the “holes” and exploiting the power differentials existing in the system [21]. Using a term from the hackers community, Galloway and Thacker name this form of resistance “exploit” and describe it as a “resonant flow designed to resist, threaten and ultimately desert the dominant political diagram” [22]. Galloway and Thacker, like Castells, also argue that the introduction of new codings is important in terms of disciplines, methodologies and practices for any counterprotocological practice [23]. However, while Castells, underlines the importance of identifying the actors holding the power and their dynamics, they rather seem to underline the necessity of comprehending the asymmetry and interrelationships found in networks. Galloway and Thacker go through different examples from biology, terrorism, technology and global politics identifying actors, but they don’t generalise or categorise them. They are rather interested in the edges and not the nodes, therefore the connections and not the actors [24].
points out, while reprogramming is achieved after resistance, this might not be necessarily for the benefit of the users; when privacy policies are re-introduced in social networking sites, new forms of appropriation and data enclosure make their appearance in the name of “openness and connectedness” [26]. Stumpel also discusses software applications developed by creators as counterprotocological practices and he looks into alternatives based on open source software as promising alternatives for the networked future.
The last few years the list of open source alternatives for social networking sites has grown. More and more creators develop platforms that liberate users from the mechanisms of exploitation and control while at the same time more and more users are aware of issues concerning their privacy and their data. At the same time, however, resistance seems futile. The percentage of users in alternative platforms remains small and the acts of opposition Understanding power in social networking sites against the mechanisms of the dominant platforms are ephemeral and often unfruitful. Social networking sites can be considered networks of asymmetry where network-making Which are the reasons for this impasse? Apart power is exercised by companies on users. from the obvious and often said ‘but everybody is Millions of users around the world are sharing on Facebook’ argument that holds users back what knowledge, information and affects through a makes networks difficult to comprehend and do not relatively short number of social networking allow counterpower to become powerful enough? sites. Their interests, beliefs, ideas, fears and desires are circulating in an interconnected Tiziana Terranova describes the new diagram of social realm where every interaction leaves power “as an abstract machine of soft control”, behind a mark. With privacy policies that allow which operates by exploiting “the productive data aggregation and plug ins that allow data capacities of the hyperconnected many” [27]. access to third parties, social networking sites And “it is not soft because it is less harsh (often succeed in capitalizing relationships and affects, it has nothing gentle about it) but because it is an creating profit for the corporations behind them. experiment in the control of systems that respond violently and often suicidally to rigid control” [28]. Mark Stumpel, an MA graduate student from How would social networking sites be if users the University of Amsterdam recently studied were obliged to have their profiles public, if they the mechanisms of control and resistance on were asked directly to provide data to third parties social networking sites focusing especially on or if it was apparent how their searches are being Facebook [25]. Using Castells and Galloway’s tracked and how much value is being generated? approaches in correlation with the critical writing Control in networks like Facebook has to be soft in of Matteo Pasquinelli and Tiziana Terranova, order to work. For this reason, users are given the Stumpel discusses in his thesis different cases possibility -or the impression- of being in control of programming, switching and reprogramming of their own data. They can modify their privacy based on examples of platforms and plug ins that settings choosing among the options offered and allowed exploitation and control. As he rightly decide who has access to their uploaded content;
Digimag Journal
n° 74 | year VII
Quarterly
Winter 2013
20