Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies最新文献

{"title":"Managing the visibility of dissent: Stigma, social media, and family relationships among Azerbaijani activists","authors":"Katy E Pearce","doi":"10.1177/13548565241284939","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241284939","url":null,"abstract":"This study examines the strategies young Azerbaijani activists use to manage the visibility of their stigmatized political identities, particularly in relation to their families. Drawing on concepts of socially mediated visibility, stigma, and honor culture, we analyze interviews with 29 activists to explore how they navigate the complex trade-offs between visibility and concealment in an authoritarian context. Our findings highlight the central role of courtesy stigma and relational repression in shaping activists’ decisions, as they seek to balance their desire for political expression with the potential risks to their families. We also show how social media platforms both enable and complicate activists’ visibility management strategies. The study contributes to understanding the dynamics of activism and resistance in honor culture and authoritarian contexts.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"27 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142266179","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Producing intimacy in virtual reality","authors":"Ragan Glover","doi":"10.1177/13548565241283437","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241283437","url":null,"abstract":"This article offers an autoethnographic account of the author’s experiences with facilitating relational intimacy in the Oculus Meta Quest 2 virtual reality (VR) platform. In doing so, it provides accounts of the author conversing, playing games, and watching movies with her relational partner. It also details the author’s user practices for contending with such issues as limited social and physical fidelity, functional limitations of the VR device, infrastructural failure, and data privacy. The discussion is organized into three inter-related sections: (1) intimate-affective experiences in VR, (2) the materialities of VR intimacy, and (3) the politics of VR intimacy. The article applies a critical materialist perspective to interrogate how VR environments might contribute to the production of intimate-affective experiences for some users. It demonstrates how these intimate-affective experiences are produced in coordination with the materialities and attendant politics of VR. The article concludes by suggesting that the politics of platforms and infrastructures become the politics of digitally mediated intimacy.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"99 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-09-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142265945","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"From permissive to resistive tactics: How audience members engage with and make sense of datafied journalism","authors":"Liisa Ovaska","doi":"10.1177/13548565241283434","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241283434","url":null,"abstract":"While audience data are pivotal to producing journalism, audiences’ perspectives on the issue have received relatively little attention. Addressing this gap, the paper examines audience members’ tactics for making sense of and engaging with the datafied journalism into which they contribute with their data. Empirically grounded in group interviews and instant-messaging group chats with 21 readers of prominent Finnish tabloid Iltalehti, the author identified four tactics, along a continuum from permissive to resistive: an audience member may 1) happily benefit from datafied journalism; 2) be resigned to it yet reflect critically on it; 3) act to prevent effects on personal news-consumption patterns, by curating the content; or 4) entirely restrain themselves from engaging with it. Awareness of these tactics, which help individuals cope with and navigate the datafied-journalism landscape, facilitates grasping the factors in audiences’ relations to datafied journalism and, thereby, understanding their consumption of news and their relationship with journalism.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142220105","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Digital placemaking and its discontents: Exploring practices, power relations, and socio-spatial dynamics in Salzburg’s ‘Andräviertel’","authors":"Helena Atteneder, Christine Lohmeier","doi":"10.1177/13548565241274749","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241274749","url":null,"abstract":"Recent research on digital placemaking shows that digital media, especially those that have a direct or indirect spatial reference, can alter belonging and attachment to space and place and can thus create a spatial identity. Emerging digital practices evolve the practice of placemaking and refer to space as a nexus of experiences, online and physical components. This is created by people perceiving urban space differently through digital media and appropriating it according to media affordances and their needs and preferences. At the same time, digital placemaking is not necessarily community-driven, nor does it always lead to an increased quality of life for all people equally, but rather encompasses changing power relations and can even reinforce existing inequalities. Using the example of the ‘Andräviertel’ neighbourhood in Salzburg, Austria, we explore which practices of digital placemaking can be identified, and how and by whom these practices are used purposefully and consciously to shape the neighbourhood and its identity. Employing a multi-method approach that includes semi-structured interviews, a hashtag analysis and the examination of digital platforms, three levels of practices were identified (reflecting upon one’s own practices, representations of the practices, judgements about the practices of others). The results show that there is a conscious and deliberate demarcation of the Andräviertel from other neighbourhoods in the city. Furthermore, we found resistance to excessive digital practices with a clear preference for face-to-face networks.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"2 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142220262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"No Cap: ASCAP and the fragmentation of music publishing","authors":"Ediz Ozelkan, Emmanuel Billias","doi":"10.1177/13548565241280827","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241280827","url":null,"abstract":"The internet was originally conceptualized as a frontier within which creative and cultural output could thrive, bereft of the gatekeeping influence of major corporations in the analog era. As that digital era unfolded, the narrative shifted amid a concentration of media power and the precarity of digital labor, prompting questions about the democratization that the internet was purported to bring about. This project takes the music publishing industry as a case study of this democratization thesis, using network analysis to examine publishing data from ASCAP’s ACE Repertory to better understand the fragmentation or centralization of key social actors in the music industry. The study finds that the industry is greatly fragmented based on the total number of music licenses, pointing to a decentralization of music publishing. However, this does not provide a glimpse into how revenue is distributed in this network. These findings have implications for media studies, music industry analysis, cultural economics, and technology studies as technology continues to transform content creation.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"60 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142220077","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"(In)visibilising diversity on national streaming platforms in France and Norway: A quantitative and qualitative visual analysis of thumbnails","authors":"Maud Ceuterick, Marine Malet","doi":"10.1177/13548565241270712","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241270712","url":null,"abstract":"In the film and television industry, many social movements as #MeToo, #BuryYourGay or #BlackLivesMatter have highlighted the necessity of better representations of marginalised communities on and off screen. As diversity and inclusion have become major issues in contemporary societies, video-on-demand (VOD) platforms have publicly committed to diversify representation in the films and series they produce and distribute. This article investigates how streaming platforms with different commercial or public interests and in different national contexts understand and promote diversity and inclusion through the analysis of paratext. Focussing on the visual analysis of thumbnails, we compare the French and Norwegian national public platforms (France TV and NRK TV) with the most popular commercial national platforms in each country (Canal + Series in France and Viaplay in Norway). The visibility and invisibility of gender, race, sexuality and (dis)ability on TV series’ thumbnails reveal certain national and platforms’ social, cultural and political values. By using mixed quantitative and qualitative methods including interviews conducted with industry professionals, we aim to highlight the impact of streaming platforms’ promotional practices on the (in)visibility of diversity.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142220076","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Who pays the piper delivers the data: Audience measurement and programming in the crowdfunded radio","authors":"Patryk Galuszka, Piotr Chmielewski","doi":"10.1177/13548565241278901","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241278901","url":null,"abstract":"This paper investigates the functioning of Radio 357 – an Internet radio station financed since 2020, primarily by patrons. The empirical analysis based on in-depth interviews with patrons and radio staff shows how crowdfunded radio conceptualizes its activities, specifically how it acquires the knowledge of listeners and prepares its program offerings for them. In doing so, this study touches on the key differences between commercial terrestrial stations and crowdfunded radio and addresses the issue of ‘audience commodity’, first put forward by Smythe. The research conducted indicates that the shape of Radio 357 reflects the preferences of the majority of patrons and listeners, the observable behavior of patrons and listeners, employees’ beliefs about what good radio is, and the availability of alternative forms of funding (sponsorship). The success of Radio 357 shows that radio co-financed by patrons can become a viable alternative to radio stations funded by advertisers.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142220071","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring users’ algorithmic knowledge and reflexivity in a music streaming context: A critical realist approach","authors":"Sebastian Cole","doi":"10.1177/13548565241277379","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241277379","url":null,"abstract":"Digital platforms such as Spotify have specific characteristics and properties that influence, to some extent, how the platform is used. However, users develop their own interpretations of these properties as well as unique ways to engage with the platform. This study applies a critical realist framework to explore how reflexivity modes are practiced in the context of Spotify as an example of algorithmic recommendation systems. From this perspective, reflexivity is a person’s capacity to reflect on their contexts, data, previous experiences, and knowledge, among other elements, before deciding how to act. Findings from interviews with Spotify users suggest that participants practice multiple reflexivity modes when interpreting Spotify’s recommendations and deciding what to listen to. These modes depend on each participant’s concerns and algorithmic knowledge.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"38 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142220072","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comparative VOD catalogue research: Circulation, presence and prominence of British content in Europe","authors":"Cathrin Bengesser, Matthew Hilborn, Jeanette Steemers","doi":"10.1177/13548565241268057","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241268057","url":null,"abstract":"Video-on-demand (VoD) platforms have become primary spaces for encounters with transnational film and television, particularly among younger audiences. The expansion of global US-owned VoD services like Netflix has generated questions about the availability, discoverability, and prominence of domestic and European content, making the issue of how to analyse VoD catalogues pressing. Two perspectives are prevalent in VoD catalogue research: ‘back-end’ research emphasising composition and circulation; and ‘front-end’ analysing content presentation and discoverability. Quantitative methods facilitate comparative and longitudinal analyses of what is found on which VoD catalogues. Qualitative methods examine where and how audiences find content. This article, fostering synergy between the two, probes (1) the significance of VoD catalogue research in understanding the dynamics of transnational content flows and audience behaviours, and (2) its methodological possibilities and limitations. Focusing on British content in European VoD catalogues, it draws on two research projects: EUVoD (Aarhus Universitets Forskningsfond AUFF, 2021–2024), analysing the developing European VoD market within changing conditions of competition and policy; and Screen Encounters with Britain (AHRC, 2022–2025), investigating young Europeans’ use of British film and TV. The article utilises the European Audiovisual Observatory’s databases of European works and the streaming guide JustWatch.com, combined with systematic tracking of VoD landing pages. It thus maps content availability, popularity, and promotional strategies across different European markets and services, showcasing how patterns of presence, prominence and circulation shape probable audience encounters with non-domestic content. The article probes methodological considerations, complexities and caveats applicable to wider catalogue research into transnational media. In the case of British content availability on VoD, it shows how a vast number of ca. 15,000 individual UK titles available in European catalogues boils down to about 200 titles that can be easily found on Netflix, and 70 titles there of that young audiences (aged 16–34) recall as UK shows they know and remember.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142220074","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Digitally skilled but socially disadvantaged: Enabling digital capabilities in low-income families","authors":"Anthony McCosker, Julie Tucker, Jenny Kennedy","doi":"10.1177/13548565241268277","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241268277","url":null,"abstract":"This paper presents a case study of smart home technology use in a low-income household, focussing on the paradox within the digital divide of having high digital skills while experiencing social disadvantage. Contextualised within a larger study of digital disadvantage in low-income households, we use an ethnographic case study approach to examine the experiences of a single parent who lives with her son in public housing and uses various smart home and assistive technologies to manage the home environment and their health and disability. Countering macro studies that equate low-income and disability with digital exclusion, we explore the ‘enabling capabilities’ associated with using digital technologies to address disadvantage. Our case study is contextualised against the typical digital inclusion challenges faced by low-income families and draws on Sen and Nussbaum’s capabilities approach to addressing social inequalities. The paper highlights the need to support situation-specific digital capability development and flexible technology and social welfare arrangements. Our findings and approach contribute to a more nuanced understanding of how to address digital inequality.","PeriodicalId":47242,"journal":{"name":"Convergence-The International Journal of Research Into New Media Technologies","volume":"288 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142220073","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}