Abstract

The assertion that our society is ›complex‹ is hardly disputed. From this complexity of society, actors face the ›contingency‹ of their possibilities for action. Because social order offers a multitude of possible connections between elements, no action is strictly necessary; alternative options are always conceivable. This contingency is restrained in functional systems by symbolically generalized media of communication (sensu Parsons, Luhmann): money, power, or truth motivate the preference for certain selections – because money is paid, because the exercise of power should be avoided, or because one trusts and builds upon the findings of research. Thus, media amplify selectivity and increase the connectivity of a certain communication. The essay pursues the thesis that rankings function as amplifiers of selectivity. For the top positions in rankings, the chances increase that the corresponding products, individuals, parties, or programs will receive attention and can play a role in subsequent communication. In a society shaped by rankings, the social distribution of attention, therefore, follows more a logic of popularity than a logic of substance.