Digital Freedom –Opening up the Debate

Abstract

This paper contributes to the normative analysis of digital technologies and data-driven practices by broadening the analytical perspective on freedom. Many contemporary discussions of the digital context tend to operate with a relatively narrow conception of freedom, which centers on the absence of interference. While this approach is in line with liberalism’s on-going paradigmatic standing in much of the Western world, we argue that digital theorists have much to gain from opening their discussions to social and positive conceptions of freedom. Drawing on the work of Axel Honneth and John Christman, we show how such a change in perspective gives rise to new considerations for freedom in the digital context, such as collective self-determination, capabilities, and mutual recogni- tion. Building on these ideas, we sketch three demands that follow from such an inclusive conception of freedom: empowering people via new forms of political participation, increasing diversity and collective awareness in the digital industry, as well as using progressive political regulation to unleash digital technology’s social potential.