Università Roma Tre

The aim of the course "Geopolitics of the code. Languages, power and identity in digital network" is to:
1) introduce the students to the basic concepts of the sociology of media;
2) analyze the intellectual contributions of the most prominent 20th century media theorists;
3) reflect on the geopolitical unbalances of the digital media scenario;
4) explore practical and theoretical alternatives offered by unconventional groups and initiatives on software, coding and social media;
5) understand the "logic of coding" through practical sessions and guided exercises in the computing lab.

Required readings (for all students)

1) Ricciardi, Mario (2012), La comunicazione. Maestri e paradigmi, Roma-Bari, Laterza.
2) Miconi, Andrea (2013), Teorie e pratiche del web, Bologna, Il Mulino.
3) Benigni, Glauco (2015), La rete tra libertà e controllo. Dagli alchimisti Nasdaq al caso Snowden. (Web nostrum 4), Firenze, goWare.

Students who will not able to come to class can still take the final exam, but are required to study the volume by Nick Couldry (Sociologia dei nuovi media. Teoria sociale e pratiche mediali digitali, Milano-Torino, Pearson, 2015), and upon contacting the teacher will select one volume from the following list:

1) Bauman, Zygmunt; Lyon, David (2015), Sesto potere. La sorveglianza nella modernità liquida, Roma-Bari, Laterza.
2) Balbi Gabriele; Magaudda Paolo (2014), Storia dei media digitali. Rivoluzioni e continuità, Roma-Bari, Laterza.
3) Fiormonte, Domenico (2003), Scrittura e filologia nell’era digitale, Torino, Bollati Boringhieri.
4) Lanier, Jaron (2010), Tu non sei un gadget, Milano, Mondadori.
5) Rampini, Federico (2015), Rete padrona. Amazon, Apple, Google & co. Il volto oscuro della rivoluzione digitale, Milano, Feltrinelli.