As part of the Culture and Communication Research Centre (CULCORC) Seminar Series, the seminar “The Czech Citizen Parliament: Analysing Media Change, Participation, and Democracy” will take place on Wednesday, 28 January 2026, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., at Charles University, Prague.
The seminar will examine the Czech Citizen Parliament as a case study through which broader dynamics of contemporary democratic practices can be explored. Focusing on the interaction between media environments, civic participation, and democratic culture, the discussion will address how changing media conditions shape opportunities for citizen expression and participation, and how democratic processes evolve when citizens, technologies, and institutions intersect in new ways.
Drawing on research developed within the MeDeMAP – Mapping Media for Future Democracies project, the speakers will reflect on the potential, limitations, and challenges of participatory democratic models in contemporary societies.
Programme
- 15:15–15:30 – Knowledge and Participation: From data fetishism and disinformation to participatory knowledge construction
Nico Carpentier (Charles University, Prague) - 15:30–15:45 – Constructions of democracy in the Czech Citizen Parliament
Vaia Doudaki (Charles University, Prague) - 15:45–16:00 – Games with frontiers: On performance, playfulness, and citizen parliaments
Jeffrey Wimmer (University of Augsburg; Charles University, Prague) - 16:00–16:15 – Consensus and Dissensus on Media’s Democratic Roles: The case of the Czech Citizen Parliament on Media and Democracy
Milos Hroch, Štěpán Šanda, Vaia Doudaki, and Nico Carpentier (Charles University, Prague) - 16:15–16:30 – Response
Josef Seethaler (University of Vienna; University of Klagenfurt) - 16:30–17:00 – Open discussion
Date and time: 28 January 2026, 3:00–5:00 p.m.
Venue: Centrum Voršilská, The Chapel (5th floor), Charles University
Voršilská 144/1, Prague, Czech Republic
Participation is open, subject to registration.
Register here.