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Internet history of publics and participation RE: #AoIR2017 Submissions Deadline Reminder
by Peter Timusk 20 Feb '17

20 Feb '17

Asking for help here... I am not working in a school nor studying in a school but I work in the research industry in government. The Internet is one topic amongst several I work on. While many of the immediate bosses at my job are doctors of philosophy I am not. Our work focuses on statistics but I read more widely than that and help each year with peer review for the AoIR conferences. I am wondering what theory beside political participation I can use here? I want to tell a story as an observer of the Internet acquisition ( making a web site, using a twitter handle etc., organizing a meeting or protest) of government ministries and radicals and local community groups and computer user groups. Just four or so time lines in Internet history. Stories of how our government started using twitter or how Drupal came to be used on all Canadian government web sites because of an accessibility challenge in our Supreme court. Or a short story of the local user groups in the open source world and their local meetings and connections with global open source projects like Drupal and Open Street Maps. I can imagine this fitting the conference by describing these as 'networked publics'. I also see that participation and democracy is still a distinguishing characteristic for some of the world and the Internet v say fake news, broadcast news, entertainment stars, one to many communication. We still hold out hope for Babylon. Would this be enough or deep enough for a paper at this conference do you think? Just some history stories with political participation the integrating theory? I imaging if I was hearing a paper or discussion like this I would be interested but is it academic enough? Peter Timusk Government statistics worker, B.Math, B.A. Peter Timusk I do not speak for my employer or associations that I belong to, or volunteer with unless otherwise noted. -----Original Message----- From: Air-L [mailto:air-l-bounces@listserv.aoir.org] On Behalf Of Michelle, AoIR Association Coordinator Sent: Monday, February 20, 2017 4:05 AM To: air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org Subject: [Air-L] #AoIR2017 Submissions Deadline Reminder #AoIR2017 Submission deadlines are below. Please note that the submission deadline for extended abstracts, panels, roundtables, workshops, fishbowl, and experimental sessions is *1 March 2017.* *Please be aware of the upcoming submission deadlines:* 1 MARCH 2017 Submissions due for PAPERS, PANELS, ROUNDTABLES and FISHBOWLS, EXPERIMENTAL SESSIONS, and PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS 1 APRIL 2017 Nominations for Nancy Baym Book award and Best Dissertation Award due 20 MAY 2017 Applications due for conference travel SCHOLARSHIPS and for DOCTORAL COLLOQUIUM 1 AUGUST 2017 Early Bird Registration Deadline for all presenters 30 SEPTEMBER 2017 Deadline for uploading accepted, non-blind, final version of paper and panel submissions Submission information is available here: https://aoir.org/aoir2017/subinfo2017/ Regards, Michelle AoIR Association Coordinator _______________________________________________ The Air-L(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/

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21st European Conference on Advances in Databases and Information Systems (ADBIS 2017): Fifth Call for Papers
by Announce Announcements 20 Feb '17

20 Feb '17

*** Fifth Call for Papers *** 21st European Conference on Advances in Databases and Information Systems ADBIS 2017 Hilton Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus 24 - 27 September, 2017 http://www.cs.ucy.ac.cy/~george/lm/lm.php?tk=YWlyLUwJCQlhaXItTEBsaXN0c2Vydi… The main objective of the ADBIS series of conferences is to provide a forum for the dissemination of research accomplishments and to promote interaction and collaboration between the database and information system research communities from European countries and the rest of the world. The ADBIS conferences provide an international platform for the presentation of research on database theory, development of advanced DBMS technologies, and their advanced applications. The conference will consist of regular sessions with technical contributions (regular papers, short papers) reviewed and selected by an international program committee, as well as of invited talks and tutorials presented by leading scientists. The official language of the conference will be English. A Doctoral Consortium and different Workshops will be held in line with the main conference. TOPICS We invite original papers describing results that broadly belong to both theory and practice of databases and information systems. The list of specific topics of interest follows, with a note that it is not exhaustive and we welcome novel results addressing topics not included in the list. · Data intensive sciences and databases · Theoretical foundations of databases · Management of large scale data systems · Data models and query languages · Database monitoring and (self-)tuning · Data curation, annotation, and provenance · Data warehousing, OLAP, and ETL tools · Indexing, query processing and optimization · Data mining and knowledge discovery · Big data storage, replication, and consistency · Modeling, mining and querying user generated content · Data quality and data cleansing · Web, XML and semi-structured databases · Sensor databases and mobile data management · Text databases and information retrieval · Probabilistic databases, uncertainty and approximate querying · Temporal and spatial databases · Graph databases · Databases on emerging hardware architectures · Distributed data platforms, including Cloud data systems, key-value stores, and Big Data systems · Information extraction and integration · Streaming data analysis · Scalable data analysis and analytics · Data and information visualization; and user interfaces · Information quality and usability · Information system architectures and networking · Business process modeling and optimization · Data and information flow engineering and management · Context-aware and adaptive information systems · Data and information intensive services · Requirements engineering for databases and information systems · Artificial intelligence in databases and information systems · Data, information, and information systems security · Innovative platforms for data and information handling · Innovative approaches for database and information systems engineering · Novel database and information systems applications PAPER PUBLISHING ADBIS accepted research papers will be published in a Springer Lecture Notes in Computer Science volume. Papers must not exceed 14 pages in the LNCS format. For camera-ready papers use Latex or Word style (find here http://www.cs.ucy.ac.cy/~george/lm/lm.php?tk=YWlyLUwJCQlhaXItTEBsaXN0c2Vydi…. The program committee may decide to accept a submission as a short paper if it reports interesting results but does not justify publication of a full paper. ADBIS short research papers must not exceed 8 pages. The best paper authored solely by students will receive an award. Best papers of the main conference will be invited for submission in special issues of the ISI-indexed journals Information Systems (http://www.journals.elsevier.com/information-systems/) and Informatica (http://www.informatica.si/) SUBMISSION GUIDELINES · Papers must be written in English. · Papers must contain previously unpublished work and not be submitted concurrently to another conference. · Papers are submitted using an electronic submissions system, as detailed below. · An Author of an accepted paper must register to ADBIS 2017 in order to have the paper published. · Accepted papers must be presented at the conference by one of the authors. · ADBIS papers must be submitted via the EasyChair system: http://www.cs.ucy.ac.cy/~george/lm/lm.php?tk=YWlyLUwJCQlhaXItTEBsaXN0c2Vydi… . · Papers must be submitted as a single PDF document · Authors of accepted papers must submit along with the camera-ready version of their paper a copyright form filled (http://www.cyprusconferences.org/adbis2017/files/springerform.pdf) and signed. Please note that only authors employed by the EU (as an institution) tick the relevant box. Authors who simply reside or work in an EU country should not tick this box. IMPORTANT DATES · Full and Short Papers: March 30, 2017 · Notification of Acceptance: May 25, 2017 · Camera-ready Submission: June 15, 2017 COMMITTEES Steering Committee Chair · Leonid Kalinichenko, Russian Academy of Science, Russia General Chair · George A. Papadopoulos, University of Cyprus, Cyprus Program Chairs · Marite Kirikova, Riga Technical University, Latvia · Kjetil Norvag, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway Proceedings Chair · Christos Mettouris, University of Cyprus, Cyprus Workshops Chairs · Johann Gamper, Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Italy · Robert Wrembel, Poznan University of Technology, Poland Doctoral Consortium Chairs · Jerome Darmont, Universite Lyon 2, France · Stefano Rizzi, University of Bologna, Italy

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Call for AoIR Tartu panel participants on Algorithmic Agency
by Taina Bucher 20 Feb '17

20 Feb '17

AoIR colleagues, We are looking for a few additional people who might be interested in contributing to an AoIR panel exploring critical questions and issues surrounding algorithmic agency, power and publics. Researchers and media commentators alike are seemingly fascinated with the magic-like and opaque properties of algorithms. Algorithms are touted as responsible for, or implicated in, a range of diverse outcomes and opportunities – from the mundane to the transformative - for individuals, corporations and communities. Questions around how to critically frame and understand algorithmic agency in contemporary life and where and how to situate questions about power and accountability are raised. This panel is interested in addressing and reframing some of these issues, including the challenges in locating agency in the first place, the politics of making agential claims, and the possible social, political and ethical implications of algorithmic agency (however defined) within and towards publics. If you are interested in participating please send a 1200 word abstract following the AoIR template to Michele (m.willson(a)curtin.edu.au<mailto:m.willson@curtin.edu.au>) and Taina (wfg568(a)hum.ku.dk) by the 25th February outlining your specific contribution to a discussion of algorithmic agency, power and publics. Short queries about the suitability of topic can be sent to either one of us before that date. Those contributors whose topic fits the panel mix will be contacted by late 27th Feb. (given the impending deadlines, it is a tight turnaround). Depending on the range and mix of submissions, we may also explore a possible special issue publication. Please only submit should your attendance at the conference be a likely outcome. Apologies for this very short notice, we tried sending this message out a week ago but it somehow got stuck along the way. Thanks Michele & Taina --- Taina Bucher Associate Professor, PhD Dept. of Media, Cognition and Communication University of Copenhagen Karen Blixens Vej 4 2300 Copenhagen S Denmark

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Call for Entries - Global mobileGov Awards 2017: Deadline Announcement
by emre＠mgovernment.net 20 Feb '17

20 Feb '17

Dear Colleagues, This year mLife Events' Global mGov Awards is a major part of The mobileGov World Summit to be held in Brighton during 7-9 May 2017. The deadline for entries is approaching fast. Leading mGovernment implementations by public sector organisations as well as solutions for the public sector by the industry will be awarded in order to inspire governments, businesses and citizens. Increasing number of entries for the mobileGov Global Awards from Europe, Asia and South America have been received, and we are still soliciting nominations for the Award until the 1st of March 2017 Please visit the website www.m4life.org for more info on the Awards and show interest, if you are willing to enter or nominate a project /solution for the Award. The Draft program of the Summit is posted and registrations are open. At the Summit, best performing public sector organisations will share their challenges and achievements. There will be tutorial presentations and plenary talk sessions by reputable experts, covering all topics relevant to mobile public services. For further info on confirmed speakers, the draft program, registrations; exhibiting and sponsorship opportunities, please refer to conference website: www.m4life.org and show interest. Please feel free to circulate this information to those who may be interested in mobileGov World Summit and Global mobileGov Awards 2017. Best Regards, -- Emre Simsek Researcher MobileGov UK http://www.mgovernment.net/ emre(a)mgovernment.org

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#AoIR2017 Submissions Deadline Reminder
by Michelle, AoIR Association Coordinator 20 Feb '17

20 Feb '17

#AoIR2017 Submission deadlines are below. Please note that the submission deadline for extended abstracts, panels, roundtables, workshops, fishbowl, and experimental sessions is *1 March 2017.* *Please be aware of the upcoming submission deadlines:* 1 MARCH 2017 Submissions due for PAPERS, PANELS, ROUNDTABLES and FISHBOWLS, EXPERIMENTAL SESSIONS, and PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS 1 APRIL 2017 Nominations for Nancy Baym Book award and Best Dissertation Award due 20 MAY 2017 Applications due for conference travel SCHOLARSHIPS and for DOCTORAL COLLOQUIUM 1 AUGUST 2017 Early Bird Registration Deadline for all presenters 30 SEPTEMBER 2017 Deadline for uploading accepted, non-blind, final version of paper and panel submissions Submission information is available here: https://aoir.org/aoir2017/subinfo2017/ Regards, Michelle AoIR Association Coordinator

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DHBenelux 2017, second call for papers
by Mirko Tobias Schaefer 20 Feb '17

20 Feb '17

Dear list, this call sounds as "first wave" DH as possible, but they are open to critical contributions, explorative, mixed methods and digital methods. Anyway, we at Utrecht Data School would be more than happy to see also AoIR colleagues contributing to this conference. And we'd love to host a summer party ;-) Cheers, mirko [apologies for cross-posting] The fourth *DHBenelux Conference* (http://dhbenelux2017.eu/ <https://webmail.uu.nl/OWA/redir.aspx?C=xYgCNlMedzo9Fw4xfGU7kc_xd8Rx666B2--j…>) will take place in Utrecht, the Netherlands, from *Monday 3 to Wednesday 5 July 2017*. The conference will be hosted by Utrecht University and is open to everyone, including researchers from outside the Benelux. The DHBenelux conference aims to disseminate digital humanities projects in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxemburg, and foster collaboration between them. DHBenelux organises an annual conference in one of the Benelux countries. The conference serves as a platform for DH researchers and offers an opportunity for members of the DH community to meet, present research, demonstrate tools, and discuss projects. We invite submissions of abstracts on any aspect of digital humanities and digital social sciences, ranging from practical applications to methodology and theory. Relevant subjects can be any of—but are not limited to—the following: ·Application of digital technology in literary, linguistic, cultural, and historical studies ·Exploration and analysis of multimedia resources ·Text mining and image mining (e.g. stylometry, topic modelling, sentiment mining) ·Digital media, digitization, curation of digital objects ·Software development, systems design and information modelling ·Interfaces, augmented reality, serious gaming ·Design and application of algorithms ·Infrastructures and virtual research environments ·Ethnography and user studies ·Critical study of digital arts, architecture, music, film, theatre, new media, video games ·Ethical, social and economic aspects of digitality and digital humanities ·Didactics of digital humanities We particularly encourage PhD students and junior researchers to submit abstracts. Presentation categories are: * *Individual presentations* on papers will be given 15 minutes presentation time and 5 minutes for Q&A. Individual presentations are especially suitable for presenting research results, whether in terms of theory, methodology or outcomes. * A poster session will be scheduled, but* posters* may be put up for display during the entire conference. Posters are useful to convey technical explanations and clarifications, and to demonstrate projects and on-going research. * For *demonstrating* prototypes, finished software, hardware technology, tools, datasets, digital publications and so forth a ‘market place’ will be organized. * Groups of researchers may propose *panels*. One-hour panel sessions are chaired by a panellist who will be responsible for the balance between presentation and discussion. *Individual presentation and panel proposals* may have a maximum length of* 1000 words*. The maximum length for *demonstration and poster proposals* is *500 words*. References and/or bibliography are excluded from the word count. This year peer-reviewing by the Programme Committee will be double-blind. Therefore, *please do not include your name* *and affiliation* in the abstract but only in the EasyChair submission form. After acceptance of the proposal you will have the opportunity to submit a final version with the name(s) of the author(s), in which you may also integrate any commentary from the reviewers. The preferred language of the conference is English. Proposals, presentations and posters in any language in the Benelux will be accepted; note, however, that this will limit the impact of your message. To submit your proposal, please go to the DHBenelux 2017 Submission page <https://webmail.uu.nl/OWA/redir.aspx?C=bmcSWy909k2adi3VVMgiLv4spCmpr2Rdb1rI…> for instructions and a link to EasyChair. Selection will be based on the following review criteria: * originality * relevance to the field * academic quality * clear focus All abstracts will be published in Open Access. Deadline for submitting abstracts: *Wednesday 15 February 2017, 23:59 CET*. Notification of acceptance: *Wednesday 5 April 2017*. Arjan van Hessen (general chair) Joris van Eijnatten (programme chair) --

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research on digital town halls
by Amy Johnson 19 Feb '17

19 Feb '17

Hi all, I'm looking for scholarship on uses of different digital formats for town hall meetings or similar. Any recommendations? Global recommendations would be particularly welcome. Many thanks Amy --- Amy Johnson HASTS<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__web.mit.edu_hasts_gradu…>, MIT Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society<http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/people/ajohnson>, Harvard @shrapnelofme<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__twitter.com_shrapnelof…>

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Post doc opening to study stigmergic coordination, Syracuse University School of Information Studies
by Kevin G Crowston 18 Feb '17

18 Feb '17

Applications are invited for a postdoc position at the Syracuse University School of Information Studies. The successful applicant will join an NSF-supported study of stigmergic coordination, that is, coordination that is supported through a shared work product instead of or in addition to through explicit communications. The postdoc will carry out field research with open source software developers and others to understand the mechanisms underlying stigmergy in those settings, and contribute to the design and evaluation of a system to support stigmergic coordination in another setting. Responsibilities may also include working with and supervising undergraduate, masters and doctoral students. Applicants should have or expect shortly to receive a PhD in computer-supported cooperative work, information science, information systems or a related field. The ideal candidate will have experience with multi-method research, specifically including qualitative field research (e.g., interviews, observation, qualitative data analysis) and field experiments (e.g., evaluation of collaborative systems). Candidates should be knowledgable about computer-supported cooperative work in general and preferably about free/libre open source software development practices in particular. Programming ability is desirable but not necessary. An ideal candidate will have experience carrying out both independent and collaborative research, and of writing up research work for publication. The position requires good communication skills, including excellent spoken and written English. In addition to work on the project, the success applicant be able to develop research objectives, projects and proposals for his or her own and joint research, with the assistance of a mentor if required. The initial position is for one year with the possibility of extension for a second year. The position is available from summer 2017. Potential applicants are invited to contact Kevin Crowston (crowston(a)syr.edu) to discuss the position. Formal applications should be submitted online at: http://www.sujobopps.com/postings/68890 Review of applicants will start immediately and continue until the position is filled. About Syracuse University Syracuse University is a private research university, with over 14,000 full-time undergraduate and over 4,000 full-time graduate students representing the 50 states and 124 foreign countries. Founded in 1870, it is home to 11 schools and colleges offering undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees in Architecture, Arts and Sciences, Education, Engineering and Computer Science, Human Services and Health Professions, Information Studies, Law, Management, Citizenship and Public Affairs, Public Communications, and Visual and Performing Arts. Syracuse is a medium-sized city situated in the geographic centre of New York State approximately 250 miles northwest of New York City. The metro-area population totals approximately 500,000 and offers many social, cultural, and recreational options, including parks, museums, festivals, a symphony orchestra and professional regional theatre. Syracuse and Central New York present a wide range of seasonal recreation and attractions ranging from water skiing and snow skiing, hiking in the Adirondacks, touring the historic sites and wineries along the Finger Lakes to biking trails along the Erie Canal. According to the latest edition of the Places Rated Almanac, Syracuse ranks in the top 10% of Best Places to Live; it is 28th on U.S. News & World Report's list of the best places to live in the United States (top in New York State). Syracuse University is an equal-opportunity, affirmative-action institution. Kevin Crowston | Distinguished Professor of Information Science, Associate Dean for Research and Acting PhD Program Director | School of Information Studies Syracuse University 348 Hinds Hall Syracuse, New York 13244 t (315) 443.1676<tel://(315)%20443.1676> f 315.443.5806<tel://315.443.5806> e mailto:crowston@syr.edu crowston.syr.edu<http://crowston.syr.edu/>

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Re: [Air-L] Virtual communities spanning multiple online platforms
by Richard Page 18 Feb '17

18 Feb '17

I wrote about the ‘goon’ culture of SA breaking into the MMORPG EVE Online, although my argument was more that the community helped to transform the platform rather than vice versa. https://www.academia.edu/29808695/We_play_Something_Awful_Goon_projects_and… <https://www.academia.edu/29808695/We_play_Something_Awful_Goon_projects_and…> —Dick Richard J. Page PhD, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa dick(a)richardjpage.com > On Feb 17, 2017, at 7:00 AM, air-l-request(a)listserv.aoir.org wrote: > > Send Air-L mailing list submissions to > air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > air-l-request(a)listserv.aoir.org > > You can reach the person managing the list at > air-l-owner(a)listserv.aoir.org > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Air-L digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: Virtual communities spanning multiple online platforms > (Jonathan Marshall) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Thu, 16 Feb 2017 22:03:30 +0000 > From: Jonathan Marshall <Jonathan.Marshall(a)uts.edu.au> > To: AoIR mailing list <Air-L(a)listserv.aoir.org> > Subject: Re: [Air-L] Virtual communities spanning multiple online > platforms > Message-ID: <1487282609731.71231(a)uts.edu.au> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > > My book Living on Cybermind, to some extent deals with a virtual group that used multiple sites although it focuses on one main site, as I thought it possibly unethical to pursue them everywhere :) > > also wrote about problems of online ethnography in "Ambiguity, Oscillation and Disorder: Online Ethnography and the Making of Culture" > > http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/journals/index.php/mcs/article/view/1598 > > jon > > ________________________________________ > From: Air-L <air-l-bounces(a)listserv.aoir.org> on behalf of David Brake <davidbrake(a)gmail.com> > Sent: Friday, 17 February 2017 5:26 AM > To: AoIR mailing list > Subject: [Air-L] Virtual communities spanning multiple online platforms > > Dear all, > > I have a grad student who wants to look into this really interesting question in a literature review essay (see below) - I don't know what literatures to suggest to her however - the texts I am familiar with about virtual community all tend to look at them on a single platform. Are there multi-sited ethnographies and other studies examining this you can suggest? > >> I would like to look at how presence on multiple platforms (eg, Facebook, Twitter, Web, Blog, etc) either strengthens or dilutes a community. This springs off of the discussion you and I had last week about how the platform shapes the community (or not to beat the dead McLuhan horse - how the media shapes the message). I'm curious to examine how the community changes as the platform changes - eg, is it the same community spread across multiple platforms or does each platform represent a distinct community. > > It's my fault for irresponsibly finding the subject interesting ;-) > -- > Dr David Brake, Researcher and Educator http://davidbrake.org/, @drbrake > Author of "Sharing Our Lives Online: Risks and Exposure in Social Media” https://www.facebook.com/sharingourlivesonline <https://www.facebook.com/sharingourlivesonline> > _______________________________________________ > The Air-L(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list > is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org > Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org > > Join the Association of Internet Researchers: > http://www.aoir.org/ > > > UTS CRICOS Provider Code: 00099F > DISCLAIMER: This email message and any accompanying attachments may contain confidential information. > If you are not the intended recipient, do not read, use, disseminate, distribute or copy this message or > attachments. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete > this message. Any views expressed in this message are those of the individual sender, except where the > sender expressly, and with authority, states them to be the views of the University of Technology Sydney. > Before opening any attachments, please check them for viruses and defects. > > Think. Green. Do. > > Please consider the environment before printing this email. > > ------------------------------ > > Subject: Digest Footer > > _______________________________________________ > The Air-L(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list > is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org > Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org > > Join the Association of Internet Researchers: > http://www.aoir.org/ > > ------------------------------ > > End of Air-L Digest, Vol 151, Issue 17 > **************************************

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Reminder: CfP: "Digital media are making politics impossible" deadline soon
by Hasan Azad 18 Feb '17

18 Feb '17

Digital media are making politics impossible The question on the liberal left’s collective mind since Trump’s election to the office of the 45th president of the United States – but not on the mind of many right-wing Republicans, for whom Trump’s victory is a sign of the imminence of Christ’s return* – has been: “How? How did Trump get elected?” Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Chris Hedges wrote back in March of 2016 that a Trump victory was likely because: “College-educated elites, on behalf of corporations, carried out the savage neoliberal assault on the working poor. […] These elites […] spoke the language of values – civility, inclusivity, a condemnation of overt racism and bigotry, a concern for the middle class – while thrusting a knife in the back of the underclass for their corporate masters. This game has ended.”** Six years ago, in an interview with Hedges, Noam Chomsky predicted that if a charismatic man ran for president – on a platform of making illegal immigrants and Blacks the enemy, while also turning white males into a persecuted minority – he would soon sweep the presidential election.*** However, these analyses don’t get to the crux of the matter as far as the creation of the conditions that made it possible for Trump to be elected. According to Hannah Arendt, politics is based on an idea of active citizenship, on the value and importance of civic engagement, and collective deliberation about all matters affecting the political community. A vital component in such a conception of politics is an informed citizenry. Contrary to what Silicon Valley techno-utopians predicted (and indeed still predict will happen), digital technologies have not brought about a revolution in human learning and achievement. The recent US presidential elections, Brexit in the UK, and the rise of the far right in Europe**** are – we contend – a clear indication that digital media have been making politics, in Arendt’s understanding of the term, more and more impossible. For example, Trump’s presidential campaign hired the same company used by the Brexit campaign, Cambridge Analytica, which used big data and social media platforms such as Facebook, as a way to manipulate voters.+ Sociologist Saskia Sassen has argued that knowledge is re-constituted and thought of differently within the digital ecology: “[T]he body of knowledge gets distributed and spliced-up in different ways so that you lose the packaging, and in losing that packaging all sorts of possibilities open up.”++ Taking authority and power to be co-constitutive of the power/knowledge dyad (à la Foucault), as the means for sharing and discussing political knowledge changes radically, so too does the way political authority is constituted. For instance, as far as traditional forms of political “authority,” in 2015 Trump successfully undermined John McCain’s considerable traditional authority in a way that could only happen in the age of digital media. At the Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa, Trump said about the war veteran McCain, “He’s not a war hero.” “I like people who weren’t captured.”+++ Making fun of McCain in such a manner was seen as a travesty by mainstream media, and the analyses ran that Trump would not survive such a “gaffe.” The reality is that – as an extension of reality TV – politics has become all about “gaffes,” and instead of apologizing Trump continued to attack McCain, saying: “[McCain is] yet another all talk, no action politician who spends too much time on television and not enough time doing his job.”+++ As one insightful (and funny) Tweet put it: “Trump is like clickbait decided to take human form.”+* Put differently: The public fascination with Trump – his saying what “everyone” was thinking but dared not say before – is the logical (political) outcome of a society primed by digital media platforms that thrive on superficial, outrageous posts and images. This special issue of Allegra Lab examines the ways in which digital media are making politics impossible. We invite contributions from people across disciplines. Please send a 250-word abstract (final submissions will be 2000-2500 words – due date TBA) to ha2248(a)columbia.edu by February 25 for consideration. __________ * “Alex Jones prayerfully reflects on the victory of President Trump,” November 9, 2016 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVp7XTsBXx4 ** Chris Hedges, “The Revenge of the Lower Classes and the Rise of American Fascism,” Truthdig, August 8, 2016, https://www.truthdig.com/repor t/item/the_revenge_of_the_lower_classes_and_the_rise_of_amer ican_fascism_20160302 *** Chris Hedges, “Noam Chomsky Has ‘Never Seen Anything Like This,” Truthdig, Apr 19, 2010 http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/noam_chomsky_has_never_s een_anything_like_this_20100419 **** “Europe’s Rising Far Right: A Guide to the Most Prominent Parties,” The New York Times, December 4, 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/intera ctive/2016/world/europe/europe-far-right-political-parties-listy.html + “The Data That Turned the World Upside Down,” Motherboard, Hannes Grassegger and Mikael Krogerus, January 28, 2017 ++ “Saskia Sassen Plenary at Theorizing the Web 2011” https://vimeo.com/23044503 +* “Hilarious political tweets that will make the internet great again” http://twentytwowords.com/hilarious-political-tweets-that-w ill-make-the-internet-great-again/ +++ “Trump attacks McCain: 'I like people who weren't captured,” Politico, Ben Schreckinger July, 16, 2015 http://www.politico.com/story/ 2015/07/trump-attacks-mccain-i-like-people-who-werent-captured-120317 Best, Hasan -- Hasan Azad, PhD Dept. of Religion Columbia University NY, 10027 Red and Green Oil on Water - A Novel: https://www.amazon.com/Red-Green-Water-Hasan-Azad-ebook/dp/B01IZMTHEY/ref=s… website: http://www.hasanazad.com/main/ Academia.edu: https://columbia.academia.edu/HasanAzad Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/has-an-apple co-founder: Yoga Makes Art: https://yogaandwriting.wordpress.com/2016/02/

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