Abstract: Is it still possible to maintain a collective memory uninfluenced by web platforms? Can human memory, unmediated by technology, be endowed with an aura or a “punctum” (Barthes 1982; Benjamin 2014) as it was in the past? Is the narration of memory being progressively replaced by selective database searching? By examining international research by scholars belonging to the new perspectives of “critical data studies” (Iliadis & Russo 2016) and “critical memory studies” (Kaplan 2023), we will seek to understand how the production, archiving, and sharing of online content influences individuals’ ability to preserve the information in their memories by negotiating it with others. In this paper, we will show how technologies shape memory practices, seeking to understand whether a critical approach can develop potential practices of resistance to the colonization of our memories. The conclusions propose a “conceptual model” useful for future empirical research designs and applicable to different disciplinary fields, from sociology to cognitive psychology, from ergonomics oriented towards human-computer interaction (HCI) to Conspiracy Studies.
Platform Memory within Memory Platforms. A Critical Analysis of Algorithmically Mediated Memories
Simone D'Alessandro
2026-01-01
Abstract
Abstract: Is it still possible to maintain a collective memory uninfluenced by web platforms? Can human memory, unmediated by technology, be endowed with an aura or a “punctum” (Barthes 1982; Benjamin 2014) as it was in the past? Is the narration of memory being progressively replaced by selective database searching? By examining international research by scholars belonging to the new perspectives of “critical data studies” (Iliadis & Russo 2016) and “critical memory studies” (Kaplan 2023), we will seek to understand how the production, archiving, and sharing of online content influences individuals’ ability to preserve the information in their memories by negotiating it with others. In this paper, we will show how technologies shape memory practices, seeking to understand whether a critical approach can develop potential practices of resistance to the colonization of our memories. The conclusions propose a “conceptual model” useful for future empirical research designs and applicable to different disciplinary fields, from sociology to cognitive psychology, from ergonomics oriented towards human-computer interaction (HCI) to Conspiracy Studies.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
