Int. J. Electronic Governance, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2012 11 Copyright © 2012 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd. Global civil society and deliberation in the digital age Christos A. Frangonikolopoulos Department of Journalism and Mass Communication Studies, Aristotle University, Egnatia 46, 54625, Thessaloniki, Greece Email: chfragk@jour.auth.gr Abstract: This paper examines how global civil society, mediated mainly across internet-based activist ‘dotcauses’, transcends the geographical and other barriers associated with mainstream media and conventional public and political deliberation. In so doing, it examines how global civil society is capable of influencing and impacting political deliberation through the decisional, discursive and regulatory attributes of its activities. In addition, it also examines how recent developments, such as ‘e-government’ and the transformation of news (mobile-phone footage, social networks) despite their threats and problems, can provide global civil society with more opportunities to intervene in the public deliberation spaces opened by governments and the media. Keywords: dotcauses; internet-based activism; global civil society; globalisation; decisional; regulatory and discursive deliberation. Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Frangonikolopoulos, C.A. (2012) ‘Global civil society and deliberation in the digital age’, Int. J. Electronic Governance, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp.11–23. Biographical notes: Christos A. Frangonikolopoulos studied Politics (BA Honours) and International Relations (PhD) at the University of Kent (England). He is the author of the book The Global Role of Non-Governmental Organizations (I. Sideris, 2007) and co-author of the following books: Greek Media and Foreign Policy (Ι. Sideris, 2011), An Introduction to Cosmopolitan Democracy (I. Sideris, 2010), The Resolution of International Conflicts (I. Sideris 1994). He is also editor of Transnational Celebrity Activism: Changing the World?, (Intellect 2011). He has published in the journals Global Society, The Round Table, Nordicom, Etudes Helleniques, Journal of Contemporary European Studies, Journal of Media and Cultural Politics. 1 Introduction: globalisation and global civil society In parallel with the globalisation of political and economic forces, there is considerable evidence pointing to the emergence of a transnational, even global civil society (Kaldor, 2003). Of course, this is not the first time that civil society has gone beyond state borders to build coalitions with global reach. Trade unionism, the antislavery movement and the struggle for women’s suffrage are just a few examples. Yet, there is little doubt that the breadth of more recent global mobilisation, the range of issues addressed and the depth of interaction is recent. Activist mobilisation global civil society (GCS) has challenged the institutional or political infrastructure that supports the character of neo-liberal globalisation. An increasing visibility, voice and activism from a large number of