In today’s digital society, the role of media is essential for a functioning democracy. In a new report, the Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR) warns against the negative influence of Big Tech and social media platforms on information provision and emphasizes the need for active media policy to protect the democratic functions of media.
The WRR emphasizes that journalistic media are indispensable for a democratic society. They perform three crucial functions: informing society, controlling power and providing a forum for different perspectives. However, these functions are under pressure due to the digitization of the information environment. Big Tech and social media platforms increasingly determine the distribution of information, leading to challenges in terms of media reliability and independence.
In the report “Attention for Media. Towards new safeguards their democratic functions,” the WRR describes how the information environment has changed in recent decades. The rise of search engines, social media platforms, and smart technologies has shifted the supply and use of information to the online domain. Initially, there was hope that this digitization would positively affect democracy. Meanwhile, the focus has shifted to the downsides, such as disinformation, online threats, and the influence of platform companies on public discourse.
Pressure on local journalism
A functioning democracy requires citizens to be able to make informed choices. Reliable information is crucial in this regard, whether it concerns elections, policy issues, or public debates. Media play an indispensable role in this. However, the WRR signals that the current media system is under pressure. The quality of information provision is declining, partly due to the rise of online platforms that rank content based on commercial motives rather than public values. This affects how citizens, politicians, and others can converse about social issues.
In addition, there is a clear impoverishment of local and regional journalism. Many news organizations at the local level are struggling to stay afloat financially. This is weakening the information position of citizens, especially at the local level, and undermining local government control. At the same time, more and more sources of information of questionable quality are circulating, making it more difficult for citizens to distinguish reliable information from misinformation and disinformation. This development not only undermines democratic opinion formation but also leads to second-order effects such as institutional distrust and cynicism.
Artificial Intelligence
The report identifies artificial intelligence (AI) as one factor contributing to the profound change in the information environment. AI plays a central role in today’s digital information environment, with the rise of search engines, social media platforms, and smart electronics. The report points out that new techniques, such as generative AI, are making it increasingly easy to fabricate information, which is difficult for citizens to detect as fake (fake). This has implications for the reliability of news and information. In addition, AI is mentioned as a possible application in information ranking, which will likely affect the findability and visibility of information important to democracy.
While AI can contribute to both the arrangement and dissemination of information, it also presents challenges, such as the amplification of disinformation and its impact on democratic processes. Therefore, the report highlights the importance of new policies to regulate these developments and ensure reliable information within the media system.
New policy
The WRR calls for a shift in media policy that puts the democratic role of media at the center. According to the WRR, the current media policy does not sufficiently match the characteristics of the modern media system, which platform companies and commercial motives dominate. To continue to guarantee the democratic functions of media, the WRR makes four concrete recommendations:
- Legislation and regulation for a trusted information environment: The WRR calls on the government to make maximum use of existing European regulations to regulate the digital public sphere. This includes strengthened supervision of media ownership and cooperation between different supervisory parties. In addition, new rules should be created to assess mergers in the media market.
- Visibility of important information: Democratically important information, especially journalistic content, must be made more findable and visible. The government should invest in new measures that balance different types of online offerings and strengthen public broadcasting by developing an integrated distribution strategy.
- Strengthen local journalism: A future-proof local and regional media policy is essential. The government should work on a neutral funding model for local and regional journalism and explore the possibility of making independent, fact-checked information available to local media.
- User responsibility: The report emphasizes that everyone in the media system, including users and public figures such as politicians, must take responsibility for their roles. This includes using public media for government communication and strengthening citizens’ competencies to recognize reliable information.
Safeguards
The WRR notes that today’s media environment is incomparable to several decades ago. Nevertheless, it remains important that the media can fulfill their democratic functions. The council calls on the government to pay attention to the transformation of the media system and to focus on measures that can guarantee the democratic importance of media in the future as well.
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