Journal of Peer Production’s issue #9 on “Alternative Internets” is out, and it includes a very diverse list of contributions, which each in their own ways point towards a more democratic and more inclusive Internet.
From the Introduction: “The hopes of past generations of hackers weigh like a delirium on the brains of the newbies. Back in the days when Bulletin Board Systems metamorphosed into the Internet, the world’s digital communications networks – hitherto confined to military, corporate and elite academic institutions – were at grasping reach of ordinary individuals. To declare the independence of the Internet from nation states and the corporate world seemed like no more than stating the bare facts. Even encrypted communication – the brainchild of military research – had leaked into the public’s hands and had become a tool wielded against state power. Collectives of all stripes could make use of the new possibilities offered by the Web to bypass traditional media, broadcast their own voice and assemble in new ways in this new public sphere. For some time, at least, the Internet as a whole embodied ‘alternativeness’. ”
Contents of JOPP# 9
Special Issue Editors’ Introduction
- Alt. vs. Ctrl.: Editorial notes for the JoPP issue on Alternative Internets – Félix Tréguer, Panayotis Antoniadis and Johan Söderberg
Peer Reviewed Academic Papers
- In Defense of the Digital Craftsperson – James Losey and Sascha D. Meinrath
- Hacktivism, Infrastructures and Legal Frameworks in Community Networks: The Italian Case of Ninux.org – Stefano Crabu, Federica Giovanella, Leonardo Maccari and Paolo Magaudda
- Enmeshed Lives? Examining the Potentials and the Limits in the Provision of Wireless Networks. The Case of Réseau Libre – Christina Haralanova and Evan Light
- Going Off-the-Cloud: The Role of Art in the Development of a User-Owned & Controlled Connected World – Daphne Dragona and Dimitris Charitos
- Gesturing Towards “Anti-Colonial Hacking” and its Infrastructure – Sophie Toupin
- The Interplay Between Decentralization and Privacy: The Case of Blockchain Technologies – Primavera De Filippi
- Finding an Alternate Route: Towards Open, Eco-cyclical, and Distributed Production – Stephen Quilley, Jason Hawreliak and Kaitlin Kish
Experimental Format
- Alternative Policies for Alternative Internets – Melanie Dulong de Rosnay
The issue is available for free here.
All content by JoPP is in the public domain and is available here.