The values and risks of modern digital democracy

Abstract

The article analyzes the values and risks of digital democracy. It is emphasized that digital technologies have become firmly established in people’s daily lives, providing them with completely new communication services. The most important value of digital democracy is the rationalization of citizen participation in public and political life and the rapprochement of public authorities with the population by eliminating unnecessary intermediaries in relations between them. Thanks to the introduction of modern technologies, the quality of service to the population is improving and new mechanisms for providing public services are being formed. Digital democracy is also an important driver for the development of other, more traditional types of democracy. This also creates certain risks. Citizens are becoming more and more transparent to the state and various commercial structures as a result of the use of their personal data. There is also a phenomenon called the “digital divide,” which is the inability of individuals to use modern technology properly and on a regular basis. Differences in digital readiness, however, exist not only between specific individuals, but also between individual countries and regions, urban and rural areas.