Media Accountability durch Media Governance?

New services in the internet are changing the media communication structures and therewith the associated norms and rules of public communication and its terms of participation and use. Although the internet offers new freedom to communicate, it also provokes new problems such as the lack of control over the content. The article analyses how the internal regulatory structures of the providers are configured to enable an accountable use of the services. Here, the internal regulation of three social media providers is examined. Two aspects are relevant: The rules of the providers and the status of users. The results of the analysis propose a fragmented regulatory structure and divergence between the ideological postulates of excessive participation with social media providers and the de facto existing opportunities for participation of users in shaping the rules. As the results show, a concept of regulated self-regulation is necessary that establishes a culture of responsibility.