Paper at a conference I'm going to in Berlin in July. I'm quite intrigued actually, so there to the undoubted cynics out there :-P
The Gendering and Sex of Online Information
In Session: The Morality and Politics of Search Engines and User-Generated Content 1236
Author:*Ann Bartow (University of South Carolina)
Abstract: Drawing from feminist legal theory, research into computer intermediated discourse, and cultural studies, this paper looks at the impact of search engines and user generated Internet content on the construction of gender and sex in cyberspace. Ways in which the structures and norms of Internet searching and content generation may ultimately re-order specific areas of the law in will be addressed, as will the impact of anonymously or pseudonymously authored source material, and online activities colloquially termed "astroturfing" and "sockpuppeting," with an explicit focus on important issues of gender and sexuality.
Er, what is "astroturfing"????
I'm going as the speaker and rapporteur on a panel on privacy and security with my esteemed colleagues Andrea Matwyshwn, Jennifer Chandler, Jay Kesan and Hiram Juarbe. The conference looks remarkable - everything from gendering of Israeli legal culture to whether there are IP rights in tarot cards and yoga positions - I don't think I've ever been to such a jamboree. If any of my readers are also going, do let me know!! there wil be more posts on this nearer the time no doubt.
