Douaa Sheet, National Reconciliation in the Age of New Social Media
At first glance, there seems to be a shared mission between social media鈥檚 promise of increased dissemination of information and truth commissions鈥 commitment to truth, granting victims a voice, and safeguarding people鈥檚 right to information鈥攚hich would suggest that the rise of the former could only empower the latter. A new聽study by SIS Professor Douaa Sheet suggests otherwise.
Professor Sheet argues that social media can impede truth commissions鈥 liberal vision that celebrates 鈥渟peaking鈥 as synonymous with 鈥渉ealing鈥 and hails publicizing victims鈥 testimonies as key to facilitating national reconciliation. Through a study of the Tunisian Truth and Dignity Commission鈥檚 Facebook-mediated public hearings, she聽analyzes these platforms鈥 algorithmic mode of content circulation and argues that one of its less analyzed features is its 鈥渨ar on silence.鈥 While 鈥渧oice鈥 has been celebrated and silence decried in human rights discourse, she聽analyzes silence as a 鈥済ap in knowledge鈥 and argues聽for its role in forging empathetic publics and mediating reconciliation.
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