Prediction, pre-emption and limits to dissent: Social media and big data uses for policing protests in the United Kingdom

Social media and big data uses form part of a broader shift from ‘reactive’ to ‘proactive’ forms of governance in which state bodies engage in analysis to predict, pre-empt and respond in real time to a range of social problems. Drawing on research with British police, we contextualize these algorit...

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Veröffentlicht in:New media & society Jg. 20; H. 4; S. 1433 - 1450
Hauptverfasser: Dencik, Lina, Hintz, Arne, Carey, Zoe
Format: Journal Article
Sprache:Englisch
Veröffentlicht: London, England SAGE Publications 01.04.2018
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ISSN:1461-4448, 1461-7315
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Zusammenfassung:Social media and big data uses form part of a broader shift from ‘reactive’ to ‘proactive’ forms of governance in which state bodies engage in analysis to predict, pre-empt and respond in real time to a range of social problems. Drawing on research with British police, we contextualize these algorithmic processes within actual police practices, focusing on protest policing. Although aspects of algorithmic decision-making have become prominent in police practice, our research shows that they are embedded within a continuous human–computer negotiation that incorporates a rooted claim to ‘professional judgement’, an integrated intelligence context and a significant level of discretion. This context, we argue, transforms conceptions of threats. We focus particularly on three challenges: the inclusion of pre-existing biases and agendas, the prominence of marketing-driven software, and the interpretation of unpredictability. Such a contextualized analysis of data uses provides important insights for the shifting terrain of possibilities for dissent.
ISSN:1461-4448
1461-7315
DOI:10.1177/1461444817697722