OS REFLEXOS DAS REDES SOCIAIS NA PARTICIPAÇÃO CIDADÃ E NA FORMAÇÃO DA OPINIÃO PÚBLICA: UMA ANÁLISE ENTRE MOBILIZAÇÃO POLÍTICA E DESINFORMAÇÃO

This paper analyzes the impact of social media on citizen participation and the formation of public opinion, addressing the tension between political mobilization and disinformation. The research is based on the assumption that digital platforms have reconfigured the public space, creating both opportunities for democratic activism and systemic risks to the quality of debate. The main objective is to examine how the law can regulate this ecosystem without compromising fundamental freedoms, focusing on the Internet Civil Rights Framework and the contemporary challenges of disinformation. Methodologically, qualitative bibliographic research was adopted, reviewing works by theorists such as Castells and Moretzsohn, as well as legislation and studies on algorithms and digital behavior. The results reveal a paradox: social media amplifies marginalized voices and facilitates collective organization, but they also fuel polarization and epistemological erosion through mechanisms such as filter bubbles, emotional verbalization, and coordinated disinformation operations. It is concluded that democratic regulation of the digital environment requires innovative approaches that combine algorithmic transparency, media literacy and multistakeholder governance, overcoming both naïve laissez-faire and authoritarian interventionism. The study demonstrates the urgency of updating legal frameworks to face the new challenges of the digital public sphere without sacrificing their emancipatory potential.