Democracy and the Public Sphere in the Knowledge Society: the strategic Function of Communication

Communication has reached a definitive strategic relevance for the organizations, social systems and Nation-States. A complex and articulate “instrument”, founded on the sharing of knowledge, that even the European Union considers of great importance. This paper focuses upon the scientific debate from a sociological and philosophical point of view underlining, between different aspects, the essential issue of the “public sphere” (European) always tied to the intimate correlation which exists between communication, knowledge and power, more precisely between access to knowledge (or information) and Democracy, and between access to information and citizenship rights. This implicates the problem of Transparency and of ethical and responsible communication.