica nell’ambito del progetto Fake News.

A soberania digital é uma prática emergente, originada pela crescente importância dos dados, tecnologia e infraestruturas digitais, que são essenciais para o desenvolvimento econômico, a segurança e soberania nacional. No caso do Brasil, a soberania digital é moldada pela força dominante da classe capitalista, representada pelos grandes proprietários de empresas nacionais e multinacionais, que exercem poder sobre o Estado e a sociedade. Essa dominância define as políticas estatais sobre o tema, fazendo com que os interesses dessa classe sejam tratados como se fossem os interesses de toda a população. Este artigo analisa como a lógica do capital molda as normativas brasileiras sobre soberania digital, especialmente em relação à proteção de infraestruturas críticas, e conclui que o Estado não regulamenta a obrigatoriedade de utilização de data centers localizados no Brasil, evidenciando o interesse particular de uma pequena classe capitalista completamente subordinada ao centro do capitalismo global.

La compra y coacción del voto ha sido señalada como una de las principales
prácticas de manipulación electoral en América Latina. Para las elecciones de 2018 en México, se presentaron diversos estudios y declaraciones que aseguraban que este fenómeno de manipulación estaba presente de manera significativa y representaba una amenaza seria al voto libre. Este texto busca problematizar en torno a la compra y coacción del voto en la Ciudad de México, su relación con el clientelismo, cómo operan sus participantes y cuál es la percepción de la ciudadanía ante estos fenómenos. Los resultados
de esta investigación se basaron en un ejercicio de observación electoral.

This paper explores the hypothesis that institutions are "dynamic social theories" that embody accumulated knowledge from everyday social experiments about how to do things in society. Institutions that are replicated, imitated or adapted act as social models and can be seen as the social science equivalent to theories in the natural sciences. In open societies they also benefit from a form of peer review by citizens in what can be seen as the "democratic method." This hypothesis is testable and could improve the impact of social and political sciences by working with citizens, practitioners and policymakers to embed research methods into social models. Why does this matter? Humanity's biggest and most difficult problems are social and political, yet funding and support for academic social science is a low priority while large scale social research is conducted for commercial or political purposes in ways that may not be in the public interest. By working on institutions as social experiments and models ("dynamic theories"), scholars can help improve humanity's ability to solve social problems. The concluding discussion and Supplementary material explores practical implications and how it can be tested, starting with models of social research, higher education and democracy.

This paper delves into the concept of digital leadership in contemporary democracies, considering the impact of the digital age on politics and, consequently, on political leadership. In our view, with the spread of radio stations first, then televisions, and finally the web, leadership has evolved through three great stages: broadcast, telegenic and digital. The web, and social media in special, have reshaped democracies and political interactions both at macro, meso, and micro levels. With Obama as forefather and across different political ideologies, a new generation of politicians as Beppe Grillo, Justin Trudeau, Giorgia Meloni or Sanna Marin, among others, shows how leaders are adapting to a highly digitalized political environment. As we understand it, leaders with good digital media abilities need to excel in three skills-presence, interaction and engagement-and would have two main attributes: reliability and relatability. We also consider that the digitalization of leadership deepens the personalization and presidentialization phenomena in politics and under certain circumstances may provide cases of so-called hyperleadership more frequently.

Целью настоящей работы стало определение принципиально новых в содержательном смысле ответов на традиционные вопросы, стоящие перед учеными на протяжении многих веков, в условиях современных цифровых трансформаций. Исследовательским вопросом стало изучение принципиальных возможностей нового прочтения «старых» вопросов в изменившемся мире. В работе рассматриваются закон необходимого разнообразия У.Р. Эшби, концепции Паноптикума И. Бентама и М. Фуко, пещеры Платона с позиций их актуальности и применимости к современным условиям функционирования государства и общества на новом технологическом этапе цифрового развития. В работе показывается, что цифровые технологические трансформации не формируют принципиально новых содержательных объяснений происходящим в ключевых сферах жизнедеятельности государства и общества процессам, а актуальность существующих классических теорий, концепций, законов функционирования государственных систем управления, а также фундаментальных принципов взаимодействий между государством и обществом, остается по-прежнему высокой. Традиционные представления о массовом сознании, его роли в формировании моделей поведения, информационно-коммуникационной основе формирования картин мира и массовых представлений о реальности также не претерпевают каких-либо принципиальных изменений в условиях цифровизации и хорошо согласуются с имеющимися традиционными концепциями и подходами. По итогам исследования делается вывод о том, что содержательные аспекты цифровых решений на «старые» вопросы во многом сходны с уже имеющимися традиционными ответами и решениями, которые сохраняют и сегодня высокий объяснительный потенциал.

This research examines how fake identities on social media create and sustain antagonistic and racist discourses. It does so by analysing 11 Danish Facebook pages, disguised as Muslim extremists living in Denmark, conspiring to kill and rape Danish citizens. It explores how anonymous content producers utilise Facebook's socio-technical characteristics to construct, what we propose to term as, platformed antagonism. This term refers to socio-technical and discursive practices that produce new modes of antagonistic relations on social media platforms. Through a discourse-theoretical analysis of posts, images, 'about' sections and user comments on the studied Facebook pages, the article highlights how antagonism between ethno-cultural identities is produced on social media through fictitious social media accounts, prompting thousands of user reactions. These findings enhance our current understanding of how antagonism and racism are constructed and amplified within social media environments.

Governments worldwide play a pivotal role in shaping the AI ecosystem through instruments such as legislation, funding, and international collaboration. Analysing 512 policy documents from 64 countries, our recent work reveals significant disparities in how countries emphasise data within their AI policies, potentially worsening the global data divide.

Economic structure, cultural dynamics, and governance paradigms have all been impacted by the rapidly expanding digital economy in China. This article examines at how China's digital environment is changing and what it means for security flaws. The research emphasises the necessity for a methodical structure to recognise risks, manage them, and support sustainable growth. There is a more serious risk of cyberattacks, data breaches, and disruptions because of China's digital ecosystem's interconnection, which includes e-commerce, finance, AI, and big data. To analyse the data, unit root test, cointegration analysis, causality analysis and VAR (Vector autoregressive) Models have been applied to check the stationary of data, and long-run relationships among the variables. To inform policymakers, business stakeholders, and academics, the project examines comprehensive techniques for risk assessment and regulation. The paper emphasises how crucial it is to create flexible policy frameworks, public-private partnerships, regulatory compliance, openness, and global collaboration when creating successful governance strategies for the digital economy. The research hopes to add to worldwide conversations about the safe and sustainable future of China's digital economy.

The world is changing – the quick transition into the digital world made not only by South Africa but on a
global scale has greatly shifted the popularity and accessibility of protest and debate. In the old world,
protest was maintained and organized by figureheads and communities and had a ripple effect in their
national implementation. Today protest groups are maintained and organized through social media,
especially on a platform such as Facebook, which allows for the use of search engine optimization,
visibility, greater discourse and event organization. The #RhodesMustFall movement is a primary
example of this development and was chosen as the paper's case study. The study explored the
impact of digital politics on heritage conservation in South Africa.

This article considers the managerial aspect of digital transformation — various
programs and infrastructure that have recently received the general name “algorithmic management”.
The boom in the use of such tools occurred during the covid-19 pandemic as a unique set
of circumstances for the digitalization of human life. The authorities of several countries monitored
their citizens’ behavior, including with the QR-code systems that limited their rights, in the fight
against the spread of the covid-19, which has caused discussions and even protests. Businesses
accelerated their digital transformation in HR management due to government restrictions and
lockdown measures and to production needs in the new conditions. Quarantines are over, but the
active development of algorithmic management continues; it extends beyond the platform economy
and plays an integral role in Industry 4.0, which makes the study of algorithmic management
relevant and timely. A significant contribution to understanding algorithmic management was made
by the report of the experts from the European Commission and International Labor Organization.
Based on the relevant publications up to 2022, they suggested giving up the narrow understanding
of algorithmic management as a platform economy issue; however, most studies are still based on this
interpretation. The article presents a broader definition to identify additional social contradictions
and challenges of digital transformation. The author considers algorithmic management in the
perspective of sociology of management and sociology of technology, in particular the works
of A. Feenberg and P. Edwards. The approach of sociology of technologies studies (STS) allowed
the author not only to analyze the events of the recent pandemic but also to consider the future
of such technologies under the transition towards Industry 4.0. The article identifies three elements
of algorithmic management together with hidden social-managerial biases and contradictions related
to their implementation and shows how the new approach integrates direct and indirect control
in management.

В статье рассмотрены основные участники искусственной социаль-
ности (люди и инструменты искусственного интеллекта) и коммуникация между ними.
Исследование является преимущественно социологическим, но обращается и к математи-
чески-технологическим аспектам инструментов искусственного интеллекта как создающим
новую для человеческого общества социальную реальность — искусственную социальность.
В первой части статьи авторы анализируют коммуникацию как основу социальности, ис-
пользуя методологию Н. Лумана. Во второй части показано, как математические технологии
искусственного интеллекта стали социальными технологиями в рамках искусственной соци-
альности. В третьей части описана экспериментальная коммуникация между людьми и искус-
ственным интеллектом на примере СhatGPT. Было проведено социологическое исследование
среди студентов Даугавпилсского университета (январь 2024 года, N = 423, исключая студен-
тов ИТ-специальностей), позволившее выявить типологические группы по отношению к ис-
пользованию искусственного интеллекта в образовании. Были определены три «идеальных
типа» студентов: «пользователи-оптимисты» (18 %), «пробующие нейтралы» (17 %) и «избе-
гающие скептики» (10 %), а также смешанная группа «пробующих оптимистов» (31 %) —
наиболее многочисленная группа респондентов с позитивным отношением к инструментам
искусственного интеллекта, но с недостаточным опытом взаимодействия с ними. Результаты
авторского эмпирического исследования показывают стратификацию студентов по отноше-
нию к инструментам искусственного интеллекта в обучении, что может привести к сегмента-
ции сферы высшего образования в будущем (форматы обучения, его участники, организация
учебного процесса и, возможно, результаты обучения). Востребованность междисциплинар-
ного подхода к изучению инструментов искусственного интеллекта будет только возрастать,
поскольку он междисциплинарен, и ни одна наука самостоятельно не сможет совершить здесь
прорыв. Авторы полагают, что в рамках искусственной социальности могут конструктивно
со-функционировать несколько типов разума (в частности, человеческий и компьютерный),
как до сих пор софункционировали человеческий и животный разумы.

Scientific and technological development has increasingly become an important reference  dimension for evaluating the competitive ability between countries, and the leapfrog  breakout and advanced development of generative artificial intelligence represented by  ChatGPT, Sora, etc. has once again highlighted the enormous development potential  brought about by scientific and technological innovation. At the same time, it also
highlights the urgency and importance of accelerating the standardized governance of  generative AI. The intelligent service experience brought about by the advantages of  generative artificial intelligence in human-computer interaction and human-computer  collaboration not only improves social productivity and social intelligence, but also gradually
becomes an important technology driving force that pushes human society forward. In the  field of media, the development and application of generative artificial intelligence has  promoted a huge change in the production and communication of mainstream media  content. As a new type of knowledge-generating medium, it is accelerating the rewriting of
the content production and communication pattern in the media field. However, at the same  time, the leapfrog progressive development and broad-spectrum application of generative AI  have also extended the AI risk governance boundary and governance complexity. Therefore,
based on the existing research results of generative AI in the media field, this paper  attempts to systematically analyze and study the risks of generative AI in mainstream  media communication, and puts forward the governance path to cope with the risks.