Entanglements : activism and technology : editorial

This issue was motivated by our shared desire to explore these entanglements with scholars and activists who are working within, experiencing, and researching the frictions caused by technologies when they are used for activism. We use the term 'friction' as Anna Tsing does"”as a metaphor for the diverse and sometimes conflicting engagements that make up our contemporary world or what she calls 'zones of awkward engagement.' Tsing defines friction as 'the awkward, unequal, unstable, and creative qualities of interconnection across difference' that continually co-produce culture (Tsing, 2005: 4). Through an examination of frictions between aspirations and realities, between needs and constraints, a critical analysis of global connection is possible. In this way, the concepts of entanglements and frictions support us to explore the complex realities of co-dependent relationships between activists, technologies and the corporations who create them, in ways that support us to move beyond the old, dull and tired 'good' versus 'bad' technology narratives.