In each of the following questions, a sentence is given with a part printed in bold. Choose the option from among the alternatives given that best replaces the bold part to make the sentence grammatically and contextually correct. If the bold part does not require any replacement, choose option (e) No replacement required. The algorithmic amplification systems deployed by dominant social media platforms have been empirically shown to systematically prioritise engaging but divisive content over accuracy and broader public interest considerations, raising urgent and unresolved questions about whether the self-regulatory commitments of technology companies are sufficiently robust to safeguarding democratic discourse from the distortions of algorithmically induced polarisation.

The bold segment contains a grammatical construction error at the intersection of the adjective "robust" and the verbal phrase that follows it. Error: "robust to safeguarding" — the construction "sufficiently [adjective] to [verb form]" requires the bare infinitive (base form) after "to," not the gerund. "To safeguarding" uses the gerund, which is grammatically incorrect in this structure. The correct construction is "sufficiently robust to safeguard." Correct form: "sufficiently robust to safeguard" — using the bare infinitive after the "sufficiently + adjective + to" construction. Examining each option: (a) "sufficiently robust for safeguarding the democratic" — uses the preposition "for" followed by a gerund, which creates a different but acceptable preposition-gerund construction; however, "for safeguarding" changes the idiomatic meaning slightly; additionally, "the democratic discourse" with the definite article is semantically imprecise since "democratic discourse" is used generically here without a specific referent. (b) "sufficiently robust to safeguard democratic" — correctly uses the bare infinitive "safeguard" after "sufficiently robust to"; retains "democratic discourse" without unnecessary article; grammatically and contextually precise. (c) "were sufficiently robust enough to safeguard democratic" — changes present tense to past ("were"), altering the temporal frame; additionally "sufficiently...enough" is doubly redundant since both words convey the same degree meaning — a clear grammatical error. (d) "have been sufficiently robust enough to safeguard the democratic" — uses present perfect tense, which is contextually different from the simple present required; retains the redundant "sufficiently...enough"; adds unnecessary "the." Hence (b).