Conversation and deliberation across sensitive issues: a study on the use of media arguments on interpersonal debates

Abstract Informal debates have attracted increasing attention in deliberation studies. However, studies that explore how people make sense of plural information in the media are rare. This paper analyses how subjects from antagonizing social groups engage with a variety of media arguments to negotiate their opinions on a sensitive issue: the reduction of the criminal responsibility age in Brazil. We conducted five discussion groups in Belem (PA) and Belo Horizonte (MG) with members of the local police and with teenagers and adults who live in marginalized communities. By using an adapted version of the Discourse Quality Index, this study analyses: the justifications expressed during the discussion, the respect between groups and the role of personal stories in debates. It also investigates the arguments flow before and after the exposition of the media material to participants. The results contribute for advancing the understanding of the dynamics by which subjects situate themselves in a “space of reasons” in plural debates.