Information policy of independent Ukraine: periodization and influence on civil society

Abstract

The article examines the key influences of state information policy on the formation and development of civil society in Ukraine since getting independence in 1991 to the present day. The actuality of this scientific research is due to the lack of scientific developments in domestic political science that study the correlation between the information policy of the state and the development of the third sector. The purpose of the article is to structure the information policy of Ukraine by developing its periodization and identifying the leading phenomena at each stage that influenced the formation of the third sector. The study used a broad methodological framework, including historical and systemic methods, socio-cultural approach, as well as the study of the legal framework and content analysis.Results. Seven stages in the periodization of the state information policy in Ukraine have been identified: 1) post-Soviet or primary democratization; 2) secondary democratization; 3) primary digitization; 4) secondary digitization; 5) informatization; 6) information and military; 7) technical and technological.It is proved that during the first, second and third stages of proposed periodization, the third sector formally acquires subjectivity, but is perceived by the state and presented in the information field as an object that serves as a stimulus for civil society to fight for real subjectivity. The indifference of the state information policy to the institutions of the third sector in the first stage turns into an open confrontation during the third stage. The fourth stage is characterized by the liberalization of relations: civil society, which loudly declared itself during the "Orange Revolution", becomes a subject in the eyes of the new state administration, which in fact should owe a conscious community for the possibility of successful political "revenge". The fifth stage shows a completely opposite trend in the state's perception of civil society and its reflection in information policy, but this is intentional as a result of the authorities' awareness of the strength and potential of this entity. Thus, the blocking of the development of the CS, in fact, was a confirmation of the government's recognition of its subjectivity. The sixth stage marks a new milestone in the development of the CS and its new status - an equal socio-political actor in the eyes of state power and in its own perception. The seventh stage marks the strengthening of the institutional content of the civil society, despite some confrontational tensions in relations with central government.Conclusions. The seven stages of the information policy of independent Ukraine contain three stages of development of civil society in the context of the influences of the former: 1) stage of objectification in the information space (presentation as a phenomenon, 1991–2003); 2) stage of subjectivation (presentation as a subject, 2004–2013); 3) stage of institutionalization (presentation as a partner, from 2014 to the present).