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This thesis departs from the fact, that the use of social media platforms has become a precondition for politicians and parties, where social media have been presented as new opportunities to reach and engage voters, bypassing mass media, and levelling the political playing field. Now, however, politicians and parties face the limitations and control of platforms, and must submit to new forms of media logic, increased mediatization of politics. To comprehend this transformative shift, we must understand that digital and social media permeate all aspects of society, that we now live in a digital society. Sociologist Deborah Lupton have noted that ". the very idea of 'culture' or 'society' cannot now be fully understood without the recognition that computer software and hardware devices not only underpin but actively constitute selfhood, embodiment, social life, social relations and social institutions" (Lupton, 2014). This is certainly true in politics too. This thesis is contextualized within the formal arena of national politics in Denmark, including the Danish media system and the specificity of Danish political culture. Throughout the thesis, I focus on how social media platforms are used by Danish politicians, as an illustration of how the transformative power of platforms impacts formal politics, i.e., how politics is exercised and performed by politicians and political parties in election campaigns as well as in agenda-setting in everyday politics. The methodological approach of the thesis takes the form of an inductive, observational mapping of political life on social media and beyond in Denmark. This approach does in no way imply that the thesis is detached from theory. On the contrary, the overall argument is based on the conceptualisation of social media as a new form of social interaction, mediated online interaction, that takes place on media and technology platforms with distinct media logics of their own and which contributes to an increased mediatization of political communication culture and society. In practical terms, I explore three empirical cases. The first case, Governing with Social Media, is an introduction to the field of digital political communication in Denmark and how the party leaders and Members of Parliament use social media. In the second case, Breaking the Agenda, I explore how social media platforms are used for setting the agenda on social media platforms and in the news media. The primary focus is on how live streaming video is used in context of political events. Finally, in the last case, Danish Elections and Campaigning, I unfold how social media have been used in the past general elections. Among the main findings are that politicians are increasingly using multiple social media platforms to set the political agenda, stay visible to the voters and the news media, and cultivate the personal candidacy. Adding to this, although it is not possible to say that the use of social media will guarantee an election win, it seems clear that it has become virtually impossible to get elected without the use of social media. With this thesis, I aim to contribute to the limited, but emerging field of research in political communication on social media in Denmark. The field needs attention, if we want to understand the wider impact of social media on politics in digital society. As such, this thesis does not mark the end of research, but rather it is a part of the initial mapping of a growing research field, which I hope to explore more in the future.

Civil society is widely considered as a crucial element in contemporary society. Academics and policy makers have traditionally associated it with voluntary associations and organizations, assuming that associational life is an ideal intermediary between citizens and government. While members of associations form large social networks, which they can mobilize at critical moments, the conviviality of group sociability fosters the development of a set of common values, such as a democratic political culture and other civic virtues. Its origins are generally situated in the eighteenth century, and are mostly attributed to secularization, Enlightenment thinking, the birth of the "public sphere," and growing emancipation from oppressive structures such as the church and the state.

The 'Big Society' policy was formally launched by the UK's coalition government in July 2010. Along with earlier evolution in New Labour's thinking, this development warrants revisiting the hierarchy-market-network typology of governance structures. 'Community governance' and 'self governance' also have utility in capturing multi-faceted characteristics of public service reform. © 2011 The Author.

The use of the concept of "global civil society" (GCS) acknowledges the intensifying role of non-state civic actors in world politics and expresses the emergence of a unique social sphere transcending national boundaries. Extensive literatures strive to suggest conceptualizations and assessments of the actual and desired effects of GCS. Nevertheless, relatively little attention has been given to the interplay between the emerging sphere of a GCS and the traditional sphere of international or interstate interactions. This article examines the idea of GCS through an exploration of the conceptual interplay between the notions of GCS and the interstate system. It presents a typology of three possible ideal-type relations: (1) GCS as replacement of statist features of the international system; (2) GCS as opposition to the state system; and (3) GCS as subsidiary organ to the international society. From a perspective informed by the English School of international relations theory, the article argues that the enhanced role of GCS in world politics is a result of international society's attempts to adapt interstate rules and practices to the context of globalization.

L'analyse de la production sociologique au Québec, de 1945 à 1980, ne saurait être entreprise sans faire référence à la transformation des conditions generates d'enonciation qu'a connue la société québécoise durant la période. On peut schématiquement regrouper cette sociographie en quatre courants distincts. Le premier, de 1945 à 1960, se donne comme un savoir critique dc l'adaptation illustrant l'inadéquation de la référence au traditionalisme. Le début des années soixante marque le passage à la dominance d'une forme de la représentation présentant désormais le Québec comme une société politique. Une sociologie fonctionnelle de l'adaptation se développe dés lors, liée à la mise en place de L'État keynésien. Les années soixante‐dix voient au contraire l'affirmation d'une sociologie de l'émancipation. Divisée en deux courants antagonistes, culturaliste et politiste, cette sociologie travaille à la redéfinition d'une société québécoise dorénavant soumise aux pleines déterminations de la modernité.The modernity of sociological production in Québec from 1945 to 1980 cannot be attempted without referring to the transformation in the general conditions of Québec's expression of itself as a society during this period. We can regroup this sociography schematically into four distinct approaches: the first, from 1945 to 1960, presented itself as a form of critical knowledge of adaptation which illustrated the inadequacy of references to traditionalism. The beginning of the 1960s marked the transition towards the predominance of a representational form which thereafter presented Québec as a political society. In the third tendency a functionalist sociology, linked to the consolidation of the Keynesian state, took root. The 1970s saw in contradistinction the affirmation of a sociology of emanicipation. Divided between two mutually antagonistic approaches, culturalist and political, Québec sociology is working towards the redefinition of a Québecois society henceforth caught in the determining web of modernity.

Civil society is widely considered as a crucial element in contemporary society. Academics and policy makers have traditionally associated it with voluntary associations and organizations, assuming that associational life is an ideal intermediary between citizens and government. While members of associations form large social networks, which they can mobilize at critical moments, the conviviality of group sociability fosters the development of a set of common values, such as a democratic political culture and other civic virtues. Its origins are generally situated in the eighteenth century, and are mostly attributed to secularization, Enlightenment thinking, the birth of the "public sphere," and growing emancipation from oppressive structures such as the church and the state.

SOUTH AFRICA IS APPROACHING THE BEGINNING OF ITS THIRD YEAR OF DEMOCRATIC RULE. THIS ARTICLE EXAMINES SOME QUESTIONS: 1) WHAT KINDS OF STRAINS WILL THE COUNTRY'S INHERITED SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC CONDITIONS PLACE ON THE POLITICAL SYSTEM? 2) TO WHAT EXTENT WILL THE NATION'S CIVIL SOCIETY BE ABLE TO MEET THE NUMEROUS CHALLENGES IT NOW FACES AND HELP INSTITUTIONALIZE THE NEW DEMOCRATIC REGIME? IT NOTES THAT IF SOUTH AFRICA CAN MAKE SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS IT STANDS AN EXCELLENT CHANCE OF SEEING ITS NEW REGIME TAKE ROOT AND FLOURISH.

Civil society, globalisation and the state: the NGOisation of the public sphere -- Poverty, global civil society and international aid -- Global civil society and NGOs -- Anti-globalisation and world development -- World poverty, social policy and Poor Law politics -- Conclusion -- References -- Index.