Università degli Studi di Trento Scuola di Dottorato in Sociologia e Ricerca Sociale Indirizzo Information Systems and Organizations XXII ciclo PhD Dissertation WEB 2.0: THE INDUSTRY OF PARTICIPATION An Actor-Network Theory Account of Myspace in the Case of Underground Music Camilla Rossi Supervisor: Prof. Vincenzo D'Andrea Co-Supervisor: Prof. David Hakken 1 2 Table of Contents Introduction........................................................................................................................................9 Chapter 1 - Web 2.0, SNS, And The Related Rhetorics................................................................15 1. Web 2.0 and SNS ...........................................................................................................................16 1.1. What is web 2.0?.........................................................................................................................16 1.1.1. A Web 2.0 tool: Social Networking Sites............................................................................20 1.2. Elements of Web 2.0....................................................................................................................22 1.2.1. The architecture of participation..........................................................................................23 1.2.2. How the users would be empowered...................................................................................26 1.2.3. Empowerment as creation of content: User-generated content...........................................28 1.2.4. Users' participation as involvement in the market: Prosumers and produsers.....................32 1.2.5. Challenging hierarchies: Pro/am and reputation..................................................................35 1.3. Dominant rhetorics on Web 2.0...................................................................................................40 1.4. The “others” and the need of a “theoretical remediation”...........................................................45 1.5. Relevance of the music context and research questions..............................................................48 Chapter 2 - From Impact Studies In Computer-Mediated Communication To The Co- Construction Of Technology And Users.........................................................................................51 2.1. Review of CMC literature...........................................................................................................52 2.1.1. A thematic reading...............................................................................................................52 2.1.1.1. CMC in organizations..................................................................................................52 2.1.1.2. Social aspects of communication, online identity and virtual communities................54 2.1.1.3. Online and offline as inseparable dimensions, and CMC in everyday life..................57 2.1.1.4. The relevance of the context........................................................................................59 2.1.1.5. Methodological implications........................................................................................60 2.1.1.6. “Reinvention,” creative use, and technology-in-use....................................................62 2.1.2 Classifications of CMC literature.........................................................................................64 2.1.2.1. Wellman's “three ages”................................................................................................64 2.1.2.2. Roversi's “three periods” .............................................................................................65 2.1.2.3. Paccagnella's “three phases” .......................................................................................66 2.1.3. The lack of a shared theoretical framework and the need for a multidisciplinary approach .......................................................................................................................................................69 2.2. For a non-reductionist approach to CMC....................................................................................71 2.2.1. Boczkowski and Lievrouw: the “bridges” between communication studies and STS........71 2.2.2. Boczkowski: an alternative reading of CMC literature.......................................................73 2.3. Science and Technology Studies.................................................................................................74 2.4. “Where in STS?” Debates within the STS field where this work could find a place..................76 2.4.1. STS and political aspects: participation, expertise, and democratization. ..........................76 2.4.1.1. The “participatory turn” in STS...................................................................................77 2.4.1.2. STS perspectives on democracy and technology: why go with ANT.........................78 2.4.1.3. Interpretive flexibility and relevant social groups.......................................................80 2.4.1.4. CMC and ANT ............................................................................................................83 2.4.1.5. Human and non-human intermediaries in the world of music.....................................85 2.5. Chapter summary.........................................................................................................................88 3 Chapter 3 - “How Do I Do That?”: Methodology.........................................................................91 3.1. “How do I do what I have to do?”...............................................................................................91 3.1.1. Inquiring the Internet...........................................................................................................91 3.1.2. Methods for studying computer-mediated interactions: A “fourth bridge”?.......................94 3.2. Online Vs. offline, virtual vs. “real”? No, “We have always been cyborgs”!.............................96 3.2.1. online/offline........................................................................................................................97 3.2.2. Cyberethnography................................................................................................................98 3.3. Preliminary phase: participant observation...............................................................................100 3.3.1. Previous experience on Myspace and setting of the research............................................101 3.3.2.Participant observation: Myspace and “S” (music center).................................................102 3.4. Second phase: Online observation, interview(s) and interviewees ..........................................104 3.5. Data analysis..............................................................................................................................106 Chapter 4 - Myspace.......................................................................................................................107 4.1. Myspace and other Social Networking Sites.............................................................................107 4.2. Myspace and music....................................................................................................................112 4.3. Myspace features.......................................................................................................................116 Chapter 5 - Stories From The Field..............................................................................................123 5.1. “Be there, or be nowhere”: why to get a Myspace profile........................................................123 5.1.1. “You should get one!”........................................................................................................123 5.1.2. Myspace as a standard.......................................................................................................126 5.1.3. Myspace's accessibility .....................................................................................................129 5.1.4. Myspace, what else?..........................................................................................................134 5.2. Getting to know the context.......................................................................................................139 5.2.1. Terms of Use Agreement...................................................................................................139 5.2.2. Corporate aspects...............................................................................................................142 5.2.3. “The Snocap issue”............................................................................................................143 5.3. Life on Myspace: being “friends,” publishing infos, and getting reputation............................145 5.3.1. “A place for friends”..........................................................................................................146 5.3.2. Overlapping information....................................................................................................151 5.3.3. Myspace-mediated reputation............................................................................................153 5.3.3.1. Friends and top friends...............................................................................................155