abstract
This article seeks to identify the basic contours of how the notion of the public interest is taking shape in the realm of social media. Drawing upon social media governance discourse and research on the dynamics of how social media platforms are being used in the dissemination and consumption of news and information, this article argues that a restrictive and individualist model of the public interest characterizes the social media space. This article then considers the broader implications of this emergent model of the public interest in social media governance.
6. Conclusion
This article has examined how the notion of the public interest appears to be taking shape within the context of social media governance. Two primary observations come from this assessment. The first is that formulations of the public interest are, to this point, restrictive rather than affirmative in their orientation, in that they focus on activities and content flows that should be prevented, rather than on activities or content flows that should be encouraged or required, with news and information largely neglected in these formulations. The second is that what is termed here an individualist model of the public interest appears to be taking hold; in which many of the responsibilities associated with the production and dissemination of the news and information essential to a well-functioning democracy fall, within the context of social media platforms, to individual media users, who are presumably provided with platforms that enable them to fully exercise their abilities to access and disseminate news and information. The reality, of course, is more complicated, with algorithmic content recommendation systems also playing an important role in the dynamics of the consumption and dissemination of news and information on social media platforms.
