Religion & Communication (May 2023)
A desirable model of future governance concerned and reducing the harms of foreign virtual social networks in Iran
Abstract
Social networks are a complex platform of interactions and possibilities, the planning and management of which requires a new approach. Future research and foresight are among the new discourses that create a new perspective in the field of media management in combination with the conventional planning of social policymakers. Therefore, the current research was conducted with the aim of presenting alternative images of the future of the virtual social network and its harms within the framework of scenario planning. In this study, the theories of Habermas, Castells, Giddens, Berger and Laman were used to better understand the subject. The present research, as an applied research, has scenarioized the future of social networks by using the interaction analysis approach. The participants in this research were 15 future experts and researchers in the field of social networks. By using the method of library studies and referring to upstream documents in the field of social networks, 32 primary influencing factors were identified. Among these 32 factors, 16 factors were selected as key factors by using MikMak software, and the basics of developing scenarios were presented to social policymakers. These scenarios were called "Paradise Lost", "In Search of Happiness", "Lost in Space" and "Purgatory". Keywords: foreign social networks, futuristic governance, virtual space, Iran's national information network, open governance, control governance, media literacy.
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