Media Spectacle and the Crisis of (old) Democracy: Politics of Social Media in South Korea
Dr Jaeho Kang, Assistant Professor, School of Media Studies, The New School, New York
In South Korea, one of the most wired countries in the world, the recent advent and wide propagation of social media tend to go beyond the limits of one-way communication on an unprecedented scale. Diverse forms of social media such as social networking sites, Twitter and political podcasts have been actively engaged in election campaigns, the growth of grass-roots movements, and more systematic representation of public opinion. Yet, many discussions have been overly preoccupied with the quantitative transformation of the public sphere and seem to share both an instrumental perspective on the effective use of social media in political mobilization and an overly optimistic standpoint on the improvement of deliberative democracy driven by advanced communication technology. A good deal less attention has been paid to a vital question about the changing nature of democracy itself in conjunction with the development of social media.
The lecture will examine the politics of social media in South Korea with particular reference to ‘media spectacle’, ‘new visibility’ and ‘monstration.’ In analyzing the impact of social media on democracy as the crisis of deliberative and representative political system, Dr Kang seeks to draw out theoretical relevance for our critical understanding of the interplay between media and democracy, be it ‘new’ or ‘old’ democracy.
Jaeho Kang received his PhD from the University of Cambridge, UK, and was Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellow at the Institute of Social Research, University of Frankfurt, Germany. He has been teaching sociology of media at the New School since 2005. He has a book in progress, Walter Benjamin and Media (Polity Press, forthcoming) and has published a number of articles on social and media theories of Benjamin, Theodor W. Adorno, and Siegfried Kracauer. He is also co-editing an anthology, Siegfried Kracauer: Selected Writings on Media, Propaganda and Political Communication (Columbia University Press). His current work expands the scope of his research by exploring media politics, urban spaces and global sports events with reference to media spectacle.
Thursday 1 March 2012
5.30-7pm, NAB (New Academic Building) LG02
‘The Things We Have to Do’: Ethics and Instrumentality in Humanitarian Communication – A talk by Visiting Fellow David Nolan
As Barnett and Weiss have suggested, ‘humanitarianism is not separate from the world it attempts to civilize; in many respects it is its creature’. This talk, by drawing on interview research with practitioners from several major aid and development agencies, seeks to (re)consider the relationship between the ethics and practice of humanitarian communication.
David Nolan is a lecturer in Media and Communications at the University of Melbourne and a Visiting Fellow at Goldsmiths Centre for the Study of Global Media and Democracy in May 2011.
All welcome!
Tuesday 24 May 2011
5-7 pm NAB (New Academic Building) 302
Markets and the Limits of Democracy: a talk by Colin Leys
At a time of rapid and controversial reform of Britain’s public sector, Goldsmiths’ Centre for the study of Global Media and Democracy organizes a public talk with Colin Leys (Goldsmiths and Queens University, Ontario). Professor Leys is the author of Market-Driven Politics (Verso 2000) and the co-author with Stewart Player of The Plot Against the NHS (Merlin 2011) and Confuse and Conceal: The NHS and Independent Treatment Centres (Merlin 2008).
Thursday 3 March 2011 – The Plot against the NHS
Without putting choice to the electorate or the parliament the coalition government is reforming the NHS to achieve an ‘improved productivity and efficiency’. Is the UK heading towards a privatised US-style healthcare market?
Karen Jennings of UNISON will be responding to Prof Leys’ talk.
6.30-8pm Richard Hoggart Building (Main Building) Room 309
2010
Including talks by Luc Boltanski, Colin Leys, Nancy Fraser, Jodi Dean, Peter Dahlgren and Hillary Wainwright.
2009
Including talks by Craig Calhoun, Jeremy Gilberts, Melissa Gregg, Gianni Vattimo, Aletta Norval and Lincoln Dahlberg
2008
Including talks by Douglas Kellner, John Keane, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Les Back and Jessica Clark.
2007
Including talks by Tiziana Terranova, Cynthia Weber, Fred Mudhai and Dina Matar.