Tag: Social Media

The speech below and in the video is from a presentation by me to civil servants from the nordic regulatory authorities in the media sector. The report mentioned can be found here. In our rapidly digitalizing world, the cornerstone of our societies—democracy—finds itself at a critical juncture. The digital age, with its boundless opportunities, also presents a set of challenges that directly impact the very foundation of democratic principles. There’s a pressing need to protect and fortify democracy in this digital era. Not only because it’s the bedrock of our societies but also because it represents the collective will and aspirations of the people. The digital platforms, which were once hailed as harbingers of free speech and open dialogue, are now increasingly becoming arenas of disinformation, propaganda, and even hate speech. The proliferation of such content threatens the integrity of our democratic processes, sowing discord and mistrust among communities. Having…

The text below is my translated version of an op ed I wrote in Swedish, and which was published today in the major Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet. Recently, Twitter, perhaps the most important place for digital public discourse in Sweden, ceased to exist. Instead it was replaced by X, a platform with completely different interests and ambitions. The change affects Sweden’s public discourse in a very negative way. To safeguard a democratic dialogue, the public sector, civil society, companies, media and opinion makers need to leave X and instead develop digital conversations based on openness and with society’s and the citizens interests first. For a decade, Twitter has played a central role in Swedish public discourse. Even though Twitter has never been the largest platform, it has been among the most important. It was on Twitter that digital public discourse largely took place. The number of tweets that have given…