[Air-L] IR 12 Resistance and Technology Roundtable

[Ted Coopman]

All,

I am putting together a Roundtable to submit to IR 12 (see below).
Besides myself, Amoshuan Toft ( U of WA Bothell) and John Anderson (U
of IL) have signed on. Of particular interest are those whose
research/experience crosses collective action/social movements, media
and new media, and personal  experiences with resistance movements.
Diverse and interesting perspectives are welcome including but not
limited to legal, regulatory, political, social, cultural, rhetorical,
technical..., well, you get the idea.

Please contact me directly at ted.coopman at sjsu.edu by Feb. 21 if you
are interested.

Resistance and Technology Roundtable (Brief DRAFT version)

Recent successful and unsuccessful resistance actions such as the
revolts in Iran, Tunisian, and Egypt, hackivism by Anonymous on
corporate and organizational websites as well as the ongoing Wikileaks
release of State Department documents highlight the role of digital
technology in resistance to power. The limits and legitimacy of this
activity is currently the subject of much debate. Issues include the
definition of journalism and journalist, the limits and
responsibilities of information and service providers, and the scope
of legitimate action in digital environments and the relevance of
physical space analogies to such actions. Even the role of the
efficacy and centrality of digital communication in protest actions or
movements has been hotly contested. While the use of technology in
protests from the barricade to radio to Twitter play a role in
resistance, the question is to what degree do these technologies
enable or shape resistance and influence outcomes in comparison to
other social, political, and cultural factors?

-TED

-- 
Ted M. Coopman Ph.D.
Lecturer
Department of Communication Studies
San Jose State University
http://www.sjsu.edu/people/ted.coopman/