The MANCEPT Workshops is an annual conference in political theory, organised under the auspices of the Manchester Centre for Political Theory. This year’s conference will take place from September 11 to September 13, 2017, at the Arthur Lewis Building, University of Manchester.
The panel “Digitalisation and the Future of Democratic Theory” will address the following questions, among others: How does digitalisation influence democracy? Which spheres of democracy (public sphere, governance, etc.) are affected? In what way can different democratic theories relate to these changes? For example, does communication in the public sphere leave the framework of most democratic theories? Do concepts like legitimacy or representation have to be transformed because of changes in public reasoning or participation modes? Is lowering the normative expectations a good way to react to the new realities? What amendments have to be considered for these theories? Which democratic theory is particularly under pressure and which is able to preserve its norms?
Submissions on these and related topics are invited by the organizers Karoline Helbig and Alexander Weiß (Helmut Schmidt University, Hamburg). A publication is planned in accordance with the results of the panel.
The deadline for proposals is May 14, 2017. Please check the full Call for Papers on the official event website for more information.