Is Habermas on Twitter? Social Media and the Public Sphere

Jürgen Habermas’s concept of the public sphere remains a major building block for our understanding of public communication and deliberation. Yet ‘the’ public sphere is a construct of its time, and the mass media-dominated environment which it describes has given way to a considerably more fragmented and complex system of distinct and diverse, yet interconnected and overlapping publics that represent different themes, topics, and approaches to mediated communication. This chapter argues that moving beyond the orthodox model of the public sphere to a more dynamic and complex conceptual framework provides the opportunity to more clearly recognise the varying forms that public communication can take, especially online. Unpacking the traditional public sphere into a series of public sphericules and micro-publics, none of which are mutually exclusive but which co-exist, intersecting and overlapping in multiple forms, is crucial for understanding the ongoing structural transformation of ‘the’ public sphere.

Derechos humanos y religión : una reflexión a partir de las ideas del diálogo Habermas-Ratzinger

En enero de 2004 Jürgen Habermas y Joseph Ratzinger fueron invitados por la Academia Católica de Baviera para mantener un diálogo sobre los fundamentos morales –prelegales o prepolíticos– del Estado contemporáneo. Dos intelectuales de su talla, no obstante sus evidentes diferencias teóricas, pudieron entonces no solo dialogar cordialmente sino encontrar valiosos puntos en común desde sus diferentes tradiciones de pensamiento. Este hecho, no poco relevante en un mundo intelectual quizá demasiado dominado por la crispación de las posturas antagónicas, fue una inspiración para los que suscribimos hoy este breve artículo1. En este ensayo pretendemos evidenciar –a partir del recuerdo de los frutos de dicho diálogo– que no solo puede constatarse sin dificultad que existe una estrecha relación entre derecho y religión, sino que tal relación puede ser sumamente fructífera para ambos. Evidenciaremos esto, en particular, a través de un breve análisis del tópico fundamental de la dignidad y de los derechos humanos que en ella se sustentan.

Applying Habermas's critical theory to public administration and policy: A case study of Florida Everglades restoration program

The foundation of Habermas's argument, a leading critical theorist, lies in the unequal distribution of wealth across society. He states that in an advanced capitalist society, the possibility of a crisis has shifted from the economic and political spheres to the legitimation system. Legitimation crises increase the more government intervenes into the economy (market) and the "simultaneous political enfranchisement of almost the entire adult population" (Holub, 1991, p. 88). The reason for this increase is because policymakers in advanced capitalist democracies are caught between conflicting imperatives: they are expected to serve the interests of their nation as a whole, but they must prop up an economic system that benefits the wealthy at the expense of most workers and the environment. Habermas argues that the driving force in history is an expectation, built into the nature of language, that norms, laws, and institutions will serve the interests of the entire population and not just those of a special group. In his view, policy makers in capitalist societies are having to fend off this expectation by simultaneously correcting some of the inequities of the market, denying that they have control over people's economic circumstances, and defending the market as an equitable allocator of income. (deHaven-Smith, 1988, p. 14). Critical theory suggests that this contradiction will be reflected in Everglades policy by communicative narratives that suppress and conceal tensions between environmental and economic priorities. Habermas’ Legitimation Crisis states that political actors use various symbols, ideologies, narratives, and language to engage the public and avoid a legitimation crisis. These influences not only manipulate the general population into desiring what has been manufactured for them, but also leave them feeling unfulfilled and alienated. Also known as false reconciliation, the public's view of society as rational, and "conductive to human freedom and happiness" is altered to become deeply irrational and an obstacle to the desired freedom and happiness (Finlayson, 2005, p. 5). These obstacles and irrationalities give rise to potential crises in the society. Government's increasing involvement in Everglades under advanced capitalism leads to Habermas's four crises: economic/environmental, rationality, legitimation, and motivation. These crises are occurring simultaneously, work in conjunction with each other, and arise when a principle of organization is challenged by increased production needs (deHaven-Smith, 1988). Habermas states that governments use narratives in an attempt to rationalize, legitimize, obscure, and conceal its actions under advanced capitalism. Although there have been many narratives told throughout the history of the Everglades (such as the Everglades was a wilderness that was valued as a wasteland in its natural state), the most recent narrative, “Everglades Restoration”, is the focus of this paper.(PDF contains 4 pages)

Habermas e o debate em torno do secularismo: implicações para o lugar da religião na esfera pública

A presente dissertação tem como objetivo principal investigar o conceito de pós-secularismo na filosofia de Jürgen Habermas. Para tanto, buscamos compreender como a religião aparece ao longo da construção do pensamento habermasiano, pontuando as diversas revisões feitas pelo filósofo e suas escolhas metodológicas, que resultaram numa mudança de perspectiva sobre o papel da religião na esfera pública das sociedades contemporâneas. A discussão de Jürgen Habermas se insere num debate mais amplo sobre o reexame do conceito de secularismo, envolvendo não apenas a filosofia, mas a ampla gama das ciências humanas e sociais. Assim, procuramos apresentar o contexto geral desse debate e os principais interlocutores com quem ou contra quem Habermas constrói sua argumentação. Por fim, tentamos mostrar de que maneira as revisões feitas por Habermas nos seus últimos escritos a respeito da religião, bem como a apropriação do conceito de sociedades pós-seculares, se enquadram na moldura geral da teoria habermasiana, principalmente dentro da estrutura do agir comunicativo e da política deliberativa.

Communication, recognition and social work: Aligning the ethical theories of Habermas and Honneth

The modern world is replete with ethical challenges of Orwellian proportions. The violation of human rights and misrecognition of identities are two of the most pressing examples. In this paper, the ethical theories of Habermas and Honneth are aligned as a way of addressing these specific challenges within social work. It is suggested that these theories are complementary, mutually rectifying and concordant at the meta-ethical level of analysis. The alignment is also justified, pargmatically, through the construction of three hypothetical vignettes demonstrating different kinds of practice dilemmas. The need for egalitarian communication and the imperative to recognise human identity in all its dimensions subsequently emerge as the two foundation stones for ethical deliberation in social work.

Further reflections on Habermas's contribution to discourse in child protection: An examination of power in social life

Hayes and Houston's positive review of Habermas's contribution to discourse in family group conferences (in this journal) has been challenged by Garrett. In this paper, one of the authors replies to Garrett but extends the analysis through a more considered, developed and detailed examination of Habermas's thoughts on power in social life. This leads to a conceptual framework that enables the participants in the conference to exercise power in a positive manner. In developing this earlier analysis, the paper also acknowledges Garrett's argument that Bourdieu helps us to understand the nature of constraining social structures in child protection. However, Bourdieu's ideas are subsequently challenged on the grounds that they lack a competent formulation on human agency - a faculty that Habermas cogently elucidates. This enlarged understanding of agency, it is argued, offers a theoretical resource that fits better with the ethos of emancipatory social work.

L'espace public de Jürgen Habermas, réexaminé à la lumière de ses écrits de jeunesse

L'espace public (1962) de Jürgen Habermas est souvent lu comme le premier ouvrage de sa carrière. Notre mémoire tâche de porter un éclairage différent sur celui-ci, de lire L'espace public comme point d'aboutissement de la pensée habermassienne des années 1950. Par l'exploration d'un certain nombre d'écrits mineurs et majeurs pré-1962, L'espace public se révèle une sorte de théorie critique de la société, encore fortement empreinte de marxisme, faisant figure de synthèse partielle des écrits de jeunesse.