Abstract: The young citizens of the EU must be actively involved in the European debate and policymaking and also need to be given the chance to express and support their position on all important issues concerning the future of Europe. The voice of the young citizens of the EU needs to be heard and the EU institutions need to be fully involved in the intercultural youth dialogue as well. The EU awareness of a constant debate with the young Europeans in the social media will create better conditions for a well-functioning European Public Sphere (EPS). One of the key factors of the recent and future communication with the young people is the proper usage of the new social media on the Internet. These perfectly developed communication platforms make most of the offline communication restrictions disappear and provide an open stage in terms of location, culture, gender and political orientation. Does the EU need a new social network, which combines the institutional voice of Europe and at the same time the voice of the European citizens? Is it necessary an online platform to be created which will realize the existence of a constant and inspiring dialogue about the EU policies between the institutions and the youth in all member states of the EU.
Keywords: EU, European debate, youth, European public sphere, social media, European citizens, communication with the young Europeans.
Rhetoric and Communications E-journal, Issue 5, September 2012, http://rhetoric.bg/, ISSN 1314-4464