DAI Jie
The structural transformation of the information society has significantly altered the forms of social solidarity. In the information society, the social structure is becoming more flattened, social interactions more mobile, and social relationships more networked, posing challenges to traditional modes. Specifically, these challenges manifest in three key dimensions: the dilemmas of social shared knowledge caused by the fragmentation of specialized expertise, the digital divide in information access, and the echo-chamber effect in information selection; the dilemmas of social consensus arising from the dissolution of traditional collective consciousness, the fragmentation of interest identification, and the coexistence of diverse values; the lack of empathy due to “physical absence”, the indifference to empathy due to “not being there in person”, and the social empathy dilemmas caused by rapid shift of focus and emotional compartmentalization. Under such circumstances, the united front, as a vital mechanism for solidarity in the information society, should actively fulfill its role in extensively connecting individuals, social groups, social organizations, and social strata, but also vigorously innovate in construction platforms and methods and pathways, strive to broaden social awareness, actively promote social consensus, and make every effort to cohesively build up the social empathy, so as to realize profound social solidarity and integration on a comprehensive scale on the basis of such a mechanism.
