FRA_F_03 How Do We Want to Talk to Each Other? Survey Experiments on Freedom of Expression and the Regulation of Hate Speech

Objectives / Research Questions

Whether and, if so, how controversial, hurtful, or extreme expressions of opinion (hate speech) should be restricted in public discourse is a central problem of democratic theory. It also has once again become a political challenge, especially in times of growing cultural diversity and digital communication technology. The main points of contention are (1) the definition of what constitutes hate speech and what transgresses the boundaries of freedom of expression, and (2) what an appropriate and effective regulatory response to linguistic transgressions might look like. The envisaged research project empirically investigates these two questions and thus makes an empirical-analytical contribution to research on the sources of and threats to social cohesion.

By means of a series of cross-national comparative online survey experiments, the project will investigate (1) which forms of expression are perceived by citizens as hateful or disparaging under what conditions and why, and which sanctions they consider appropriate, and (2) to what extent and under which conditions their own expressions of opinion on controversial issues or towards minorities can be influenced by targeted, experimentally set primes. In the latter case, the comparison of state-legal or civil society–normative regulation is of particular analytical interest. The online survey experiments will be conducted in Germany and the US, and thus under two contrasting regulatory contexts in which both cultural norms of freedom of expression and formal legislation differ considerably (Bleich 2011).

Thematic Reference to Social Cohesion

Social cohesion requires dealing with diversity. This is not only about the recognition of different social groups but also especially about the acceptance of different political views. This democratic matter of course sometimes seems to be forgotten in the current political climate. The very fact that we categorize participants as being inside or outside democratic discourse and worry about the limits of freedom of expression has something of a crisis about it. Even as these debates wield charged fighting terms like “political correctness” and “virtue policing”, on the one hand or “incitement” and “hate speech”, on the other hand, they raise a central question for social cohesion: how can the difficult balance between individual freedom and equal dignity succeed in public discourse?

Literature

Bleich, Erik 2011: The Freedom to Be Racist? How the United States and Europe Struggle to Preserve Freedom and Combat Racism, Oxford.