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Job opening - Postdoctoral Fellow: Explainability and Auditability of AI in Content Moderation
by Dhanaraj Thakur 14 Jan '21

14 Jan '21

Hello everyone (and apologies for cross-posting), We have a job opening at the Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) <https://cdt.org/> for a Postdoctoral Fellow <https://cdt.org/job/cdt-postdoctoral-fellow-explainability-of-ai-in-content…> to work on developing models and tools to improve the explainability and auditability of AI-based content moderation systems. I would appreciate it if you can share with relevant colleagues and recent PhD graduates. I am also happy to answer questions from interested applicants. This should be someone who recently completed their PhD in a relevant discipline, with demonstrated research expertise related to this topic. This is a one-year full-time Fellowship, with the possibility of renewal for another year based on performance and availability of funds. Limited funding is available for approved research expenses associated with the Fellow’s project. We offer a competitive salary and excellent benefits. The expected start date for the Fellowship is March/April 2021, so interested persons should apply as soon as possible. The position is based at CDT’s Washington, D.C. office (with remote work currently in effect due to COVID-19). Further details and application instructions are here <https://cdt.org/job/cdt-postdoctoral-fellow-explainability-of-ai-in-content…>. thanks, Dhanaraj -- *Dhanaraj Thakur* (he/him) | Research Director Center for Democracy & Technology |*cdt.org <https://cdt.org/>* *E:* dthakur(a)cdt.org <mailto:dthakur@cdt.org> | *P:* +1 202 407 8849 | @thakurdhanaraj

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Invitation to Reflecting on Power and AI: The Case of GPT-3
by James Steinhoff 13 Jan '21

13 Jan '21

SAVE THE DATE! You are invited to attend: Workshop of the Society for Phenomenology and Media Reflecting on Power and AI: The Case of GPT-3 Date: February 18th 2021, 09:00 – 18:45 (GMT-8), 18:00 – 19:45 (CET) Location: Zoom, link will be provided later. Speakers: Dr. James Steinhoff (eScience Institute at the University of Washington, USA), Dr. Olya Kudina (TU Delft, The Netherlands), Dr. Bas de Boer (University of Twente, The Netherlands) Registration: No registration needed. You are all cordially invited to the workshop Reflecting on Power and AI: The Case of GPT-3. Description: One of the latest hallmarks of current boom in Artificial Intelligence (AI) is Generative Pre-Trained Transformer 3 (GPT-3), an unprecedentedly powerful autoregressive language model that uses deep learning to produce human-like texts ranging from historical fiction to functional code (Floridi & Chiriatti 2020). For the philosopher David Chalmers, GPT-3 is the most interesting and important AI system ever produced, and is suggested to be the first AI system displaying signs of general intelligence (Chalmers 2020). The possibilities presented by GPT-3 give rise to an array of ethical and political concerns that will be explored in this workshop: How to deal with potential biases GPT-3 inherited from training data? Can and should we use artificial language models to displace human workers? What role will language play in our lives when we know that it is often algorithmically produced? Can GPT-3 be used to eliminate existing inequalities, or is it likely to increase those? Last but not least, what can the companies behind GPT-3 do to ensure a responsible development and use of their product? The goal of this workshop is to explore the abovementioned issues from the perspective of two different philosophical approaches that each have a distinct outlook on the role of technologies in contemporary society but have rarely been put in conversation: Marxist media theory and the Technological Mediation Approach (TMA). In the first case, AI is approached as first and foremost an automation technology and is thus situated in the context of its commercial/industrial development and deployment. However, the Marxist approach also entails an ontological dimension insofar as it insists that capital (and its technologies) revolve around the central directive of the increase of the “real abstraction” of value, which is immaterial while configuring the concrete world. Two very different schools of Marxist theory will be drawn upon: labour process theory and value-form Marxism. In the second case,, AI can be approached as a mediating technology, through which the primary concern becomes how it shapes the way human beings understand and experience themselves and the world around them. In this workshop, we will use the framework of TMA to analyze how technologies generally shape our being-in-the-world, and point to how they do so very differently when integrated into different practices. After having outlined these two different perspectives, a plenary discussion will take place where the relevance of each of these perspectives for analysing the societal impact of GPT-3 will be explored. Preparation: An article will be distributed approximately one week before the date on which the workshop will take place. Schedule: 09:00 – 09:15 (GMT-8) / 18:00 – 18:15 (CET): General introduction and an introduction into GPT-3 09:15 – 09:45 (GMT-8) / 18:15 – 18:45 (CET): Marxist media theory and GPT-3 (James Steinhoff) – Title: TBA 09:45 – 10:15 (GMT-8) / 18:45 – 19:15 (CET): The Technological Mediation Approach and GPT-3 (Olya Kudina & Bas de Boer) – Title: TBA 10:15 – 10:45 (GMT-8) / 19:15 – 19:45 (CET): Discussion with audience about the two approaches in relation to GPT-3 Bios: James Steinhoff is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the eScience Institute at the University of Washington. His research interests include algorithmic media theory, political economy, philosophy of technology and Marxism. He is author of Automation and Autonomy: Labour, Capital and Machines in the Artificial Intelligence Industry (2021, Palgrave) and co-author of Inhuman Power: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Capitalism (2019, Pluto). Bas de Boer is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Twente, The Netherlands. His research interests are in the philosophy of science technology, (post-)phenomenology, and the philosophy of medicine. Recently, his monograph How Scientific Instruments Speak: Postphenomenology and Technological Mediations in Neuroscientific Practice (2021, Lexington) was published. Olya Kudina is an Assistant Professor in the Ethics of Technology at Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands. She explores the role of technology in the sense-making processes and the technologically-induced value change. Her research interests span across the intersection of (post)phenomenology, design, bioethics and AI. References: Chalmers, D. (2020). “GPT-3 and General Intelligence.” https://dailynous.com/2020/07/30/philosophers-gpt-3/#chalmers (Accessed, 18/12/2020). Floridi, L., and M. Chiriatti. (2020). “GPT-3: Its Nature, Scope, Limits, and Consequences.” Minds and Machines 30, 681-694. Abstracts: TBA

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Job: Associate/Full Professor - Technology for Learning and Social Change
by mcburton 13 Jan '21

13 Jan '21

University of Pittsburgh, School of Computing and Information *Deadline: March 15, 2021* The School of Computing and Information (SCI) is seeking to hire an experienced and visionary faculty member at the associate professor/full professor level in the broad area of technology for learning and social change. The school is particularly interested in individuals who work at the intersection of computing and information with other areas including but not limited to Africana Studies, Artificial intelligence, Communications, Computational social science, Education, Educational psychology, Gender studies, Human-computer interaction, Law, Learning sciences, Public policy, Responsible data science, or Social work. For more information, please visit: https://www.sci.pitt.edu/recruiting/technology-learning-and-social-change <https://www.sci.pitt.edu/recruiting/technology-learning-and-social-change> The School of Computing and Information has 4 other faculty positions as well: https://www.sci.pitt.edu/recruiting -- Matt Burton School of Computing and Information University of Pittsburgh

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Research Ethics: Ethnography of Virtual World in Social Virtual Reality
by Hu2,R (pgr) 12 Jan '21

12 Jan '21

Dear all, Happy new year! My name is Runze. I'm a second-year PhD candidate from the Department of Media and Communications at London School of Economics. I am writing this email with the hope of gaining feedback and possibly initiating a discussion about the research ethics in social Virtual Reality (VR) studies. By social VR, I mean the emerging phenomenon that people use VR headset to socialise with people in immersive virtual environments. The AoIR community has produced three ethical guidelines which I found really helpful, but for social VR, I feel uncertain about many challenging ethical and methodological questions. Therefore, I am writing to seek help from the collective wisdom of the AoIR. I hope these ideas could be useful for people who are interested in studies of social VR I am about to conduct a multi-sited ethnography to study the participation in social VR in the Chinese context, and the chosen platform is VRChat https://vrchat.com/. This multi-sited ethnography will start from the VRChat platform and follow several recruited players across multiple online and offline sites relevant to the VRChat culture. 1. Filming in VR, Informed Consents and Confidentiality VRChat is constituted by numerous interlinked immersive virtual environments which could be public or private (with password protection). What usually happens in a virtual environment is players tend to form several gatherings in different locations on the map. One of my research questions is about how the affordances of social VR and users' daily interaction give rise to the norms and rules of participation (Erving Goffman's 'situational proprieties'). This requires me to be a participant observer of these daily interaction. However, one challenge unique to the social VR context is that, with the VR headset on, jotting is impossible. My solution is that my avatar will hold a virtual camera (visible to all participants) to capture my experiences. Filming in public space has always been an ethically complex issue both because the rich information it captures and the difficulties of gaining informed consents from all filmed individuals. To minimise potential harm, the footage will be converted to fieldnotes immediately after each session. All participants will be de-identified, and the original footage will be deleted. The terms of service of VRChat does allow filming. I also found that the negotiation of filming practices are common scenarios among VRChat players. I aim to gain informed consents from all key participants but not everyone involved. I plan to use 4 different strategies to tackle 4 distinctive scenarios. 1. For participants who travel across the scene without direct interaction with the researcher, informed consents will not be pursued. Chasing these people would be impractical and disruptive to their normal activities. The fieldnote will only describe the general patterns of the crowd with no intention of describing individual avatar and its IDs. The information collected could be considered as low-risk. 2. When approaching individuals or a group of participants, I will start by introducing my identity as a researcher and why I am here. When one or more participants refuse to be studied, I will immediately stop filming. The conversation will not be included in the fieldnote. Most importantly, due to the likely expected privacy in each gathering, in no circumstances will the researcher eavesdrop or covertly observe others' behaviours for an extended period without notifying them. 3. For participants who allow the researcher's participation and observation, consents will be negotiated verbally. In line with AoIR's three ethical guidelines, this is largely a dialogical process that will evaluate the potential harm and informed consent on a stage-by-stage and case-by-case basis. Asking for written consents may not be appropriate. Social VR usually does not have a file transfer system. Asking for written consents means I need to obtain other ways of contact, which will be considered intrusive for people who do not want to develop relationships beyond the platform. 4. After establishing a deeper relationship with specific participants, and when other messaging channels are established, written consents will be signed as a more secure record that indicates the participants are informed. I wonder if there are any ethically problematic practices I have not noticed, especially regarding filming in virtual semi-public space. 1. Harassment in Social VR and Illegal Activities One important aspect of the research is to understand how the user community define and self-regulate the improper behaviours such as hateful speech, harassment, violations of personal space etc. One thing I realise when playing social VR and reading relevant literature is that users' definition of 'improper' and 'harassment' is highly context-specific and personal. I wonder whether the researcher should have a more active role and to directly intervene when encountering such scenarios because the heightened sense of embodiment and presence may cause more harm than in other online contexts. My approach is that I would not directly intervene unless my informants clearly show signs of being offended or offend others. I will advise players to open their safety system if they appear to be helpless and do not know any countermeasures. VRChat has a built-in Safety and Trust system which could be used to shield certain social cues in VRChat. Users could also completely block untrusted users (blocked users will disappear). For activities against the Chinese law I may encounter on the platform (though the chances are slim), I will choose to ignore the majority of them (I will only report them when it is extremely serious). Platforms like VRChat occupies a legally precarious position in China. Chinese users' access to this type of software is protected by WTO agreement as long as it does not violate other Chinese law. VRChat is currently not under government censorship or intervention from the Great Firewall. Exposing illegal activities (including cult, terrorism, secession, subversion, endangering national unity etc.) may trigger a ban and jeopardise other users' access to the platform in mainland China. But I may choose to report prohibited activities to the platform when it violates the VRChat community guideline. Therefore, my research is more about the cultural politics of everyday meaning-making rather than activities usually defined as activism in the western contexts. This may not be seen as a limitation of the research but a conscious choice of theoretical framework. Thank you for reading this lengthy description and I will appreciate any constructive comments and suggestions about research ethics in social VR. I also hope these ideas could be useful for people who are interested in researching in social VR. All the best, Runze Hu PhD Researcher Department of Media and Communications London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)

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Call for proposals now open for the 2021 Connected Learning Summit
by Jamieson L Pond 12 Jan '21

12 Jan '21

Call for proposals now open for the fourth annual Connected Learning Summit, which will run entirely online through the month of July, in 1 hour sessions scheduled between 9am – noon Pacific (noon-3pm Eastern). After this online year, we hope and expect that CLS will convene again in person. Connected Learning Summit 2021 July 1-31, 2021 | Virtual Event Online submissions open: January 11, 2021 Deadline for submissions: March 15, 2021 Notifications of Acceptance: April 2021 Call for proposals page: https://clsummit.news/aoirCFP21 Our CFP for this year is focused on self-organized online workshops, symposia, networking opportunities, social, and gaming events tailored to an online format. We welcome your proposals for creating an inclusive, learner-centered, community-driven event that will break new ground in what is possible for online events and community-building. Our hope is that this event will strengthen the community and create a space for sharing of ideas that are relevant and timely today and for the future. Given the experimental nature of this year’s event, we welcome any and all creative ideas that meet the goals of sharing ideas and promoting connections within the CLS community. Sessions, presentations, and papers originally accepted for CLS2020 will be invited to present for CLS2021 if they can be adapted to an online format. Authors of accepted papers will be getting an email from organizers with more details. We will be accepting proposals for: - Workshops - Symposia - Experimental and Social Sessions OFFICE HOURS Organizers Eric Klopfer, Scot Osterweil, and Mimi Ito will be hosting two open Zoom office hours for anyone who would like to discuss possibilities for sessions and events, consider a committee role, or share any ideas. Click the links below to join the Zoom office hours: January 29, 4-7PM ET (https://uci.zoom.us/j/92173707658) February 3, 10AM-1PM ET (https://uci.zoom.us/j/93305537103) About the Connected Learning Summit CLS was first convened in 2018 with the mission to fuel a growing movement of innovators harnessing the power of emerging technology to expand access to participatory, playful, and creative learning. It represents a merger between three community events with this shared vision and values: the Digital Media and Learning Conference, the Games+Learning+Society Conference, and Sandbox Summit. With a unique focus on cross-sector connections and progressive and catalytic innovation, the event brings together leading researchers, educators, and developers. The event is co-hosted by UC Irvine’s Connected Learning Lab, MIT’s Scheller Teacher Education Program and Education Arcade, and the Learning Games Network and supported by a wide network of academic, industry, nonprofit, and philanthropic partners. Respectfully, *Jamieson Pond, Head of Communications* Connected Learning Lab University of California, Irvine CLAlliance.org <https://clalliance.org/> | ConnectedLearning.uci.edu <http://connectedlearning.uci.edu/> | ConnectedLearningSummit.org <https://connectedlearningsummit.org> Twitter: @TheCLAlliance <https://twitter.com/TheCLAlliance> | @TheCLSummit <https://twitter.com/TheCLSummit> LinkedIn <https://www.linkedin.com/company/connected-learning-alliance/> | Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/ConnectedLearningAlliance/> | YouTube <https://www.youtube.com/c/connectedlearningalliance> Connected Learning Newsletter <https://clalliance.org/newsletter> "Everyone you ever meet knows something you don't." - Bill Nye

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Participate in the 5th Asian CHI Symposium (May 7th - 8th, 2021)
by Jain, Pranjal 12 Jan '21

12 Jan '21

Dear Colleagues, A Happy New Year! [Apologies if you receive multiple copies of this message] =============== Call for Participation 5th Asian CHI Symposium (https://asian-chi.github.io/2021/ ) Virtually, May 7th - 8th, 2021 =============== The 5th Asian CHI Symposium is the annual symposium organized at CHI conference to showcase the latest HCI and UX works from Asia and those focusing on incorporating Asian sociocultural factors in their design and implementation. The symposium encourages researchers and practitioners from Asian professional and academic communities in all career stages (e.g., seasoned academics, early career researchers, graduate students, and even undergraduates who have interests in HCI) from Asian communities to be part of this. It also intends to foster a network of young researchers from the Bachelor to Doctoral candidates, recent graduates and postgraduate researchers. We seek your submissions of original work or showcase for the 5th Asian CHI Symposium. Selected papers will be published at the ACM Digital Library (ISBN: 978-1-4503-8203-8). For more details information about the submission, please kindly check the call for papers - https://asian-chi.github.io/2021/cfpEn.html We invite submissions on any of the following research themes and/or contributions within the following HCI fields, but not limited to: * Novel interactive systems and interaction design and techniques; * Novel hardware and software enabling new forms of interaction with computers; * Input and output systems to support creative activities and expressions; * Studies for understanding human capabilities related to interaction with computers; * Knowledge, practices, methods, components, and tools that make technology more useful, usable, and desirable; * Systems and services that address issues prominent in Asia; HCI for development or addressing issues well-known in Asia; * HCI applications for learning, education and family in Asia; * Playful interaction, player experience, and games; * HCI for healthcare management, wellness, medicine; * HCI and UX applications in the industry. * Specific application areas or domains of interest that have significant impacts in the community, e.g.: marginalized community, disability, non-human stakeholders, charities, low and middle-income people, etc. We have two rounds where researchers and practitioners could submit their work to us. Important Dates: * Round 1 * Submission Deadline: January 28th, 2021 * Notification of Desk Reject: February 4th, 2021 * Notification of Acceptance: March 9th, 2021 * Round 2 * Submission Deadline: February 25th, 2021 * Notification of Desk Reject: March 4th, 2021 * Notification of Acceptance: April 6th, 2021 * Submission of Camera-Ready Version: April 20th, 2020 If you have any query in regard to the submission, please contact Masitah Ghazali - masitah(a)utm.my<mailto:masitah@utm.my> or Sayan Sarcar - mailtosayan(a)gmail.com<mailto:mailtosayan@gmail.com>. If you are interested to become a reviewer for the 5th Asian CHI Symposium, please fill out this form: https://bit.ly/3hZ105b We look forward to having your participation at the symposium in May 2021. Warm Regards 5th Asian CHI Symposium Ambassador/Team For more details, see our website<https://asian-chi.github.io/2021/index.html> Follow us on Twitter<https://twitter.com/asian_chi_conf> and Facebook<https://www.facebook.com/asianchi2021/>.

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2021 Winter Events for Disrupting Disruptions: The Feminist and Accessible Publishing, Communications, and Technologies Series
by Alexandra Ketchum 12 Jan '21

12 Jan '21

Check out our Winter 2021 EVENTS! These events are free, virtual, open to the public, and professionally live captioned! https://www.feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.com/p/schedule-of-… January 13: Chancey Fleet <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…>on Digital Frictions and Dark Patterns in Accessible Technology <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…>at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) January 20: Sasha Costanza-Chock on Design Justice <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…>at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) January 27: Deborah Raji on Facial Recognition Technology <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…> on the Challenges of Audits, Accountability & Algorithmic Justice at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) February 3: Dr. Elinor Carmi on Media Distortions <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…> at 12 PM (ONLINE EVENT) February 10: Yeshimabeit Milner on Abolish Big Data and Data 4 Black Lives <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…> at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) February 17: Caroline Sinders on Feminist Data Set and CAre B0t <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…>at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) February 24: Ana Brandusescu, Financing AI: The role of public investments in Canada <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…>at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) March 3: Keoni Mahelona and Peter-Lucas Jones <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…> at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) March 10: Morgan Klaus Scheuerman on How We Teach Computer Vision To See Race and Gender <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…>at 12PM (lunchtime event) (ONLINE EVENT) March 17: Stephanie Dinkins at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) March 24: Rose Eveleth of Flash Forward Podcast <https://www.facebook.com/events/422397835779163/?acontext=%7B%22ref%22%3A%2…> at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) March 31: Kate Crawford on the Atlas of AI at 7 PM (ONLINE EVENT) The Feminist and Accessible Publishing, Communications, and Technologies Speaker and Workshop Series, organized by Dr. Alex Ketchum, bring together scholars, creators, and people in the industry to discuss their work. These workshops reflect on the intersections of digital humanities, computer science, feminist studies, disability studies, communication studies, LGBTQ studies, history, and critical race theory. The series strives to apply the theories of these studies within its own practices to make this research accessible. You can follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/feministandacc1 <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…> and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/FeministandAccesiblePublishingandCommunication <https://feministandaccessiblepublishingandtechnology.us10.list-manage.com/t…> -- Alexandra (Alex) Ketchum, PhD Faculty Lecturer at the Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies at McGill University Director of the Just Feminist Tech and Scholarship Lab <http://www.justfeministtechandscholarshiplab.com/p/about.html> Founder of Disrupting Disruptions: disruptingdisruptions.com The Feminist and Accessible Publishing, Communications, and Technologies Series Creator of The Feminist Restaurant Project: thefeministrestaurantproject.com alexketchum.ca <http://www.alexketchum.ca/>| pronouns she/her

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PhD position on the history of online comments
by Anne Helmond 12 Jan '21

12 Jan '21

Dear AoIR colleagues, We are searching for a PhD candidate (100%) to work with us to examine the history of online commenting technologies and practices at the University of Siegen, Germany. The DFG-funded sub-project "Historical Technography of Online Commentary", part of the newly established Collaborative Research Center "Transformations of the Popular" will be led by Johannes Paßmann and Anne Helmond. Please find more details about the project, candidate requirements and application procedure here: https://jobs.uni-siegen.de/job/Research-Associate-%28100%29%2C-Media-Studie… Deadline: 28 January 2021. For further questions, do not hesitate to contact us: Dr. Johannes Paßmann Johannes.Passmann(a)uni-siegen.de Ass. Prof. Dr. Anne Helmond a.helmond(a)uva.nl Feel free to forward to your students and colleagues! Best wishes, Anne Helmond --- Dr. Anne Helmond | Assistant Professor of New Media and Digital Culture University of Amsterdam | Turfdraagsterpad 9 | 1012 XT Amsterdam | The Netherlands http://www.uva.nl/profile/a.helmond | http://www.annehelmond.nl/ | @silvertje Highlighted publication: Helmond, Anne. 2015. “The Platformization of the Web: Making Web Data Platform Ready.” Social Media + Society 1 (2). doi:10.1177/2056305115603080.

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15 fully funded PhD positions in design
by Roy Bendor 12 Jan '21

12 Jan '21

**With apologies for cross-posting: Do you see design as a way to open pathways toward inclusive and sustainable futures? Are you ready to cross sectors and disciplines? Would you like to apply your research to real-world challenges? DCODE is now accepting applications for 15 fully funded PhD positions located in several European universities on topics including inclusive digital futures, trusted interactions, sustainable socioeconomic models, democratic data governance, and future design practice. Application deadline for most positions: Feb.14. More information: https://www.dcode-network.eu/ _______ Dr Roy Bendor | Assistant Professor, Dept. of Human-Centered Design, Delft University of Technology | Fellow, Urban Futures Studio, Utrecht University | r.bendor(a)tudelft.nl | +31-6-42379223 | http://www.digitalsustainability.com

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CfP: Digital War Special Issue (reminder)
by Olga Boichak 12 Jan '21

12 Jan '21

*Call for Papers: My War: Participation in Warfare, Special Issue of the Digital War Journal * https://www.digital-war.org/blog/2020/11/23/special-issue-my-war-call-for-p… Edited by *Olga Boichak*, University of Sydney, and *Andrew Hoskins*, University of Glasgow In a time when we study, work, shop, and socialise remotely, digital media also afford unprecedented opportunities for remote participation in armed conflicts. Blurring the boundaries between military and civilian actors, physical and mediated battlefronts, weapons and witnesses, citizens and diasporas, digital technologies do not simply offer new capabilities in conducting military operations – extending the battlefronts into the realms of communication and perception, they reconstitute the social conditions shaping people’s relationship to wars. This special issue foregrounds the emerging participatory patterns in military conflicts, attending to the higher-order social transformations that challenge and transform our understanding of wars. The submissions present a collection of insights and perspectives on participatory futures of armed conflicts. For example, the concept of ‘participative war’ (Merrin 2018) highlights how new ‘architectures of participation’ (O’Reilly 2004) offered by web 2.0 platforms as well as connected and mobile media devices enable a wide range of actors to have their say and participate in warfare in an immediate and ongoing fashion. Media have made war seem increasingly granular, enabling (albeit unevenly) an array of actors (militaries, states, soldiers, citizens, photo/journalists, NGOs) to continually upload, post, edit, forward, delete, show and hide a multitude of perceptions around the unfolding of the mundane and the spectacular. Others argue that we are living in a time of ‘radical war’ (Ford & Hoskins, forthcoming) namely that the interaction between media spectacle, connected technologies and the politics of violence obscures the relationship between military cause and political effect. This special issue seeks interdisciplinary contributions to shape a new agenda for the study and understanding of the relationship between war and participation in digital media ecologies. Contributions may include, but not necessarily be confined to, the following themes: · Witnessing and knowing · New forms of knowledge · Perception, attention and data · Blurring of boundaries · Compassion, morality and action · Infrastructures and architecture · Visual participation · Distance and proximity · Mundane and the spectacular · New and old concepts of war and media · Remembering and forgetting · Crowds and open source intelligence · Overcrowded and hyperconnected battlefield *Contributions may include*: · Full research articles (6-12,000 words) · Image/art works · Commentaries · Reviews · Interviews *Timetable:* *15 January, 2021* Deadline for receipt of abstract/proposals of no more than 300 words, including author(s) names and affiliations. *31 January, 2021* Authors informed of decisions. *16 August, 2021* Deadline for submission of full contributions. *August-December 2021* Review process and revisions *Spring 2022* Full special issue publication (accepted articles will be published earlier in online first) Please send your submissions or reach out with any questions to *Olga Boichak*, *olga.boichak(a)sydney.edu.au <olga.boichak(a)sydney.edu.au>* *___________________________* *Dr Olga BOICHAK* Lecturer in Digital Cultures <https://www.sydney.edu.au/arts/about/our-people/academic-staff/olga-boichak…> *The University of Sydney* Department of Media and Communications School of Literature, Art, and Media Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences <https://sydney.edu.au/arts/study/study-areas/media-and-communications.html> *Digital War Journal* <https://www.digital-war.org/digital-war-introduction>, Editor olga.boichak(a)sydney.edu.au | sydney.edu.au @olgarithmic | olgarithmic.net

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