Dark Publics, Dark Socials: Encrypted Messaging Platforms for Citizen Governance in Bangalore, India
- Title
- Dark Publics, Dark Socials: Encrypted Messaging Platforms for Citizen Governance in Bangalore, India
- Speaker(s)
- Speaker: Dr Nicole Rigillo # Indian Institute of Management & University of Edinburgh
- Date and Time
- 12th Oct 2018 15:00 - 12th Oct 2018 17:00
- Location
- Seminar Room 1, Chrystal Macmillan Building
- URL
- http://www.san.ed.ac.uk/events/research_seminars/2018_2019/dark_publics,_dark_socials_encrypted_messaging_platforms_for_citizen_governance_in_bangalore,_india
This talk draws on 8 months of fieldwork in Bangalore, India, to explore how citizen activists are using encrypted mobile instant messaging platforms (e.g. WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram) to form chat groups comprising citizens, local political leaders, and members of the media. While these groups were formed as a practical means of addressing routine governance failures in Bangalore, they also challenge accepted theories of both social media and the public sphere, offering new ways of being a citizen, a government, and a member of a community in the digital era.
