research-article

Towards a framework of publics: Re-encountering media sharing and its user

Authors:

Silvia Lindtner,

Gillian R. Hayes,

Paul DourishAuthors Info & Claims

ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction (TOCHI), Volume 18, Issue 2

Article No.: 5, Pages 1 - 23

https://doi.org/10.1145/1970378.1970379

Published: 01 July 2011 Publication History

Abstract

Design and evaluation of user-generated media production and sharing in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) often focus on formal and informal media sharing, such as communication within social networks, automatic notifications of activities, and the exchange of digital artifacts. However, conceptual tools for understanding how people relate to the audiences they reach through these systems are limited. The increasing interest in user-generated content in HCI demands the infusion of new methods and theories that explicitly engage the construction and use of media within and among large groups of individuals and systems. In this paper, we suggest that the notion of “publics,” drawn from media theory, provides useful insights into user-driven, social, and cultural forms of technology use and digital content creation. We illustrate this by employing the notion of publics to the findings from a two-month deployment of a mobile photo sharing platform in a youth housing community. The results of this empirical work coupled with a theoretical examination of publics stimulate reflection on prevailing interpretations of user-designer-reader roles. The paper provides an outlook for potentially new and productive ways of understanding interdependencies within those activities. Implications that can be drawn from this work concern the role of digital media creation and sharing for the formation of collectives and how people position themselves collectively in relation to larger social groups and societal norms. The analysis suggests fruitful crossovers among HCI, Media Theory and New Media Research by approaching the user as both consumer and producer of digital content.

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Towards a framework of publics: Re-encountering media sharing and its user

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cover image ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction

ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction Volume 18, Issue 2

June 2011

149 pages

ISSN:1073-0516

EISSN:1557-7325

DOI:10.1145/1970378

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Copyright © 2011 ACM.

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Publication History

Published: 01 July 2011

Accepted: 01 December 2010

Revised: 01 October 2010

Received: 01 November 2009

Published in TOCHI Volume 18, Issue 2

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https://doi.org/10.4018/IJSMOC.341587
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