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Online Participation in Culture and Politics: Towards More Democratic Societies?

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Online Participation in Culture and Politics: Towards More Democratic Societies? ONLINE PARTICIPATION IN CULTURE AND POLITICS: Europeans do not go online anymore: they are online. And they engage increasingly in cultural and political life via the internet and digital tools. TOWARDS MORE DEMOCRATIC The beginning of the digital age brought great expectations for the internet’s potential to promote understanding and tolerance, stimulate creativity, enhance diversity and SOCIETIES? democratise cultural and political activity, among others. This second Council of Europe thematic report on culture and democracy explores the impact digitisation and the internet are having on cultural and political participation in Europe, examining the opportunities and challenges this creates. Drawing on data collected within the Indicator Framework on Culture and Democracy (IFCD), the results of a novel survey of internet users conducted by Dalia Research and other reliable sources, this report concludes that targeted support for online participation in culture and politics could make a positive contribution to building and maintaining inclusive, democratic societies. Hertie School of Governance PREMS 075918 ENG The Council of Europe is the continent’s leading Second thematic human rights organisation. It comprises 47 member states, 28 of which are members of report based on the the European Union. All Council of Europe Indicator Framework www.coe.int member states have signed up to the European Convention on Human Rights, a treaty on Culture and Democracy designed to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law. The European Court of Human Rights oversees the implementation of the Convention in the member states. ONLINE PARTICIPATION IN CULTURE AND POLITICS: TOWARDS MORE DEMOCRATIC SOCIETIES? Second thematic report based on the Indicator Framework on Culture and Democracy April 2018 Principal investigator: Helmut K. Anheier (Hertie School of Governance) Authors: Regina A. List, Marcel Hadeed, Rafael Schmuziger Goldzweig, and Jessica Leong Cohen (Hertie School of Governance) Contributors: Sonja Kaufmann, Olga Kononykhina, and Matthias Haber (Hertie School of Governance) Council of Europe The opinions expressed in this work are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy of the Council of Europe. All requests concerning the reproduction or translation of all or part of the document should be addressed to the Directorate of Communication (F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex or [email protected]). All other This document has been prepared correspondence concerning this by the Hertie School of Governance publication should be addressed to as part of the Indicator Framework Kathrin Merkle ([email protected]). on Culture and Democracy (IFCD). Although great care has been taken Cover: Documents and Publications to ensure that the data collected are Production Department (SPDP), accurate, no responsibility can be Council of Europe accepted for the consequences of Cover photo : Shutterstock.com factual errors and inaccuracies. The Layout : Jouve, Paris views expressed in this document are those of its authors and not necessarily © Council of Europe, July 2018 those of the Council of Europe or any Printed at the Council of Europe of its organs or member states. Contents EUROPEANS ONLINE 5 HOW DIGITISATION AFFECTS CULTURAL PARTICIPATION 9 How Europeans engage in and with culture online 10 Opportunities and challenges for cultural participation online 16 HOW DIGITISATION AFFECTS POLITICAL PARTICIPATION 23 How Europeans engage in and with politics online 23 Opportunities and challenges for political life online 27 DIGITISED CULTURAL AND POLITICAL PARTICIPATION AND ITS IMPACT ON INCLUSIVE DEMOCRACIES 35 Europeans engaging online 35 Opportunities and challenges for online participation 37 Towards inclusive, democratic societies? 39 IMPLICATIONS FOR ACTION 41 APPENDIX 1 – THE INDICATOR FRAMEWORK ON CULTURE AND DEMOCRACY 43 APPENDIX 2 – DALIA RESEARCH SURVEY 47 Methodology 47 Survey questions 48 Regression table 49 REFERENCES 51 ► Page 3 Europeans online uropeans don’t go online so much anymore; they are online. They stream music and swap playlists with their friends. They read newspapers and E scroll social media on their smartphones, tablets and home computers. They use novel tools and techniques and collaborate with others online to make new creations. They click to sign online petitions and respond to hashtags to gather and demonstrate on the streets. In other words, they engage increas- ingly in cultural and political life online. The internet is of critical value for democracy. In general, access to and use of the internet have increased tremendously in recent years. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU 2017a) esti- mates that more than 3.5 billion individuals were using the internet in 2017, about half of the world’s population and three times more than in 2005. Some 501 million of these users were in Europe. In 2016, 85% of households in the European Union (EU-28) had internet access at home (up from 55% in 2007), more than in any other ITU region, and 83% had broadband access (up from 42% in 2007) (Eurostat 2017). Unsurprisingly, 71% of individuals in EU-28 countries use the internet every day or almost every day (up from 38% in 2007). Increasingly, people are taking the internet with them wherever they go: in 2016, 59% of individuals in EU-28 countries between the ages of 16 and 74 were using mobile devices to access the internet (up from 36% in 2012) (ibid.). Clearly, Europe is fully engaged in the digital age. Great hopes have been pinned on the internet. In the Council of Europe’s 2016-2019 internet governance strategy document (Council of Europe 2016a), the internet is seen as: an invaluable space for the exercise of fundamental rights such as freedom of expression and information … of critical value for democracy. Its capacity to allow people to impart and exchange ideas … offers the potential to promote understanding and tolerance between people … [and] connecting their voices to the Internet … is important for pluralism and diversity in dialogue, and for bridging gaps between States and citizens. ► Page 5 Opportunities arising from the new digital environment should be used to reinforce access to and participation in open culture, thereby strengthening democracy. In its recommendations on the internet of citizens (2016)1 and on big data for culture, literacy and democracy (2017),2 the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers goes further to consider the expectations arising from digitalisation as it relates to culture and, ultimately, democracy. Noting that “the Internet has impacted culture by providing an unprecedented means for people … to access and generate culture in different ways”, the recommendation on the internet of citizens reminds member states that these “opportunities arising from the new digital environment should be used to reinforce access to and participation in open culture, thereby strengthening democracy”. Indeed, the importance of the digital revolution for the “viability of [artistic] creation and cultural diversity” was already highlighted in the Final Statement of the 10th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers of Culture.3 The Council of Europe is not alone in identifying the promise the internet holds. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protec- tion of the right to freedom of opinion and expression has declared that “by acting as a catalyst for individuals to exercise their right to freedom of opinion and expression, the Internet also facilitates the realisation of a range of other human rights” (La Rue 2011: 7) including cultural and civil rights. In line with this thinking, countries such as Estonia and France have recognised internet access as a right, whereas Finland went even further in 2009 with a decree bestowing on every citizen the legal right to have access to a broadband connection of at least one megabit per second (ITU 2010). Furthermore, the Council of Europe’s recommendation on a guide to human rights for internet 1. Recommendation CM/Rec(2106)2 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the Internet of citizens, adopted 10 February 2016 at the 1247th meeting of the Ministers’ Deputies, available at https://search.coe.int/cm/Pages/result_details. aspx?ObjectID=09000016805c20f4, accessed 12 May 2018. 2. Recommendation CM/Rec(2017)8 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on Big Data for culture, literacy and democracy, adopted 27 September 2017 at the 1295th meet- ing of the Ministers’ Deputies, available at https://search.coe.int/cm/Pages/result_details. aspx?ObjectId=0900001680750d68, accessed 12 May 2018. 3. Available at http://rm.coe.int/CoERMPublicCommonSearchServices/DisplayDCTMContent? documentId=09000016806a2de, accessed 12 May 2018. Page 6 ► Online participation in culture and politics users (2014)4 calls on member states to “ensure that existing human rights and fundamental freedoms apply equally offline and online”. As described in more detail below, the internet is being used by individuals and groups to develop and share ideas, connect with others, access and generate culture, and engage in political life, among other things. Especially with the advent of platforms such as Facebook, VK (Facebook’s Russian equivalent) and YouTube that facilitate the flow of information and collaboration in content creation, the lines between producer and consumer and between speaker and listener have blurred, making everyone potential participants. Digitisation has also enhanced the supply
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