Zinov'eva E.S. The role of social media in contemporary international conflicts: the existing scientific approaches and future research directions

Abstract: The article is devoted to the analysis of the role of social media in contemporary international conflicts, as well as review of existing scientific approaches to the study of this new phenomenon.The author uses an interdisciplinary theoretical and methodological framework - the philosophy of technology and theories of political communication. The theory of political communication allows to analyze the characteristics of new media and their role in political communication in conflict, while the philosophy of technology makes it possible to assess the impact of technology on social processes, including international conflicts.As soon as the social media have become an integral part of the international policy and conflicts, the researchers are moving away from techno optimism in the evaluation of new Internet communications, according to which new media contribute to the democratization, the reduction of conflict, and consider the new media as a factor in the escalation conflicts, so techno pessimism becomes increasingly popular. At the same time, new media, like any other technology, are neutral and can be used by different groups for resolution as well as escalation of conflicts. However, studies on the role of social media in conflict resolution are underrepresented in the modern scientific literature. The author is proposes research agenda on the role of new media in the settlement of current conflicts.

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