ABSTRACT
This chapter lays out the book’s theoretical trajectory. In a first step, it grounds issue spatiality within public spheres theory. Space is understood as relational and socially constructed, but at the same time constraining and structuring social action. This understanding aligns with the constructed and contentious nature of public issue discourses. Based on normative public spheres theory, as well as contemporary descriptions of digital public spheres, four analytical aspects of issue spatiality are derived: the distribution of place-naming overall, the distribution of sub-issues, the distribution of spatial integration, and the distribution of resonance. In the second part of the chapter, the notion of issue spatiality is connected to local, urban communication environments. The availability of communicative resources and infrastructures at the neighborhood level influences public participation and visibility. In particular, residential composition, the density of community organizations, and third places are identified as socio-spatial properties that likely influence the issue space. A theoretical model of issue spatiality and its predictors is derived.
