Module manager: Eike Mark Rinke
Email: e.m.rinke@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable
Year running 2026/27
This module is not approved as an Elective
This module explores how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping democratic politics and the distribution of power in society. It introduces you to key models of democracy and the democratic values they prioritise and equips you to evaluate AI through a democratic lens. You will examine issues surrounding how AI is transforming the public sphere, political communication and citizenship, as well as the risks posed by disinformation, AI’s entanglement with “post-truth” politics, new digital divides, and the political economy of AI. You will also explore how AI might strengthen democratic ideals such as inclusion, civic learning, and deliberation by supporting public reasoning and constructive discourse. The module provides the conceptual groundwork and applied analysis needed for careers in AI ethics, governance, regulation, responsible deployment, and political education.
The module aims to equip you with the conceptual tools and political analysis skills to unpack and navigate the democratic challenges and opportunities raised by AI. It also aims to develop your background knowledge of democracy as a field of study: to gain familiarity with key models of democracy and an appreciation of their use in assessing technology as a source of power that can shape popular sovereignty, political representation, and accountability. You will be given the opportunity to reflect on what democratic values are and what they are not, and to develop your critical awareness of how AI continues and departs from earlier waves of technological change in politics, extending a line of development from mass media to social media to synthetic media.
The module’s learning activities will revolve around interactive seminars. Seminar activities will involve you applying democratic frameworks to real-world cases of AI use in political contexts (e.g., the public sphere, journalism, campaigns, public services, activism and governance). Through discussion and debate with other students, you will develop your expertise in diagnosing democratic risks (including disinformation and epistemic disruption, social trust and fragmentation, new digital divides, and shifts in power between states and technology firms) and in evaluating feasible governance and regulatory responses. You will also explore credible democratic opportunities generated by AI, including tools that support civic learning, counter misinformation, and enhance deliberation at both small and large scale.
On successful completion of the module you will be able to:
1. Critically evaluate major normative models of democracy and the differing trade-offs they imply when applied to AI and democratic governance;
2. Analyse how AI reshapes political power and democratic practice across political communication, the public sphere, and institutions of governance, identifying continuity and discontinuity with earlier technologies;
3. Produce well-reasoned and evidence-based positions on governance challenges and opportunities associated with AI across national, regional, and global democracy contexts;
4. Effectively communicate key concepts, cases, and policy implications in written form for specific audiences. (Academic, Work Ready and Enterprise skill);
5. Search for, evaluate, and use appropriate and relevant information sources (including policy and regulatory documents) to strengthen the quality of academic work and applied analysis. (Academic, Work Read and Enterprise);
6. Apply structured political analysis tools (e.g., stakeholder and power mapping; option appraisal) to assess AI deployments and governance choices, including likely impacts on democratic values such as inclusion, accountability, and democratic resilience. (Work Ready, Enterprise and Sustainability skill).
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seminar | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Seminar | 9 | 2 | 18 |
| Private study hours | 130 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 20 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 150 | ||
130
A 500 word blog style piece exploring an AI and Democracy issue. This piece will be reviewed mid semester with short feedback provided.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Coursework | 100 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
Check the module area in Minerva for your reading list
Last updated: 30/04/2026
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team