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Javnost - The Public, Vol. 33 - 2026, No. 2
Operationalising Platform Public Sphere Contentiousness: a Descriptive Framework for Public Discussion
This study proposes the concept of platform public sphere contentiousness and further develops it into an automated measurement framework based on unsupervised learning methods, aiming to provide a descriptive-analytical approach for public discussion research. Addressing the limitations of existing studies that reduces the quality of public discussion to its proximity to rational consensus, this study is grounded in the Chinese context and defines contentiousness as the extent to which public disagreement unfolds and diffuses within the public sphere. Drawing on and reconstructing the Discourse Quality Index (DQI), the study develops, based on this concept, an indicator system comprising four dimensions: diversity, oppositionality, rationality, and reciprocity. Taking Weibo and Douyin as case studies, the research conducts cross-platform comparisons at both the account and topic levels to demonstrate the application of the indicators. Based on an analysis of more than 300,000 cross-level data entries, the study finds that contentiousness is highly sensitive to discussion contexts and platform structures. The study understands the public sphere as a discussion structure that is continuously generated and adjusted within specific institutional and media conditions, thereby providing a reference point for public sphere research under similar non-ideal institutional conditions.