Media, Participation, and Social Change: Introduction to the Special Section

MERCEA, DAN;IANNELLI, Laura

2016-01-01

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Abstract

The article introduces a special section that strengthen our understanding of the relationship between media, collective action, and participation in social change, by exposing how knowledge about it is produced. We develop our arguments referring to a body of literature that has scrutinized the social organization of public communication— through broadcasting media, the press, or social media—in the attempt to explain why some visions for social change enter into our collective consciousness while others fall short of the mark. The articles we discuss have two key characteristics in common. First, they embrace a dialectical perspective on what, we would argue, is the production of knowledge, namely about collective action and participation in social change. Second, as they call into question the process of knowledge production, the articles point to trust as being its main currency.