Call for Contributors for February 2018 Issue, “Engineering Freedom” on Technology History
The Activist History Review invites proposals for our February issue, “Engineering Freedom: Technology, Politics, and the Death of Net Neutrality.”
On
December 14, 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (led by
Republican chairman Ajit Pai) voted to repeal Obama-era “net neutrality”
restrictions that prevented internet service providers from charging
websites more to broadcast their content at faster speeds. They did so
against the wishes of a majority of American citizens from both major
political parties. Many of us fear that, in the wake of net neutrality’s
repeal, our ability to freely acquire, disseminate, and exchange
information will be increasingly restricted over time. This is a
particularly alarming possibility when we consider the Internet’s role
as a democratizing force in our society. The rise of the Internet has
allowed Americans and many members of the global community to easily
exchange ideas, access information, demand institutional transparency,
coordinate large-scale activism, and overthrow oppressive regimes. With
net neutrality protections gone, the potential of the Internet to serve
as a force for positive change is substantially diminished.
The
Internet is only the latest in a long string of technological
innovations that have facilitated the growth of more democratic
political systems. Inventions like the printing press, the telegraph,
the radio, and countless others have each, in their own way, expanded
the political rights of and opportunities for disenfranchised
communities. Just as often, however, technological developments have
been used to restrict the freedom of specific groups. Improved sailing
technologies, which enabled Europeans to cross oceans and circumnavigate
the globe, served as the foundation of the Atlantic slave trade and
colonialism. The railroad, which sent news and goods hurtling back and
forth from San Francisco to New York in the 1870s, ushered waves of U.S.
colonizers into the American West, destroying indigenous communities,
sovereignties, and lives.
The Activist History Review invites proposals that examine the Janus-faced nature of technological innovation and its relationship to social change.
Potential topics include, but are not limited to:
• Innovation and revolution
• Political repression and technology
• Regulating new technologies
• Subsidies, innovation, and privatization
• Technology and activism
• Democratization and technological innovation
• Technology, journalism, and a free press
• Technology and genocide
• Net neutrality
• Technology, globalization, and wealth disparities
• Work and automation
• The Alt-Right and technology
• Technology and imperialism
• Technology, capitalism, and politics
• Marginalized groups and technology
Proposals
should be no more than 250 words for articles from 1250-2000 words, and
should be emailed to Nathan Wuertenberg
at activisthistory(at)gmail(dot)com by Monday, January 22nd at 11:59 PM.
Please also include a short bio of no more than 100 words.
Contact Email: activisthistory@gmail.com