With generous contributions from the Social Media Collective extended family, I have put together a list that brings together academic and popular writing on metaphors of data, along with pieces that approach questions of data and commercial/political power. The goal in assembling this list was to catalog resources that are helpful in unpacking and critiquing different metaphors, ranging from the …
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CFP: Studying Social Media and Digital Infrastructures: a workshop-within-a-conference
part of the 50th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS-50) paper submission deadline: June 15, 2016, 11:59pm HST. For fifty years, the Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS) has been a home for researchers in the information, computer, and system sciences (http://www.hicss.org/). The 50th anniversary event will be held January 4-7, …
Reflections on technology and the 2016 elections
Way back in 2008, Off the Bus reporter Mayhill Fowler filed a report on an appearance by Hillary Clinton during that spring's Democratic primary. The piece opens with a quote: "'Being here this morning is a gift,' Hillary Clinton says to the small band of supporters, several hundred strong, gathered under the Saturday morning sun …
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Book release: Queering the Countryside-New Frontiers in Rural Queer Studies
I am happy to announce the release of Queering the Countryside, with exciting contributions by great scholars and edited by Brian J. Gilley, Colin R. Johnson and myself. Find it in NYU Press, or order it from Amazon. ----------------------------------------------------------------- "Rural queer experience is often hidden or ignored, and presumed to be alienating, lacking, and incomplete …
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How To Get a Social Media Ph.D.
A few months ago, I asked how we might reconsider Ph.D. education in light of digital media, social media, and the changing landscape of scholarly publishing. No matter what your Ph.D. aspirations are, all Ph.D.s are sort-of about publishing and dissemination of research and also reading research, and these activities are being transformed by digital media. …
LA Times Op-Ed: Your job is about to get “taskified”
I've got a small Op-Ed from our crowdwork research in the Sunday's Los Angeles Times' print edition, published on January 10th, 2016 . It reflects on the challenges that workers face in a world of “taskified” labor—particularly the problem of getting paid when no one’s legally on the hook for sending you your last paycheck. Full …
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Henry Jenkins, on “Comics and Stuff”
We have had the distinct privilege of having Henry Jenkins visit our research group for the past few months. Give the immense impact of his work on the study of digital culture and digital industries, fan communities and the creative repurposing of media texts, and political participation and new forms of online activism, it was …
The internet(s) as metaphor, the internet(s) as craft
Like most people who read this blog, I spend a lot of time thinking about the internet. I've come to realize that there isn't really one internet, there are many, and these many internets are the result of the different practices and workarounds that individuals and communities have developed to make the internet meet their needs. As part …
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17 Games that Showcase Gaming
(or, interactive art & entertainment: a short tour) OK, dear readers, it's time for some BuzzFeed-style content here on the Social Media Collective. You want to understand digital media, right? You occasionally like to play a game, right? I'm pleased to revisit and refresh my list of games that quickly demonstrate what is possible in digital gaming. Sort …
“Critical algorithm studies” reading list
Nick Seaver and I have put together a list we wanted to share. It is an attempt to collect and categorize a growing critical literature on algorithms as social concerns. The work spans sociology, anthropology, science and technology studies, geography, communication, media studies, and legal studies, among others. Our aim was to catalog the emergence of “algorithms” as …
