Beyond the 'Networked Public Sphere': Politics, Participation and Technics in Web 2.0
In some ways discussion of the political implications of Web 2.0 reinvigorates a debate about the democratising nature of the Internet that began in the 1990s. The concept of participation is at the heart of many current debates about politics and technology. There are two main reasons for saying th...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Open Humanities Press
2009-01-01
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| Series: | Fibreculture Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://fourteen.fibreculturejournal.org/fcj-093-beyond-the-networked-public-sphere-politics-participation-and-technics-in-web-2-0/ |
| _version_ | 1818180649058566144 |
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| author | Ben Roberts |
| author_facet | Ben Roberts |
| author_sort | Ben Roberts |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In some ways discussion of the political implications of Web 2.0 reinvigorates a debate about the democratising nature of the Internet that began in the 1990s. The concept of participation is at the heart of many current debates about politics and technology. There are two main reasons for saying this. On the one hand is an ongoing and increasing concern about public participation, or lack of it, in modern (predominantly Western) democracies. This participatory deficit is to be seen in falling voter turnout at elections, public apathy on key political issues and scorn or indifference for elected political representatives. On the other hand, there is a wave of optimism concerning the potential of new technologies, particularly the web, to enable new forms of participation in economic and public life, to transform political debate and citizenship and to renew the ailing (or perceived to be ailing) institutions of democracy. This optimism around participation and politics, while it has played a role in utopian visions of the internet more or less since its inception, has been reinvigorated recently by the discussion around the so-called Web 2.0. This article argues for a much more critical or sceptical approach to the political promise of Web 2.0. Focusing particularly on Yochai Benkler's The Wealth of Networks, it argues that current accounts of the participatory aspects of web culture tend to take a rather narrow view of what such participation might mean. However, aspects of the work of Bernard Stiegler, and that of others in the Ars Industrialis group co-founded by Stiegler, can help inform a more nuanced account of the relationship between politics and participation. It looks specifically at the arguments in Marc Crépon and Bernard Stiegler's book De la démocratie participative, written during the recent French presidential campaign, and will examine how the idea of participation articulates with key themes in Stiegler's philosophy of technics. Finally it suggests some ways in which this debate on participation might be moved on. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T21:23:07Z |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1449-1443 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T21:23:07Z |
| publishDate | 2009-01-01 |
| publisher | Open Humanities Press |
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| series | Fibreculture Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-ecd998f023f349c0ae5c00bc63d2b66a2022-12-22T00:50:24ZengOpen Humanities PressFibreculture Journal1449-14432009-01-0114Beyond the 'Networked Public Sphere': Politics, Participation and Technics in Web 2.0Ben RobertsIn some ways discussion of the political implications of Web 2.0 reinvigorates a debate about the democratising nature of the Internet that began in the 1990s. The concept of participation is at the heart of many current debates about politics and technology. There are two main reasons for saying this. On the one hand is an ongoing and increasing concern about public participation, or lack of it, in modern (predominantly Western) democracies. This participatory deficit is to be seen in falling voter turnout at elections, public apathy on key political issues and scorn or indifference for elected political representatives. On the other hand, there is a wave of optimism concerning the potential of new technologies, particularly the web, to enable new forms of participation in economic and public life, to transform political debate and citizenship and to renew the ailing (or perceived to be ailing) institutions of democracy. This optimism around participation and politics, while it has played a role in utopian visions of the internet more or less since its inception, has been reinvigorated recently by the discussion around the so-called Web 2.0. This article argues for a much more critical or sceptical approach to the political promise of Web 2.0. Focusing particularly on Yochai Benkler's The Wealth of Networks, it argues that current accounts of the participatory aspects of web culture tend to take a rather narrow view of what such participation might mean. However, aspects of the work of Bernard Stiegler, and that of others in the Ars Industrialis group co-founded by Stiegler, can help inform a more nuanced account of the relationship between politics and participation. It looks specifically at the arguments in Marc Crépon and Bernard Stiegler's book De la démocratie participative, written during the recent French presidential campaign, and will examine how the idea of participation articulates with key themes in Stiegler's philosophy of technics. Finally it suggests some ways in which this debate on participation might be moved on.http://fourteen.fibreculturejournal.org/fcj-093-beyond-the-networked-public-sphere-politics-participation-and-technics-in-web-2-0/web 2.0social mediaparticipationBernard Stiegler |
| spellingShingle | Ben Roberts Beyond the 'Networked Public Sphere': Politics, Participation and Technics in Web 2.0 Fibreculture Journal web 2.0 social media participation Bernard Stiegler |
| title | Beyond the 'Networked Public Sphere': Politics, Participation and Technics in Web 2.0 |
| title_full | Beyond the 'Networked Public Sphere': Politics, Participation and Technics in Web 2.0 |
| title_fullStr | Beyond the 'Networked Public Sphere': Politics, Participation and Technics in Web 2.0 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Beyond the 'Networked Public Sphere': Politics, Participation and Technics in Web 2.0 |
| title_short | Beyond the 'Networked Public Sphere': Politics, Participation and Technics in Web 2.0 |
| title_sort | beyond the networked public sphere politics participation and technics in web 2 0 |
| topic | web 2.0 social media participation Bernard Stiegler |
| url | http://fourteen.fibreculturejournal.org/fcj-093-beyond-the-networked-public-sphere-politics-participation-and-technics-in-web-2-0/ |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT benroberts beyondthenetworkedpublicspherepoliticsparticipationandtechnicsinweb20 |