Cultural Anxiety 2.0
Dave Everitt (De Montfort University) & Simon Mills (De Montfort University)
This paper has been accepted for publication in Media, Culture & Society and the final (edited, revised and typeset) version of this paper will be published in Media, Culture & Society, 2009 by Sage Publications Ltd, All rights reserved. © Sage Publications Ltd, 2009.
Abstract
The term ‘Web 2.0’ describes a new approach of web developers to existing technologies and user-generated material. Following the resulting impact of this label on web culture we will ask if, in the use of the 2.0 suffix in an ever increasing number of areas (Design 2.0, Media Studies 2.0, Education 2.0), we are currently witnessing a phenomenon of ‘cultural nervousness’.
Specifically, has this cultural nervousness within the Humanities led to what could be perceived as ill-conceived attempts to apply the key concepts of Web 2.0 to subjects in which they may not be a good fit?
This cultural nervousness may be seen to drive the invocation of the ‘magic’ of a high-status, but poorly-understood, discipline in an attempt to borrow validation from it. Could this be interpreted as a panic response to technological influence in the Humanities?
We propose an interdisciplinary approach, involving not only an investigation of the use of the relevant technology, but its historical development.
Our analysis encourages an understanding of Web 2.0 as a process of transition from technological development into cultural presence and power. This analysis also throws into relief the tension between a utopian strain in technological development and neo-liberal capitalism.
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