Kaposi, Ildiko

Where "Fascist" and "Communist" Citizens Get Together: Virtual Deliberation in Hungarian Online Political Discussion Forums

Abstract

Face-to-face democratic deliberation can increase the ideological polarization of participants. If deliberation occurs as computer-mediated discussion, some features of the medium may further fuel polarization, as they support the emergence of extreme views. Online Hungarian political discussion shows serious ideological polarization and seems to fly in the face of ideal democratic deliberation. Insulting personal comments amounting to a declaration of "intellectual war" abound between the anonymous left- and right-wing camps on the most popular moderated forums. Is the Internet to blame? A textual analysis of online discussion combined with an ethnographic research of participants indicate that extreme political and ideological views are not easier to ameliorate in face-to-face settings than in online interaction. The paper looks at the varying success of strategies for managing fundamental political disagreement employed by both the anonymous online participants and the moderators who meet face-to-face. Although the findings confirm that there remains considerable mutual ideological hostility underlying much of online political discussion, the participants clearly wish to carry on talking to one another, including people of opposite convictions. They keep returning to the forum, which indicates a commitment to discussion ­ a necessary foundation for democratic deliberation.