UvA-DARE (Digital Academic Repository) Contentious branding Reassembling social movements through digital mediators Beraldo, D. Publication date 2017 Document Version Final published version License Other Link to publication Citation for published version (APA): Beraldo, D. (2017). Contentious branding: Reassembling social movements through digital mediators. General rights It is not permitted to download or to forward/distribute the text or part of it without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), other than for strictly personal, individual use, unless the work is under an open content license (like Creative Commons). Disclaimer/Complaints regulations If you believe that digital publication of certain material infringes any of your rights or (privacy) interests, please let the Library know, stating your reasons. In case of a legitimate complaint, the Library will make the material inaccessible and/or remove it from the website. Please Ask the Library: https://uba.uva.nl/en/contact, or a letter to: Library of the University of Amsterdam, Secretariat, Singel 425, 1012 WP Amsterdam, The Netherlands. You will be contacted as soon as possible. UvA-DARE is a service provided by the library of the University of Amsterdam (https://dare.uva.nl) Download date:28 Sep 2021 Contentious ThisThis dissertationdissertation wisheswishes toto contributecontribute toto thethe sociologicalsociological debatedebate onon protestprotest movementsmovements byby developingdeveloping thethe notionnotion ofof ‘contentious‘contentious branding’branding’ asas aa reflectionreflection emergingemerging fromfrom thethe digitaldigital explorationexploration ofof twotwo empiricalempirical casescases thatthat challengechallenge socialsocial movementmovement theory:theory: OccupyOccupy andand Anonymous.Anonymous. TheThe argumentargument isis builtbuilt onon aa complexity-orientatedcomplexity-orientated epistemologicalepistemological background,background, interweavinginterweaving insightsinsights dede-- rivedrived fromfrom assemblageassemblage theory,theory, actor-networkactor-network theory,theory, socio-semioticssocio-semiotics andand secsec-- ond-orderond-order cybernetics.cybernetics. TheThe empiricalempirical researchresearch hashas beenbeen undertakenundertaken byby meansmeans ofof digitaldigital techniques:techniques: ApplicationApplication ProgrammingProgramming InterfacesInterfaces ofof popularpopular socialsocial Branding mediamedia (mostly,(mostly, TwitterTwitter andand Facebook)Facebook) havehave beenbeen pulledpulled forfor data;data; thethe #Occupy#Occupy Contentious and #Anonymous hashtags have been employed as research devices to set the Contentious and #Anonymous hashtags have been employed as research devices to set the ContentiousContentious limitlimit ofof thethe analysis;analysis; andand thethe datasetsdatasets havehave beenbeen exploredexplored mostlymostly byby meansmeans ofof networknetwork analysisanalysis andand computer-assistedcomputer-assisted contentcontent analysisanalysis techniques.techniques. TheThe corecore contributioncontribution ofof thethe dissertationdissertation isis toto introduceintroduce andand develop,develop, withinwithin thethe fieldfield ofof socialsocial movementmovement theory,theory, thethe notionnotion ofof ‘contentious‘contentious branding’,branding’, toto copecope withwith BrandingBrandingBranding thethe theoreticaltheoretical challengeschallenges highlightedhighlighted byby thethe empiricalempirical sections.sections. AA brandingbranding perspectiveperspective onon socialsocial movementsmovements notnot onlyonly fitsfits thesethese specificspecific casescases better:better: itit intendsintends toto provideprovide anan epistemologicalepistemological andand methodologicalmethodological device,device, toto sustainsustain aa non-essentialistnon-essentialist understandingunderstanding ofof socialsocial movements,movements, especiallyespecially inin thethe casescases ofof digitalizationdigitalization ofof empiricalempirical phenomenaphenomena andand researchresearch methods.methods. ReassemblingReassemblingReassembling social social social movements movements movements throughthroughthrough digital digital digital mediators mediators mediators Davide Beraldo ContentiousDavideDavideDavide Beraldo Beraldo Beraldo Branding Reassembling social movements through digital mediators Davide Beraldo 1 1 Cover design by Rosa Smith Printing and layout by Multicopy 2 2 CONTENTIOUS BRANDING Reassembling social movements through digital mediators ACADEMISCH PROEFSCHRIFT ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor aan de Universiteit van Amsterdam en Università degli Studi di Milano op gezag van de Rector Magnificus prof. dr. ir. K.I.J. Maex ten overstaan van een door het College voor Promoties ingestelde commissie, in het openbaar te verdedigen in de Agnietenkapel op dinsdag 17 januari 2017, te 16:00 uur door Davide Beraldo geboren te Como, Italië 3 3 Promotiecommissie: Promotores: prof. dr. W. G. J. Duyvendak Universiteit van Amsterdam dr. P. A. Rebughini Università degli Studi di Milano Copromotor: dr. J. L. Uitermark Universiteit van Amsterdam Overige leden: dr. A. E. Arvidsson Università degli Studi di Milano prof. dr. E. Colombo Università degli Studi di Milano prof. dr. H. O. Dijstelbloem Universiteit van Amsterdam dr. S. Milan Universiteit van Amsterdam prof. dr. R. A. Rogers Universiteit van Amsterdam This thesis was prepared with the partnership between the University of Amsterdam and the University of Milan with the purpose of obtaining a joint doctorate degree. The thesis was prepared in the Department of Sociology at the University of Amsterdam and in the Department of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Milan. The research was funded by a scholarship from the Italian Ministry of Education. Dit proefschrift is tot stand gekomen binnen een samenwerkingsverband tussen de Universiteit van Amsterdam en de Università degli Studi di Milano met als doel het behalen van een gezamenlijk doctoraat. Het proefschrift is voorbereid in de Afdeling Sociolgie van de Universiteit van Amsterdam en de dipartimento di Scienze Sociali e Politiche van de Università degli Studi di Milano. Het onderzoek werd gefinancierd door een beurs van het Italiaanse Ministerie van Onderwijs. 4 4 Università degli Studi di Milano Dipartimento di Scienze Sociali e Politiche Dottorato di Ricerca in Sociologia, XVIII ciclo. Co-tutela con University of Amsterdam. CONTENTIOUS BRANDING Reassembling social movements through digital mediators Autore: Davide Beraldo Supervisor: Prof. Jan Willem Duyvendak Prof. Paola Alessandra Rebughini Prof. Justus Uitermark Coordinatore: Prof. Luisa Leonini 5 5 Acknowledgments To the Kurdish people. Fighting for freedom, socialism and humanity. The acknowledgment section is truly challenging for me. In these years I’ve met, talked, walked, shared, danced, loved, drank, ate, sang, with so many fabulous people. All of them, more directly or indirectly, have assembled my self and, thus, this thesis. To set the boundaries of this multiplicity is a largely arbitrary act (oh, really?) and there’s no branding that can help. But let’s be brave and, for sake of simplicity, let’s focus on humans -mostly. First of all, I want to sincerely thank my supervisors, Jan Willem Duyvendak, Paola Rebughini and Justus Uitermark. Now I can see how much I learned from your guidance. Banal, but so true. My gratitude goes also to the team of the Digital Methods Initiative, University of Amsterdam, which servers made part of data collection possible and which tools greatly inspired the analyses. To the wonderful DATACTIVE team: Mahsa Alimardani, Hisham Almiraat, Jonathan Gray, Frederike Kaltheuren, Becky Kazansky, Stefania Milan, Niels ten Oever, Lonneke van der Velden, Kersti WissenbacH. I am gonna learn so much from you, kittens! And it’s gonna be fun. To the Centro Studi Etnografia Digitale connection, in particular: Adam Arvidsson, Alessandro Caliandro, David Consolazio, Alberto Cossu, Alessandro Gandini, Corina Iamandi, Chiara Russo, Valentina Sturiale. Research is always a collective outcome, and you are part of mine. Special mention to Massimo Airoldi and Stefania Barina: it’s nice to know I have shelter in Milan :D To all the Ventottesimi at the GSSPS: we have been by far the best class in the whole history of all the Graduate Schools of the world. Big night out, pizza and birra! Special mention for my forever roomies, Luca Carollo and Elena Fontanari: via Eroina is still in my heart ---and see you on 3 June 2017, Millennium Stadium, Cardiff. To all the lovely people from REC B6.01 (and beyond), in particular Juan Francisco Alvarado, Thijs van Dorpemalen, Sander van Haperen, Rens Wilderom. Thanks to you, now I know what is the use of an office: to work! On a sunny day, expect me to bump in and drag you out to the Vondel park. To the Marnix Bros.: ready for Ziggo Dome? Ah, Salva: ma, un po’ di…? To all my friends from La Posta, and in particular Betty, Boaz, Cerra, Crema, Iez, Kaza, Mary, Masi, Paf, Rino, Rospo, Saronzi, Sere, Tizzi, Tsulu: now I know we were a leisure brand ---and one that rocked! Special mention to Tiziano Gerosa and Luca Rinaldi: Beraldo, Gerosa and Rinaldi 2018 is really gonna happen, promise! To all the lovely friends I met while crawling the network of life, e.g.: Burly (neighbors are forever!), Chana (ayo, questa tesi si sta vendendo!), Casy (Zatte alle 6?), Cribe (mi sono dimenticato di darti una cosa), Dave (forever partners in crime ;), Gag (will you marry me?), Goezdy (better have