Dynamics of "Conservative" and "Progressive" Narratives in the Era of Digital Transformation in Political Communications

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15826/csp.2025.9.1.320

Abstract

This study explores the distinct characteristics and roles of “conservative” and “progressive” narratives as part of an ambivalent process of diachronically organizing symbolic collective representations and exploring their influence on the political positioning of national communities. The digitalization of political communications has increased the variability of “temporal representations.” New approaches are thus needed to frame the conflict between tradition and innovation within the political and cultural dynamics of contemporary actors. Political elites across national communities are influenced by their various perceptions of the pace of political change and their expectations of the “present” and “future.” They employ different criteria for what constitutes a “recurrence” or “continuity.” It is therefore increasingly important to understand the relationship between “temporal regimes” in political memory and the processes of traditionalization within the binary coding of political communications as “conservative” or “progressive.” Temporal regimes in political communications are shaped by a trend toward homogenizing a community’s temporal representations, which fosters more stable conditions for integrating perceptions of the past, present, and future. Traditionalization is critical in institutionalizing and maintaining models of political solidarity. It serves as an essential cultural resource for the temporal structuring of the political sphere and countering political inversion and arbitrariness by political actors. The crisis in the temporal regime of the “modern era,” as articulated by contemporary globalist elites, has significantly heightened the risks of political asynchronicity within the national memory of modern communities. Political elites and other actors are increasingly losing the ability to effectively control tradition-
making, often replacing it with radical conservative traditionalization or progressivism. Drawing on the theoretical and practical insights of modern cultural sociology and political anthropology, the authors propose new theoretical approaches to understanding the role of temporal dimensions in the reproduction of political order within the context of neoliberal digitalization strategies.

Author Biographies

Konstantin F. Zavershinskiy, Saint Petersburg State University, Saint Petersburg, Russia

Konstantin F. Zavershinskiy is a Professor of Political Science at Saint Petersburg State University. His primary line of research focuses on the theory and methodology of politico-cultural studies and political legitimation, with a secondary line of research on the theory of symbolic politics and the anthropological dimensions of political processes. His latest research projects cover the theory and practice of the politics of memory and the social construction of political identity in contemporary society. Konstantin is the author of three books and more than 180 research and educational works in the subject areas of the theory of political culture, political legitimation, and cultural sociology of politics. Recent publications: Tradition in the political positioning of modern elites: Temporal dimensions (2024, in Russ); Political identity and national memory: The conflict of contemporary political narratives (2022, co-authored). 

Alexander I. Koryushkin, Saint Petersburg State University, Saint Petersburg, Russia

Alexander I. Koryushkin is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Saint Petersburg State University. His primary line of research focuses on the theory and philosophy of politics, history, philosophy, and methodology of contemporary political science, with a secondary line of research on the theory of symbolic politics and anthropological dimensions of political processes. His latest research project covers the political theory of science, technology, and innovation policy. His scientific output comprises two books and more than 60 scholarly and educational works in the fields of political science history, theory of political culture, theory of democracy, and discourse-network analysis of public policy. Recent publications: Political identity and national memory: The conflict of contemporary political narratives (2022, co-authored); Political socialization in a changing society: A crisis of value orientations or asynchronization of national memories? (2022, co-authored).

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Published
2025-04-30
How to Cite
Zavershinskiy, K., & Koryushkin, A. (2025). Dynamics of "Conservative" and "Progressive" Narratives in the Era of Digital Transformation in Political Communications. Changing Societies & Personalities, 9(1), 101–119. doi:10.15826/csp.2025.9.1.320
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Vol. 9, No. 1 (2025): Special Issue “Ethnic Identities in Virtual Space”
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