SCANDALS IN THE GLOBAL VILLAGE: AN OUTRAGEOUS HISTORY OF INTERNATIONAL POLITICS

Abstract

The specific characteristics of political scandals in a global context follow the historical evolution of international communication technologies and media systems. This article examines the development of political scandals through selected cases in a global context. The global scandal evolution took place in three phases: (1) the written duplication of morals created the conditions for international reports on political scandals; (2) the establishment of an international media system transformed political scandals into an integral part of global public spheres; (3) the digitization of scandals on the Internet put moral pressure on global politics – resulting in permanent and omnipresent international scandal discourses. The digitization of political scandals comes, on the one hand, along with the loss of journalistic gatekeepers, post-truth manipulation of public spheres, influence from abroad and the risk of social unrest. On the other hand, it provides the chance to better understand the chances and limits of globalization.