Public Space, Religion, and Political Polarization in the Digital Age: A Case Study of the Controversy Surrounding Islamic Boarding Schools (Pesantren) and Trans7 from Habermas' Perspective.

Habbadzaa Maa’al Azza (Universitas Islam Negeri Syekh Wasil, Kediri)

Proceedings of International Conference on Religion, Social and Humanities
Vol 4 (2025): Religion and Social Transformation in the Digital Era

This study aims to discuss religious-based political polarization in Indonesia's digital public sphere, as seen in the controversial case between Pesantren and Trans7. The formal object of this study is the digital public sphere as a social communication construct in Habermas' perspective, while the material object is the phenomenon of religious-based political polarization in the controversial case between Pesantren and Trans7. This study uses a qualitative approach with a systematic literature review method. The results and discussion in this study show that the digital public sphere has shifted from an arena of rational discourse to an arena of opinion battles filled with emotions, identity sentiments, and political interests. Therefore, it is necessary to revitalize the digital public sphere by strengthening the ethics of dialogue, social media responsibility, and public rational awareness so that freedom of expression is in line with moral values, justice, and the principles of deliberative democracy.