How access to digital information & the use of digital tools perpetuates an asymmetric dialog worldwide.

1. DIGITAL COLONIALISM
Net + Map

2. LET’STALK ABOUT A FORM OF
COLONIALISM, SPECIFICALLY AS
RELATESTOTHE WEBTECHNOLOGIES

3. FIRST:
WHAT IS COLONIALISM?

4. COLONIALISM
IMPERIALISM
GLOBALISM
colonialism is closely related to these other terms that we see used (sometimes interchangeably) in the texts we read.

5. COLONIALISM IS
ONE PRACTICE
OF IMPERIALISM
in all cases we are talking about shifting power between countries.
imperialism is the idea; colonialism is the practice and generally refers to European settlement and political control over the rest of the world, including the Americas
imperialism speaks to the way one country exercises power over another, whether through settlement, sovereignty, or indirect mechanisms of control.

6. GLOBALISM REFERS
TOTRANSNATIONAL
ECONOMIES
globalism advocates for globalization, or networks of connections that span multi-continental distances.
post 1989, berlin wall falls, break down cold war system
The “globalization” era has also been characterized by intensified cross-cultural interactions (facilitated by technology), as well as an explosion in migrations of various
peoples in many different directions.

7. FORMAL COLONIALISM

8. here’s the start of modern “exploration colonialism” — which is what we are generally talking about, though history of colonial be
state of the world the year a famous italian explorer (under the direction of spain) set sail.
his name is columbus, and is synonymous with brutal force takeovers of indigenous peoples.

9. fast forward 420 years, in 1914 we reach the height of exploration & colonization. countries in grey may have been colonized and then gained independence within the
420 years. (for example, chile and argentina, and most of south america is colonized by spain & portugal until the late 1700s)
You may recognize 1914 also as the start of WWI.
for years, countries had been jockeying to build colonial empires to make financial gains. underlying those efforts were many complex alliances, which became entangled
and led to war.
so, what comes of this?
1919 brings the end of the war. treaty of versailles is signed. it’s a peace treaty.
Four empires collapsed due to the war, old countries were abolished, new ones were formed, boundaries were redrawn, international organizations were established, and
many new and old ideologies took a firm hold in people's minds.
one ideology we don’t let go of: imperialism.
in it the powers agree to redistribute the colonies amongst themselves.
Japan was granted all German possessions in the Pacific north of the equator.

10. DECOLONIZATION
what we really mean: post-WWII fight for independence by colonies (those who were colonized on the maps we showed)
still happening though. south sudan gained independence from sudan in 2011.
recent news catalonia fight for independence https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/26/world/europe/spain-catalonia-referendum.html?_r=0
“Catalonia has its own history, culture and language”

11. “UNDOING OF COLONIALISM”
physical undoing & emotional undoing

12. POSTCOLONIALISM
a type of discourse is developed after decolonization: postcolonial discourse.
this largely revolves around theories in philosophy and literature that grapple with the legacy of colonial rule.
what follows are a few foundational thinkers/theorists in this space to check out.
folks are talking about the human, social, and cultural consequences of decolonization.

13. FANON
foundational texts:
* Frantz Fanon, Black Skin, White Masks 1952
explores the emotional effects of losing ones native cultural origin

14. SAID
foundational texts:
* Ed Said, Orientalism 1978
Said building on Foucault used the term ‘orientalism’ to describe a structured set of concepts, assumptions, and discursive practices that were used to produce,
interpret, and evaluate knowledge about non-European peoples.

15. SPIVAK
foundational texts:
* Gayatri Spivak: can the subaltern speak? 1988
* http://www.worldcat.org/title/can-the-subaltern-speak/oclc/614821484&referer=brief_results
* NO, especially not lady ones.
questions "post-colonialism" a specifically first-world, male, privileged, academic, institutionalized discourse

16. NEOCOLONIALISM
more theoreticians build on post colonialism finding ties to the new globalist culture, modes of control and affects seen in the control of people/countries via capitalism.
Neocolonialism is the practice of using capitalism, globalization and cultural imperialism to influence a developing country without military force.

17. DIGITAL COLONIALISM
Colonies are not gained and maintained by gun boats but rather by a more effective control mechanism which melts the ‘hearts and minds’.

18. CAN I GET ONE SENTENCE?

19. “[DC] Explains how mass media are leading to
a new concept of empire. It will not be one
based on military power or land acquisition but
one based on controlling the mind.”
Tom McPhail - learned form medium is the message guy Marshall McLuhan

20. “[DC is about] appropriating the spaces and
exploiting them, […] trying to bring
existing cultures into line with the
predominant ideology of a technology tool.”
http://lawriephipps.co.uk/?p=7759
from @Lawrie, consultant helping universities use tech. talks about virtual learning environments forcing an ideology onto students.

21. IT’S ABOUT
CONTROL & INFORMATION
so this is about control. it has shifted from direct force to indirect force. let’s talk about a few mechanisms and how we see them show up.

22. 1. INFORMATION MODERATION
we’re talking about practices of representation that reproduce a logic of subordination.
- who moderates the content?
- who holds the content?

23. “Whether online content stays or goes has
the power to shape movements and
revolutions, as well as the sweeping policy
reforms and cultural shifts they spawn.”
examples of media/content staying or going:
1. Wikipedia Zero and Facebook’s Free Basics. Those using Wikipedia Zero should only be allowed to read Wikipedia, not edit it or upload files
2. No boobs - prescriptive values
a. Cancer screening ad show a boob from Sweden disallowed on fb (https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20161021/10071435853/facebooks-arbitrary-
offensiveness-police-take-down-informational-video-about-breast-cancer-screening.shtml)
b. Napalm picture of young woman running down a street is disallowed
c. Indigenous people - Brazilian Ministry of Culture (https://www.rt.com/news/250961-brazil-facebook-photo-indigenous/)
3. Youtube and death of Iranian woman
(https://www.theverge.com/2016/4/13/11387934/internet-moderator-history-youtube-facebook-reddit-censorship-free-speech)
4. Automated vs. non-automated: most rules of moderation are composed by western, powerful people.

24. EXAMPLE: GOOGLE MAPS
specific case study:
https://www.wired.com/2007/06/ff-maps/
"Mapping has always been a tool of dominance,”
"There is no such thing as an objective map."
wired article from 2007. talks about the decentralization of map creation as a great, revolutionary thing. but, is it?
in terms of digital colonialism, think about the one example of Iraqi residents using the software to plot escape routes that avoid insurgent hot spots. then think about
google replacing images post katrina due to resolution issues.
people who own the maps or what is displayed rule

25. 2. INFORMATION CREATION
we’re talking about creating content
knowledge and the production of knowledge == power and control
- who has tech infrastructure?
- who has hardware that’s easy to create things on? (how easy is it to edit a website from a mobile phone?)

26. "The uneven distribution, variety, and speed of
information from the core to the
periphery create changes in tastes, cultural
orientations, and ways of doing business, all
oriented toward the core.”
- McPhail, ’02
examples of abundance of core to periphery:
1. 60% of all web content is in English while only about 10-15% of the human population speaks the language
2. Africa, imports 90% of all software used in the country
3. The 100+ IT companies in Nigeria mainly engage in integration, maintenance and customization services for commercial packaged software
4. The imposition of restrictive IP norms – for instance through trade treaties such as TRIPS and more recently the TPP (control is held longer by originators)
5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero-rating

27. EXAMPLE: NETWORKINGTHE UNSEEN
https://hyperallergic.com/316272/digital-colonialism-and-the-marginalization-of-australias-indigenous-peoples/
this talks about the denial of knowledge to the conquered peoples &
repression of traditional modes of knowledge
“the internet is not simply a conduit of information but an instrument of subjugation, enforcing the asymmetric power relations at the heart of colonialism”
how? emojis. symbols of a culture that is very far from their [the Warlpiri’s] own and very much aggressively at odds with it.
also, broken promise of digital technology. massive infrastructure missing…cell phone coverage is all but nonexistent.
Indigenous reintegration cannot take place within the Western liberal framework because the imperatives of capitalism contrast sharply with those of the Indigenous ways
of life
re-establishment of pre-colonial history and customs but also the reintroduction of Indigenous traditions of governance and culture

28. 3. INFORMATION PRESENTATION
we’re talking about controlling the presentation of information. we’re talking about bringing people and content in line with a moral/emotional ethos outside of their
culture.
- how is content presented online?
- which apps are accepted to the app store and what are the guidelines?
- must everyone subscribe to an ethos of sharing and ecommerce etc?

29. “If the developing world wants to use our
internet, they must play by our rules, the
thinking goes”
examples of presentation being western:
1. RIP Jacob https://medium.com/@thanecalder/obituary-boutique-jacob-1977-2014-63700ae5e53a
2. browsers are adopting drm eme content rules?!

30. EXAMPLE: (E)STRANGER
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:Ea7M6lUlU6sJ:www.furtherfield.org/features/reviews/personal-politics-language-digital-colonialism-annie-
abrahams%25E2%2580%2599-estranger+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
talks about:
“The way one speaks and articulates oneself is so often equated with intelligence and authority - and thus the foreigner, the newcomer, the language student, is
immediately at a disadvantage in the social hierarchy and power distribution.”
“online sharing, openness, and connectivity are aligned explicitly with morality”

31. DISCUSS!
1. Do indigenous designs of emojis help? Can we have indigenous reintegration within the Western liberal framework?
2. What kinds of artistic exchange are possible between indigenous and non-indigenous?
3. Are we really “all mapmakers now”?
4. What are the effects of dubbing films and tv programs from English into the local language, or simply screening the English original?