At the institutional level, many of the institutions that animated twentieth-
century democracy, including political parties, member-based interest groups,
as well as the news media itself, are seriously challenged by the rise of digital
media and platform companies. Some adapt and others implode, even as new
actors that have for some time enjoyed power with limited responsibility are
increasingly (and imperfectly) being institutionalized and bound by both
informal norms and formal rules.4 As individuals, we are empowered by
digital media even as we are also becoming dependent on them, exposed to
more diverse news, offered new potential for participation, but also exposed to
online harassment and disinformation, as the same platforms that enable us to
ﬁnd or share baby photos, cat videos, and dad jokes are integral to everything
from #MeToo to populist campaigns by domestic politicians and attempts by
foreign states to interfere with our elections. Advertising spending that used to
Social_Media_and_Democracy