UDC: 130.2
https://doi.org/10.25198/2077-7175-2025-2-100


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CULTURAL GAP IN THE INFORMATION AGE: FROM THE LOSS OF OBJECTIVE FOUNDATIONS TO THE REPRESENTATION OF THE «CONSTRUCTED PHENOMENON»

A. N. Minchenko
Chelyabinsk State Institute of Culture, Chelyabinsk, Russia
e-mail: ma-n@bk.ru

Abstract. Relevance of research is defined by the fact that in the conditions of modern multiculturalism, the accumulation of various differences and contradictions often leads to the formation of cultural divides, which are a cumulatively conflicting phenomenon. However, if they constructively overcome the «cultural divide» can generate creative transformations.

The aim of the study is the philosophical comprehension of the phenomenon of the cultural divide, the ways of its manifestation in the being of the man of the information age. In order to achieve the goal, a philosophical analysis of the manifestations of the significant features of this phenomenon in the pre-informational and information epochs, based on the system and comparative approaches, has been conducted, revealing the trend of forming cultural divides. Their presence has been found primarily in the intensification of destructive processes themselves as a result of technological, social and political changes leading to the loss of cultural integrity and the growth of cultural heterogeneity. The growth of the number of subjects of culture and separate socio-cultural communities, the appearance of their «digital» forms, the expansion of the cultural space due to new virtual cultural «fields» and globalization, the multiplication of interactive opportunities for individuals are singled out as the reasons for such dynamics. The catalyzing factor is the increasing polarization and absolutization of cultural contradictions as a result of wide technological possibilities: availability of production of audio-visual content, emotionally affecting the audience, erosion of ethical framework of communication, due to her anonymity in networks, violation of intergenerational continuity of sociocultural experience. The scale and variety of destructive communication practices, disinformation and partisan activities of anonymous actors in the network, analyzed in the article, indicate the emergence of representative divides in the modern cultural space. Based on artificially formed interruption of the unifying cultural foundations and constructed cultural contradictions, representative divides can shape new intercultural antagonism relationships in the digital age.

The scientific novelty of the study lies in the fact that, based on the previously substantiated characteristics of the cultural divide, the transformation of the objective grounds of the cultural divide in the information age, including their transformation into a representative «the phenomenon being designed» as a reference without a referent.

Based on the results obtained, the study will continue in the direction of identifying ways to bridge the cultural divide in the life of the information age in the context of multiculturalism, globalization and digitalization.

Key words: cultural gap, cultural differences, cultural contradictions, cultural diversity, information age, pre-information age.

Cite as: Minchenko, A. N. (2025) [Cultural gap in the information age: from the loss of objective foundations to the representation of the «constructed phenomenon»]. Intellekt. Innovacii. Investicii [Intellect. Innovations. Investments]. Vol. 2, pp. 100–112. – https://doi.org/10.25198/2077-7175-2025-2-100.


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