The Digital Prism: Transparency And Managed Visibilities In A Datafied World

185 Pages·2019·0.92 MB·English

by  Mikkel Flyverbom

The Digital Prism
Manypeopleareconcernedabouttheuncheckedpowersoftechgiants
andthehidden operations ofbig dataand algorithms.Yet we donot
have the vocabularies to properly articulate how these digital
transformations shape our lives. This book shows how the
management of our digital footprints, visibilities and attention is a
central force in the digital transformation of societies and politics.
Seen through the prism of digital technologies and data, the lives of
people and workings of organizations take new shapes in our
understanding. Making sense of these requires that we push beyond
common ways of thinking about transparency and surveillance, and
look at how managing visibilities is a central but overlooked
phenomenon that influences how people live, how organizations
workandhowsocietiesandpoliticsoperate.
mikkel flyverbom is Professor of Communication and Digital
Transformations and Academic Director of the research platform
Digital Transformations at Copenhagen Business School. He is also
Research Fellow at the Center for Information Technology and
Society at University of California, Santa Barbara, a columnist for
the Danish newspaper Politiken and widely used expert on tech
issues. He is the author of The Power of Networks: Organizing the
GlobalPoliticsoftheInternet(2011).

The Digital Prism
Transparency and Managed
fi
Visibilities in a Data ed World
mikkel flyverbom
CopenhagenBusinessSchool
UniversityPrintingHouse,CambridgeCB28BS,UnitedKingdom
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www.cambridge.org
Informationonthistitle:www.cambridge.org/9781107130814
DOI:10.1017/9781316442692
©MikkelFlyverbom2019
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexception
andtotheprovisionsofrelevantcollectivelicensingagreements,
noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplacewithoutthewritten
permissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firstpublished2019
PrintedintheUnitedKingdombyTJInternationalLtd.PadstowCornwall
AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary.
LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData
Names:Flyverbom,Mikkel,author.
Title:Thedigitalprism:transparencyandvisibilityintheageoftotalinformation/
MikkelFlyverbom.
Description:NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,2019.
Identifiers:LCCN2019008717|ISBN9781107130814(hardback)|ISBN
9781107576964(paperback)
Subjects:LCSH:Informationsociety–Socialaspects.|Informationtechnology–
Management.|Electronicsurveillance.|BISAC:BUSINESS&ECONOMICS/
OrganizationalBehavior.
Classification:LCCHM851.F5932019|DDC303.48/33–dc23
LCrecordavailableathttps://lccn.loc.gov/2019008717
ISBN978-1-107-13081-4Hardback
ISBN978-1-107-57696-4Paperback
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accurateorappropriate.
Contents
Acknowledgments pagevi
Introduction:TheTransparencyFormula 1
1 DigitalandDatafiedSpaces 25
2 TransparencyandManagedVisibilities 39
3 PeopleunderScrutiny 59
4 OrganizationsGoneTransparent 85
5 SeeingtheWorld 121
Conclusion:LifeintheDigitalPrism 145
Bibliography 155
Index 170
v
Acknowledgments
Books,likemanyotherrewardingpartsoflife,aredemanding,time
consumingandsometimespainful.AsmuchasI’veenjoyedwriting
thisbook,ithasalsosurprisedmehowdifficultitistocarveouttime
andspaceforthiskindofwork.Often,moreurgentissueswould
requiremyattention,andthepressuretofocusonotherkindsof
publicationsseemstobemounting,atleastinsomecircles.Still,I’ve
beenthrilledabouttheproject,andIbelievethatbooksallowustoput
togetherourthoughtsandideasinmoreelaborateandexploratory
ways.Theyallowforventuresthatjournalarticlesdonotpermit.This
bookisonesuchventure,andabitonrollerskates,bringingtogether
bigdiscussionsaboutdigitaltransformations,transparencyand
visibilities,andtravellingacrosslevelsofanalysissuchasthe
individual,theorganizationalandthesocietal.Myhopeisthatthese
reflectionswillresonatewiththoseofothers–inacademia,policy-
makingandthebroaderpublic–whoareconcernedwiththe
intersectionoftechnologyanddataandsociallife,particularlywhenit
comestowhatwecometosee,knowandactonwhenmuchofwhat
wedohappensindigitalspaces.Thesearemassivetopicsandwill
requiremuchmorework,andI’mthoroughlythrilledtoseesomuch
researchandpublicdiscussionoftechnologyissues.Finally,itseems
thatwearereadytoexploretheinterfaceoftechnologyandsociety.So
muchworkhasfocusedontechnologyitself–thenextbigthingthat
willchangeeverything–andoverlookedthehuman,organizational
andsocietalforcesthatmakesometechnologicalpossibilitiesuseless
orevenharmful.I’mhappythatweseemorenuancedandbalanced
approachestotheseissues,becausetheywillhelpusmakewiser
choicesabouttechnologicalandhumandevelopments,andIfeel
fortunatetohaveengagedwithsomeofthepeopleattheforefrontof
settingmorereflectiveandcriticalagendasforourengagementwith
vi
acknowledgments vii
digitaltransformations.Writingthisbookwouldnothavebeen
possiblewithoutthemanypeople,themanyideasandthemany
placesthathelpeditcomeintobeing.
Thisbookistheculminationofalong-standinginterestin
transparencyasarecipefororganizationalandsocialchange.Luckily,
manyothersareinterestedinquestionsabouttheeffectsofsharing
informationandopeningup,andIwanttothanksomeofthem.At
CopenhagenBusinessSchool,Iamfortunatetobesurroundedby
smartandsupportivecolleagues,suchasDanKärreman,HansKrause
Hansen,LarsThøgerChristensen,JulieUldam,DennisSchoeneborn,
ChristinaGarstenandmanyotherswhohavehelpedmedevelopand
articulatetheseideasabouttransparencyandvisibilities.In
particular,mycollaborationswithHansKrauseHansen,LarsThøger
ChristensenandOanaBrindusaAlbuonthetopicoftransparency
pavedthewayforthisbook.
ThisbookalsobenefittedfromaGoogleResearchAwardthat
bothallowedmetospendasemesteratStanfordUniversityandgave
meveryusefulcontactsinsideGoogleandothertechcompaniesin
SiliconValleyintheearlyphasesoftheproject.Iamparticularly
gratefulforthesupportfromVintonCerf,oneofthefathersofthe
internetand“ChiefInternetEvangelist”andVice-Presidentat
Google.Myideasandinsightsabouttheworkingsoftransparencyin
andaroundtechcompanieshavebeenshapedbyvaluable
conversationswithpolicydirectors,policymanagersandhigher-level
staffatGoogleinMountainView,CA;atFacebookinPaloAltoandits
newheadquartersinMenloPark,CA;andwithFacebookandGoogle
employeeslocatedinEurope.Also,Ihaveusedmaterialfromthese
techcompanies’blogsandotherpublicsources,andfollowedtheir
participationinpublicmeetings,hearings,newsstoriesandevents.
Inlaterphasesofwriting,aFulbrightgrantandapositionas
researchfellowatRutgersUniversitywithcolleaguesCraigScott,
JackBratich,MarkAkhusandothersgavemebothusefulinsightsand
thetimetofocus.Similarly,Ihavebenefittedfromvaluable
discussionswithpeopleatMicrosoftResearch,suchasTarleton
viii acknowledgments
Gillespie,NancyBaym,SarahT.HamidandKateCrawford,and
membersoftheKINCenterforDigitalInnovationinAmsterdam,
includingMarleenHuysmann,NataljaLaurey,AmandaPorterand
others.
Whilewritingthisbook,Ihavealsobeenexcitedtobepartofa
growingcommunityofscholarsaskingdifficultquestionsabout
transparency,secrecy,surveillance,spectaclesandothervisibility
practices.Mycollaborationswithwonderful,brightpeoplesuchas
ClareBirchall,CynthiaStohl,MichaelStohl,PaulLeonardi,Juliane
Reinecke,JeffreyTreem,TimKuhn,LeopoldRingel,MarkFenster,
ShivGaneshandAndreaMubiBrighentimadethisbookpossible.
Also,I’mthankfulforthesolidresearchassistanceIgotfromKalina
StaikovaandJacobØrmen,bothofwhomarebecomingaccomplished
academics,andforthesupportofmytwoeditorsatCambridge
UniversityPress,PaulaParishandValerieAppleby.Finally,my
deepestgratitudegoestoUrsulaPlesner,whoseclearthinkingand
solidlovingshapedthisbookandcontinuestoshapemylifeinthe
bestpossibleways.
Booksarealsomadeinplacesandmyfavoritewritingspot
turnedouttobetheNewYorkPublicLibrary,wherethisbookseemed
morewillingtobewrittenthananywhereelse,andwhereIhadsome
ofmyhappiestmomentsworkingonit.InCopenhagen,another
beautifullibraryknownastheBlackDiamondprovidedasimilar
refugewhenothertasks,meetingsanddeadlinesthreatenedthe
viabilityofthisbook.
Someofthepointsinthisbookhaveappearedinotherformin
articlesintheInternationalJournalofCommunication,Business&
Society,theEuropeanJournalofSocialTheoryandInternational
PoliticalSociology,andinbookchapters.
Introduction: The Transparency
Formula
CreatedinadormroomatHarvardUniversity,Facebookwasasimple
websitesetuptocomparetwopicturesoffemalestudentsatatime,
invitingfellowstudentstomarkthemashotornot.Sincethen,the
scopeandambitionsofFacebookhaveexpandedconsiderably.Hereis
whatMarkZuckerbergsaidabouttheroleofFacebookatameetingon
thefinancialresultsofthecompanytenyearslater:“Next,let’stalk
aboutunderstandingtheworld.WhatImeanbythisisthateveryday,
people post billions of pieces of content and connections into the
graph and in doing this, they’re helping to build the clearest model
ofeverythingthereistoknowintheworld”(Facebook,2013,italics
added).
This book is about the promise that digital technologies and
data can help us understand everything in the world. The hope that
digitaltransformationswillcreatetransparencyandclarityhasspread
beyondSiliconValleyandshapesallsortsofdiscussionsabouttech-
nology, politics and society. Contemporary moves toward openness
and transparency in corporate and political affairs, we are told, are
a direct result of developments in the realm of digital technologies
(FinelandLord,2002;Sifry,2011).Thishopeforsocietalandpolitical
re-engineering through technology is driven by a belief in transpar-
encyasapanacea–aformofsunlightthatwillworkasadisinfectant
(Brandeis, 1913) on all societal illnesses – and has given rise to an
increasingly institutionalized transparency movement consisting of
organizations,corporateactorsandactivistspeddlingthisideal.This
“triumph of transparency” (Braithwaite and Drahos, 2000) revolves
around a belief in increased information and communication as
a direct path to accountability, trust and legitimacy (Power, 1997;
GarstenanddeMontoya,2008).Thatis,ifinformationisshared,we
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