Sex, Power, and Platform Governance

This talk looks at platform governance and platform power through the lens of deplatforming sex, and deplatforming of sex through the lens of concentration of norm and infrastructure power. Based on a meta-analysis of ethnographic, interview and social media data associated with cases of deplatforming and replatforming sex on social media, the talk offers suggestions for reimagining platform governance and articulates a hope for a more sex-positive platform governance research agenda.

Katrin Tiidenberg is a Professor of Participatory Culture at the Baltic Film, Media and Arts School of Tallinn University, Estonia. She
is the author and editor of multiple books on social media, digital cultures and research methods, including, most recently “Tumblr”
(2021, co-authored by Natalie Ann Hendry and Crystal Abidin), “Sex and Social Media” (2020, co-authored by Emily van der Nagel) and “Selfies,
why we love (and hate) them. She has just started a new research project on visuality and trust on social media (TRAVIS) and is
wrapping up a project on the platformisation of sexual cultures. Her research interests span identity, visual cultures, social media,
internet governance, power and self-care.

The event is part of the Seminar Series “Platform Politics and Policy”.

Researchers from outside the WZB who would like to attend may email the organizer, robert.gorwa [at] wzb.eu, to be put onto the seminar series mailing list.