A Study Of Anti Spiral Of Silence In Internet Communication

The appearance of Anti Spiral of Silence is an inevitable result when the traditional communication theory met the internet. Internet became very popular as the forth media in the1990s. From then on, whether the Spiral of Silence is still effective in the new communication environment has become a bone of contention, and some scholars maintain that the spiral of silence will disappear on the internet and the Anti Spiral of Silence will take place.Anti Spiral of Silence on the internet has two different forms. One is rational and the other is irrational. The former results from the public focus on the group interest, and the latter is based on the irrational hard core and irrational opinion leader. No matter which kind of Anti Spiral of Silence we talk about, both of them emphasize the important role that the minority played in the diverse public opinion.It’s the rise and popularization of the internet as the forth mass media that result in the birth of Anti Spiral of Silence. Individual are always afraid of loneliness, which will lead to the conformity effect. Both of individual’s fear of loneliness and the consequent conformity effect are essential reasons the Spiral of Silence appeared. However, the anonymity and equality of communication on internet clear up the impact of these two factors on the expression of opinion from individuals. Meanwhile, the position of the audience has been raised up in the internet communication, which enables people to express their opinion freely in public. In addition, the hard core and the opinion leader play more important roles in the formation of the internet opinion. In some exceptional cases, they even become the key factors that can fundamentally change the internet opinion. The appearance of Anti Spiral of Silence made a doubt that whether the Spiral of Silence is still working on the internet. What is more, it even emphasizes the important roles minority play in the formation of the internet opinion and makes the internet opinion more diversified. As an outcome of the society being much more comprehensive and tolerant to the public opinion, Anti Spiral of Silence was born in the background of the rise and the popularisation of the internet, and it will also play a more crucial role in the internet opinion formation as the internet develops further. Currently, the Spiral of Silence and Anti Spiral of Silence are both effective under certain circumstances, and this will still provide important reference on the study of communication effects.