| Subject: | Media Studies \ Philosophy |
| Title: | Propaganda, Algorithmic Governmentality and An Ontological Transformation |
| Author(s): | George James, Megha Joshy & Dr. S. Indira |
| Published on: | 30th September 2026 |
| Published by: | Lyceum India |
| Name of the Journal: | Lyceum India Journal of Social Sciences |
| ISSN/e-ISSN: | 3048-6513 |
| Volume & Issue: | Volume: 3, Issue: 11 |
| Pages: | 77-82 |
| Original DOI (if any): | 10.5281/zenodo.22922436 |
| Repository DOI: | |
| Abstract: | This paper argues that propaganda has not disappeared in the digital age but has evolved into a more subtle and effective form through algorithmic governmentality. While classical propaganda mechanisms relied on discourse and persuasion, contemporary systems act through data-driven modulation. Algorithms organise perception, shape behaviour, and serve power without explicit messaging. Drawing on Rouvroy’s theory and classical models, the paper shows how influence now operates through infrastructure rather than argument. The paper focuses on the shift in the mechanisms that enable propaganda and public persuasion. Algorithmic governmentality, which is the contemporary extension of Foucauldian governmentality as theorised by Rouvroy and Berns, allows propaganda to function more efficiently and invisibly. Case studies of the U.S. Committee on Public Information and modern botnet operations from Russia and Israel illustrate this ontological shift. What emerges is a more subtle and pervasive force of computational governance. |
| Keywords: | Propaganda, Algorithmic Governmentality, Modulation, Digital Infrastructure, Dividual, Political Influence |
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