“Mobile Republic: Visual Approaches to Discourse in South African Mobile Social Networks” presented by Walton

Symposium:

• ISEA2010: 16th International Symposium on Electronic Art
• More presentations from ISEA2010:  

• Appropriating Social Media

• Mobile Republic: Visual Approaches to Discourse in South African Mobile Social Networks

• Marion Walton

Venue(s):

• domicil, Dortmund, Germany

• Social networks are believed to broaden participation and deepen democracy, but may play a role in reproducing social divisions. This project highlights the differences between computer users, whose social network use constitutes a form of mediated public, and mobile-centric users who primarily access the Internet via their phones, and whose contributions often remain digitally invisible. Mobile social networks serve a growing number of people with limited or no access to computers, who use their mobile phones as a primary form of Internet access, and who often do not use the platforms popular among computer-users. Differences in platform thus inscribe race, class, urban-rural and national divisions.

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Category:

• Panel