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Call For Abstracts - Critical Political Economy of AI: Southern Experiences
by Preeti Raghunath 10 Apr '23

10 Apr '23

Hi everyone, I hope this finds you well. Please find attached a Call for Abstracts for an edited collection on ‘Critical Political Economy of AI: Southern Experiences’. Please share this in your networks and do consider submitting an abstract yourself. I have some initial interest from a reputed publisher for an edited volume, and look forward to pursuing it after the abstract submission deadline. *Submission Deadline*: May 7, 2023 I hope to get back on the Abstract Selection within a fortnight. Please do not hesitate to email me if you have any questions. Kind regards, Preeti -- Preeti Raghunath, PhD Website: www.preetiraghunath.com Twitter: @preetiraghunath

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CfP Data, Platforms, and AI for Development
by Rafael Grohmann 10 Apr '23

10 Apr '23

Dear colleagues, We are delighted to invite submissions for a potential special issue proposal on "Data, Platforms, and AI for Development." This issue aims to explore how big data practices are reshaping the field of development and vice versa, by bridging critical research on critical data studies and development studies literature. We welcome original contributions with a specific focus on the Majority World, addressing the entanglements between data, platforms, machine learning, and development. We are particularly interested in papers that discuss data, platforms and infrastructures, artificial intelligence, or any combination of these topics. Key themes to be covered include: 1. Data: + Data governance and ownership + Data extraction and colonialism + Dataset production and labor + Data monopolies + Data sovereignty and justice + Data security and informational autonomy 2. Platforms and infrastructures: + Platform capitalism and governance + Platform value chains/production networks + Platform labor and geographies + Rural-urban transformations + Platform cooperatives 3. AI and cloud computing: + Regulating AI + AI, human rights, and ethics + AI, entrepreneurship, and innovation + AI and climate change + AI and decent work + Automation and labor markets + Political geographies and economies of cloud computing The full call for papers and special issue description can be accessed here: https://tinyurl.com/DevelopmentCfP Important dates: * Abstract submissions (250 words) deadline: Friday, 9th June 2023 * Notification of decisions: Monday, 19th June 2023 * Extended abstract submissions (up to 1,500 words) due: Tuesday, 22nd August 2023 * Virtual paper workshop: Friday, 8th September 2023 Please submit your abstracts to Mohammad Amir Anwar at [mohammad.anwar(a)ed.ac.uk] by 9th June 2023. We especially encourage early career researchers to submit their work. Accepted participants will be invited to submit an extended abstract, which will be reviewed by two other attendees to facilitate in-depth discussions and feedback during the virtual workshop. We look forward to receiving your submissions and engaging in a cross-disciplinary conversation on the phenomenon of platformed and datafied development. Best regards, Mohammad Amir Anwar, Nanna Bonde Thylstrup, Rafael Grohmann, and Julian Posada References Visible links: Hidden links: 2. https://tinyurl.com/DevelopmentCfP%C2%A0

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SSN Treasurer Vacancy - Call for Expressions of Interest
by Bryce Newell 07 Apr '23

07 Apr '23

Dear colleagues, The Surveillance Studies Network (SSN) is looking to appoint a new Treasurer to our Network and Editorial Board. The text of the call for expressions of interest is copied below. Please share with anyone you feel would be interested and/or consider applying yourself! (But note that the position is limited to persons based in the United Kingdom.) We are excited to add a new member to our board and welcome expressions of interest from academics and scholars interested in surveillance studies regardless of whether they have been involved in SSN activities or governance in the past. *** Call for expressions of interest: SSN Treasurer The Surveillance Studies Network (SSN) is looking for a Treasurer to oversee and coordinate the financial affairs of SSN. The Treasurer will also play a role on the SSN's Network and Editorial Board (NEB). The Surveillance Studies Network (SSN) is a registered charitable company dedicated to the study of surveillance in all its forms. It owns the free access journal Surveillance & Society and runs the biennial Surveillance and Society conference that brings together scholars and artists from all over the world. SSN is governed by an Executive Board of Directors and its day-to-day business, alongside the management of the journal, is completed by members of the Network and Editorial Board. The success and growth of SSN is reliant on the vitality, commitment and dedication of our members who fulfill elected (unpaid) positions on the Board. We are seeking expressions of interest from academics and scholars within the broad surveillance studies community to join our Network and Editorial Board and assume the responsibilities of Treasurer. As with all SSN NEB and Executive Board positions, this position is unpaid. We anticipate bringing a new Treasurer on board for an initial term of 24 months, with possible extension depending on mutual agreement. For more information about SSN, see our website at https://www.surveillance-studies.net/ and the website for our journal at http://surveillance-and-society.org<http://surveillance-and-society.org/>. Eligibility * UK residency. Because SSN is currently registered as a charity in the United Kingdom and our financial accounts and assets are also based predominantly in the UK, this position must be filled by someone who lives and works in the UK; * Applicants should be currently employed within the academic or research community and be involved in surveillance -studies-related research and/or teaching; * Have basic experience with accounting and financial management; * Applicants need not be current SSN members at the time of application, but the successful applicant would be expected to join SSN prior to appointment and maintain SSN membership throughout their tenure in the position. Responsibilities * Work with the SSN Executive Board and NEB to ensure financial aspects and arrangements of the organization are kept up to date and in conformance with relevant law and regulations; * Draft an annual SSN budget in consultation with the SSN Executive Board; * Communicate with and submit reports to the UK Charity Commission; * Manage and complete financial/excel sheets and work with our Accountant to ensure proper record keeping; * Manage and initiate payments to SSN prize and grant winners; * Liaising with the SSN conference organizing committee about invoices, reimbursements, and other financial matters related to SSN conferences and events. Deadline and how to apply The deadline for initial expressions of interest is 30 April 2023. We will review applications on a rolling basis after the deadline if needed and until the position is filled. Please direct any queries to Bryce Newell (SSN Co-Director) at bcnewell(a)uoregon.edu<mailto:bcnewell@uoregon.edu>. We ask that you submit your CV and a brief cover letter expressing your interest in the position and how your background gives you the experience or skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of this position. Please submit your application materials via the following form: https://forms.gle/7czd7BxYDUju6rz46 *** Bryce C. Newell, PhD, JD Assistant Professor, School of Journalism and Communication<https://journalism.uoregon.edu/>, University of Oregon Researcher, Utrecht University School of Law<https://www.uu.nl/en/organisation/utrecht-university-school-of-law> Co-Director of the Surveillance Studies Network (SSN)<https://www.surveillance-studies.net/> & Dialogue Editor of Surveillance & Society<https://ojs.library.queensu.ca/index.php/surveillance-and-society> www.bcnewell.com<http://www.bcnewell.com/> | Google Scholar<https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=7kICf7kAAAAJ> | @newmedialaw<http://twitter.com/newmedialaw>

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2023 AoIR Dissertation Award Nominations
by Michelle, Association of Internet Researchers 07 Apr '23

07 Apr '23

The Association of Internet Researchers is pleased to call for submissions for the 2023 AoIR Dissertation Award. To be eligible for the AoIR Dissertation Award, a PhD dissertation in the area of internet research must have been filed in the 2022 calendar year. Nominations (self and other) must be received by 1 May 2023. All methods and disciplines are welcome. Submissions Details: - A nomination letter that explains why the dissertation is deserving of the award - How it contributes to internet research - A PDF copy of the dissertation should be emailed to dissertationaward [at] aoir.org - The graduate or their supervisor must be a member of AoIR (by 1 May 2023) - Self-nominations are permitted - Filed in 2022 (meaning fully defended, all edits complete, filed/published with a 2022 copyright) The recipient of this award will be announced mid-year 2023. In addition to winning a cash prize, the individual will be presented an award during the AGM at #AoIR2023 conference in October. The committee this year is comprised of Raquel Recuero-Universidade Federal de Pelotas (Chair), Rafael Grohmann-University of Toronto, Christian Ritter-Karlstad University, and Chikezie E. Uzuegbunam-Rhodes University South Africa. For any questions please contact Raquel Recureo dissertationaward[at] aoir.org or Tama Leaver prez[at]aoir.org.

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Online Book Talks, Living with Algorithms + Digital Unsettling
by Rafael Grohmann 06 Apr '23

06 Apr '23

Dear Colleagues, [1]DigiLabour, [2]Critical Digital Methods Institute and [3]Tierra Comun announce two online book talks at the end of April hosted by [4]DigiLabour Youtube Channel . Please spread the word! April 25, 7PM EST Book talk with Ignacio Siles (Universidad de Costa Rica) on Living with Algorithms: Agency and User Culture in Costa Rica (MIT Press). The book analyzes user dynamics in the global south across three algorithmic platforms: Netflix, Spotify, and TikTok. Drawing on a wealth of empirical evidence that privileges the user over the corporate, Siles examines the personal relationships that have formed between users and algorithms as Latin Americans have integrated these systems into the structures of everyday life, enacted them ritually, participated in public with and through them, and thwarted them. Sometimes users follow algorithms, Siles finds, and sometimes users resist them. At times, users do both. Agency lies in the navigation of the spaces in-between. By analyzing what we do with algorithms rather than what algorithms do to us, Living with Algorithms clarifies the debate over the future of datafication and whether we have a say in its development. Link: [5]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwyS2TPFB9o More details: [6]https://criticaldigitalmethods.ca/gatherings/living-with-al gorithms-book-talk/ April 28, 12PM EST Book talk with Sahana Udupa (University of Munich) and Ethiraj Gabriel Dattatreyan (New York University) on Digital Unsettling: Decoloniality and Dispossession in the Age of Social Media (NYU Press) The book is a critical exploration of digitalization that puts contemporary “decolonizing” movements into conversation with theorizations of digital communication. The authors interrogate the forms, forces, and processes that have reinforced neocolonial relations within contemporary digital environments, at a time when digital networks—and the agendas and actions they proffer—have unsettled entrenched hierarchies in unforeseen ways. Digital Unsettling examines events—the toppling of statues in the UK, the proliferation of #BLM activism globally, the rise of Hindu nationalists in North America, the trolling of academics, among others—and how they circulated online and across national boundaries. In doing so, Udupa and Dattatreyan demonstrate how the internet has become the key site for an invigorated anticolonial internationalism, but has simultaneously augmented conditions of racial hierarchy within nations, in the international order, and in the liminal spaces that shape human migration and the lives of those that are on the move. Digital Unsettling establishes a critical framework for placing digitalization within the longue durée of coloniality, while also revealing the complex ways in which the internet is entwined with persistent global calls for decolonization. Link: [7]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1R17oeWkSeQ More details: [8]https://criticaldigitalmethods.ca/gatherings/digital-unsett ling-book-talk/ thanks! -- Dr. Rafael Grohmann Assistant Professor of Media Studies / Critical Data and Platform Studies Department of Arts, Culture and Media Faculty of Information University of Toronto [9]https://ischool.utoronto.ca/profile/rafael-grohmann/ References 1. https://digilabour.com.br/en 2. https://criticaldigitalmethods.ca/ 3. https://www.tierracomun.net/ 4. https://youtube.com/digilabour 5. https://can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https://www.youtube.com… 6. https://criticaldigitalmethods.ca/gatherings/living-with-algorithms-book-ta… 7. https://can01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https://www.youtube.com… 8. https://criticaldigitalmethods.ca/gatherings/digital-unsettling-book-talk/ 9. https://ischool.utoronto.ca/profile/rafael-grohmann/

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Digital Feudalism Published
by Arditi, David M 06 Apr '23

06 Apr '23

Colleagues, Many of you on the listserv may be interested in my new book Digital Feudalism: Creators, Credit, Consumption and Capitalism. More information can be found here<https://centerfortheory.uta.edu/2023/04/06/dr-david-arditis-new-book-digita…> and the press release is included below. Please let me know if anyone is interested in a review copy, book talk or interview. Kind regards, David Dr. David Arditi Associate Professor of Sociology Director of the Center for Theory University of Texas at Arlington Digital Feudalism: Creators, Credit, Consumption and Capitalism Digital Feudalism<https://books.emeraldinsight.com/book/detail/digital-feudalism/?k=978180455…> explores the shifting nature of the global economy. As people and corporations deploy digital technology, the way we work, consume and pay for things has changed dramatically. This marks a new moment in capitalism. Under this new 'digital feudalism', people find precarious employment via digital platforms and buy goods and services in perpetuity through subscriptions. We're paying to continually stream cultural content online, workers are using smartphone apps in the gig economy, and - with increased consumption and lower wages - debt is rising among the masses. Center for Theory Director, Dr. David Arditi<https://www.uta.edu/academics/faculty/profile?username=arditi> observes that the top three Netflix shows of 2021 were non-English speaking critiques of capitalism. Money Heist, Lupin, and Squid Game follow characters who have nothing left to lose in an economic system that placed the protagonists in dire circumstances. It's fitting that these shows are available through Netflix, a streaming platform driving changes in the way we consume culture. In effect, Netflix appears as a microcosm of the general shifts to the economic system. In Digital Feudalism, Arditi gives an overview of the evolution of capitalism and shines a light on our current model of unending consumption as we buy increasingly more, but own less. He argues that influencers and content creators are celebrated as savvy entrepreneurs but in reality, are making money for corporations, while the Metaverse is an attempt to turn all movements and thoughts into data that can be sold or deployed in other ways through a process of enclosure. He concludes by turning his attention to the economic impact of the pandemic which created precarity for many workers as well as highlighting a digital divide, with many employers failing to support staff during their transition to home working by funding access to the internet or the purchase of office furniture. In Arditi's fascinating exploration, he presents digital feudalism as a moment of capitalist retrenchment - a system that alienates everyone, further encloses our existence in capitalism and doubles down on exploitation About The Author: David Arditi<https://www.davidarditi.com/> is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Texas at Arlington and a recognized expert on digital technology and streaming cultures. For a review copy of Digital Feudalism or for an interview with David Arditi, please contact: Katherine Lowe, The Oxford Publicity Partnership Ltd, email: katherine.lowe(a)oppuk.co.uk<mailto:katherine.lowe@oppuk.co.uk> Endorsements: "In Digital Feudalism, Arditi draws a straight line from Netflix to the emerging Metaverse, warning us all that the only winners in a process of endless consumption and accelerated obsolescence are the big corporations who are taking more and more value from everyone else as part of an extractive economy. The book is compelling, highly readable for a range of audiences, and deeply unnerving, framed by Squid Game as a metaphor for the new digital era, with just one exception: everyone loses." - Tama Leaver, Professor of Internet Studies, Curtin University "...Through an analysis of cases that exhibit the structures and practices associated with digital feudalism-subscription services, gig work, Amazon, influencers, the metaverse, and crowdfunding to name a few-Arditi reframes the strike-waves and the composition of movements to come with a warranted note of pessimism regarding capital's "savage" capacities for adaptation. Stitching together the best of critical social theory and cultural studies, Arditi offers readers a clear and crucial lens on our current conjuncture. The prognosis? Digital Feudalism specifies that the center no longer holds. Rather, we face a less-comfortable, rougher, and far-less reasonable, democratic unfreedom beyond which there is no clear horizon line for better or for worse." - Robert F. Carley, Associate Professor of International Affairs, Texas A&M University, College Station Contents: Chapter 1. Introduction: A Squid Game Reality Chapter 2. Buy More, Own Less: Subscriptions and Unending Consumption Chapter 3. Working on your own: Precarious labor in the gig economy Chapter 4. Debt Peonage and Primitive Accumulation Chapter 5. Amazon and Baron Bezos Chapter 6. Unboxed: Content Creators and influencers Chapter 7. Metaverse: enclosing new spaces Chapter 8. From Patron to Patreon: Crowdfunding Information Chapter 9. Conclusion: Fed-up While Locked Down

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Twitter Revisited
by Shulman, Stu 06 Apr '23

06 Apr '23

Researchers rightly have a lot of questions about Twitter data access. Some of our updated answers are posted on Twitter. We encourage you to read and engage with this specific thread if this topic matters to you: https://twitter.com/discovertext/status/1643946603886026752?s=20 The most important thing to know is there are already millions of extant datasets stored in a raw JSON format on other computers, devices, and systems that could be loaded to DiscoverText or other systems for collaborative access and research. Going forward, the opportunities to collect unique, tailored, specific real time or historical data will be very sharply curtailed by Twitter. As time passes, archival questions of what remains and what is lost to history may track closely to the history of newspapers. I wrote a dissertation (1999) about crumbly newspapers from the Progressive Era. Some were available, others were not. This applies to Twitter data now and it always did. Some was preserved, much is lost or will be lost, even with serious archival efforts. I invite you to book a web meeting or send me a note if you have questions about what remains possible. I have curated thousands of Twitter datasets consisting of more than 300,000,000 Tweets. Others have much larger collections. There are important questions about what comes next in the history of information and how we work together to preserve research opportunities. Finally, there will be a small gaggle over drinks in Washington DC close to the Capitol after dinner April 13. Send me a note if you are local and want to join the conversation face to face about the politics of Twitter data. In years past, these discussions in DC have been lively. Stu -- Dr. Stuart W. Shulman Founder and CEO, Texifter Editor Emeritus, *Journal of Information Technology & Politics*

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New Special Issue Published (Exchanges): Anthropocene & More-than-Human World
by Johnson, Gareth 06 Apr '23

06 Apr '23

Dear list-members, You might be interested in the new issue of the Exchanges interdisciplinary journal which is now out, focussing on the topic of the Anthropocene & More-than-Human World. The issue collates outputs from a British Academy funded series of writing workshops. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31273/eirj.v10i2 TOC * Price, C., Saying Goodbye and Fighting for the Future. * Cicholewski, A., 2023. Empathy as an Answer to Challenges of the Anthropocene in Asian American Young Adult Science Fiction. * Tarcan, B., Pettersen, I.N., & Edwards, F., 2023. Repositioning Craft and Design in the Anthropocene: Applying a More-Than-Human approach to textiles. * Price, C., 2023. Do we need Artificial Pollination if we have Multispecies Justice in the Anthropocene? * Westgate, J., 2023. Corals, Geo-Sociality, and Anthropocene Dwelling. * Vieira, N., 2023. Whales Lost and Found. Rescuing a history of biodiversity loss in early modern Brazil. * Srivastava, S., 2023. Res(crip)ting the Gaze: Agency and the aesthetics of disability in ‘Animal’s People’. * Melian-Morse, A., 2023. Teaching to Care for Land as Home: Thinking beyond the Anthropocene in environmental education. * Van de Pavert, M., & Ressiore, A., 2023. Caring with the Non-Human: Reciprocity in market gardening. * Price, C., & Chao, S., 2023. Multispecies, More-Than-Human, Non-Human, Other-Than-Human: Reimagining idioms of animacy in an age of planetary unmaking. * Johnson, G.J., 2023. I’ve Seen the Future, and it Will Be: Editorial, Volume 10, Part 2. With thanks, Gareth --- Dr Gareth (Gaz) J Johnson Managing Editor-in-Chief, Exchanges Journal Room C0.10, Institute of Advanced Study, Zeeman Building, University of Warwick https://exchanges.warwick.ac.uk/ Subscribe to the NEW Exchanges Newsletter<https://exchanges.warwick.ac.uk/index.php/exchanges/announcement/view/44><https://exchanges.warwick.ac.uk/index.php/exchanges/announcement/view/44> T: 024 765 7443 (extn 74423) E: gareth.johnson(a)warwick.ac.uk<mailto:gareth.johnson@warwick.ac.uk> B: https://blogs.warwick.ac.uk/exchangesias/ Tw:@ExchangesIAS<https://twitter.com/ExchangesIAS> P: https://anchor.fm/exchangesias Md: @ExchangesIAS<https://mastodonapp.uk/@ExchangesIAS>

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Nancy Baym Book Award Nominations - Deadline May 1st
by Michelle, Association of Internet Researchers 06 Apr '23

06 Apr '23

We are pleased to call for nominations for the Nancy Baym Annual Book Award. This award recognizes the best scholarship of the Association of Internet Researchers, and highlights the breadth of work relating to the social and cultural dimensions of networked media. To be eligible for the award: -The book must be authored or co-authored as a monograph and must explore a single topic (edited collections are not eligible). -All of the book’s authors must be current members of AoIR at the time of submission (May 1, 2023). Memberships may be purchased here https://members.aoir.org/. -The book must have been published between January 1 and December 31, 2022. The books will be reviewed by a committee of Andrew Herman-Wilfrid Laurier University (Chair), Marco Bastos-University College Dublin, Nick Bowman-Syracuse University, Niki Cheong-King's College London, and Jun Liu-University of Copenhagen. Each book should be accompanied by an emailed letter of nomination. Self-nominations from AoIR members are welcome. The letter of nomination, which must be written by a current member of AoIR, should outline: -How the book contributes to AoIR’s intellectual community. -The book’s unique contributions and overall strengths. -If not a self-nomination, the letter should also include a statement that the nominated author has been contacted prior to its submission and accepts the nomination. Books submitted without a meaningful nomination letter outlining both the strengths of the book and the book’s contribution to the AoIR community to AoIR will not be eligible. We are happy to accept books in either digital or hard copy. If digital, please send pdf to bookaward [at] aoir.org or contact for individual email addresses. Additional nomination details available here: https://aoir.org/2023bookaward/ Please send in all nomination materials by May 1, 2023.

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Deadline extended - APSA Information Technology and Politics Awards 2023
by Filippo Trevisan 05 Apr '23

05 Apr '23

Hi all, The deadline for nominations for the 2023 APSA Information Technology & Politics Section Awards has been extended to April 10 for the following awards: * Best ITP Journal Article (published in a 2022 journal issue) * Best ITP Conference Paper (presented at the 2022 APSA Annual Meeting) * Best ITP Student Paper (presented at the 2022 APSA Annual Meeting) * Best ITP PhD Dissertation Award * Best ITP Public-Facing Scholarship (Nominations for the best ITP book are now closed). More information about the awards, including committees and their contact details can be found here: https://apsanet.org/section18 Filippo Trevisan – APSA ITP 2022-2023 Section Chair ——— Dr. Filippo Trevisan Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs Associate Professor - School of Communication Deputy Director - Institute on Disability and Public Policy (IDPP) American University 4400 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington, DC - 20016 Tel: +1 (202) 885 6930 Email: trevisan(a)american.edu<mailto:trevisan@american.edu> Web: www.filippotrevisan.net<http://www.filippotrevisan.net/> Twitter: @filippotrevisan<https://twitter.com/filippotrevisan> In paperback: “Disability Rights Advocacy Online: Voice, Empowerment and Global Connectivity<https://www.routledge.com/Disability-Rights-Advocacy-Online-Voice-Empowerme…>” NY: Routledge, 2017. All my publications: www.filippotrevisan.net/publications<http://www.filippotrevisan.net/publications>

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