Disinformation and multiliteracy: A systematic review of the literature

Disinformation is a serious problem for democratic systems in open societies. It is a global phenomenon that must be studied from different approaches and the educational dimension is one of the most relevant. It is necessary to know what educational models have been developed to empower citizens against disinformation. A systematic review of the literature (2011-2020), following the PRISMA protocol, was carried out by analyzing articles (n=76) extracted from three databases (Wos, Scopus and ERIC). Reference management and text mining software was used to data analyse. Eight research questions were answered on the conceptual framework, bibliometrics characteristics and pedagogical dimension. From the results of the content analysis emerges a vision of the role of multiliteracies in educational research and the problem of disinformation: media and information literacies are the most relevant and news and data literacies are incorporated. The need to adopt interdisciplinary approaches is confirmed. From the results of the educational dimension, three pedagogical approaches are identified: strategies for competencies development; focused on content and education for citizenship. Workshops and lesson plans are the most common teaching practices. The development of critical thinking, experiences in the co-construction of knowledge, and the values of civic education are fundamental against disinformation. El problema de la desinformación es una amenaza para los sistemas democráticos. Es un fenómeno global que debe ser abordado desde múltiples perspectivas, siendo la pedagógica una de las más relevantes y, por ello, es necesario conocer qué modelos didácticos se han desarrollado para empoderar a la ciudadanía ante la desinformación. Se llevó a cabo una revisión sistemática de la literatura (2011-2020) bajo el protocolo PRISMA y se analizaron artículos de investigación (n=76) extraídos de tres bases de datos (Wos, Scopus y ERIC). El análisis fue realizado con apoyo de gestores bibliográficos y de minería de textos. Se da respuesta a ocho preguntas de investigación sobre el marco conceptual, las características documentales y la dimensión pedagógica. El análisis documental ofrece una visión del papel de las alfabetizaciones múltiples en la investigación educativa sobre el fenómeno de la desinformación, destacando la relevancia de la «alfabetización mediática» y la «informacional», así como la emergencia de la «alfabetización en noticias» y en «datos». Se evidencia la necesidad de adoptar enfoques interdisciplinares. Con relación a los resultados educativos, se identifican tres enfoques pedagógicos: estrategias competenciales, centrado en contenidos y educación para la ciudadanía. Las prácticas de enseñanza más frecuentes son la realización de talleres y el diseño de programaciones didácticas. El desarrollo del pensamiento crítico, las experiencias en co-construcción de conocimientos y los valores de la educación cívica son fundamentales contra la desinformación.

Functioning of Parliamentary Committees in Pakistan: An Analysis

Parliamentary committees are a tremendous way to ensure predictability and transparency in the work of ministries, regulatory bodies and public sector enterprises via effectual function of oversight. A major challenge for democracies is to ensure good governance especially in changing the way the private sector and the government engages. This research provides a concise and analytical study of the functioning of the system of committees in democratic systems and in Pakistan. The research analyzed the effectiveness of the parliamentary committees which will form the basis for this work for further progress. The research work is analytical as well as descriptive in nature. Data related to this study has been collected by secondary sources such as books, journal articles, encyclopedias and research reports.

Rola prawa karnego w systemie totalnej teokracji państwa muzułmańskiego

The aim of the study is to answer the question whether the way the system of criminal responsibility is shaped in classical Sharia law influences the characteristics of Islam understood as a political system seen as a total theocracy. The article presents the basic assumptions of the criminal law in Islam, focusing on the categories of crimes distinguished by traditional Muslim jurisprudence. The perceived features of Koranic criminal law regulation are juxtaposed with the attributes of criminal law of non-democratic systems, which leads to the conclusion that in the sphere of criminal law, there are many elements the two systems have in common. The individual’s position and the degree of protecting their rights resulting from the criminal law of Islam seem to make it impossible for a system based on classical Islamic law to meet the requirements of a modern democratic state.

Is the Solution More Democracy?

Philosophers often try to “solve” democracy’s problems by arguing we need more and better democracy. They tend to think certain kinds of democratic systems could unleash the hidden “wisdom of the crowds.” Some defenders of democracy propose deliberative democracy and some extol the reliability of large groups. However, both ideas have limitations in the real world. This chapter objects to such arguments as they rely upon mistaken applications of certain mathematical theorems, or they end up retreating toward unrealistic ideals of how people ought to behave. In effect, they say that democracy would be wonderful if only people behaved the right way.

Unequal inequalities? How participatory inequalities affect democratic legitimacy

Democratic theorists have long emphasized the importance of participatory equality, i.e. that all citizens should have an equal right to participate. It is still unclear, however, whether ordinary citizens view this principle as central to democracy and how different violations of this principle affect subjective democratic legitimacy. The attitudes of citizens are imperative when it comes to the subjective legitimacy of democratic systems, and it is therefore important to examine how participatory inequalities affect these attitudes. We here contribute to this research agenda with survey experiments embedded in two surveys (n=324, n=840). We here examine 1) whether citizens consider participatory inequality to be an important democratic principle, and 2) how gender and educational inequalities affect subjective legitimacy and the perceived usefulness of the participatory input. The results show that citizens generally consider participatory inequalities to be important, but only gender inequalities affect subjective legitimacy and usefulness. Hence it is important to consider the type of inequality to understand the implications.

Responding with Equality: The case for combating extreme inequality to tackle crises, strengthen democracy and foster a fairer future in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic

For decades, our flawed economic and governance systems have allowed inequality and social exclusion to grow to extreme and dangerous levels, and now coronavirus has driven an even greater wedge between the haves and have nots. Without immediate action, the pandemic could cause the biggest spike in inequality ever seen, and further destabilize the democratic systems we need to ensure a recovery for all. Governments must take action to tackle the inequality and climate crises, rein in extreme wealth and monopoly power, and deliver universal public services and social protection.

The Prospects for Socialist Politics in South Africa

Our article endeavours to critically examine the prospects for socialist parties and socialist policy reform in South Africa. Firstly, we seek to provide an appraisal of modern socialist politics and policies globally. Secondly, we attempt to diagnose why South Africa has been as yet unable to fashion a suitable socialist workers’ party during the democratic epoch. In this, the article discusses the prospects of socialist parties and policy reform in South Africa after examining the failure of the Socialist Revolutionary Workers’ Party (SRWP) to make an impact at the 2019 polls. Using a combination of comparative methodology and critical inquiry, our study presents not only that socialist politics and policies are valuable to democratic systems, but also that socialist politics should have a more viable vehicle in South Africa. The prospects for deepened ideological development, particularly the formation of a successful socialist or workers’ party, remains quite weak in South Africa but there is considerable evidence to suggest that civil society both requires and desires a more vibrant relationship with modern socialism.

Sortition-infused democracy: Empowering citizens in the age of climate emergency

This article addresses two great global challenges of the 2020s. On one hand, the accelerating climate crisis and, on the other, the deepening crisis of representation within liberal democracies. As temperatures and water levels rise, rates of popular confidence in existing democratic institutions decline. So, what is to be done? This article discusses whether sortition – the ancient Greek practice of selecting individuals for political office through lottery – could serve to mitigate both crises simultaneously. Since the 2000s, sortition has attracted growing interest among activists and academics. Recently it has been identified in countries like the UK and France as a mechanism for producing legitimate political answers to the climate challenge. However, few theoretical reflections on the potentials and perils of sortition-based climate governance have yet emerged. This article contributes to filling the gap. Based on a critique of the first successful case of sortition used to enhance national environmental policy – in Ireland in 2017–18 – we argue that sortition-based deliberation could indeed speed up meaningful climate action whilst improving the health of democratic systems. However, this positive outcome is not preordained. Success depends not only on green social movements getting behind climate sortition but also on developing flexible, context-specific designs that identify adequate solutions to a number of problems, including those of power (providing citizens’ assemblies with clear agenda-setting prerogatives beyond non-binding consultation); expertise (allowing assembly participants to influence which stakeholders and experts to solicit inputs from); and participation (engaging wider parts of the citizenry in the deliberative process).

«Wir haben jetzt die Demokratie, das ist kompliziert genug». Zur Krise demokratischer Systeme und Auflösung des Politischen in «Munin oder Chaos im Kopf» von Monika Maron

In the light of the profound changes that have affected both the political scenario and the political role and forms of engagement of literature over the past thirty years, Monika Maron’s novel Munin oder Chaos im Kopf (2018) seems particularly topical. If analysed through Hannah Arendt’s remarks on the nature of politics and Zygmunt Bauman’s thoughts on our “besieged” society, the narrator’s shocking experience can be seen as both the consequence and the reflection of a failure of our democratic systems, as well as of our traditional idea of politics itself.