A decade of digital transformation : pluralism between the media and digital platforms

Abstract

During the past decade, online platforms have positioned themselves as key intermediaries between the news and citizens. The way these profit-driven tech companies operate affects many dimensions of media pluralism and thus may have an impact on informed citizenship and the health of democracy. For instance, how platforms design and enforce their content policies and algorithmic recommendation systems shapes an environment in which citizens get exposed to and interact with not only news and political information but also misinformation. The role of the online platforms as intermediaries in the access to the news also impacts the economic dimension of media pluralism, affecting the potential of media organisations to reach citizens and to sell advertising spaces and consequently disrupting their traditional business model. In this chapter we outline and examine various dimensions of media pluralism that have been disrupted by the rise and power of online platforms.