On Virtual Public Sphere and Network Citizen Participation

Abstract

This paper focuses on the two concepts of virtual public sphere and network citizen participation, and the relationship between them. As an adjusting 'third domain' between state and society, the public sphere is an important research for Chinese and foreign scholars in recent years. Habermas' public sphere theory is based on the real world, while the network communication, as a virtual public sphere, has promoted the transformation of Habermas' public sphere. The virtual public sphere has publicized the social life of the public. Netizens express opinions about public affairs through forums and other virtual public sphere, to form public opinion, in order to affect the government policy decisions. This phenomenon coincides with the theory of policy networks which is an emerging pattern. Network citizen participation has several advantages of letting people enjoy the full democratic rights and promoting citizen participation enthusiasm; Meanwhile, network citizen participation has some problems: the 'digital divide', the lack of legal way to participate, the lack of specific participation approaches in process, the tangle between rational and non-rational network citizen participation, the loose issue networks leading to the disorder and transience of the participation. In this paper, the author proposed some solutions to the problem of citizen participation in virtual public sphere, wishing to develop political and social democracy or means in China.