Geopolitics, Public Communication and Social Cohesion Facing the Crisis of Democracy: Risks and Challenges

Dear Colleagues,

In times of global crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change or financial crises, the social cohesion of democracies is threatened. The geopolitical battle for global influence and a public communication model that takes place in social networks encourage polarization and disinformation, with consequences for the public sphere.

Leaders, the media and citizens, as digital prosumers, build a story on digital platforms that can revert to the unity of territories, consolidate extremist ideologies or foster fragmentation between states. Conversely, reports and opinion polls, from electoral contests or otherwise, highlight audiences’ distrust in politics, citizens’ disaffection with the media and institutions’ loss of credibility. Populism is growing, and there is an added risk for the development of full democracy.

The objective of this Special Issue is to explore the main conflicts that put social cohesion and integrity between states at risk (European and global geopolitics). Furthermore, it aims to analyze the strategies of governments and public institutions in favor of social welfare and understand perceptions regarding the media and digital audiences. We intend to achieve an academic consensus on the role of communication by public institutions in crisis management, the contribution of journalism in verifying what is false, and the responsibility of citizens in rebuilding social cohesion outside and within social networks.

We seek to receive innovative approaches and papers that employ a wide range of methodologies (i.e., quantitative and qualitative methods). Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

• Crisis of democracy;
• Electoral contests and the future of democracy;
• Public communication and crisis management;
• Impact of social networks on social cohesion;
• Quality journalism, fact-checking and media literacy;
• Disinformation and rhetoric of populism on social networks;
• Reception studies; audience perception of crisis management;
• Crisis of the international relations in a post-pandemic world;
• Territories and borders; social unity or fragmentation;
• The role of citizens in the digital public sphere;
• Geopolitics of health in a post-pandemic world;
• Geopolitics and climate change;
• Geopolitics and social dialogue in the EU and the US;
• Multilateral relations between organizations and countries;
• Opinion polls and public opinion.

Prof. Dr. Concha Pérez Curiel
Prof. Dr. Rubén Rivas-de-Roca
Guest Editors

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