Category: Tranformations in Digital Cultures

Digitalisation has a profound impact on our society. We can observe changes in different areas. What digital media do, what they look like and how they relate to each other and to older media is not identical worldwide, but dependent on local practices as well. Transformations are not unequivocal. On the one hand, new genres have emerged, such as streaming channels, providing engaging forms of entertainment and learning but also provoking vehement discussions about their impact. New possibilities as e.g. participation in our digital cultures arise but also new inequalities, as the access and competencies needed for participation are not evenly distributed and the platforms that allow for participation also harbour new mechanisms of control and surveillance. The pace and diversity of these developments ask for continuous investigation and reflection. This development has gained a new impetus through the proliferation and popularity of social media but also the discourses around AI and ethics. The aim of this course is to investigate the consequences of these developments for society and culture. 
– From the course Syllabus, 2021