The Porous Public and the Transnational Dialectic

Abstract

This article uses the twin concepts of the porous public and the transnational dialectic to analyse the recent Muhammed cartoons conflict. The porous public concept points to the way national public spheres are increasingly penetrated by inbound and outbound influences. The transnational dialectic concept suggests that globalization is a learning process in which globalization is simultaneously outcome and cause of social and political activities. During the cartoons conflict, the porosity of the Danish public was evident in (1) the transnational activities of national media, in (2) the role played by transnational news channels, in (3) the transnational activities of Muslims living in Denmark, and in (4) the role played by 9/11 as a transnationally shared event. Based on these findings, the concept of the transnational dialectic is employed to show how the Muhammed cartoons conflict constituted a learning process for Danish society, a process which has resulted in an increased level of global consciousness and an altered self-conception of Denmark's place and role in the world. Following the analysis of the Muhammed cartoons, the article discusses how the concept of the porous public relates to that of the transnational public sphere.