an article by Alan Latham (University College London, UK) and Jack Layton (Affiliation unknown) published in International Journal of Urban and Regional Research Volume 43 Issue 6 (November 2019)
Abstract
Cities are full of disputes about organizing public life. These disputes are important for deciding how spaces get used, and they are integral to how publics form and develop. In all sorts of ways they define the potentialities of urban public life.
This article tells the story of the Southbank Centre's plans to redevelop their central London site, and Long Live Southbank's protest of these plans to save their skateable space.
Through this detailed case study the article develops a distinctive conceptual apparatus for making sense of public disputes.
Drawing links between Deweyan pragmatism and assemblage theory, the article explores how publics were drawn together as assemblages of humans and non‐humans with the capacity to act and argue. It follows the arguments that each side made – and the justifications underpinning them – to explore the different ideas of public‐ness that were at stake in the disagreement.
This also helps highlight the space for cooperation that existed.
The article emphasises the part affect played in shaping the dispute; recognising its role in public reasoning, and in how people get pulled into different publics. This is a story not only of disputation, but of how a corner of London expanded its public‐ness.
Showing posts with label assemblage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label assemblage. Show all posts
Wednesday, 27 November 2019
Tuesday, 19 November 2019
Investigating the online and offline contexts of day-to-day democracy as participation spaces
an article by Ella Taylor-Smith and Colin F. Smith (Edinburgh Napier University, UK) published in Information, Communication & Society Volume 22 Issue 13 (2019)
Abstract
Citizen-led participation in democracy is explored through studying the online and offline spaces where people work together to influence those in power and improve their communities.
The concept of a participation space is introduced to describe these contexts. The spatial theme guides the research, from literature, through methodology, to findings.
Case studies of three community/activist groups provide the data to identify participation spaces and model these as Socio-Technical Interaction Networks (STINs) (Kling, McKim, & King, 2003). These participation spaces include social media, email, and blogs, as well as paper media and offline spaces, such as rooms.
The STIN models of these participation spaces reveal that the characteristics which influence their use for participation are the same for online and offline spaces.
These can be understood in terms of spatial characteristics: the spaces’ perceived boundaries and inhabitants, combined with ownership and access, including costs. As well as recording the roles of these spatial characteristics, the participation space models map the day-to-day activities of participation.
Collating these activities reveals that participation primarily takes the form of communication: organising and increasing solidarity, sharing information, encouraging involvement, and trying to influence events. The models also reveal that most of these activities are non-public.
This sociotechnical study describes the relationship between the activities of local, grassroots democracy and the characteristics of the online and offline spaces where it takes place.
Abstract
Citizen-led participation in democracy is explored through studying the online and offline spaces where people work together to influence those in power and improve their communities.
The concept of a participation space is introduced to describe these contexts. The spatial theme guides the research, from literature, through methodology, to findings.
Case studies of three community/activist groups provide the data to identify participation spaces and model these as Socio-Technical Interaction Networks (STINs) (Kling, McKim, & King, 2003). These participation spaces include social media, email, and blogs, as well as paper media and offline spaces, such as rooms.
The STIN models of these participation spaces reveal that the characteristics which influence their use for participation are the same for online and offline spaces.
These can be understood in terms of spatial characteristics: the spaces’ perceived boundaries and inhabitants, combined with ownership and access, including costs. As well as recording the roles of these spatial characteristics, the participation space models map the day-to-day activities of participation.
Collating these activities reveals that participation primarily takes the form of communication: organising and increasing solidarity, sharing information, encouraging involvement, and trying to influence events. The models also reveal that most of these activities are non-public.
This sociotechnical study describes the relationship between the activities of local, grassroots democracy and the characteristics of the online and offline spaces where it takes place.
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