One of the dominant commonplaces of the early 21st century was that digital technology would make the world more democratic. And, while we have added an asterisk or two to this assessment, digital platforms and services are still routinely touted as if they are democratic or might be used for democratic purposes. Why have we thought this? In what ways does digital technology transform the practice of liberal democratic politics? Can liberal democracy survive its ongoing digitalization?
Antón is currently the Distinguished Fellow at the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown Law and Senior Fellow at the Institute for Practical Ethics, UC-San Diego. The bulk of his research has concentrated on the subjects of recognition and aesthetics in nineteenth-century German philosophy. His essays have appeared in the Journal of the History of Philosophy, Hegel-Studien, Hegel Bulletin, and Review of Metaphysics, among others. He also writes about contemporary culture and digital technology for a general audience (The Point, The Hedgehog Review, LitHub, etc.). He’s recently completed A Web of Our Own Making—a book about what the internet is and what difference it makes, published by Cambridge University Press.
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Originally published at constudies.nd.edu.