Helle Sjøvaag- Communication Infrastructures, Distribution Flows and Datafied Media Industries

When: 2023-04-24 14:00-16:00 (Tallinn time)
Where: online

The event is public via zoom: https://zoom.us/j/99209544202 Websites: https://www.uis.no/en/profile/818 Link to the project: https://www.uis.no/nb/forskning/digitale-infrastrukturer-i-norge Link to the book: https://www.routledge.com/The-Markets-for-News-Enduring-Structures- in-the-Age-of-Business-Model-Disruptions/Sjovaag/p/book/9780367533953 Link to the MA programme: https://www.uis.no/en/studies/master-in-digital-society-and- societal-transformations

Abstract – In this lecture, Helle Sjøvaag will present ongoing work from her research project “The datafication of communicative power: Towards an independent media policy for Norway’s digital infrastructures” funded by the Research council of Norway. Sjøvaag has mapped the backbone infrastructures on which the media industries rely, focused on the actors, data streams and regulations that shape the value chains of the digital media sector. During the presentation, Sjøvaag will discuss how these backbone networks (subsea cables, data centres, content delivery networks (CDNs) and internet exchange points) influence the flow of data in digital communication. A case study of the role of CDNs and cloud computing for broadcasting will then serve as a basis for a discussion of what exactly distribution means in the “post-tv” era.

Abstract – Helle Sjøvaag is Professor of Journalism at the University of Stavanger, Norway. Her work currently focuses on media industries, regulation, and infrastructures. Her latest book is The markets for news: Enduring structures in the age of business model disruption, published by Routledge (2022). In the Fall 2023 she is launching a new Master Programme in Digital Society, aimed at educating social science candidates that also understand technology.