A nova fobocracia na sociedade da transparência: a politica do medo na era da comunicação globalizada

Abstract

The dissertation examines, from the perspective of communication theory and political philosophy, the consequences of hyperconnectivity and informational transparency in the formation of a new mode of domination sustained by the rule of terror, which is termed phobocracy. It begins by contextualizing postmodern society, characterized by an incessant flow of information and the promise of emancipation through transparency, in order to assert how, instead, these dynamics do not liberate but rather intensify surveillance and control. The core of the research problem lies in understanding how globalized terrorism, amplified by the media and within the sphere of symbolic communication, contributes to the legitimation of states of exception and the destruction of civil liberties in the name of security. The purpose of this work is to analyze the politics of fear in connection with informational transparency in the digital age, which enables a reconfiguration of power relations. The methodology employed is theoretical-conceptual and hermeneutical, grounded in the analysis of Donatella Di Cesare’s work in dialogue with Gianni Vattimo, Jürgen Habermas, Jacques Derrida, Jean Baudrillard, and other authors. The results demonstrate that terrorism today must be understood not only as an act of physical violence but also as a performative and symbolic discourse operating within a communicational universe, directly impacting the social imaginary and political governance. Furthermore, it is shown that the so-called “society of transparency,” rather than liberating, generates new conditions of domination through the derealization of experience and the aestheticization of fear. It may be concluded that the “new phobocracy” is structured around the management of insecurity and the strategic exploitation of information, challenging the very foundations of contemporary democracy and demanding a critical reading of the relations between media, power, and subjectivity. Finally, the research contributes to the understanding of emerging forms of power in the era of globalization and to the philosophical discussion on the limits between security, freedom, and truth in the digital world.