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Examining the Biopolitics of Unwaged Immaterial Labour Western University Scholarship@Western Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository 6-28-2012 12:00 AM Will Work For Free: Examining the Biopolitics of Unwaged Immaterial Labour Brian A. Brown The University of Western Ontario Supervisor Dr. Nick Dyer-Witheford The University of Western Ontario Graduate Program in Media Studies A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree in Doctor of Philosophy © Brian A. Brown 2012 Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd Part of the Film and Media Studies Commons, and the Photography Commons Recommended Citation Brown, Brian A., "Will Work For Free: Examining the Biopolitics of Unwaged Immaterial Labour" (2012). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 620. https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/620 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository by an authorized administrator of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact [email protected]. WILL WORK FOR FREE: EXAMINING THE BIOPOLITICS OF UNWAGED IMMATERIAL LABOUR (Spine title: Will Work For Free) (Thesis format: Monograph) by: Brian A. Brown Graduate Program in Media Studies A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies The University of Western Ontario London, Ontario, Canada © Brian A. Brown THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN ONTARIO School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies CERTIFICATE OF EXAMINATION Supervisor: Examiners: __________________________________ ___________________________________ Dr. Nick Dyer-Witheford Dr. Sharon Sliwinski – Program Examiner Supervisory Committee: __________________________________ ___________________________________ Dr. Sharon Sliwinski Dr. Grant Campbell – Program Examiner ___________________________________ Dr. Christopher Keep – University Examiner ___________________________________ Dr. Greg Elmer – External Examiner The thesis by Brian Alexander Brown entitled: Will Work For Free: Examining the Biopolitics of Unwaged Immaterial Labour is accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Date:_________________________ _______________________________ Chair of the Thesis Examination Board ii Abstract: According to Maurizio Lazzarato, Michael Hardt, and Antonio Negri, immaterial labour is biopolitical in that it purchases, commands, and comes to progressively control the communicative and affective capacities of immaterial workers. Drawing inspiration from Michel Foucault, the above authors argue that waged immaterial labour reshapes the subjectivities of workers by reorienting their communicative and affective capacities towards the prerogatives and desires of those persons who purchased the right to control them. In this way, it is biopolitical. Extending the concept of immaterial labour into the Web 2.0 era, Tiziana Terranova and Christian Fuchs, for instance, argue that all of the time and effort devoted to generating digital content on the Internet should also be considered a form of immaterial work. Taking into account the valuations of ‘free’ social networks, these authors emphasize the exploitative dimensions of unwaged immaterial work and, by doing so, broaden the concept of immaterial labour to include both its waged and unwaged variants. Neither, however, has attempted to understand the biopolitical dimensions of unwaged immaterial labour with any specificity. Thus, while Hardt and Negri examine the biopolitics of waged immaterial labour and Terranova and Fuchs examine the exploitative dimensions of unwaged immaterial labour, this thesis makes an original contribution to this body of theory by extending both lines of thinking and bridging the chasm between them. Taking Flickr as its primary exemplar, this thesis provides an empirical examination of the ways in which its members regard all of the time and effort they devote to their ‘labours of love.’ Flickr is a massively popular Web 2.0 photo-sharing iii social network that depends on the unwaged immaterial labour of its ‘users’ to generate all of the content that populates the network. Via reference to open-ended and semi- structured interviews conducted with members of Flickr, the biopolitics that guide and regulate the exploited work of this unwaged labour force are disclosed. The primary research question this thesis provides an answer to, then, is: if waged immaterial labour is biopolitical as numerous scholars have argued, then what are the biopolitics of the unwaged immaterial labour characteristic of Flickr and what kinds of subjectivities are being produced by them? Keywords: Web 2.0; Social Media; User-Generated Content; Flickr; Immaterial Labour; Free Labour; Michel Foucault; Biopolitics; Autonomist Marxism. iv Dedication To Mary: Without whom, I hate to dream. v Acknowledgements: I would like to begin by offering my sincerest thanks to my supervisor, Dr. Nick Dyer-Witheford. His patience, encouragement, and friendship have meant so much to me throughout my time at Western that these words are a woefully inadequate means of conveying the depth of my thanks and gratitude. All I can say is “Thank You” Nick, you’ve no idea how much I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. I would also like to thank Dr. Sharon Sliwinski, whose support and friendship were instrumental in convincing me that having the confidence to pursue seemingly unobtainable dreams is as or more important than obtaining them. Thank you so much Sharon. I can’t begin to tell you how much your efforts and your example mean to me. To the members of my examining committee: Dr. Grant Campbell, Dr. Christopher Keep, and Dr. Greg Elmer. Thank you all for your time, suggestions, and assistance in making the day of my defence one that I will always remember fondly and warmly. When I first arrived at Western, Dr. Tim Blackmore was pivotal in making me feel at ease and at home. Thank you so much for your generosity and kindness Tim. I can’t begin to tell you how much they mean to me. Dr. Anabel Quan-Haase and I have co-published two pieces together over the course of my time at Western and she has consistently been one of the most positive influences over my career. Thank you so much for everything Anabel. When the ‘fit-hit-the-shan,’ as it did on more than one occasion, Cindy Morrison was always there to help me put things back in place. Thank you so much for your help and kindness Cindy. I appreciate it immensely. vi To my good friends Kyle Asquith, Trent Cruz, Michael Daubs, David Jackson, Owen Livermore, Vince Manzerolle, Jenn Martin, Leslie Meier, Henry Svec, & Elise Thorburn – much love and thanks to you all. Your friendship, laughter, and grace made the difficult moments much more enjoyable than I ever thought they could be. None of this could have happened without the love, support, and encouragement of my family. My mom and dad have always been there for me... in more ways than I could ever hope to enumerate. I love you both dearly and want to say thank you for everything you do and have done for me. You inspire me everyday to be a better person than I ever thought I could be. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. To my brother Dave, my sister-in-law Renée, and wee Ewan. I want to thank you for everything you’ve done for me – your kind words, patience, and unconditional love is evidence of what I aspire to. To the Stefanovski and Moneglia family – Zhivago, Nada, Keith, Elizabeth, Matteo, and Allessio. Thank you all so much for making me feel like I was a part of your family even before I actually was. I love you all dearly. A brief word of thanks to Robert Zimmerman... You keep me calm and show me worlds I could never imagine on my own. Finally... to Mary. You were there when all of this was just a dream and convinced me that we could do it. You made me believe that it was worth it. Never once did you waiver or lose faith, even when I did. After all these years of studying and all these years of schooling, I have learnt more from you than any book or anybody else. Thank you Mary... I have no idea how to accurately convey how much you mean to me. vii Table of Contents CERTIFICATE OF EXAMINATION ................................................................................... ii Abstract: .................................................................................................................... iii Dedication................................................................................................................... v Acknowledgements:................................................................................................... vi Table of Contents: ................................................................................................... viii List of Appendices: ...................................................................................................... x Chapter 1 – Web 2.0 & the Autonomy of Unwaged Immaterial Labour........................ 1 1.1 Introduction: From Web 1.0 to Web 2.0......................................................................... 1 1.2 A Brief History of Flickr: ................................................................................................. 5 The End of Game Neverending: ............................................................................................. 6 The Public-by-default Nature of the Flickr-verse: ...............................................................
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