The Role of Social Media as a Negotiation Sphere for ‘Public Good’: The Case North Cyprus
The Role of Social Media as a Negotiation Sphere for ‘Public Good’: The Case North Cyprus

Summary/Abstract: This study stems from accepting the idea that through new media technologies, a public sphere can be created where issues and policies regarding the future of a society and public good can be discussed. Within the framework of this research, the potential for social media to create more democratic and collective communication and to mould public opinion in Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is also questioned. For this purpose, in the context of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, three popular politicians’ official Facebook pages were chosen for data collection and analysis. Their activities on their official Facebook pages and public comments on their posts taken from a four month period were studied by using the Critical Discourse Analysis model. Consequently, it reflects that the political actors do not reply to the comments of citizens from their official Facebook pages, yet they share their opinions through replying the private or direct messages of citizens. This indicates a fast and dual communication between the political actors and voters via social media. Additionally, citizens assert whether they agree or disagree with the posts on such official Facebook pages, and a discussion environment is established through expressing different opinions among the citizens. Hence, ‘public good’ can be negotiated through social media and that can contribute on the formation of a public sphere.

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