Swedish politicians and new media: Democracy, identity and populism in a digital discourse

Abstract

The empirical material of this article consists of interviews with politicians in Västerbotten, an area in the north of Sweden. The aim of the article is to identify and analyse how these politicians relate to digital information technology and new media. What democratic opportunities and risks of information technology and new media are reflected in interviews with the politicians? What does this technology and these media mean for politicians’ political strategies and for their identity production as professional politicians? We argue that the interview data reflect two partly contradictory political identities: on the one side a progressive and modern political identity, and on the other a ‘real’ and ‘authentic’ political identity. However, both identities are consistent with a digital discourse and are populist due to their pro-technological character.

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