- Air-L - lists.aoir.org

Acknowledging AoIR for Contributions to Politics and the Internet volumes
by William Dutton 06 Apr '14

06 Apr '14

I want to thank colleagues on the AoIR listserv for helping me with a four volume collection of published articles for POLITICS AND THE INTERNET (Routledge 2014). I owe great thanks to all our colleagues who responded to my requests to the AoIR listserv for their nominations of key work. Their generosity and knowledge of the research proved crucial to ensuring that the four volumes reached well beyond the limits of my own perspective on such a wide-ranging and rapidly developing field. The contents are online http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415561501/ if you want to see if your particular nomination(s) made it into the final list, but thanks to all who contributed their expertise. It is designed as a compilation for libraries that pulls together otherwise scattered literature to ensure access to some early foundations of this burgeoning field. Bill William H. Dutton Professor of Internet Studies Professorial Fellow, Balliol College CITI Fellow, Columbia University Oxford Martin Fellow Oxford Internet Institute University of Oxford 1 St Giles', Oxford OX1 3JS UNITED KINGDOM Tel +44 (0)1865 287 210 Fax +44 (0)1865 287 211 Cell +44 (0)7768 823906 Web: http://people.oii.ox.ac.uk/dutton/about/ You can access my papers on the Social Science Research Network (SSRN) at: http://ssrn.com/author=478025 Latest Books: The Oxford Handbook of Internet Studies (2013): http://ukcatalogue.oup.com/product/9780199589074.do Politics and the Internet (2014): http://www.routledge.com/books/details/9780415561501/ Forthcoming: Society and the Internet: http://ukcatalogue.oup.com/product/9780199662005.do

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Please Post the Announcement Below
by Naomi Susan Baron 05 Apr '14

05 Apr '14

Subject: Internet Language Conference in Braga, Portugal (June 26-27, 2014) "Internet Language: Communicating in a Global World" International Conference Universidade do Minho 26-27 de Junho de 2014 With the emergence of the World Wide Web in the 1990s, communicating became not only much easier but possible on a global scale. By transmitting messages online, human beings soon developed new, creative ways to connect verbally with one another, the variety of which came to be labeled "computer-mediated communication" (CMC). This particular sort of discourse, as produced via networked computers, is a key element of present-day social and interpersonal interaction. Hence the lavish academic input into the study of the various forms that CMC takes, from email and comment boards to discussion groups, real-time chat and virtual reality roleplaying games. The linguistic features of the computer networked medium - which relies almost exclusively on visually-presented language - vary according not only to the kind of messaging system at stake, but also to the social and cultural backgrounds of the interactants. Besides, being free from the noise of other channels of communication and from physical context, they provide a privileged vantage point from which to investigate verbal interaction and the correlation between discourse and social practice. We welcome contributions for 20-minute papers in English on any aspect of the study of Internet language and online discourse. Possible topics include (but are not restricted to): - Linguistic features of synchronous versus asynchronous online exchanges: - Written/oral and formal/informal dichotomies - Lexical creativity - Syntactic fragmentation - Expressive substitutes for auditory information (like prosody and laughter) and for gestural and body information - Online conversational interaction: - Turn-taking: gaps, overlaps, interruptions - Adjacency strategies: addressivity, linking, quoting - Participation structures: one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-many - Uncertainty reduction strategies in the absence of nonverbal cues (self-disclosure, question asking, and question/disclosure intimacy) - Speech-act design: online criticism, requesting, complaining, protesting, disagreeing, "flaming", etc. - Politeness versus impoliteness in CMC: - Online face-threatening acts - Topic management - Role of gender and age in ingroup versus outgroup interaction - Questions of anonymity, accountability and physical, geographical and temporal detachment - "Netiquette" and FAQ discourse - Socially-conditioned variation: - Use of discursive markers of social class, age, race and ethnicity (such as culture-specific lexis, code-switching, etc.) - Adherence to culturally-prescribed gendered interactional norms - Choice of online identity versus stereotyping - Variation according to communication purpose (recreational, political, professional, pedagogical, creative, etc.) - Discursive indicators of social and antisocial behaviour: - Social behaviour: affectivity, cohesiveness, and interactivity - Antisocial behaviour: negative socioemotional behaviour, group exclusion, and confrontational interaction - Ideological expression of power hierarchies in virtual communities: - Discursive negotiation and expression of asymmetrical social relations in cyberspace - Overrepresentation of white, middle class, English-speaking males in computer-mediated discourse - Computer-mediated communication as a tool of either oppression or resistance - Dominance of the English language on the Internet, and the consequent global spread of U.S. values and cultural practices. Abstracts of 250-300 words, including full title of paper, name of speaker, institutional affiliation and position, a bio-sketch and contact details (postal address and e-mail address), should be sent as Word attachments to Prof. Isabel Ermida SIMULTANEOUSLY at iermida(a)ilch.uminho.pt and netlangconf(a)gmail.com until 15 April, 2014. Emails should be entitled: "Internet Language Conference". * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Naomi S. Baron Executive Director, Center for Teaching, Research, and Learning Professor of Linguistics (World Languages & Cultures, CAS) Hurst 214 American University Washington, DC 20016 phone: 202-885-2455 email: nbaron(a)american.edu

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FW: [JoCI] Special Issue: Building the First Mile of Broadband Connectivity + Communities Doing It For Themselves + Invitation to Online Launch
by michael gurstein 04 Apr '14

04 Apr '14

-----Original Message----- From: Michael Gurstein [mailto:gurstein@gmail.com] Sent: Friday, April 04, 2014 9:24 AM To: Michael Gurstein Subject: [JoCI] Special Issue: Building the First Mile of Broadband Connectivity - Commun + Invitation to Online Launch Readers: The Journal of Community Informatics has just published its latest issue at http://ci-journal.net/index.php/ciej. We invite you to review the Table of Contents here and then visit our web site to review articles and items of interest. We also invite you to an online launch of the special issue of the Journal of Community Informatics (JoCI) on the First Mile of Broadband Connectivity - Communities Doing It for Themselves. Authors will speak about their research and the communities they are working with. We will also launch the Community Informatics declaration: An Internet for the Common Good. Please join us for this exciting and informative event by watching the live stream and participating in the chat. The event will go live at 15:30 Atlantic Canada time on April 4: http://live.knet.ca/fni Thanks for the continuing interest in our work, Michael Gurstein Ph.D. Editor in Chief: Journal of Community Informatics, Vancouver CANADA Phone 604-602-0624 gurstein(a)gmail.com The Journal of Community Informatics Vol 10, No 2 (2014): Special Issue: Building the First Mile Table of Contents http://ci-journal.net/index.php/ciej/issue/view/43 Editorial -------- The First Mile of Brodband Connectivity in Communities: Introduction to the Special Issue Rob McMahon, Duncan Philpot, Susan O'Donnell, Brian Beaton, Tim Whiteduck, Kevin Burton, Michael Gurstein The Multistakeholder Model, Neo-liberalism and Global (Internet) Governance Michael Gurstein Points of View -------- The Ecology of Community Networking Richard Lowenberg Articles -------- The First Mile Approach to Community Services in Fort Severn First Nation Matthew Kakekaspan, Susan O'Donnell, Brian Beaton, Brian Walmark, Kerri Gibson Bridging the Divide: Understanding and Implementing Access to the Internet as a Human Right Michael Karanicolas Understanding Broadband Infrastructure Development in Remote and Rural Communities – a Staged and Reflexive Approach Ingjerd Skogseid, Ivar Petter Grøtte, Geir Liavåg Strand First Mile Challenges to Last Mile Rhetoric: Exploring the Discourse between Remote and Rural First Nations and the Telecom Industry Duncan Philpot, Brian Beaton, Tim Whiteduck ICT for sustainable development: an example from Cambodia Helena Grunfeld >From the First Mile to Outer Space: Tamaani Satellite Internet in Northern Quebec Rob McMahon, Thomassie Mangiok Opportunities and Challenges for First-mile Development in Rural Hawaiian Communities Jenifer Sunrise Winter, Wayne Buente, Patricia Amaral Buskirk Developing an e-Community Approach to Community Services in Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation Gilbert Whiteduck, Anita Tenasco, Susan O'Donnell, Tim Whiteduck, Emily Lockhart Local Communities and Home Rule: Extending the Alberta SuperNet to Unserved Areas Nadine I Kozak The Cancellation of the Community Access Program and the Digital Divide(s) in Canada: Lessons Learned and Future Prospects Chris Blanton An African Rural Internet Network, and its interactions with Academics Gertjan van Stam, Darelle van Greunen Notes from the field -------- Building Broadband Infrastructure from the Grassroots: the Case of Home LANs in Belarus Aljona Zorina, William H. Dutton GoFred: Municipally-Owned ICT Utilities in Fredericton, New Brunswick Mike Richard, Duncan Philpot Rural Communications – What is a Rural Municipality’s Role? Allan Bly Building First Nation Owned and Managed Fibre Networks across Quebec Tim Whiteduck, Brian Beaton Settler Colonialism and First Nations e-Communities in Northwestern Ontario Brian Beaton, Peter Campbell Information and Communication Technology for Education in an Algonquin First Nation in Quebec Emily Lockhart, Anita Tenasco, Tim Whiteduck, Susan O'Donnell The First Mile Connectivity Consortium and Digital Regulation in Canada Rob McMahon, Heather Hudson, Lyle Fabian ________________________________________________________________________ The Journal of Community Informatics http://www.ci-journal.net

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Subversive Twitter: Cuban Spring à la ZunZuneo
by Aziz Douai 04 Apr '14

04 Apr '14

Dear AoIRists, Some of you may have seen today's AP story in the *Washington Post* about the US attempt to create a Twitter like messaging system, ZunZeneo, to foment a "Cuban Spring" in Cuba (link below). While this reminds us of how communication technologies have always been at the forefront of serving "imperialist" projects, I am afraid this leaked story bolsters fears and suspicions of conspiracy and fair-minded folks alike about the "organic"/indigenous nature of the "Arab Spring." What does it say about our research into social media and activism in developing nations AND those of us who engage in this type of research? I would appreciate hearing some of your views on the ethics of such project, its implications on new media activism, and scholars'/researchers' analyses of "new" media enabled social change in developing nations. The full WP story is available here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/us-secretly-created-cuban-twitter-to… ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Aziz Douai, Ph.D. Assistant Professor Faculty of Social Science and Humanities University of Ontario Institute of Technology 55 Bond Street East Oshawa, ON L1G 0A5, Canada Tel: 905.721.8668, ext. 3790 Fax: 905.721.3372 E-mail: aziz.douai(a)uoit.ca Web: http://socialscienceandhumanities.uoit.ca/research/researcher-profiles/dr.-… -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "A popular government without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy, or perhaps both." James Madison, 1822 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Call for Papers, Final Symposium of the ADAM project (October 2-3, 2014, Paris)
by Francesca Musiani 04 Apr '14

04 Apr '14

Dear colleagues, this Call for Papers may be of interest. We are looking forward to receiving your proposals! Apologies for cross-postings. Kind regards Francesca *Call for Papers, Final Symposium of the ADAM project** - **October 2-3, 2014, MINES ParisTech (Paris, France)* *<< Reclaiming the Internet >> with distributed architectures:** rights, technologies, practices, innovation* The research program ADAM (Distributed Architectures and Multimedia Applications, adam.hypotheses.org) studies the technical, political, social, socio-cultural and legal implications of distributed network architectures. We invite paper proposals for the ADAM final symposium, in French and/or English, in the form of a 500 to 800 word abstract. Read the full Call for Papers here: http://adam.hypotheses.org/1939 -- *Appel à communications pour le colloque final du projet ADAM* 2-3 octobre 2014, MINES ParisTech *Architectures distribuées et réappropriations de l'Internet :** droits, techniques, usages, innovation* Le programme de recherche *ADAM - Architecture distribuée et applications multimédias *(adam.hypotheses.org) étudie les implications techniques, politiques, sociales, socio-culturelles et légales des architectures de réseau distribuées. Nous sollicitons des propositions de communication pour le colloque final du projet, en français et/ou en anglais, sous la forme d'un résumé de 500-800 mots. Lisez l'appel à communications dans son intégralité: http://adam.hypotheses.org/1937 *ADAM Project Team and Program Committee/* *Equipe du projet ADAM et comité de programme* Maya Bacache, Département SES, Télécom ParisTech Danièle Bourcier, CERSA, CNRS Primavera De Filippi, CERSA, CNRS Isabelle Demeure, INFRES, Télécom ParisTech Mélanie Dulong de Rosnay, ISCC, CNRS Annie Gentès, CoDesign Lab, Télécom ParisTech François Huguet, CoDesign Lab, Télécom ParisTech Alexandre Mallard, CSI, MINES ParisTech Cécile Méadel, CSI, MINES ParisTech Francesca Musiani, CSI, MINES ParisTech -- Francesca Musiani Postdoctoral researcher Centre de Sociologie de l'Innovation <http://www.csi.mines-paristech.fr/> MINES ParisTech 60, Boulevard Saint-Michel 75272 Paris Cedex 06, France Co-Chair, ESN-IAMCR <http://iamcr.org/s-wg/cctmc/esn> | Outreach officer, GigaNet <http://giga-net.org> Projet ANR ADAM - Architectures distribuées et applications multimédias<http://adam.hypotheses.org/> Internet Policy Review @ HIIG Berlin <http://policyreview.info/> Personal website <http://www.csi.mines-paristech.fr/People/musiani/> | Twitter <https://twitter.com/franmusiani>

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Call for Contributions: The INC MoneyLab Reader
by Geert Lovink 04 Apr '14

04 Apr '14

Call for Contributions: The MoneyLab Reader INC Reader #10 Edited by Geert Lovink and Nathaniel Tkacz MONEYLAB The MoneyLab project launched late 2013 by the Institute of Network Cultures and the University of Warwick considers sprouting alternative digital-economic forms, radical experiments with crypto-currencies, payment systems and revenue models against the backdrop of the ongoing global economic decline. The first MoneyLab conference took place in Amsterdam on March 21-22 2014. Blog reports and videos of the talks and discussions can be found through http://networkcultures.org/moneylab. MONEYLAB READER Part of the project will be the publication of the MoneyLab Reader in the INC Reader series. A volume of critical essays by theorists, programmers, activists, and artists; edited by Geert Lovink and Nathaniel Tkacz and to be published early 2015. WE INVITE Internet, visual culture and media scholars, critical finance scholars, anthropologists, Bitcoin researchers, artists, curators, free software and open-content advocates, P2P gurus, financial activists, conference participants and others to submit proposals for The MoneyLab Reader. POSSIBLE TOPICS Mobile Money // Networks & Money // Activism & Finance // Monetization of Social Capital // Crowdfunding Research // Crypto Money // Histories of Internet Banking // Money & Art // Recommendation Systems // E-wallets // Payment Systems // Like, +One, and Favorite Economies. FORMATS We welcome interviews, dialogues, essays and articles, images (b/w), email exchanges, manifestos, or other, with a maximum of 8,000 words, but preferably shorter at around 5,000 words. For scope and style, take a look at the previous INC Readers and the style guide (pdf). WANT TO JOIN? Send in your proposal (500 words max.) before June 1st, 2014. You may expect a response before July 1st, 2014. DEADLINE FOR CONTRIBUTIONS September 1st, 2014. EMAIL TO Miriam Rasch (Publications Coordinator @ Institute of Network Cultures) at miriam[at]networkcultures[dot]org BACKGROUND While the economic downturn endures and budget cuts prevail, we have witnessed the emergence and rise of alternative payment systems and revenue models in digital media. Online bartering sites, a plethora of crowdfunding platforms, new forms of valuation, e-wallets and crypto-currencies like Bitcoin, are but a few examples. These coincide with the huge growth of mobile money transfer services across Asia and Africa and the general convergence of digital and financial industries. MoneyLab: Coining Alternatives is a network that aims to critically explore, map and probe the politics, inner-workings and governance of these alternative digital-economic forms. It is not enough to merely promote and further develop (technical) alternatives, we also need time to ask ourselves critical questions and re-examine the very underpinnings of our endeavours. Of central importance to this project is the formation of a collaborative network of researchers, artists, developers, engineers, and others interested in sharing, coining, critiquing, and ushering in alternative network economies., focused on the monetization debate and looked into three specific fields of inquiry: Bitcoins and other crypto-currencies, crowd funding research and mobile money in the global South. MORE INFORMATION MoneyLab: http://networkcultures.org/moneylab INC Readers: http://networkcultures.org/publications INC Reader #10 Edited by Geert Lovink and Nathaniel Tkacz MONEYLAB The MoneyLab project launched late 2013 by the Institute of Network Cultures and the University of Warwick considers sprouting alternative digital-economic forms, radical experiments with crypto-currencies, payment systems and revenue models against the backdrop of the ongoing global economic decline. The first MoneyLab conference took place in Amsterdam on March 21-22 2014. Blog reports and videos of the talks and discussions can be found through http://networkcultures.org/moneylab. MONEYLAB READER Part of the project will be the publication of the MoneyLab Reader in the INC Reader series. A volume of critical essays by theorists, programmers, activists, and artists; edited by Geert Lovink and Nathaniel Tkacz and to be published early 2015. WE INVITE Internet, visual culture and media scholars, critical finance scholars, anthropologists, Bitcoin researchers, artists, curators, free software and open-content advocates, P2P gurus, financial activists, conference participants and others to submit proposals for The MoneyLab Reader. POSSIBLE TOPICS Mobile Money // Networks & Money // Activism & Finance // Monetization of Social Capital // Crowdfunding Research // Crypto Money // Histories of Internet Banking // Money & Art // Recommendation Systems // E-wallets // Payment Systems // Like, +One, and Favorite Economies. FORMATS We welcome interviews, dialogues, essays and articles, images (b/w), email exchanges, manifestos, or other, with a maximum of 8,000 words, but preferably shorter at around 5,000 words. For scope and style, take a look at the previous INC Readers and the style guide (pdf). WANT TO JOIN? Send in your proposal (500 words max.) before June 1st, 2014. You may expect a response before July 1st, 2014. DEADLINE FOR CONTRIBUTIONS September 1st, 2014. The reader is expected to come out early 2015. EMAIL TO Miriam Rasch (Publications Coordinator @ Institute of Network Cultures) at miriam[at]networkcultures[dot]org BACKGROUND While the economic downturn endures and budget cuts prevail, we have witnessed the emergence and rise of alternative payment systems and revenue models in digital media. Online bartering sites, a plethora of crowdfunding platforms, new forms of valuation, e-wallets and crypto-currencies like Bitcoin, are but a few examples. These coincide with the huge growth of mobile money transfer services across Asia and Africa and the general convergence of digital and financial industries. MoneyLab: Coining Alternatives is a network that aims to critically explore, map and probe the politics, inner-workings and governance of these alternative digital-economic forms. It is not enough to merely promote and further develop (technical) alternatives, we also need time to ask ourselves critical questions and re-examine the very underpinnings of our endeavours. Of central importance to this project is the formation of a collaborative network of researchers, artists, developers, engineers, and others interested in sharing, coining, critiquing, and ushering in alternative network economies., focused on the monetization debate and looked into three specific fields of inquiry: Bitcoins and other crypto-currencies, crowd funding research and mobile money in the global South. MORE INFORMATION MoneyLab: http://networkcultures.org/moneylab INC Readers: http://networkcultures.org/publications

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Literature on Instagram and activism
by Phil Bratta 04 Apr '14

04 Apr '14

Hi all, I'm currently working on a project that explores a hashtag used in Instagram during an art activism installation. Can anyone send me leads or scholarly literature on the study of Instagram, especially how the platform and its users connect to activism? Thank you! Phil -- PhD Student Department of Writing, Rhetoric & American Cultures Writing Center Satellite Coordinator Michigan State University 300 Bessey Hall East Lansing, MI 48824 philbratta(a)gmail.com http://www.philbratta.com/

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Re: [Air-L] Research about informal education on YouTube (Julia Lowe)
by Meryl Alper 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

Hi Julia, Regarding informal education, educational spaces, and educational communities on YouTube (e.g. the Nerdfighters), you will want to reach out to my fellow Ph.D. Candidate at USC Annenberg, Neta Kligler Vilenchik - kliglerv [at] usc [dot] edu. Her dissertation is on youth civic engagement online, and she has conducted a large case study with the Nerdfighters. Here is a specific link to a report she wrote for the MacArthur Digital Media & Learning Hub on fan community spaces and informal learning among youth: http://dmlhub.net/publications/decreasing-world-suck-fan-communities-mechan… Please also see this recent interview series between Henry Jenkins and Patricia Lange ( http://henryjenkins.org/2014/03/kids-on-youtube-an-interview-with-patricia-…) on Lange's new book, *Kids on YouTube: Technical Identities and Digital Literacies (http://www.amazon.com/Kids-YouTube-Technical-Identities-Literacies/dp/16113… <http://www.amazon.com/Kids-YouTube-Technical-Identities-Literacies/dp/16113…>)* Best, Meryl -- Meryl Alper Ph.D. Candidate in Communication Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism University of Southern California malper(a)usc.edu merylalper.com

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Sign the Freedom of Information and Expression-Declaration!
by Christian Fuchs 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

The information society, the Internet and the media are today largely controlled by large corporations such as Google and Facebook and a state-industrial complex. The control mechanisms unveiled by Edward Snowden, the closure of and attack against public service media, repression against critcal journalists, online platforms and activists, and a highly centralised Internet and media economy are characteristic for this situation. We live in an unfree information society with limits to expression and an unfree Internet. Sign the Freedom of Information and Expression Declaration that demands a free Internet, free media and a free information society! The 2014 Vienna Declaration on Freedom of Information and Expression Sign: https://secure.avaaz.org/en/petition/The_2014_Vienna_Declaration_on_Freedom… More information and videos of talks from the Freedom of Information Conference: http://freedom-of-information.info/ https://www.youtube.com/user/transformeurope/feed ----------------------- The 2014 Vienna Declaration on Freedom of Information and Expression This petition can be signed online at https://secure.avaaz.org/en/petition/The_2014_Vienna_Declaration_on_Freedom… We, the speakers of the Vienna 2014 International Conference “Freedom of Information Under Pressure. Control – Crisis – Culture” (comprised of international academics, media practitioners, librarians, experts of open culture and public space, activists, critical citizens, lawyers and policy makers), sign the following Declaration on Freedom of Information and Expression: Having met in Vienna of Austria on 28 February and 1 March 2014 and having discussed the challenges of freedom of information in the light of the recent surveillance revelations and the increase in censorship and prosecutions of media, journalists and whistle-blowers in Europe and beyond, we express our deep concern and appeal for public vigilance to defend freedom of information and expression as key democratic rights. We consider Edward Snowden’s revelations as a wake up call. His story is not about one man leaking classified information; rather it is about privacy, civil liberties, power and democracy. But also about the future of the Internet itself, the nature of democratic oversight - and much more. We condemn the existence of a surveillance-industrial complex, in which the American, British and other European states’ intelligence services conduct mass surveillance of the Internet, social media, mobile and landline telephones, in co-operation with communications corporations such as Google, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, Skype, Yahoo!, Aol as well as private security firms. We express our solidarity and support to whistle-blowers, journalists and organisations, including Julian Assange, Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning, Laura Poitras, Glenn Greenwald, the Guardian and others, for their efforts towards fostering transparency and public accountability. We denounce their oppression and prosecution that we consider as a major threat to freedom of information. We observe a great paradox of the media in the 21st century: although more people than ever have the means to express themselves freely, there are huge power asymmetries that favour corporate and state control of the media: journalists in Europe and many other regions face an alarming increase in violent attacks, intimidation, legal threats and other restrictions on their work. Among the important factors of this paradox are the growth of anti-terrorism laws and new nationalisms, the fusion of political, economic and media power, and the weakening of the authority of critical and high-quality media, including independent media, investigative journalism and public service media. Furthermore, the Internet and social media are largely controlled by corporations and there is not enough material support for alternative Internet and media projects. This mix seems to represent an existential challenge to critical media, independent journalism and to the established framework of international laws and safeguards for press freedom and the freedoms of expression, speech, information and opinion. We point out that the current crisis and austerity policies have a serious negative effect on important democratic freedoms. The official political reactions to the crisis have given grounds for the further centralisation of corporate, state and media power that undermine the freedom of information and further the prosecutions of citizens, activists, journalists and the media. We particularly condemn attempts to limit or close down critical, independent and public service media. The Greek government’s closure of the public service broadcaster ERT is in this respect a particularly alarming development. We stress that under the conditions of corporatisation and bureaucratisation, the potentials created by access to information and public knowledge are hampered. In many countries and at a transnational level we lack adequate laws for the transparency of corporate and state power and citizens’ access to information about it in order to hold those in power accountable. A particularly alarming development of the limitation of freedom of information can be found in the world of libraries: large corporate publishers tend to license access to academic and literary works only in expensive bundles and make the access to easy-to-use e-books difficult and expensive. The result is a limit of public access to cultural works so that people have more and more to rely on purchasing books and articles, which is a matter of purchasing power that disadvantages many citizens. The corporate power of publishing houses thereby limits the public’s right to inform itself. We consider that the right of access to information can promote citizens’ civic and political participation by raising their levels of trust in political and policy-making institutions, while it can fight phenomena such as lobbying and corruption. Open access to public and digitised knowledge and scholarly research is also crucial for the continuous education of the broader public and professionals, the promotion of cultural production and diversity and the preservation of the historic and collective memory. New social media, libraries and archives can and should play an important role in this field. We are convinced that freedom of information is a value worth struggling for and that the current framework and developments strongly threaten freedom, democracy and basic civil liberties. A free culture, a free economy of information and a free polity of information are possible! First signees: Antonis Broumas (Attorney at law, Digital Liberation Network, Greece) Arne Hintz (Lecturer, University of Cardiff, UK) Augustine Zenakos (Journalist, UNFOLLOW magazine, Greece) Barbara Trionfi (Press Freedom Manager, International Press Institute) Christian Fuchs (Professor of Social Media, University of Westminster, UK) Dimitris Tsapogas (Researcher, University of Vienna, Austria) Gerfried Sperl (Journalist, PHOENIX, Austria) Gill Phillips (Director of Editorial Legal Service, The Guardian, United Kingdom) Joachim Losehand (Scholar, VIBE!at, Austria) Kostas Arvanitis (Journalist and Director, Sto Kokkino Radio, Greece) Kostas Efimeros (Publisher, The Press Project, Greece) Lisa Schilhan (VÖB, University of Graz, Austria) Mariniki Alevizopoulou (Journalist, UNFOLLOW magazine, Greece) Minas Samatas (Professor, University of Crete, Greece) Miyase Christensen (Professor, Stockholm University, Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden, London School of Economics, UK) Nikolaus Hamann (Vienna Public Libraries, KRIBIBI, Austria) Paloma Fernández de la Hoz (Catholic Social Academy, Austria)

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Call for reviewers
by McNealy, Jasmine E 03 Apr '14

03 Apr '14

Hello All, This year we have an overwhelming response to AEJMC's Newspaper and Online News Division’s call for papers and are looking for help reviewing. Reviewers would be assigned no more than 3 papers and reviews would be due by May 1. To give you a flavor of the kind of papers in submitted to this division here’s a quote from our call for papers: "Theoretically based qualitative or quantitative research papers related to newspaper and online news, investigating topics such as news coverage, ethics, law, history, effects, diversity and fairness issues, social media and journalism, newsgathering norms and routines, economic challenges, digital divides, multimedia reporting, etc." If you are interested in reviewing, please contact me asap, Jasmine McNealy at jemcnealy(a)uky.edu<mailto:jemcnealy@uky.edu>. I will then send further information. Thank you for your time and consideration Jasmine McNealy, J.D., Ph.D. Assistant Professor Information Communication Technology Program University of Kentucky 320 Little Library Building Lexington, KY 40506 (859) 218-2297

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