Slavko Splichal Wins the Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2023

“Datafication of Public Opinion and the Public Sphere: How Extraction Replaced Expression of Opinion” (London, New York: Anthem Press, 2022) – a recent book by Slavko Splichal received the Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2023.

The Selection Committee argues that the recent book by Slavko Splichal is an excellent example of turning existing studies and empirical data into new critical normative conceptualisations. The monograph “Datafication of Public Opinion and the Public Sphere” explains risks and opportunities for democracy in digital and data-driven societies through an in-depth theory review from a wide range of existing sociology and political sciences. The monograph has a high potential to contribute to media and democracy as the societal contexts of algorithms and data become crucial to understanding the power of high technologies in shaping public discourse and fostering democratic deliberations. At a time when democracy is being challenged, regardless of geography and the traditional divisions between Western and emerging democracies in the Global South, Splichal's book is particularly topical. Moreover, it has successfully transformed a multi-layered analytical approach into a narrative that appeals to everyone.