Across contemporary democracies, narratives of crisis, decline,
disorder, and reconstruction have become increasingly prominent in
political communication. Political actors across the ideological
spectrum employ these narratives to define societal problems,
articulate national identities, legitimise political projects, and
mobilise support for competing visions of democratic futures. Such
discourses often emerge during periods of economic uncertainty,
institutional distrust, social fragmentation, and technological
transformation.
At the same time, the digitalisation of the public sphere has
significantly altered how political narratives are produced,
circulated, amplified, and contested. Digital news media, social
platforms, algorithmic recommendation systems, and AI-enabled
communication technologies increasingly shape the visibility, reach,
and legitimacy of political discourse. These transformations raise
important questions regarding democracy, public debate, political
power, and the construction of collective imaginaries.
This panel invites theoretical, methodological, and empirical
contributions examining how narratives of crisis and reconstruction
are communicated, represented, and negotiated within contemporary
political contexts. Particular attention will be given to the role of
political actors, media institutions, platforms, digital news
ecosystems, and emerging forms of AI-mediated communication in shaping
public understandings of democracy, citizenship, security, identity,
and social change.
The panel welcomes scholarship employing discourse analysis, political
communication research, media studies, critical political economy,
digital methods, computational approaches, and comparative
perspectives. Contributions from all regions of the world are encouraged.
Possible Themes
• Narratives of crisis, decline, and national reconstruction
• Political communication and democratic legitimacy
• Right-wing, populist, and nationalist discourses
• Media framing and digital journalism
• Neoliberalism and contemporary political projects
• Platformisation and the transformation of public discourse
• AI-mediated communication and democratic debate
• Algorithmic visibility and political influence
• Disinformation and contested public narratives
• Political imaginaries and competing democratic futures
• Comparative perspectives on crisis communication
• Latin American, European, and Global South perspectives