---
_id: '66611'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: 'This paper explores one of the defining political questions of the twenty‐first
    century: will digital technologies strengthen democracy or accelerate new forms
    of authoritarianism and fascism? Against the backdrop of platform capitalism,
    AI‐driven communication, surveillance infrastructures, disinformation and democratic
    crisis, the study asks how experts in digital democracy assess the present condition
    and possible futures of digital society. To address this question, the paper draws
    on the Futures of Digital Democracy Survey (FDDS), a two‐round international expert
    survey involving researchers, practitioners and civil society actors working in
    the fields of digital democracy, media, Internet governance and digital society.
    Combining futures research, scenario analysis, and qualitative and quantitative
    content analysis, the study investigates competing trajectories of digital development
    ranging from participatory digital democracy to corporate and state‐controlled
    digital fascism. The findings reveal a profound tension at the heart of contemporary
    digital society: while respondents overwhelmingly imagine an ideal future democracy
    in participatory and deliberative terms—centred on citizens’ assemblies, digital
    participation, public‐service Internet platforms and democratic AI—they simultaneously
    express deep pessimism about the actual direction of digital capitalism and platform
    power. Experts consider authoritarian and fascistic digital futures significantly
    more likely than democratic ones. The paper analyses these contradictions by examining
    the relationship between deliberative democracy, constitutional rights, platform
    governance, digital commons, public service media, AI, surveillance and the political
    economy of Big Tech. It argues that democracy in the digital age can only survive
    if participatory and deliberative digital structures are institutionally combined
    with constitutional safeguards, public ownership, democratic regulation and the
    defence of human rights. By bringing together debates on digital democracy, authoritarianism,
    political economy and digital futures, the paper offers both a critical diagnosis
    of the contemporary digital condition and a normative vision of democratic alternatives
    in the age of AI and platform capitalism.'
article_number: e70054
author:
- first_name: Christian
  full_name: Fuchs, Christian
  id: '21863'
  last_name: Fuchs
  orcid: 0000-0003-0589-4579
- first_name: Kevin
  full_name: Friesch, Kevin
  last_name: Friesch
- first_name: Joel
  full_name: Museba, Joel
  last_name: Museba
citation:
  ama: Fuchs C, Friesch K, Museba J. Digital Futures Between Participatory Digital
    Democracy and Participatory Digital Fascism. <i>Policy &#38; Internet</i>. 2026;18(3).
    doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054">10.1002/poi3.70054</a>
  apa: Fuchs, C., Friesch, K., &#38; Museba, J. (2026). Digital Futures Between Participatory
    Digital Democracy and Participatory Digital Fascism. <i>Policy &#38; Internet</i>,
    <i>18</i>(3), Article e70054. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054">https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054</a>
  bibtex: '@article{Fuchs_Friesch_Museba_2026, title={Digital Futures Between Participatory
    Digital Democracy and Participatory Digital Fascism}, volume={18}, DOI={<a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054">10.1002/poi3.70054</a>},
    number={3e70054}, journal={Policy &#38; Internet}, publisher={Wiley}, author={Fuchs,
    Christian and Friesch, Kevin and Museba, Joel}, year={2026} }'
  chicago: Fuchs, Christian, Kevin Friesch, and Joel Museba. “Digital Futures Between
    Participatory Digital Democracy and Participatory Digital Fascism.” <i>Policy
    &#38; Internet</i> 18, no. 3 (2026). <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054">https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054</a>.
  ieee: 'C. Fuchs, K. Friesch, and J. Museba, “Digital Futures Between Participatory
    Digital Democracy and Participatory Digital Fascism,” <i>Policy &#38; Internet</i>,
    vol. 18, no. 3, Art. no. e70054, 2026, doi: <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054">10.1002/poi3.70054</a>.'
  mla: Fuchs, Christian, et al. “Digital Futures Between Participatory Digital Democracy
    and Participatory Digital Fascism.” <i>Policy &#38; Internet</i>, vol. 18, no.
    3, e70054, Wiley, 2026, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054">10.1002/poi3.70054</a>.
  short: C. Fuchs, K. Friesch, J. Museba, Policy &#38; Internet 18 (2026).
date_created: 2026-07-28T18:09:19Z
date_updated: 2026-07-28T18:12:25Z
department:
- _id: '136'
- _id: '11'
doi: 10.1002/poi3.70054
has_accepted_license: '1'
intvolume: '        18'
issue: '3'
language:
- iso: eng
main_file_link:
- url: 'https://doi.org/10.1002/poi3.70054 '
project:
- _id: '1397'
  name: INNOVAtive DEmocracy Through Digitalisation
publication: Policy & Internet
publication_identifier:
  issn:
  - 1944-2866
  - 1944-2866
publication_status: published
publisher: Wiley
quality_controlled: '1'
status: public
title: Digital Futures Between Participatory Digital Democracy and Participatory Digital
  Fascism
type: journal_article
user_id: '21863'
volume: 18
year: '2026'
...