[Air-L] Platypus call for Contributing Editors

[Kim Fernandes]

Dear AoIR community,

I'm the incoming Managing Editor for Platypus--an STS and anthro of science/tech blog--and we're recruiting new Contributing Editors and Multimodal Contributing Editors for next year. Please find below the call, and feel free to share widely in your networks. If any of you are interested in applying, I'm more than happy to answer any questions if you'd like to reach out to me off-list, too!

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Platypus<https://blog.castac.org/>, the official blog of the Committee for the Anthropology of Science, Technology, and Computing<https://castac.org/> and one of the leading anthropology blogs, invites applications for the positions of Contributing Editor and Multimodal Contributing Editor. We seek motivated scholars who work at the intersection of anthropology and STS, broadly understood.

Platypus promotes dialogue on theories, tools, and social interactions that explore questions at the intersection of anthropology and science and technology studies. Through the blog, we aim to build a thriving discourse among a community of scholars concerned about the implications of science, technologized products, and worldviews for human beings and other forms of life. Our approach is interdisciplinary and inclusive.

If you’re interested in writing and curating blog posts, and/or are a multimedia/multimodal ethnographer, artist, or practitioner who makes or curates films, photography, comics, music, audiovisual pieces, poetry, or other experimental forms of ethnographic content, we’d love to have you on board.
Details for both CE and MCEs:

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One-year renewable term, beginning January 1, 2025.
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Working with a great team of volunteers from around the world committed to accessibility and inclusivity.
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While the topical and geographic area is open, we are especially eager for applications from contributors whose research interests engage with STS in the Global South and those who work with marginalized communities.
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We also welcome critical scholarship that engages with issues of inequality, racism, ableism, classism, sexism, homo/transphobia, and other forms of systemic discrimination and marginalization as it intersects with questions of science and technology.
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Candidates from outside North America and international scholars are encouraged to apply.
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Support for authors needing additional help with English editing is available.
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Please note that as CASTAC is an entirely volunteer-run organization, we are unable to offer compensation for these positions.

Qualifications:

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A professional and/or academic interest in STS and anthropology.
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Competence with digital media.
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Strong communication and organizational skills.
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Capacity to work independently and meet deadlines

Responsibilities – Contributing Editor (CE):

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Curate 4-5 posts per year from guest authors.
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Occasionally author blog posts.
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Supervise the editorial and production process.
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Complete general and accessibility training modules.
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Follow internal publication protocols in a timely manner.
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Maintain a high standard of accessibility in blog content.

Responsibilities – Multimodal Contributing Editor (MCE):

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MCEs will create or curate a minimum of two multimedia/modal blog posts that engage with the anthropology of science and technology and/or STS (examples include this visual storyboard<https://blog.castac.org/2024/06/what-will-be-lost-a-cat-a-man-with-a-horse-and-the-battle-at-court/>, this series of audio ethnographies<https://blog.castac.org/2024/02/audio-ethnographies-of-water-from-latin-america-introduction/>, this exploration of biotechnology through a tarot deck<https://blog.castac.org/2024/07/cards-and-codes-spirituality-and-magic-in-the-biotechnological-era/>, this illustrated narrative piece<https://blog.castac.org/2024/03/bed-time-storytelling/>, and this comic<https://blog.castac.org/2024/09/the-practice-of-not-knowing/>).
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Complete general and accessibility training modules.
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Follow internal publication protocols in a timely manner.
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Maintain a high standard of accessibility in blog content.
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We will also accept applications from two-person teams who wish to work together in this position.

Application
The following application materials should be sent to editor at castac.org<mailto:editor at castac.org> by December 5, 2024:


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CV
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One-page cover letter that outlines the applicant’s interests in relation to the blog’s mission and any related previous experience. For MCE applicants, please also briefly outline at least one potential project.

Candidates will be notified by December 9, 2024.

For further information about the blog and the position, please visit our website<https://blog.castac.org/> or reach out to editor at castac.org<mailto:editor at castac.org>.

Warmly (and with apologies for cross-posting),

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Kim Fernandes<http://kimfernandes.com>
(they/them/theirs)
Data & Society<https://datasociety.net/> and Center for Information, Technology & Public Life<https://citap.unc.edu/> Affiliate
Postdoctoral Fellow, Faculty of Information
University of Toronto