Contestational design : innovation for political activism
Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2008.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | eng |
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Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2009
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/46594 |
| _version_ | 1826199211535761408 |
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| author | Hirsch, Edward A., 1970- |
| author2 | William J. Mitchell. |
| author_facet | William J. Mitchell. Hirsch, Edward A., 1970- |
| author_sort | Hirsch, Edward A., 1970- |
| collection | MIT |
| description | Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2008. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T11:16:12Z |
| format | Thesis |
| id | mit-1721.1/46594 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | eng |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T11:16:12Z |
| publishDate | 2009 |
| publisher | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/465942019-04-11T13:40:04Z Contestational design : innovation for political activism Innovation for political activism Hirsch, Edward A., 1970- William J. Mitchell. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture. Program in Media Arts and Sciences. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Architecture. Program in Media Arts and Sciences. Architecture. Program in Media Arts and Sciences. Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2008. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 134-142). This thesis presents contestational design, a unique form of design activity whose aim is promote particular agendas in contested political arenas. I propose a framework for analyzing contestational design processes, which I then apply to two initiatives that developed communications infrastructure for activist groups. The first case study is TXTmob, an SMS-broadcast system that I developed with an ad-hoc coalition of activists to support mass mobilizations during the 2004 Democratic and Republican National Conventions. It has been used by thousands of people and has inspired new projects in both the nonprofit and commercial sectors. The second case study is Dialup Radio, a telephone-based independent media system that I developed with a civil society organization in Zimbabwe. It was intended to disseminate activist information, particularly to Zimbabwe's rural poor. Despite limited infrastructure and government restrictions, several prototypes were produced and tested in Zimbabwe. After describing each case study individually, I turn to a comparison of their respective processes and the artifacts that each produced. Examining the cases side by side, I identify a set of common issues with which contestational designers contend at various points in the design process. Finally, I describe a set of organizing principles that distinguish contestational design from other kinds of design activity. Tad Hirsch. Ph.D. 2009-08-26T17:00:06Z 2009-08-26T17:00:06Z 2008 2008 Thesis http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/46594 422764543 eng M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 142 leaves application/pdf Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| spellingShingle | Architecture. Program in Media Arts and Sciences. Hirsch, Edward A., 1970- Contestational design : innovation for political activism |
| title | Contestational design : innovation for political activism |
| title_full | Contestational design : innovation for political activism |
| title_fullStr | Contestational design : innovation for political activism |
| title_full_unstemmed | Contestational design : innovation for political activism |
| title_short | Contestational design : innovation for political activism |
| title_sort | contestational design innovation for political activism |
| topic | Architecture. Program in Media Arts and Sciences. |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/46594 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT hirschedwarda1970 contestationaldesigninnovationforpoliticalactivism AT hirschedwarda1970 innovationforpoliticalactivism |