Democracy, Speech, AI & Digital Platforms: A Symposium
The Practical, the political and the ethical seminar series presents
Democracy, Speech, AI & Digital Platforms: A Symposium
Jonathan Gingerich (Rutgers University) & Henrik D. Kugelberg (London School of Economics)
This symposium will explore questions about how values of equality, freedom, and democracy might best be realised in the contemporary digital landscape.
Jonathan Gingerich argues that existing ‘democratic’ theories of free speech insufficiently attend to the significance of non-discursive forms of influence; an expansive and attractive ideal of democracy requires that participants in a democracy have the opportunity not just to debate with one another but also to vibe with one another. Gingerich goes on to explore the significance of this theory of democracy for debates about how algorithmic influence and speech policies on social media platforms can be regulated.
Henrik D. Kugelberg challenges widely held views about freedom of speech, equality of opportunity, and the public sphere. Kugelberg argues that in the digital public sphere, freedom and equality, traditionally understood, undercuts the production of the goods a well-functioning public sphere is meant to produce. Since the traditional arguments operate with assumptions drawn from an era where speech was costly and scarce, they fail to provide adequate guidance for our own time.
The series was created in 2015 by Véronique Munoz-Dardé (UCL) and Hallvard Lillehammer (Birkbeck) in order to discuss work in progress from visiting speakers. This year the series is convened by Elise Woodard (KCL) and Michael Hannon (Nottingham). Talks are normally 45 minutes (no pre-circulation of the paper), followed by discussion. All are welcome.
This page was last updated on 2 July 2024