Courses / Module

According to the International Telecommunication Union, over half the world’s population were online by the end of the 2019. Of this number the majority of internet users are from developing counties, and users in Asia and Africa account for the majority. More and more we are all leading digital lives but because the internet is a global phenomenon it can too easily carry a series of assumptions regarding how it is used or who it is for. In this seminar we will consider digital media in diverse socio-political and cultural contexts in order to explore how individual, group and institutional interactions are increasingly mediated by these technologies. Are ideas and norms regarding human interaction changing? In part one we will focus on themes such as the presentation of self in online fora, ideas surrounding the internet and privacy, the encroachment of commercial interests in branding and advertising on digital media. In part two we will consider these topics through a close reading of ethnographic examples including filipina migrants in the UK, hashtag activists in the United States, digital migration in urban China, display and disguise in mobile phone use amongst young Mozambicans and smartphone use among older adults in Ireland. Student participation and peer discussion will be expected in all sessions.