A Threat to Democracy? Uncivil Speech and Democracy’s Value

The rise of uncivil speech in digital public spheres has prompted concern about its effects on democracy. This paper explores the relationship between incivility in social media and democracy, moving beyond simplistic claims that uncivil discourse is inherently harmful. It argues that different conceptions of why democracy is valuable—versions of egalitarian and electoral conceptions—offer distinct evaluative standpoints for the democratic consequences of incivility. Under egalitarian conceptions, incivility undermines democracy by silencing marginalized voices, reinforcing hierarchies of social status, or by degrading the deliberative processes that contribute to democratic legitimacy. Under electoral conceptions incivility poses a democratic problem either when it reduces political trust that impairs the value of accountability or when it erodes norms of legitimate opposition that are essential for civil peace. By analyzing these frameworks, the paper clarifies when and why incivility may pose a genuine threat to democracy while also proposing how to navigate conflicts between restraint and inclusion by advancing a novel account of the duties of civility in the public sphere.