Wednesday, October 3 2018, 12:30 pm to 2:00 pm
Mackintosh Corry Hall D411
Abstract:
Surveillance capitalism is a global phenomenon, with ramifications around the world and different implications for specific regions, and to social and cultural contexts. It grows in places of weak urban regulation (Uber, Airbnb), low investments in education and infrastructure (Google Suite for Education), and preys on the labour market. The leading companies of surveillance capitalism are based in the Global North, but a relevant share of its prosumer base is in the Global South, which is a phenomenon that should be understood in parallel with neoliberal policies and economic austerity measures. To better understand the success, complexity and challenges posed by surveillance capitalism is necessary to investigate its global operations, its partnership with local actors and how its tools, services and platforms become desirable, preferable, useful or essential in local contexts. Some specific cases and examples will be presented together with a proposed research framework and some preliminary hypothesis.
About the Speaker:
Rafael Evangelista is a professor in the Graduate program in Popularization of Science and Culture at State University of Campinas (Unicamp), Brazil. He is a journalist and social scientist with a Ph.D. in Social Anthropology. He is a co-founder of the Latin American Network of Surveillance, Technology and Society Studies (Lavits). He is the author of the recently released ebook Beyond Machines of Loving Grace: Hacker Culture, Cybernetics and Democracy.
Everyone welcome!
The Surveillance Studies Centre
c/o David Murakami Wood
Department of Criminology
University of Ottawa
Canada