Jürgen Habermas's book The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere, first published in 1962, has long been recognized as one of the most important works of twentieth-century social thought. Blending philosophy and social history, it offered an account of the public sphere as a domain that mediates between civil society and the state in which citizens could discuss matters of common concern and participate in democratic decision-making through the formation of public opinion. Now, in view of the digital revolution and the resulting crisis of democracy, he returns to this important topic. In this new book Habermas focuses on digital media, in particular social media, which are increasingly relegating traditional mass media to the background. While the new media initially promised to empower users, this promise is being undermined by their algorithm-steered platform structure that promotes self-enclosed informational 'bubbles' and discursive 'echo chambers' in which users split into a plurality of pseudo-publics that are largely closed off from one other. Habermas argues that, without appropriate regulation of digital media, this new structural transformation is in danger of hollowing out the institutions through which democracies can shape social and economic processes and address urgent collective problems, ranging from growing social inequality to the climate crisis.

Jürgen Habermas's book The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere, first published in 1962, has long been recognized as one of the most important works of 20th century social thought. Blending together philosophy and social history, he outlined a theory of the public sphere as a domain situated between civil society and the state, a domain in which citizens could scrutinize the activities of public officials and debate matters of common concern. In his later works, Habermas would repeatedly question the role played by the public sphere in the safeguarding of democratic community. Now, in view of the crisis of democracy and the digital revolution, he returns to the same theme. The central concern of this new book is new media and their platform structure, which are increasingly relegating traditional mass media - significant drivers of the 'old' structural transformation - to the background. Habermas argues that the forms of communication associated with new media harm the self-awareness of the political public sphere, inducing a new structural transformation with grave consequences for deliberative democracy, the construction of public opinion and will formation.