Mobile Media: Protest and Surveillance On the Political Rationality of Ubiquitous Individual Connectivity DISSERTATION zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades doctor philosophiae (Dr. phil.) im Fach Medienwissenschaften eingereicht an der Kulturwissenschaftlichen Fakultat¨ Universitat¨ Paderborn 1. Gutachter Prof. Dr. Hartmut Winkler 2. Gutachterin Prof. Dr. Hannelore Bublitz von Mag. Oliver Leistert [email protected] Abstract Based on 50 interviews with activists and hackers this work analyzes the question of political rationality of mobile media within a systematic framework of studies of governmentality. It shows how through a global and massive use of mobile phones the western concept of the individual is enforced, while at the same time by means of surveillance and other interventions these new freedoms of individual mobile communication get restricted and limited again. Following the presentation of this dialectical relation of freedom and surveillance, a third part discusses the possibilities and chances of autonomous approaches for mobile communication, which operate beyond sovereign or commercial regulation. Under discussion are open source wireless solutions, such as mesh networks. Two case studies underline the arguments: SMS as a means of support and development of protests within the Pakistan Lawyer's Movement against dictator Musharraf, and on the other side the surveillance of Berlin based activists by German authorities over years. Further Keywords are: Governmentality, Surveillance, Open Source Software, Privacy, Power, Protest, Activism, Mobile Media, Surveillance Media. Aufbauend auf 50 Interviews mit Aktivisten und Hackern untersucht die Arbeit die Frage der politischen Rationalität mobiler Medien im systematischen Rahmen einer gouvernementalen Studie. Die Arbeit zeigt, dass die globale massive Verwendung von Mobiltelefonen einerseits zur Stärkung des westlich geprägten Individuums führt, andererseits mittels Überwachung und verschiedener staatlicher Eingriffe die neu entstandenen Freiheiten der individuellen Mobilkommunikation auf der Ebene souveräner Machtausübung wieder eingefangen werden. Dieser Dialektik von Freiheit und Überwachung wird ein dritter Teil angeschlossen, der die Möglichkeiten und Chancen autonomer Mobilkommunikation, die jenseits staatlicher oder kommerzieller Regelung operiert, diskutiert. Im Fokus stehen Open Source Funk Lösungen, wie Mash Netze. Zwei Fallstudien flankieren die Analyse: SMS zur Unterstützung und spezifischen Herausbildung von Protesten in der Anwaltsbewegung Pakistans gegen den Diktator Musharraf, und auf der anderen Seite die jahrelange Überwachung von Berliner Aktivisten durch deutsche Behörden. Schlagwörter sind: Gouvernementalität, Überwachung, Open Source Software, Privacy, Macht, Protest, Aktivismus, Mobile Medien, Überwachungsmedien. Acknowledgments I want to thank: Hartmut Winkler, Hannelore Bublitz, Theo Rohle,¨ Tobias Con- radi, Heike Derwanz, Florian Muhle, Mirna Zeman, Sylvia Kesper-Biermann, Ralf Adelmann, Norbert Otto Eke, Gisela Ecker, Maik Bierwirth, Renate Wieser, Irina Kaldrack, Andre Meister, Kate Coyer, Eva Bognar, Lina Dencik, Kristina Irion, Maxigas, Geert Lovink, Ricardo Dominguez, Sven Opitz, Arne Hintz, Ste- fania Milan, Devin Theriot-Orr, Amber Voha, Jessi, Abie, Daniel Kahn Gillmor, Nathan Freitas, Elijah Sparrow, Micah Anderson, Rhatto, Elisa, Fernao,˜ Drebs, Diogo, Olivia Janequine, Pablo Ortellado, Minerva, Blax, Iokese, Xabier, StartX, Ionnek, Yossarian, Echo, Dinesh, Manasasarovsar, Madhuresh Kumar, Leo Sald- hana, Smriti Vohra, Shahid Munir, Uzair and Sundas Hurain, Zaman Khan, Ziyad Faisal, Henrik, Takakao, Takuro, Yasuda Yukihiro, Hirosato Matsuura, Siggi, Hajime, Randy Nobleza, Bianca, Tanja, Ali, Owl, Axel, Jan, Malte, Ste- fan, Amanda, Elke and Volker Leistert. This dissertation was funded by the Graduiertenkolleg “Automatismen”, Uni- versity Paderborn, and the Center for Media and Communication Studies, Cen- tral European University, Budapest. Hamburg, 30.4.2012 i ii Contents List of Figures vii List of Tables ix 1 Introduction1 I Play of Freedom 11 2 Governmentality 13 2.1 Political Technologies: Pastoral Power................. 16 2.2 The Means of Freedom as Rule and Freedom as the Correlative of Security................................... 18 2.3 Economy, Freedom and Security..................... 19 2.4 Government Programs: Techniques, Practices, Failures and Risks. 26 2.5 Insertion: Empirical Statements and Governmental Research.... 31 2.6 The Locus of Governmental Studies, or Eurocentrism and `Post- colonial' Societies.............................. 33 3 Mobile Protest Media: Resisting Government { Governing Resistance 51 3.1 Power and Resistance........................... 55 3.2 From Resistance to Counter-Rationalities............... 58 3.3 From Counter-Rationalities to Mobile Protest Media......... 61 4 Mobile Protest Media Case Study: The Lawyers' Movement 65 4.1 Pakistan and Musharraf.......................... 67 4.2 The Dissemination of Mobile Phones in Pakistan........... 68 4.3 The Protest Movement.......................... 70 4.4 SMS, Online and Broadcast Media................... 83 4.5 State of Surveillance in Pakistan during the Lawyers' Movement and Anti-Surveillance Tactics....................... 89 4.6 The Clash of Rule............................. 93 4.7 Mobile Media as an Agent of Governmental Rule........... 97 5 Distributed Action and Centralized Surveillance 99 5.1 Mobile Media Facilitates Collective Actions.............. 101 5.2 Layers of Distributed Action....................... 105 iii Contents II Freedom Under Threat: the Liberal Paradox 109 6 Surveillance 111 6.1 What is Surveillance?........................... 113 6.2 Big Brother's Effects on Surveillance Studies............. 119 6.3 Surveillance and Location......................... 121 6.4 The Concept of Institutionalized Mediation.............. 124 6.5 Panspectron and Surveillant Assemblage................ 126 6.6 Interlude: Ricardo Dominguez on Transparent Surveillance..... 127 7 Limiting Secured Freedom of Mobile Media 133 7.1 Illiberal Government and the Surveillant Assemblage........ 135 7.2 Episteme and Modalities of Neo-Sovereignty.............. 137 7.3 Registration of SIM Cards........................ 145 7.4 Blocking of Communication........................ 148 7.5 Data Retention as Neo-Sovereign Data Production.......... 152 7.6 A Panspectron Supplements Liberal Technologies........... 163 8 Mobile Surveillance Media Case Study: The §129a and the Case of the \Militant Group" in Germany 165 8.1 Short Introduction: Section 129 of the German Criminal Code... 166 8.2 The MG Investigations.......................... 168 8.3 Conclusions from the Documents.................... 175 III Bottom-Up Strategies Against Neo-Sovereignty 179 9 Necessities for a Trusted Environment of Telecommunication 181 9.1 Trust in Telecommunication 1: Securing Content........... 189 9.2 Trust in Telecommunication 2: Securing Transaction Data..... 200 10 Conclusion: Mobile Media Pushes the Liberal Paradox 211 IV Appendices 217 A Empirical Research about Protests: Ethical Considerations 219 B Overview of Interviews 227 iv C Index: Groups and Initiatives of the Interviewees 235 C.1 Brazil.................................... 235 C.2 India..................................... 240 C.3 Japan.................................... 244 C.4 Mexico.................................... 245 C.5 Pakistan................................... 247 C.6 Philippines................................. 249 C.7 South Korea................................ 250 C.8 Spain.................................... 251 C.9 UK...................................... 252 C.10 USA..................................... 252 D List of URLs 255 E The Texter's Manifesto 257 Bibliography 259 Glossary 279 v List of Figures 4.1 Growth of mobile phone dissemination in Pakistan 2001 - 2008... 69 4.2 Growth of SMS sent in Pakistan 2006 - 2010.............. 69 4.3 Flier by the Student Action Committee February 2008....... 77 8.1 Example of meta data from mobile telephony retained by a telecom- munications provider and sent to the BKA............... 170 8.2 The practice of sending silent SMS................... 171 8.3 Evaluation of silent SMS sent to one mobile phone.......... 172 8.4 Description of one single call....................... 173 8.5 IMSI and IMEI are part of the data set................. 174 8.6 Evaluation of possible identity of caller and criminal offender... 174 8.7 PGP-encrypted emails are not readable for the BKA......... 175 8.8 Reference to a combination of eavesdropping on telephone calls and cell log data................................. 176 8.9 Evaluation of possible identity of caller and perpetrator....... 176 9.1 The famous Pringles 2.4 GHz antenna.................. 209 10.1 From a sales leaflet of a `real time' surveillance-software acquired by UK police................................. 216 E.1 The Texter's Manifesto.......................... 257 E.2 The Texter's Manifesto, second part................... 258 vii List of Tables B.1 Research travel itinerary......................... 228 B.2 Interviews 1 to 12 at a glance...................... 230 B.3 Interviews 13 to 24 at a glance...................... 231 B.4 Interviews 25 to 36 at a glance...................... 232 B.5 Interviews 37 to 50 at a glance...................... 233 ix 1 Introduction Sent from mobile device. 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