Decentralized Social Media Platforms as a Path to a More Resilient Information Ecosystem

Our digital public sphere has so far been dominated by a few large tech companies - their algorithms determine what we see and how social debates are shaped. The report “Decentralized Social Media Platforms as a Path to a More Resilient Information Ecosystem” highlights why our digital public sphere’s dependence on a few non-European companies is so problematic. As an alternative, it demonstrates that practical solutions exist: open, decentralized social media platforms such as Mastodon or Bluesky can reduce dependency and strengthen a resilient digital information ecosystem. They allow local control over data, promote diversity and transparency, and have the potential to break up monopolistic structures in the platform economy. The report illustrates how decentralized alternatives work and how they differ structurally from established social media platforms. At the same time, it provides concrete recommendations on how politics, civil society, and the media can strengthen decentralized networks and thus promote an independent, resilient digital public sphere.