Power and discipline

Foucault, M. (1979): “Discipline and Punish”, chap 3, Vintage Books, New York, 195-228

Hannemyr, G. (2000): “Foucault I kyberrommet”, in Digital Makt, ed T. Slaata, Gyldendal Akademisk, Oslo,

pp 41-63

Foucault on power and discipline

• Power is usually seen as institutionalized and asymmetric, as some posses powers, others do not

• Focus on disciplining power: Through political technologies throughout the society– It is exercised, rather than possessed– It is implicit, rather than explicit– It is changing, rather than static– It is distributed, rather than in one particular relation– No great battles fought for the history books – micro-power

• The pedagogical function of surveillance: From primitive physical power exercises, to sophisticated learning environments – Panopticon

Key arguments of Hannemyr

• Current changes in the power relations between consumers, industry and authorities– New technologies for reproduction, distribution and

transactions through converging medias– The importance and the effects is amplified as our

lives gets more and more connected with in the world of digital technologies

• Conflict between “hackers”, and the industry allied with the authorities

Conflict eruptions

• DVD-John– 2000: 16 years old computer-enthusiast charged for violating the

Norwegian laws of data crime – Charged by multiple US and Japanese movie distributors, for the

development and spread of a program that grants access to data from DVD movies with other equipment than certified by DVD-CCA (Content Control Association)

• Eddy Jansson and Mattew Skala– Cracks the codes for the filters being the basis of CyberPatrol –

a tool for avoiding children surfing on the net to get in touch with pornography

– The lists shows more than filters for pornography: Unions, left wing political activities as well as critiques of filters as CyberPatrol

– Threatened by Mattel with a claim of compensation, but accepts a settlement: The right of the program cracking the codes

Hackers

• Early ideas about the concept of open and available information for everyone – in one big network

• Open-source– Free of charge– Open: No secret and proprietary formats– Ex: Linux

• Hackers are trying to destroy certain use of technology moving the centre of power to the unacceptable and unsocial

• Why is it so that breaking the hindrance in e.g. DVD is a crime, and making the hindrance is not?

Industry

• The challenge for the industry: Digital content is easy to copy and distribute – Regulating access to objects with technology– Norms have to be established, disciplining technology

must be developed, and the legal systems aligned

• Governments have taken the side of the industry– US: The Digital Millennium Copyright Act– Norway: In strategy for preventing of ICT-crime, it is

noted as the use of Linux among youth should be a source of concern

Panopticon in the cyberspace

• A general increased attention on tracking communication: – Registering our identity, our accessed URL’s,

denying the possibility of using cryptography

• Ease police work in criminal cases,– but also panoptically discipline us by observation, information collection and teaching– People will not access legal pornographic material,

or other non-acceptable information– You never know how the information will be used

Implications

• Increased possibilities to exercise micro-power micro technology

• The industry have been better at mobilizing support in media and from governments

• The resistance have been minimal to serve: consumer rights, freedom of speech and privacy

• The only resistance is by the hackers

Questions for reflection

• Is this just paranoia and theories of conspiracy: Microsoft VS Hackers?

• Can and should we as researchers relate these issues to the Scandinavian approach with a focus on democracy?

• Implication for design and use of information systems?