John Postill

PhD in Social Anthropology (UCL)

Research skills

  • Other
    Qualitative (ethnographic) research

Research interests

  • Interests
    Media Anthropology

Research experience

  • Sep 2010–
    Aug 2011
    Research: Social media and activism in Barcelona, with special reference to the Indignados movement
    Open University of Catalonia · IN3 · Open University of Catalonia
    activism, social media, internet studies, spanish revolution, indignados,
  • Sep 2002–
    Aug 2005
    Research: eGovernment and Ethnic Identity in Five National Contexts
    Bremen University · bki · Bremen University
    Netcultures · Bremen
    media anthropology

Education

  • Oct 1995–
    Jan 2000
    Institute of Child Health
    Anthropology · PhD
    United Kingdom

Other

  • Languages
    Spanish, English, German, Iban, Malay, Romanian, Catalan

Publications

  • Localizing the internet beyond communities and networks

    J. Postill

    New Media & Society. 05/2008; 10:413-431.

    As the numbers of internet users worldwide continue to grow, the internet is becoming `more local’. This article addresses the epistemological challenge posed by this global process of internet localization by examining some of the conceptual tools at the disposal of internet researchers. It argues ... [more] As the numbers of internet users worldwide continue to grow, the internet is becoming `more local’. This article addresses the epistemological challenge posed by this global process of internet localization by examining some of the conceptual tools at the disposal of internet researchers. It argues that progress has been hampered by an overdependence on the problematic notions of community and network whose paradigmatic status has yet to be questioned by internet scholars. The article seeks to broaden the conceptual space of internet localization studies through a ground-up conceptualization exercise that draws inspiration from the field theories of both Pierre Bourdieu and the Manchester School of Anthropology, and is based on recent fieldwork in suburban Malaysia. This exploration demonstrates that a more nuanced understanding of the plural forms that residential sociality can take is needed in order to move beyond existing binaries such as `network sociality’ versus `community sociality’.

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