[Air-l] theory to explain plazes.com?

[Jill Walker]

I just signed up for this a week or two ago, when at a conference  
where I heard people talking about it. I'm quite shocked at the level  
of detail - I can subscribe to RSS feeds for where individuals are  
logged in from without them even having made me a buddy and thus  
given me specific access. It's cool, in a way, I suppose, to be able  
to see whether any of your friends are nearby, but as you say the  
privacy issues are huge, and suggest to me that users are either  
oblivious to the extent they're letting others knwo about them or  
that there's a real shift in our willingness to be observed.

The most obvious reference is of course Foucault's theory of the  
panopticon.

I'm not well-read on newer theories of surveillance, no doubt there  
are many, but I'd also consider danah boyd's work on public displays  
of friendship and networks - she sees this as a form of identity  
performance, and that's certainly an aspect of Plazes worth looking  
into. Her papers are at http://www.danah.org/papers/

I'd be interested in knowing about theory that more directly  
continues from Foucault - I seem to remember hearing some word coined  
- like surveillance but demonstrating that the person "being  
surveilled" isn't just complicit in it but is actually deliberating  
asking to be "surveilled" - was it co-veillance or something like that?

Jill

> An undergraduate student in my program is researching plazes.com, a  
> website like myspace and facebook in that it is a social networking  
> site, but in addition it adds a physical location. The technology  
> behind it enables friends to know one's location through a  
> cellphone or internet connection. Thus, issues of privacy  
> (invasion) are huge. The student is looking for a theory that  
> explains or relates to people's willingness to engage in such  
> activities even at the expense of inhibiting personal privacy. In a  
> way we have a third place here that is tied to a physical location  
> again. The student is approaching this topic from a background in  
> rhetorical criticism.
> Does anyone have suggestions for theories and places to look for  
> them? As-complete-as-possible references would be very much  
> appreciated. Please send to me directly. I will compile and send  
> both to the list and to the student.
> Thanks,
> Ulla
>
> ---
> Ulla Bunz
> Assistant Professor
> Department of Communication
> University Center C, Suite 3100
> Florida State University
> Tallahassee, FL 32306
> Email: ubunz at fsu.edu
> Phone: 850-644-1809
> -----------------------------------------------
>
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