Call for papers: Workshop on Democratic Political Orders & the Governance of Social Media Platforms

Call for Papers

Workshop on

Democratic Political Orders and the Governance of Social Media Platforms

Stockholm University 12-13 March, 2026
Keynote speaker: Samantha Bradshaw, American University, Washington D.C.

Social media platforms have become an integral part of the public sphere of democratic societies but they also present democracies with significant challenges. Algorithmic amplification of misinformation, extremist rhetoric and hate-speech disrupt democratic debate and have been identified as drivers of social and political polarization.

At the same time, states’ regulatory responses to these challenges raise complex questions about democracy, free expression, state intervention, and the role of private corporations in governing the infrastructure for the digital public sphere.

This conference seeks to bring together scholars in the broader political science field including, comparative democracy studies, media studies, political theory and platform governance to address questions regarding states’ efforts to govern social media platforms
from a democratic perspective.

We welcome paper proposals that engage with theoretical or empirical perspectives on the following themes:

Comparative perspectives on the democratic governance of platforms: How do efforts to regulate platforms differ in the way that harms are identified and acted on? Why do democratic states differ in their regulatory approaches? How should efforts to regulate social media platforms be studied from a democratic perspective?

Empirical patterns of platform effects on democracy: What are the consequences for democracy of different regulatory approaches to social media platforms? What are possible effects of platform design and regulation on political participation and engagement,
misinformation dynamics, and polarization? How do these effects vary across different political contexts?

Democratic theory and platform governance: What is at stake when democratic and regional organizations seek to regulate platforms? What normative problems arise and which principles should guide governance efforts? How do existing regulatory initiatives align with democratic legitimacy, pluralism, and free expression?

We invite paper contributions from scholars across political science, political theory, media studies, and related fields.

Please submit an abstract (max 400 words) along with a short bio to
ludvig.norman@statsvet.su.se by November 1, 2025. Notifications of acceptance will be sent shortly after.