(Routledge Studies in Crime, Security and Justice) 1st Edition
by Lucas Melgaço (Editor), Jeffrey Monaghan (Editor)
Information and communication
technologies have transformed the dynamics of contention in contemporary
society. Social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, and devices such
as smartphones have increasingly played a central role in facilitating
and mobilizing social movements throughout different parts of the world.
Concurrently, the same technologies have been taken up by public
authorities (including security agencies and the police) and have been
used as surveillance tools to monitor and suppress the activities of
certain demonstrators.
This book explores the complex and
contradictory relationships between communication and information
technologies and social movements by drawing on different case studies
from around the world. The contributions analyse how new communication
and information technologies impact the way protests are carried out and
controlled in the current information age. The authors focus on recent
events that date from the Arab Spring onwards and pose
questions regarding the future of protests, surveillance and digital
landscapes.