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PhD position in Digital Sociology
by Simon Lindgren 26 Jun '23

26 Jun '23

The DIGSUM Centre for Digital Social Research is looking for a new PhD candidate. The position is fully funded and salaried for four years. The work is to be carried out with us at Umeå University, Sweden. The work of the candidate will be in the area of public opinion dynamics, broadly defined. This includes the study of disinformation and misinformation, and also related phenomena such as conspiracy theories, propaganda, hate speech, and so on. A particular focus for the research is how these forms may occur under societal threats. Processes and phenomena of interest include polarization (of opinion), issue alignment, and other communicative practices on social media in relation to politics and democracy. The position is connected to the WASP-HS graduate school, which means that an emphasis on the role of algorithms, automation, and datafication is implied. The application is to be submitted via our e-recruitment system no later than August 16 2023. Follow this link for more information: <https://www.digsum.org/digsum-feed/phd-position-in-digital-sociology> Contact: <simon.lindgren(a)umu.se>

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New Fairwork Project report released on Gender and Platform Work
by Michelle Gardner 26 Jun '23

26 Jun '23

This report draws on the four years of findings from the Fairwork project to shed light on gendered experiences in location-based platform work. The report is based on Fairwork’s research conducted across 38 countries and with over 190 unique location-based digital platforms, most of which work across multiple countries. Report: https://fair.work/en/fw/publications/gender-and-platform-work-beyond-techno… The Guardian published details about the report and it’s release: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2023/jun/26/violence-and-abu… Michelle Gardner she/her Fairwork<https://fair.work/> Project Administrator Oxford Internet Institute

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Call for Papers: 14th Int. Conference on Networked Learning in Higher Education, Lifelong Learning and Professional Development (May 15-17, Valletta, Malta)
by Vitomir Kovanovic 24 Jun '23

24 Jun '23

Dear colleagues, We are pleased to announce the Call for Papers for the 14th International Conference on Networked Learning in Higher Education, Lifelong Learning and Professional Development. The overarching theme of the conference is "Networked Learning as a Pedagogy of Hope", and some of the key themes are: * Digital futures and environmental renaissance * Artificial intelligence, learning analytics and emergent digital technologies * Ethical and responsible innovation and research The conference is hosted by the University of Malta, at the Valletta Campus in Malta, on May 15-17, 2024. Keynote Speakers: * Jen Ross, University of Edinburgh, Scotland * Alexei Dingli, University of Malta, Malta * Felicitas Macgilchrist, University of Goettingen, Germany Key Dates: * Full/short papers or symposia proposals must be submitted by 6th October 2023 * Workshops/Round tables must be submitted by 17th November 2023 * Notification of acceptance by 15th December 2023 All submissions are peer-reviewed, and accepted submissions are published in the conference proceedings. Selected papers are invited for publication in an edited book as part of the Springer book series "Research in Networked Learning<https://www.springer.com/series/11810>". Full conference details can be found at: <http://www.networkedlearning.aau.dk/> https://www.networkedlearning.aau.dk/nlc-2024 To receive updates from the Networked Learning Consortium - sign up for the newsletter: https://www.networkedlearning.aau.dk/news Best regards, Maarten de Laat, Thomas Ryberg, Nina Bonderup Dohn, Maria Cutajar, and Carmel Borg

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Invitation to High-dimensional cinema (6 July 2023)
by daniel.chavez＠kcl.ac.uk 24 Jun '23

24 Jun '23

Dear FriendHave you ever thought about how Artificial Intelligence is changing the way we study and understand audiovisual culture?Join us for High-dimensional Cinema on Thursday, July 6th at 6:00 PM at King's College London, for a lively panel discussion tackling this question from three research perspectives at the intersection between technology and culture.Register now to secure your spot. This event is organised by the Department of Digital Humanities and the Digital Futures Institute at King's College London. Featured Events: High-dimensional cinema | King's College London | 2023-07-06T17:00:00Z https://www.eventbrite.com Unsubscribe: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/organizations/missive/activity/unsubscribe/?p=…

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DEADLINE SOON: submit your abstract for the Symposium on Misinformation & Marginalization
by Yvonne Eadon 23 Jun '23

23 Jun '23

Dear colleagues, We are excited to announce the call for papers for the Symposium on Misinformation & Marginalization to be hosted by the Center for Information, Technology, and Public Life (CITAP) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on October 16, 2023. The symposium theme focuses on the interactions between discourses of misinformation circulated by and about marginalized communities, featuring a keynote by renowned scholar Dr. Sarah Banet-Weiser. This hybrid one-day symposium, to be held both in-person and online, will consist of three themed panels exploring misinformation and marginalization from different angles: gender and sexuality, diasporic communities, and global perspectives on race and religion. See the full CFP <https://citap.unc.edu/news/call-for-papers-symposium-on-misinformation-marg…> for more details. The submission deadline for paper proposals (extended abstracts of 800 - 1000 words) is *June 30, 2023.* Please share this call widely with your networks! Warmly, -- Yvonne M. Eadon, MLIS, PhD Postdoctoral Research Fellow Center for Information, Technology, and Public Life <http://citap.unc.edu/> University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill She/ her website <http://yvonneeadon.com> | twitter <https://twitter.com/yvonnemelisande>

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CFP: Professional and Pedagogical Approaches to Generative AI
by J.J. Sylvia IV 23 Jun '23

23 Jun '23

*Call for Proposals* We are now accepting abstracts (250-500 words) on the topic of generative artificial intelligence (AI) for a special issue of the Journal of Technical Writing and Communication , via submission to JTWC.AI.Issue(a)gmail.com. We invite researchers and practitioners to explore themes related to generative AI platforms such as ChatGPT, Google Bard, Midjourney, and DALL-E. *Special Issue Title:* Professional and Pedagogical Approaches to Generative AI *Abstract Submission Deadline* : July 1, 2023 *Theme and Scope:* Since their rollout in 2022, generative AI platform use has exploded. Their impacts on education, healthcare, journalism, manufacturing, marketing, public relations, and other fields are expected to be far-reaching and unpredictable. Generative AI is already used in healthcare for medical note taking, patient communication, and medical data analysis (Pifer 2023). Formulaic fiction online magazines are being flooded with bot-written horror, mystery, and science fiction stories. On Amazon, an aspiring romance novelist may purchase J. Cid’s ChatGPT for Romance Writers: Tips and examples on how to generate ideas and maximize productivity. News organizations, such as Sky news, CNBC, and other outlets, have “hired” ChatGPT to write news stories. Marketers and creators are experimenting with ChatGPT (as well as DALL-E and Midjourney) to identify novel marketing techniques and unique brand designs. Academia is not immune to the impacts of generative AI. Naturally, students have also discovered ChatGPT. Countless videos on Youtube provide guidance for using ChatGPT for help writing essays, research papers, and PowerPoint presentations. Ph.D. candidates will find advice on how to use the technology to plan and write their dissertations. Many of us have received student work that seems oddly formal or unlike the student’s previous writing style but that escapes plagiarism checkers. Editors, including the editorial board for this journal, have already identified bot-written submissions. Doomsday predictions abound. OpenAI “could disrupt 19% of U.S. Jobs” (Kan 2023). ChatGPT represents a more destructive technological avalanche that, like cell phones, video games, and social media, will disrupt our youth’s social and intellectual development (Bernstein 2023). Advanced AI models, already beating doctors at diagnostic tasks, might, some predict, replace clinicians (Pifer, 2023). Others offer cautiously optimistic visions. Generative AI has the potential to support clinical practice and medical and public health research (Cascella et al., 2023). In Education, AI might “revolutionize” learning and assessment (Williamson, Macgilchris & Potter 2023). A google search will lead to a cornucopia of techniques for using generative AI in the classroom. Yet, scholarship about generative AI in technical communications, writing, and visual design, as well as pedagogical applications for these areas, has to this point remained rare. To address that gap, we welcome submissions that cover, but are not limited to, the following subtopics: * Affordances and challenges of generative AI in the classroom * Generative AI in knowledge making practices, including scholarly research and writing * Impact of generative AI on job opportunities for students entering the workforce * Pedagogical approaches to teaching students about generative AI * Theorizing biases in generative AI, in light of existing research on algorithmic decision-making biases * Legal and intellectual property considerations in using generative AI for creating technical content * Challenges and solutions in ensuring data privacy and security when working with generative AI in technical communication * Ethical considerations and best practices in the development and use of generative AI *Guest Editors:* Dr. Carol Reeves, Professor of English, Butler University Dr. J.J. Sylvia IV, Associate Professor of Communications Media, Fitchburg State University *Submission Guidelines:* Submissions should adhere to the Journal of Technical Writing and Communication guidelines for authors, which can be found here: https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/JTW. Please submit your proposal, including a tentative title, abstract (max. 500 words), and a short author biography (max. 100 words) via email by the submission deadline. *Review Process* : All submitted proposals will be initially reviewed by the guest editors to ensure relevance to the special issue theme. Authors of selected proposals will be invited to submit full papers, which will then undergo a double-blind peer-review process in accordance with the journal’s standard review procedures. * Important Dates:* Proposal Submission Deadline: July 1st, 2023 Notification of Proposal Acceptance: September 1, 2023 Full Paper Submission Deadline: January 2024 Notification of Full Paper Acceptance: March 2024 Publication of the Special Issue: April 2024 Please feel free to circulate this call for proposals among your colleagues and networks. If you have any questions about this call or the proposed special issue, please feel welcome to contact us. All inquiries and submissions can be sent to: JTWC.AI.Issue(a)gmail.com. *Sources:* Berstein, G. (2021, March 28 ). ChatGPT is the wake-up call schools need to limit tech in classrooms. Time Magazine. https://time.com/6266311/chatgpt-tech-schools/ Cascella, M., Bellini, V., & Bignami, E. (2023). Journal of Medical Systems , 47(33), https://doi-org.ezproxy.butler.edu/10.1007/s10916-023-01925-4 Kan, M. (2023, March 20 ). OpenAI: ChatGPT could disrupt 19% of US jobs, Is yours on the list ? PCMag. https://www.pcmag.com/news/openai-chatgpt-could-disrupt-19-of-us-jobs-is-yo… Pifer, R. (2023, April 21 ) ‘Hurtling into the future’: The potential and thorny ethics of generative AI in Healthcare. HealthcareDive. https://www.healthcaredive.com/news/generative-AI-healthcare-gpt-potential/… Williamson, B., Macgilchrist, F., & Potter, J. (2023). Re-examining AI, automation and datafication in education. Learning, Media & Technology , 48(1), 1-5. -- J.J. Sylvia IV, Ph.D. (he/him/his) Associate Professor, Communications Media Coordinator, Digital Media Innovation major ( https://www.fitchburgstate.edu/academics/programs/digital-media-innovation-… ) Fitchburg State University Office: Conlon Hall 335 http://www.jjsylvia.com (978) 665-3418 Assistant Editor, Journal of Posthumanism ( https://journals.tplondon.com/jp/ )

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LaborTech Launches New Blog
by Rider, Karina (gxy9fq) 22 Jun '23

22 Jun '23

The Labor Tech Research Network<http://labortechresearchnetwork.org/> is excited to launch our blog! We seek pieces that broaden discussions about the intersection of labor and technology, and how it is embedded in transnationalism, feminism, and anti-racism. Our first post is “Gender, Technology, and Empowerment: Reflections on the 67th Commission on the Status of Women”<https://medium.com/@labortechresearchnetwork/gender-technology-and-empowerm…> by Rianka Roy<https://sociology.uconn.edu/person/rianka-roy/>, a PhD student in Sociology at the University of Connecticut. In it, Rianka reflects on her participation in the 67th Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations, held recently at the headquarters in New York. Over 7,000 civil society members representing nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and other feminist activist groups from around the world participated in the hybrid event. Rianka reflects on panels concerning the digital divide, health, and sex work, occasionally critiquing how these issues were framed by participants (for example, the presence of “carceral feminism” in some discussions). A huge thank you to Rianka for helping us launch the blog! Submissions Our goal is to create a space for: commentary on things that are happening at the moment, for reflections personal experiences, and for up-to-date accounts of your research. This is meant to break out of formal publishing channels, and give us a chance to write more informally. So while we accept traditional pieces, we also welcome nontraditional formats that address labor and technology in the spirit of our mission, stated below in our description. These formats are inclusive of, but not limited to: * Reflections on and/or analyses of current events, conferences, workshops, and advocacy gatherings * Companion pieces to recently published academic articles (i.e., versions that are in more public-facing language style) * “A typical day in X job” (e.g., routines of a tech worker, or day in the life of a striking graduate student), presented as biographical accounts, personal experiences, or fieldnote-style descriptions * Statements of solidarity * Reviews of things you have read, watched or listened to that are accessible to the public, and resonate with our mission. These could be books, essays, movies, documentaries, podcasts, etc., and are not limited to recently released works. * Fiction or poetry excerpts on labor and technology themes * Video and audio content on labor and technology * Descriptions of film, art, and design by our members * Summaries of LaborTech meetups around the world Guidelines * Eligibility is open to members and nonmembers. * Submissions are accepted on a rolling basis, without deadlines. * Collective, multiple, or single authors permitted * Target word count is variable, depending on the submission. * It is helpful (but not required) to pitch the idea to us first. * Send submissions to labortechresearchnetwork(a)gmail.com<mailto:labortechresearchnetwork@gmail.com>. About the Labor Tech Research Network Labor Tech Research Network is an interdisciplinary and transnational group of experts concerned with technology and work. We are scholars, tech workers (broadly conceived), union organizers, policymakers, journalists, nonprofit researchers and staff, activists, and more. We aim to reframe conversations about technology and labor towards issues of power, inequality, and social justice from an anti-racist, feminist, and transnational perspective. Starting as a reading group in the Center for Social Computing at UC Irvine in 2013, we have recently transitioned into a formal organization with over 450 members affiliated with over 45 countries. We are committed to sustained reflection on the promise and perils of technological developments, especially as they impact the workplace. To learn more about us, please visit our website.<http://labortechresearchnetwork.org/> If you would like to join our group, please use this form<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeVIjhPI66lwskeAGacEWNkg6Ae66kvjCm…> :) We look forward to your pitches! Your editors (alphabetically), Adam Badger Srravya Chandhiramowuli Rukimani PV Karina Rider Yijia Zhang -- Karina Rider, PhD Postdoctoral Researcher Social Media Collective, Microsoft Research New England Organizer, Labor Tech Research Network<http://labortechresearchnetwork.org/> @kaareeenah // karinarider.com

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Job opportunity - Senior Research Associate
by Harry Dyer (EDU - Staff) 22 Jun '23

22 Jun '23

Dear colleagues, Please find below details of a job opening for a Senior Research Associate to help lead a 2-year funded research project exploring early years digital literacies in the landscape of YouTube Kids. The project is titled TYKES - Towards developing understandings of Young Kid's digital literacies in Early years foundation Stage. It's an ambitious multi-stage project aimed at exploring the ways young children are engaging with YouTube Kids; the content they're watching and being recommended; the practices, hopes, and concerns of various stakeholders; and the ways in which we can help develop critical digital literacies in 0-5 year olds. The project is housed at the University of East Anglia in Norwich (UK), and aims to produce a variety of publications, public facing user-guides, policy papers, and adult learning courses. Do reach out if you like to have a chat about it. Full details below: https://myview.uea.ac.uk/webrecruitment/pages/vacancy.jsf?latest=01009487 All the best, Harry

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Of interest- Responding to Online Abuse: What We Heard from Health Communicators
by Jaigris Hodson 22 Jun '23

22 Jun '23

Hello AoIR-istas! Led by Heidi Tworek and Chris Tenove (UBC), our multi-institutional team, including researchers at the University of British Columbia, Royal Roads University, and University of Ottawa in Canada has conducted research into the online abuse of health communicators, and produced a report that may be of interest to many of you. The pandemic created an unprecedented demand for health communication. Public health officials, health experts, and medical practitioners increased their engagement online to address a surge in public demand for information. To play these roles, health communicators intensified their use of social media platforms. Some health communicators identified specific underserved communities to address, such as the South Asian community, the Black community, seniors, and the homeless or under-housed. They also tried to address widespread misinformation (created inadvertently), and disinformation (intentionally spread for political and economic aims). In making these efforts, health communicators too often faced abuse or threats. A global survey by Nature<https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02741-x> of scientists who discussed the pandemic on news media or social media found over two-thirds reported negative experiences, 22 per cent received threats of physical or sexual violence, and 15 per cent received death threats. Many Canadian news articles have documented online abuse of health communicators, but to date there is no rigorous research on the topic. Nor are there detailed recommendations for how individuals and institutions should address this problem. To help fill this gap, we hosted workshops with health communicators on January 26, 2023 (21 participants) and March 6, 2023 (16 participants). Participants included chief medical officers, communications staff for public health authorities, nurses, physicians, independent science communicators, and communicators at civil society health organizations. This report summarizes insights from those workshops, along with current scholarship, regarding: * forms of online abuse on different platforms; * impacts of online abuse; * relationship between online abuse and the personal identities of health communicators; * forms of support that health communicators access, or wish to access; * possible next steps for research or advocacy. Learn more and download the report at this link: https://democracy.ubc.ca/health/online-abuse-of-health-communicators/respon… Royal Roads is located on the traditional lands of the Xwsepsum and Lekwungen ancestors and families. CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE: This e-mail and attachments may contain personal or confidential information for the sole use of the intended recipient. If you are not the intended recipient and you have received this transmission in error, please notify the sender immediately and delete the message and attachments.

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WEBCAST JUN 22- CITI Governance – Function Follows Form: The Proposed UN Digital Cooperation Forum
by Joly MacFie 22 Jun '23

22 Jun '23

This has just kicked off. REAL TIME TEXT https://bit.ly/44hazU3 [image: isoc live] <http://isoc.live/16659>On *Thursday June 22 2023* at *11:00-12:30 EDT* (15:00-16:30 UTC) the *Columbia Institute for Tele-Information <http://%3Ciframe%20id%3D%22ls_embed_1687444376%22%20src%3D%22https//livestream.com/accounts/686369/events/10889926/player?width=600&height=338&enableInfoAndActivity=true&defaultDrawer=&autoPlay=false&mute=false%22%20width=%22600%22%20height=%22338%22%20frameborder=%220%22%20scrolling=%22no%22%20allowfullscreen%3E%20%3C/iframe%3E>*, as part of its *Global Digital Governance* series, presents a webinar '*Function Follows Form: The Proposed UN Digital Cooperation Forum <https://citifunctionfollowsform.eventbrite.com/>*'. On June 5, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres presented a *policy brief <https://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/N23/116/76/PDF/N2311676.pdf> *on his *Global Digital Compact <https://www.un.org/techenvoy/global-digital-compact>* initiative to the General Assembly. Among the brief’s ideas is a proposal to create an annual *Digital Cooperation Forum* (DCF). This new UN forum would not be a negotiation body, but would instead foster action-oriented dialogue and analysis concerning international cooperation on digital policy issues. A proposal like this has been anticipated since the SG’s High-level Panel on Digital Cooperation issued its report in 2019. The case for a DCF is being championed in particular by the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Technology. The proposal has yet to garner support but will be discussed by a ministerial meeting in September 2023 that is to help prepare the groundwork for the UN’s *2024 Summit of the Future <https://www.un.org/en/common-agenda/summit-of-the-future>*. The policy brief states that the DCF would coexist with existing bodies and processes like the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in an integrated hub and spoke system. However, aside from its presumably broader scope, in many respects the DCF appears to duplicate the IGF. Given that the IGF has long faced challenges from those governments that are unhappy with its multistakeholder character, the existence of a comparatively intergovernmental DFC could complicate the renewal of the IGF’s mandate at the 2025 WSIS+20 review. In addition, there are a number of other issues raised by proposing a new forum without specifying its substantive focus and institutional modalities or assessing the demand for one. The experiences over the past twenty years with failed proposals to create new institutions for global Internet and digital governance merits consideration in this context. An inclusive dialogue is needed to determine whether the DCF vision can overcomes the potential barriers to its realization or at least contribute to strengthening international cooperation in other settings. To help with that task, this webinar assembles a panel of expert participants in the debate about the United Nations’ role in global digital cooperation and governance. The group will assess the driving issues and interests, potential negotiation dynamics and outcomes, and larger digital governance implications of the DCF proposal. *INTRODUCTION* *Eli Noam*, Paul Garrett Professor, Emeritus / Director, Columbia Institute for Tele-Information *PANEL* *Fiona M. Alexander*, Distinguished Policy Strategist in Residence, School of International Service / Distinguished Fellow, Internet Governance Lab, American University *Anriette Esterhuysen*, Senior Advisor for Internet Governance, Association for Progressive Communications (APC) *Nigel Hickson*, Internet Governance, United Kingdom’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) *MODERATOR* *William J. Drake*, Director of International Studies at the Columbia Institute for Tele-Information *LIVESTREAM http://livestream.com/internetsociety3/citi-dcf <http://livestream.com/internetsociety3/citi-dcf>* *PARTICIPATE VIA ZOOM https://bit.ly/46gCrta <https://bit.ly/46gCrta>* *REAL TIME TEXT https://bit.ly/44hazU3 <https://bit.ly/44hazU3>* *TWITTER #DigitalCooperation <https://bit.ly/3eWyxvw> @Elinoam @wjdrake @Columbia_Biz @fionamalexander @InternetGov Anriette Esterhuysen @APC_News @njhickson @UNTechEnvoy* *MASTODON #DigitalCooperation <https://mastodon.social/tags/DigitalCooperation>* *SIMULCASTS* *https://www.twitter.com/ISOC_Live/ <https://www.twitter.com/ISOC_Live/>* *https://www.facebook.com/liveisoc/ <https://www.facebook.com/liveisoc/> *(AI Captions) *ARCHIVE* *https://archive.org/details/citi-dcf <https://archive.org/details/citi-dcf>* *Permalink https://isoc.live/16659/ <https://isoc.live/16659/>* -- -------------------------------------- Joly MacFie +12185659365 -------------------------------------- -

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