November 2007 - Air-L - lists.aoir.org

Call-for-Papers: Fifth Annual Social Theory Forum
by Orion Anderson 15 Nov '07

15 Nov '07

CALL FOR PAPERS Fifth Annual SOCIAL THEORY FORUM April 16 and 17, 2008, University of Massachusetts Boston A Foucault for the 21st Century: Governmentality, Biopolitics and Discipline in the New Millennium Keynote Speakers Include: James Bernauer (Boston College) Charles Lemert (Wesleyan University) Barbara Cruikshank (UMASS Amherst) Margaret McLaren (Rollins College) How relevant is Foucault's social thought to the world we inhabit today? Foucault is best remembered for his historical inquiries into the origins of "disciplinary" society in a period extending from the 16th to the 19th centuries. Today, however, under the conditions of global modernity, the relevance of his work has been called into question. With the increasing ubiquity of markets, the break up of centralized states and the dissolution of national boundaries, the world today seems far removed from the bounded, disciplinary societies Foucault described in his most famous books. Far from disciplinary, society today is "post panoptic," as Nancy Fraser has argued--in a move which seems to confirm Jean Baudrillard's demand that we "forget Foucault." Yet in recent years, it has become apparent that Foucault's thoughts on modern society have not been exhausted, and, indeed, that much remains to be explored. While ripples from his initial impact on English speaking scholarship are still evident in such areas as the study of discourse, sexuality, the body and institutions, it is undeniably the case that new threads of Foucauldian influence have also become available. For example, his reflections on "governmentality" have by now garnered a rich scholarly focus on the conditions of personal life under the economic liberalism. His work on "biopower" has opened new terrain for political and activist discourse on globalization and population. His accounts of panopticism and surveillance have proven relevant to the study of contemporary policing practices in a post 9/11 world. Indeed, it could be argued that, in the new millennium, new threads of Foucauldian thought have emerged, enabling richer understandings of power and subjectivity under uniquely contemporary conditions. The conference will feature both invited and submitted papers and presentations, as well as audiovisual materials. Please send a one-page abstract or proposal as email attachment (MS Word Format) to SocialTheoryProposal(a)ideologiesofwar.com by December 18, 2007. The aim of the Fifth Annual Meeting of the Social Theory Forum, to be held on April 16-17, 2008, at the University of Massachusetts Boston, is to weigh in on the relevance of Foucault's ideas in the context of a new millennium, and to reassess Foucault's contributions to contemporary social theory in light of these developments. We invite papers from any disciplinary or interdisciplinary perspective, addressing the contemporary application of Foucault to contemporary social life and social theory. Topics might include, but are not limited to: . Governmentality and Neo-liberalism . Political Spirituality and Contemporary Religious Movements . Biopolitics, Globalization and Populations . Race, Genetics and the Politics of Life . Ethics, Biopower and the Politics of Consumption . Panopticism and Surveillance in a Post 9/11 World . Governmentality, Biopower and the Politics of Risk . Subpolitics, Life Politics and New Social Movements . Foucault and the Left in a Global Context . Foucault and the Penal-Industrial Complex . Ethics, Identity and Individualization . Genealogy . Feminism The conference will feature both invited and submitted papers and presentations, as well as audiovisual materials. Please send a one-page abstract or proposal as email attachment (MS Word Format) to SocialTheoryProposal(a)ideologiesofwar.com by December 18, 2007. Proceedings of the conference will be peer-reviewed by anonymous referees for possible publication in a special issue of The Discourse of Sociological Practice, the printed and online journal of the Department of Sociology at University of Massachusetts Boston. Co-organizers JORGE CAPETILLO-PONCE (contact for inquiries): Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Massachusetts Boston GLENN JACOBS, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of Massachusetts Boston; SIAMAK MOVAHEDI, Professor of Sociology, University of Massachusetts Boston; SAMUEL BINKLEY, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Emerson College.

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Ten Practical Online Steps for Government Support of Democracy - Request for Related Research
by Steven Clift 15 Nov '07

15 Nov '07

I recently publish a short article on government, the Internet, and democracy as part of an excellent 47 page collection to be published online shortly by the U.S. federal government. For the short and long versions, a link to the General Service Administration's newsletters, or to be notified via DoWire.Org about the GSA's online release of the full collection, see: http://www.dowire.org/notes/?p=383 If members of AOIR have recently published research on any of these steps, please zip me a copy: clift(a)publicus.net In summary: Ten Practical Online Steps for Government Support of Democracy 1. Timely, personalized access to information that matters. 2. Help elected officials receive and sort, then better understand and respond to e-mail. 3. Dedicate at least 10% of new e-government developments to democracy. 4. Announce all government public meetings on the Internet in a uniform manner. 5. Allow citizens to look-up all of their elected officials from the very local to national in one search. 6. Host online public hearings and dialogues (or “e-consultations” as they are known outside the U.S.) 7. Embrace the rule of law by mandating the most democratically empowering online services and rights across the whole of government. 8. Promote dissemination through access to raw data from decision-making information systems. 9. Fund Open Source sharing internationally across e-government. 10. Local up – Develop a strategic approach to building local democracy online. Sincerely, Steven Clift E-Democracy.Org Chair and Ashoka Fellow Editor, Democracies Online Newswire - DoWire.Org - join 2500 members from: http://dowire.org/wiki/Newswire

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FW: Enterprise post at JISC CETIS
by Rowin Young 15 Nov '07

15 Nov '07

Apologies for multiple viewings; this post may be of interest to some on this list. ----------------------------------------- Research Officer in Enterprise Technology Researcher B Institute for Educational Cybernetics, University of Bolton Ref: ECB015SU One Year Temporary Fixed-Term appointment in the first instance, with opportunity for possible extension. The University of Bolton seeks to appoint a creative, motivated and highly capable individual to the position of Research Officer in Enterprise Technology within the Institute of Educational Cybernetics. The post-holder will have evidence of a strong background in enterprise technology, an interest in the broad range of technical, organisational and other issues around technology in organisations, with the ability to work in a highly dynamic environment. The post-holder will play a key role within the JISC Centre for Educational Technology and Interoperability Standards, an internationally recognised service focussed on the adoption of innovative technologies in the education sector. This service includes an activity concerned with identifying key technology interventions to improve organisational viability and effectiveness by engaging with sector professionals, with emerging technologies and with standards initiatives at national, European and global levels. The post-holder will demonstrate a capability and willingness to develop expertise in a broad range of technologies that can be applied in an enterprise setting, be willing to engage in a community of practice of professionals from across the sector and to contribute to the research and development agenda. The post-holder will also play a role in the development of new research and development activities, and will work with the Institute?s management team in the design, development and delivery of proposals for future research. They will need to have a wide range of technology interests, be aware of developing trends in the field and be able to use this knowledge to develop new ideas for research, or to incorporate it into existing projects. They will have an active role to play in acquiring and creatively applying expertise in emerging technologies, tools and frameworks. A postgraduate qualification or equivalent in a relevant technology or business discipline will be a major advantage. Salary in the range of £20,721 - £31,299 per annum. Closing date for applications is Tuesday 4 December 2007. For further information and or an informal discussion about this post contact Scott Wilson, Assistant Director, JISC CETIS by email at s.wilson(a)bolton.ac.uk Information about JISC CETIS is available at: http://jisc.cetis.ac.uk <http://jisc.cetis.ac.uk/> Application forms and further are available on our website: http://data.bolton.ac.uk/personnel/hr/personnelmatters/r&s/vacancies/ad_ECB… or by email to personnel(a)bolton.ac.uk Please note that this appointment is subject to Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) Enhanced Disclosure.

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ELO and Library of Congress to archive 300 works of E-Lit
by Mark Marino 15 Nov '07

15 Nov '07

Hi, all, thought this might be of interest to AOIR from multiple POV, including archiving issues: best, Mark ********************** The United States Library of Congress is archiving 300 electronic literature web sites in collaboration with the ELO (Electronic Literature Organization) and archive-it.org. To participate in this project, please see <http://eliterature.org/wiki> (and note there is a FAQ linked on that page, <http://eliterature.org/wiki/index.php/FAQ>) If you have further questions, please use the contact page at the main ELO URL, For more information on the archive itself, please contact ELO Director Joseph Tabbi (jtabbi(a)gmail.com) or Patria Tomaszek (tomaszek(a)fk615.uni-siegen.de) ***************** Categories: ************* Electronic Literature: Collections of Works: Sites that aggregate works of electronic literature by multiple authors, such as online journals and anthologies. Electronic Literature: Individual Works: Individual works of electronic literature and collections of works by a single author, as opposed to collections of works by multiple authors. Electronic Literature: Context: Sites related to the critical, theoretical, and institutional contexts of electronic literature. ******************************* Criteria for submission ************************** This style guide is meant to provide general guidelines for drafting archive-it description entries. Contributions should be submitted directly on: http://eliterature.org/wiki/ All contributions should include the title of the work and the URL where it resides. All contributions should name the entity that is primarily responsible for making the work (name of Editor, Author or other Creators). Please name the language that is used and the publisher (the entity that makes the work available; i.e. name of a person, organization or a service). Additionally, you should provide a brief and substantial (1-3 sentence) description of the work, following these guidelines: * You might want to identify the site's purpose, its content, its creators and its aesthetic. * You should focus on the work itself and its mode of presentation (not the awards won or the influence exerted by the author or institution). * Evaluative statements and self-evaluations ought to be avoided. * Avoid stating quotes (i.e. comments on a work) or reproductions of reviews and blurbs written for promotional purpose. * Information on technique, software and programming should not precede or obscure descriptions of what a work is about. * Important dates like the foundation of the site or journal should be added in the description. Provide information on how often a journal is published and what it is focusing on. * Please include ISSN numbers in your description. Mark Marino Electronic Literature Organization http://eliterature.org

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CFP: 9th International Digital Government Research Conference (dg.o 2008)
by Jennifer Stromer-Galley 15 Nov '07

15 Nov '07

Call for Papers 9th International Digital Government Research Conference (dg.o 2008) Partnerships for Public Innovation Hilton Bonaventure Hotel Montreal, Canada - May 18-21, 2008 Home Page: http://www.dgo2008.org General Inquiries: dgo2008(a)easychair.org Submission web site: http://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=dgo2008 The 9th annual dg.o international conference is a forum for presentation and discussion of interdisciplinary digital government research and practice and its applications in diverse domains. The conference is presented by the Digital Government Society of North America (DGSNA), with major support from the US National Science Foundation. The conference theme, Partnerships for Public Innovation, focuses on information-intensive innovations in the public sector that involve linkages among government, universities, NGOs, and businesses. This theme emphasizes the importance of sharing practical issues, policy perspectives, research insights, and expert advice, in order to reach higher levels of performance in diverse public enterprises. Each year the conference combines: * Presentations of effective partnerships among government professionals, university researchers, relevant businesses, and NGOs, as well as grassroots citizen groups, to advance the practice of digital government. * Research on digital government as an interdisciplinary domain that lies at the intersections of computing research, social and behavioral science research, and the problems and missions of government. Interested participants are invited to submit management or policy papers, research papers, or student research papers, as well as proposals for panels; industry, government, and research prototype demonstrations; posters, Birds-of-a-Feather discussions, and pre-conference tutorials and workshops. The Conference Committee particularly encourages submissions on interdisciplinary and crosscutting topics addressing broad government challenges. Topics include, but are not limited, to the following: * Digital Government Application Domains: such as courts, crisis management, education, emergency response; international initiatives and cooperation, health and human services, law enforcement and criminal justice; legislative systems, natural resources management, grants administration, government statistics, regulation and rulemaking; security; tax administration; transportation systems, and urban planning. * IT-enabled Government Management and Operations: such as digital government organization and management strategies, decision-making processes; information technology adoption and diffusion; program planning; IT and service architectures, cross-boundary information sharing and integration, long-term preservation and archiving of government information, information assurance, service integration, as well as technology transition and transfer. * Information Values and Policies: such as accessibility, digital democracy and governance, digital divide, openness, privacy, public participation in democratic processes, security, transparency, trust, and universal access to information and services. * Information Technology and Tools to Support Government: such as collaboration tools; cyberinfrastructure for digital government domains; digital libraries and knowledge management; geographic information systems; grid computing; human-computer interaction; information integration; interoperable data, networks and architectures; large scale data and information acquisition and management; mobile government; national and international infrastructures for information and communication, multiple modalities and multimedia; service-oriented architectures; semantic web; social networking, software engineering for large-scale government projects. We are pleased to announce three luminaries who have made significant contributions in the field of digital government as daily keynote speakers for the dg.o 2008 conference! IMPORTANT DATES * November 1, 2007 - Conference submission website becomes available. The submission site is located at: http://www.easychair.org/conferences/?conf=dgo2008. * December 1, 2007 - Submission deadline for all papers and panel sessions * February 1, 2008 - Submission deadline for pre-conference tutorials and workshops * February 1, 2008 - Acceptance notifications for all papers and panel sessions * February 15, 2008 - Submission deadline for Birds-of-a-Feather (BOF) sessions, posters, and system demonstrations * March 1, 2008 - Acceptance notification for pre-conference tutorials, workshops, posters, system demonstrations, and BOF sessions * March 15, 2008 - All camera ready versions are due

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Google Policy Fellowship (for students)
by Jeremy Hunsinger 15 Nov '07

15 Nov '07

http://www.google.com/policyfellowship/ As lawmakers around the world become more engaged on Internet policy, ensuring a robust and intelligent public debate around these issues becomes increasingly important. That’s why we’re launching the Google Policy Fellowship Program—to support students and organizations working on policy issues fundamental to the future of the Internet and its users. Think of it as the public policy version of Google's Summer of Code. The Google Policy Fellowship program offers undergraduate, graduate, and law students interested in Internet and technology policy the opportunity to spend the summer contributing to the public dialogue on these issues, and exploring future academic and professional interests. Program Overview Fellows will have the opportunity to work at public interest organizations at the forefront of debates on broadband and access policy, content regulation, copyright and trademark reform, consumer privacy, open government, and more. Participating organizations are based in either Washington, DC or San Francisco, CA, and include: American Library Association, Cato Institute, Center for Democracy and Technology, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Internet Education Foundation, Media Access Project, New America Foundation, and Public Knowledge. More information about the host organizations and the areas of focus for the fellows are outlined here. Fellows will be assigned a lead mentor at their host organizations, but will have the opportunity to work with several senior staff members over the course of the summer. Fellows will be expected to make substantive contributions to the work of their organization, including conducting policy research and analysis; drafting reports and analyses; attending government and industry meetings and conferences; and participating in other advocacy activities. Who should apply? We’re looking for students who are passionate about technology, and want to spend the summer diving headfirst into Internet policy. Students from all majors and degree programs who posses the following qualities are encouraged to apply: • Demonstrated or stated commitment to Internet and technology policy • Excellent academic record, professional/extracurricular/volunteer activities, subject matter expertise • First-rate analytical, communications, research, and writing skills • Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously and efficiently, and to work smartly and resourcefully in a fast-paced environment • General “googliness” (we’re kidding!) Fellows will receive a stipend of $7,000 for 10 weeks during the summer of 2008 (June-August). Exact dates of the fellowship will be worked out by the fellow and host organization. Applications are due by January 1, 2008. Students who are accepted into the program will be notified by March 1, 2008. To learn about our application process, click here. If you're an organization interested in hosting Fellows for the summer of 2008, please contact us. Jeremy Hunsinger Information Ethics Fellow, Center for Information Policy Research, School of Information Studies, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (www.cipr.uwm.edu ) Words are things; and a small drop of ink, falling like dew upon a thought, produces that which makes thousands, perhaps millions, think. --Byron

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Last call: Interactive Com. tenure-track position @ Quinnipiac University
by Alex Halavais 15 Nov '07

15 Nov '07

Hi, all, Hope to see some of you at the National Communication Association meeting in Chicago this week. If any of you are interested in the below position, and would like to chat about it in Chicago (or via phone), please email me. Yes, the date we started considering things has passed, but we would still love to be considering you! If you got a chance to talk with me or Ewa in Vancouver, you know we are growing our grad program, and looking for people with outstanding competencies on both the technical and theoretical side to come help us create a really innovative program. Best, Alex The School of Communications of Quinnipiac University seeks candidates for a tenure-track appointment at the assistant or associate level in the area of interactive communications to start August, 2008. The successful candidate, with expertise in the area of interactive communication, will make major contributions to our graduate program in this area; he or she will also contribute to other concentrations in the curriculum, such as, journalism, public relations, media production, or media studies, depending upon experience and research/creative interests. An advanced degree is required, and a high level of technical proficiency is expected. The ability and willingness to teach in both traditional and online environments is essential. Candidates are asked to document substantial professional experience in the area of content production for online media organizations engaged in the creation and distribution of news, information services, or entertainment and cultural works. The Ed McMahon Mass Communications Center at Quinnipiac University is a state of the art instructional facility that includes a fully high definition television studio and post production facility. Quinnipiac University is in Hamden, Connecticut, ten minutes from downtown New Haven, ninety minutes from NYC, and two hours from Boston. Sleeping Giant State Park provides a dramatic background to the pristine 500-acre New England campus where 280 full-time faculty teach more than 5,200 full-time undergraduate students and 2,000 graduate students in our schools of communications, business, health, and law, and the College of Liberal Arts, which also contains the division of education. Quinnipiac consistently ranks among the top universities with master's degree programs in the northern region in US News and World Report's America's Best Colleges. For more information, please visit www.quinnipiac.edu. Send curriculum vitae and supporting documentation to Search Committee, Interactive Communications SB-MCM, School of Communications, Quinnipiac University, 275 Mt. Carmel Avenue, Hamden, CT 06518 or e-mail to: ICMSearchCommittee(a)quinnipiac.edu. Consideration of candidates will begin November 1 and continue until filled. -- -- // // This email is // [X] assumed public and may be blogged / forwarded. // [ ] assumed to be private, please ask before redistributing. // // Alexander C. Halavais // Social Architect // http://alex.halavais.net //

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Re: [Air-L] facebook more popular than porn?
by Tuszynski, Stephanie 14 Nov '07

14 Nov '07

Basically this guy writes columns for TIME promoting his own company's intel without ever explaining how the company works or collects his data. Bill Tancer also "discovered" fanfiction back in August: http://weblogs.hitwise.com/bill-tancer/2007/08/the_fan_fiction_phenom.html http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1657764,00.html His clearly-not-scientific inquiry included this gem: "I took a poll around the office... 10 of 10 respondents also had never heard of this category of consumer generated content" I was a little puzzled that the man's job is to advise companies about online behavior, and yet it took him until August of 2007 to ever hear of fanfiction. I do give him credit, though, that the TIME article accurately cites the history of the phenomenon as pre-dating the Internet. He also makes a point in the fanfiction article on TIME to mention adult fanfiction and porn as well, which makes me wonder what expectations he's operating under regarding people's behavior online (the "it's all for porn and sex offenders" meme that won't die). Stephanie Tuszynski Visiting Assistant Professor Department of Theatre and Film University of Toledo >Readers of Time Magazine must have noted the claim by Bill Tancer: > Visits to porn sites have dropped from 16.9% of all site visits in the U.S. in > October 2005 to 11.9% as of last week, a 33% decline. Currently, for web users > over the age of 25, Adult Entertainment still ranks high in popularity, coming > in second, after search engines. Not so for 18- to 24-year-olds, for whom > social networks rank first, followed by search engines, then web-based e-mail > ? with porn sites lagging behind in fourth. If you chart the rate of visits to > social-networking sites against those to adult sites over the last two years, > there appears to be a strong negative correlation (i.e., visits to social > networks go up as visits to adult sites go down). It's a leap to say there's a > real correlation there, but if there is one, then I'd bet it has everything to > do with Gen Y's changing habits: they're too busy chatting with friends to > look at online skin. Imagine. He's drawing on data from his own company, Hitwise - the full story is available online: http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1678586,00.html thoughts and comments?

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CFP: 6th European Interactive TV Conference
by Ursula Maier-Rabler 14 Nov '07

14 Nov '07

The 6th European Interactive TV Conference will take place in Salzburg 3-4 July 2008. The CFP is now online at http://www.euroitv2008.org I kindly request you to forward this announcement to your colleagues and in your networks. Ursula Maier-Rabler ___________________________________________________________ Ass.Prof.Dr. Ursula Maier-Rabler (Director) ICT&S Center - Center for Advanced Studies and Research in Information and Communication Technologies & Society University of Salzburg Sigmund-Haffner-Gasse 18 5020 Salzburg Austria Fon +43 662 8044 4801 (Sectretary 4800) Fax +43 662 6389 4800 Mobil +43 664 8289254 WEB: www.icts.uni-salzburg.at __________________________________________________________

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facebook more popular than porn?
by Charles Ess 13 Nov '07

13 Nov '07

Readers of Time Magazine must have noted the claim by Bill Tancer: > Visits to porn sites have dropped from 16.9% of all site visits in the U.S. in > October 2005 to 11.9% as of last week, a 33% decline. Currently, for web users > over the age of 25, Adult Entertainment still ranks high in popularity, coming > in second, after search engines. Not so for 18- to 24-year-olds, for whom > social networks rank first, followed by search engines, then web-based e-mail > with porn sites lagging behind in fourth. If you chart the rate of visits to > social-networking sites against those to adult sites over the last two years, > there appears to be a strong negative correlation (i.e., visits to social > networks go up as visits to adult sites go down). It's a leap to say there's a > real correlation there, but if there is one, then I'd bet it has everything to > do with Gen Y's changing habits: they're too busy chatting with friends to > look at online skin. Imagine. He's drawing on data from his own company, Hitwise - the full story is available online: http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1678586,00.html thoughts and comments? - charles Distinguished Research Professor, Global Studies Center <http://www.drury.edu/gp21> Drury University Springfield, MO 65802 USA Guest Professor (fall, 2007), Department of Media Studies Department of Media Studies IT Park Helsingforsgade 14 8200 Aarhus N Denmark Office: (45) 8942 9219 Mobile: (45) 2986 8967 President, Association of Internet Researchers <www.aoir.org> Co-Editor, International Journal of Internet Research Ethics http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/SOIS/cipr/ijire.html Co-chair, CATaC conferences <www.catacconference.org> Professor II, Globalization and Applied Ethics Programmes <http://www.anvendtetikk.ntnu.no/pres/bridgingcultures.php> Exemplary persons seek harmony, not sameness. -- Analects 13.23

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