Government Digital Repression and Political Engagement: A Cross-National Multilevel Analysis Examining the Roles of Online Surveillance and Censorship

IF 4.1 1区社会学 Q1 COMMUNICATION

International Journal of Press-Politics Pub Date : 2022-08-04 DOI:10.1177/19401612221117106

M. Chan, Jingjing Yi, Dmitry Kuznetsov

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引用次数: 4

Abstract

Much research has shown that online news engenders greater political participation, but less attention has been paid to how the relationship can be suppressed by government online surveillance and censorship, especially as Internet freedoms continue to decline in many parts of the world. Drawing from 2017–20 World Value Survey and Varieties of Democracy project data, we conducted multilevel analyses across forty-four countries from seven continents that have different political and media systems. Results showed that online news and online surveillance were positively related to political engagement while online censorship was negatively related. Cross-level interactions also showed some support for the informational theory of repression, whereby the relationships among online news, surveillance, and engagement were conditioned at different levels of online censorship. The results suggest that while country-level online surveillance and censorship is highly correlated, varying levels can engender or suppress political engagement in different ways, which have implications for future studies on the dynamics of government digital repression and citizen participation in politics from a global comparative perspective.

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政府数字镇压和政治参与:一个跨国多层次的分析，检查在线监视和审查的角色

许多研究表明，网络新闻可以促进更多的政治参与，但很少有人关注这种关系如何受到政府在线监控和审查的压制，尤其是在世界许多地区互联网自由不断下降的情况下。根据2017 - 2020年世界价值调查和民主多样性项目数据，我们对来自七大洲的44个国家进行了多层次分析，这些国家拥有不同的政治和媒体制度。结果显示，网络新闻和网络监控与政治参与呈正相关，而网络审查与政治参与呈负相关。跨层次互动也显示了对压制信息理论的一些支持，即在线新闻、监视和参与之间的关系受到不同层次的在线审查的制约。结果表明，虽然国家层面的网络监控和审查是高度相关的，但不同的水平可以以不同的方式产生或抑制政治参与，这对未来从全球比较的角度研究政府数字压制和公民政治参与的动态具有启示意义。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

International Journal of Press-Politics Multiple-

CiteScore

12.10

自引率

8.30%

发文量

期刊介绍： The International Journal of Press/Politics is an interdisciplinary journal for the analysis and discussion of the role of the press and politics in a globalized world. The Journal is interested in theoretical and empirical research on the linkages between the news media and political processes and actors. Special attention is given to the following subjects: the press and political institutions (e.g. the state, government, political parties, social movements, unions, interest groups, business), the politics of media coverage of social and cultural issues (e.g. race, language, health, environment, gender, nationhood, migration, labor), the dynamics and effects of political communication.