Skip to main content

Symposium: Issues in RTVF (398-0-21)

Topic

Digital Identities

Instructors

Nathaniel Andrew Rossi

Meeting Info

Harris Hall L04: Mon, Wed 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

How do we construct/perform our identities in digital spaces? What are the affordances and limitations of digital community building? How do the biases embedded in the technology industry shape who we can be online? Drawing on the field of digital media studies, students will explore these questions from a range of critical viewpoints, including feminist, queer, critical race, and ability perspectives. We will begin the course with a brief discussion of identity and the politics of belonging, before considering the ways in which Millennials and Generation Z have been "born into" digital worlds and how this has shaped contemporary social and cultural relations. Using this foundation, we will cover topics such as influencer culture, hashtag activism & social justice movements, surveillance and more across platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. In addition to noting the potential of digital media in creating more just futures, we will also consider the limitations of digital empowerment and the persistence of networked discrimination in online spaces.

Class Materials (Required)

Brooke Erin Duffy, (Not) Getting Paid to Do What You Love: Gender and Aspirational Labor in the Social Media Market, ISBN: 0300264755, $25. All other course materials are available on our Canvas site.