Collective Memory and Configuration of the Public Information Space in the Era of Mass Media

The article explores collective memory and the public information space in the modern era. The 21^st century is characterized by the development of globalization processes on a global scale and the dominance of digital technologies, which ensure the high speed and accessibility of information dissemination. These changes have led to a significant transformation in mass media and social communication, encompassing television, the press, the Internet, social networks, and other forms of mass interaction that shape the public information space. The social sphere, in all its diverse manifestations, transcends the experience and memories of individuals and small groups. In this context, experience and immediate memories gain significance as communication factors when they are transformed into symbols. Combining the symbolic functions of experience and memory, disseminated information permeates the environment of everyday life, where direct interactions between individuals and collectives occur. The author identifies the formation of a phenomenon that can be termed the “horizon of modernity.” This concept suggests that a variety of perspectives from groups primarily engaged in everyday interactions shape symbolic networks that guide communal behavior and form a context against which direct interactions take place. Modern broadcasting media transform information to meet the demands of mass users and achieve commercial efficiency and political objectives set by the ruling elite. Currently, mass media wield enormous power, gaining the ability to simulate a virtual representation of events that consumers often mistake for reality, thereby overlooking the deception. The author concludes that the illusion of well-being created by mass media poses a risk of distorting both the horizons of modernity and historical memory. Humanity faces the challenge of countering this danger by preserving the deep symbols of world culture.

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