Contemporary governance discourse and digital media: convergences, prospects and problems for the ‘Big Society’ agenda
Contemporary governance discourse and digital media: convergences, prospects and problems for the ‘Big Society’ agenda
This chapter explores how concepts and vocabularies emerging in relation to digital culture provided the context from which a public artwork, the ‘digital totem pole’ was created in Wester Hailes, Edinburgh, Scotland. The chapter specifically considers how the digital media practices of ‘hacking’ and ‘read–writing’ provided the conceptual framework for the design of the physical digital platform. The relevance of the pole’s design and practicality to contemporary governance in the context of the ‘Big Society’ agenda, community engagement and regeneration is also considered. The chapter also highlights that this form of ‘hacking-inspired’ community art was possible through co-production between researchers and local residents. The chapter highlights the heuristic nature of the design intervention, and the risks of employing discourses derived from digital media culture to inform and inspire new models of governance, social reality and community regeneration.
Keywords: digital media, big society, hacking, co-production, community regeneration
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