Emancipatory Information Access Platforms Achieve Resistance to Authoritarian Capture Amidst Rising Democratic Erosion

The increasing vulnerability of online information access platforms to authoritarian control presents a critical challenge in an era marked by democratic decline and the growing influence of large technology companies. Bhaskar Mitra, Nicola Neophytou, and Sireesh Gururaja, working independently and at Carnegie Mellon University respectively, address this urgent problem by proposing a new framework for designing information infrastructure. Their research moves beyond conventional concerns of fairness and safety, instead drawing on the theories of Paulo Freire to explore how information access can actively contribute to emancipation. This work is significant because it challenges the traditional relationship between technologists and users, advocating for a collaborative approach where communities define their own information needs and co-create the platforms that serve them. Ultimately, the authors offer a problem-posing framework to guide the development of genuinely emancipatory information access systems for the future.

Worldwide, the emerging capabilities of generative AI technologies, such as AI persuasion, and the increasing concentration of economic and political power in the hands of Big Tech present significant challenges. This raises the question of what alternative AI infrastructure must be reimagined and built to mitigate the risks of authoritarian capture of our information ecosystems. Researchers explore this question through the lens of Paulo Freire’s theories of emancipatory pedagogy, offering a radically different perspective on the sociotechnical concerns surrounding AI. Freire’s theories provide an alternative to current dominating frames of fairness, accountability, confidentiality, transparency, and safety, allowing for a more critical examination of AI’s societal impact. The work explicitly challenges existing paradigms and seeks to contribute to a more equitable and democratic future for artificial intelligence.

Community Dialogue for Inclusive Information Access

The research challenges conventional approaches to developing Information Access (IA) technologies, moving beyond the idea that technologists alone should address risks to marginalized communities. Drawing on Paulo Freire’s theories, the authors propose a framework that positions technologists more as facilitators, initiating dialogue with these communities to collaboratively define problems and solutions. This shifts the focus from technologists imposing interventions to empowering communities to shape technology as part of their ongoing efforts against oppression. The core methodology centres around a ‘problem-posing’ framework, operationalising Freire’s pedagogy for the design of future IA platforms.

Rather than technologists predetermining solutions, the first step involves presenting potential issues to marginalized groups, encouraging them to articulate their needs and envision how technology might serve their emancipatory struggles. The second step necessitates a redesign of existing online technology infrastructure to deliberately create spaces where community members can actively co-opt and co-construct the technology itself. This approach advocates for a fundamental change in how IA systems are built, moving away from a top-down model towards a more participatory and collaborative process. The authors argue that technologists must actively relinquish their perceived authority and instead facilitate a process where marginalized communities become active agents in the creation of technology.

This involves structurally exposing the underlying technology stacks to allow for community-driven modification and adaptation. Ultimately, the research calls for technologists to acknowledge their potential complicity in the rise of authoritarianism and to proactively build infrastructure that supports resistance and empowers marginalized communities. The work, presented as a contribution to the Proceedings of the 2026 ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency, frames this as a critical ethical imperative for the field of Information Access. This work moves beyond traditional concerns of fairness, accountability, and transparency, instead focusing on mitigating the risks of authoritarian capture of information ecosystems. Researchers explicitly address the established division between technologists who build platforms and the users who interact with them, drawing parallels to Freire’s teacher-student dynamic. The study advocates a shift in the role of technologists, proposing they initially frame challenges as problems for marginalized communities, empowering them to shape information access as part of their broader struggle against oppression.

This approach prioritizes community co-creation and co-construction of online infrastructure, rather than technologists imposing solutions. Scientists operationalize Freire’s theories into a problem-posing framework, envisioning future information access platforms built on principles of emancipation and community control. Experiments reveal a fundamental rethinking of the online ‘stack’, advocating for structural exposure of spaces where community members can actively modify and rebuild the information environment. This research does not present specific technical implementations, but rather a theoretical foundation for future development.

The team posits that by centering the needs and agency of marginalized groups, technologists can build more resilient and equitable information systems. Further exploration, as evidenced by cited work from 2024-2026, examines the growing risks posed by generative AI, the concentration of power within Big Tech, and the potential for digital authoritarianism. These investigations highlight the urgent need for alternative infrastructure that prioritizes community ownership and control, moving beyond the limitations of existing platforms. The work builds upon existing participatory design methodologies, as demonstrated by studies from 2018, to create a robust framework for emancipatory information access.

Empowering Communities Through Problem-Posing Information Access

This work introduces a novel framework for understanding and building information access (IA) platforms, drawing on the theories of Paulo Freire to challenge conventional approaches. The authors argue that current IA development often replicates an unequal power dynamic, positioning technologists as those who solve problems for users, rather than collaborating with them to define and address issues. By applying Freire’s concepts of emancipatory pedagogy, they propose a shift towards a problem-posing approach, where marginalized communities are empowered to actively shape IA systems as part of their broader struggle against oppression. The central contribution lies in reframing the role of technologists, advocating they first present the risks of IA to affected communities and then design infrastructure that facilitates co-construction and co-option of these systems.

This moves beyond simply mitigating bias or misinformation, instead focusing on structural changes that enable communities to build pedagogical experiences and critically examine oppressive structures. The authors acknowledge that their framework does not negate the importance of technical interventions, but stresses that such efforts must be grounded in collective action and challenge the concentration of power within large technology corporations to avoid superficial solutions. The authors note a limitation in the existing focus on platform-centric solutions, which can overlook the broader political and economic forces at play. Future research, they suggest, should prioritise solidarity with marginalized communities and explore how technology stacks can be redesigned to genuinely support emancipatory struggles. This work offers a valuable theoretical grounding for a more equitable and community-driven approach to IA, potentially reshaping how we envision and build information systems for the future.