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Researchers

Dwayne Winseck | Lead Researcher

Carleton University

Dwayne Winseck is Professor at the School of Journalism and Communication, with a cross appointment at the Institute of Political Economy, Carleton University. His research interests include the political economy of telecommunications, the Internet and media as well as communications and media history, theory, policy and regulation. He is also the Director of the Global Media and Internet Concentration Project, a project funded by the Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Partnership Grant.

 Dwayne’s research, data and views on media concentration and communication, media and Internet industry and policy issues are well known and have been solicited or cited widely in the scholarly literature and by the Parliament of Canada, Canadian Senate, Department of Canadian Heritage, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Committee, World Trade Organization, the International Telecommunications Union, amongst others. Dwayne also writes regular op-eds on these topics for the press and other outlets, including as a regular columnist for the Globe and Mail.

His co-authored book with Robert Pike Communication and Empire: Media, Markets and Globalization, 1860-1930 won the Canadian Communication Association’s book-of-the-year prize in 2008.

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Selected publications

Books

2007    Winseck, D. & Pike, R. Communication and Empire: Media Power and Globalization, 1860-1930. Durnham, N.C.: Duke Univ. Press. (Winner of the Canadian Communication Association’s G. J. Robinson book of the year award)

1998    ReConvergence: A political economy of telecommunications in Canada. Cresskill, NJ: Hampton.

Edited Volumes

2012    Winseck, D. & Jin, D. Y. (eds.). Political Economies of Media: the Transformation of the Global Media Industries. London: Bloomsbury.

1997    Bailie, M. & Winseck, D. (eds.). Democratizing communication?:  Comparative perspectives on information and power. Cresskill, NJ:  Hampton.

1997    Sreberny-Mohammadi, A., Winseck, D., McKenna, J. & Boyd-Barrett, O.

(eds.). Media in Global Context.  London, UK:  Edward Arnold.

Selected Peer Reviewed Articles & Book Chapters

2022    Winseck, D. & Bester, K. (2022/forthcoming).  Regulation for a More Democratic Internet: Lessons from 19th & 20th Centuries Antitrust and Communications Regulation. In T. Flew, J. Thomas & J. Holt (eds.). Sage Handbook of the Digital Media Economy. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

2022    Winseck, D. (2022/forthcoming). The Broken Internet and Platform Regulation: Promises and Perils. In T. Flew, F. Martin & R. Gillett (eds.). Digital Platform Regulation: Global Perspectives on Internet Governance. London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.

2022    Winseck D. (2022/forthcoming). Curran & Seaton’s Power without Responsibility: Legacy and lessons. In M. Klontzas (ed.). James Curran & Jean Seaton’s Power without Responsibility: Critical Reflections. London: Routledge.

 2020    “Vampire Squids”, the Broken Internet and Platform Regulation. Journal of Digital Media and Policy, 11(3), 241-282.

2020    Schafer, V., Fickers, A., Howarth, D., Musiani, F., Pohle, J. & Winseck, D. (2020) The internet and the European market from a multidisciplinary perspective: a “round-doc” discussion, Internet Histories, DOI: 10.1080/24701475.2020.173960.

2019  Wilkinson, S. & Winseck, D. Whither Journalism? Crisis or Wrenching Change in Journalistic Work in Canada? Canadian Journal of Communication (forthcoming) (author split 70/30).

2018    Fitzgerald, S. & Winseck, D. Media Economics: Missed Opportunities, Mischaracterizations, Review Essay on Stuart Cunningham, Terry Flew and Adam Swift’s (2015) Media Economics (Palgrave: London). The Political Economy of Communication, 6(1), 83-97.

2018    Jia, LR & Winseck, D. The political economy of Chinese internet companies: Financialization, concentration and capitalization. The International Communication Gazette, 80(1), 30-59.

2017   Winseck, D. & Pooley, J.  A Curious Tale of Economics and Common

Carriage (Net Neutrality) at the FCC: A Reply to Faulhaber, Singer, and Urschel. International Journal of Communication, 11, 2702-2733.

2017   The Geopolitical Economy of the Global Internet Infrastructure. Journal of Information Policy, 7, 228-267.

2016   Reconstructing the Political Economy of Communication for the Digital Media Age. The Political Economy of Communication, 4(2), 73-114.

2011    Submarine Telegraphs, Telegraph News, and the Global Financial Crisis of 1873. Journal of Cultural Economy: Special Issue on Financial Crises edited by M. Poovey, 5(2), 197-212.

2010    Winseck, D. Financialization and the “Crisis of the Media”: The Rise and Fall of (Some) Media Conglomerates in Canada. Canadian Journal of Communication, 35(3), 1-28.

2009    Winseck, D. & Pike, R. The Global Media and the Empire of Liberal Internationalism, circa 1910-1930. Media History, 2009, 15(1), 31-54. (70/30 contribution)

2008    Information Operations ‘Blowback’: Communication, Propaganda and

Surveillance in the Global War on Terrorism.  International Communication Gazette, 70(6), 419-441.

2008    Media Ownership and the Consolidation of Media Markets. Sociology Compass, 2(1), 34-47.

2002    Illusions of perfect information and fantasies of control in the information society. New Media and Society, 4(1), 89-118.

2002    Netscapes of power: Convergence, consolidation and power in the Canadian mediascape. Media, Culture & Society, 24(6), 795-819.

Tracey P. Lauriault | Lead Researcher

Carleton University

Dr. Tracey P. Lauriault, is Associate Professor of Critical Media and Big Data, School of Journalism and Communication at Carleton University cross appointed as core faculty of the Collaborative MA in Digital Humanities and is faculty and board member of the Institute for Data Science. She is one of the founders of the field of critical data studies which applies social theory to the study of data, systems (AI/ML), and infrastructures. Her current research focuses on fair, just inclusive, and equitable data governance practices, including Indigenous data sovereignty and governance; the preservation of complex data systems such as smart grids and AI/ML; building a cooperative digital twin, investigating data brokers and open data, open government and Open Smart Cities.

Citizen of Canada, Republic of Ireland and the European Union and is Algonquin of Pikwakanagan First Nation. She is also francophone.

Books:

Forthcoming 2022 – Lauriault, T. P. and Schaefer, M.T., (eds) Making a Difference in the Datafied Society, Amsterdam University Press.

Kitchin, R., Lauriault, T. P. and Wilson, M. (eds) (2017) Understanding Spatial Media. Sage. pp. 264, https://doi.org/10.4135/9781526425850

Kitchin, R., Lauriault, T. P., and McArdle, G. (eds) (2017) Data and the City. Taylor and Francis, pp. 234.

Book Chapters:

Forthcoming 2022 Lauriault, T. P. Looking Back Toward A “Smarter” Open Data Future, in Scassa, Teresa and Robinson, Pamela eds. Open Data Futures, University of Ottawa Press.

Lauriault, T. P., Lenczner M. and Bourns, J. (2021) Big Data Won’t Save Us: Fixing the Impact Evaluation, Ch. 34 in Phillips, S. D. and Wyatt, B. Intersections and Innovations: Change for Canada’s Voluntary and Non Profit Sector, Edmonton: Muttart Foundation.

Kitchin, R. and Lauriault, T. P. (2018) Towards Critical Data Studies: Charting and Unpacking Data Assemblages and Their Work Chapter 1 in Eckert, J., Shears, A. and Thatcher, J. (eds) Thinking Big Data in Geography: New Regimes, New Research, University of Nebraska Press.

Lauriault, T. P. (2017) Ontologizing the City. Chapter 13 in Kitchin, R., Lauriault, T. P. and McArdle, G. (eds) Data and the City, Taylor and Francis, pp. 171-187.

Lauriault, T. P. and Francoli, M. (2017) Openness, transparency, participation. Chapter 18 in Kitchin, R., Lauriault, T. P. and Wilson, M. (eds) Understanding Spatial Media, Sage. pp. 188-204.

Journal Articles:

Kitchin, R. and Lauriault, T. P. (2017) Small Data in the Era of Big Data, GeoJournal, Berlin, Springer, 80(4): 463–475, https://doi-org.proxy.library.carleton.ca/10.1007/s10708-014-9601-7 (Equal co-authorship).

Kitchin, R., Lauriault T. P. and McArdle, G. (2015) Urban indicators and dashboards: epistemology, contradictions and power/knowledge. Regional Studies, Regional Science 2(1): 43-45, https://doi.org/10.1080/21681376.2014.991485 (Equal co-authorship)

Public Policy Reports

Lauriault, T. P. and Faria, Olivia, (2021) Open Smart Cities Policy Brief: Internet of things and smart tech abuse. For Open North as part of the Smart Cities Communities Solution Network Project funded by Infrastructure Canada.

Lauriault, T. P., Leone, Donato and Ivanoff, Julie, (2021) Open Smart Cities Policy Brief: Shared Transportation, For Open North as part of the Smart Cities Communities Solution Network Project funded by Infrastructure Canada.

Pembleton, C., Ahmed, N., Lauriault, T. P., Landry, J.N. and Placheneau, M. (2019) State of Open Smart Communities in Canada, https://www.opennorth.ca/publications/#the-state-of-open-smart-communities-2019

David B. Nieborg | Lead Researcher

University of Toronto

David B. Nieborg is an Associate Professor of Media Studies at the University of Toronto. He holds a PhD from the University of Amsterdam and held visiting and fellowship appointments with MIT, the Queensland University of Technology, the University of Amsterdam, and the Chinese University of Hong Kong. David published on the game industry, app and platform economics, and game journalism in academic outlets such as New Media & Society, Social Media + Society and Media, Culture and Society. He is the co-author of Platforms and Cultural Production (Polity, 2021) with Thomas Poell and Brooke Erin Duffy.

Selected publications:

Nieborg, D. B. (2021). How to Study Game Publishers: Activision Blizzard’s Corporate History. In O. Sotamaa & J. Švelch (Eds.), Game Production Studies (pp. 179–195). Amsterdam University Press.

Nieborg, D. B., & Helmond, A. (2019). The political economy of Facebook’s platformization in the mobile ecosystem: Facebook Messenger as a platform instance. Media, Culture & Society, 41(2), 196–218.

Nieborg, D. B., & Poell, T. (2018). The platformization of cultural production: Theorizing the contingent cultural commodity. New Media & Society, 20(11), 4275–4292.

Nieborg, D. B., Young, C. J., & Joseph, D. J. (2019). Lost in the App Store: The Political Economy of the Canadian Game App Economy. Canadian Journal of Communication, 44(2), 57–62.

Poell, T., Nieborg, D. B., & Duffy, B. E. (2021). Platforms and Cultural Production. Polity.

Van Dijck, J., Nieborg, D. B., & Poell, T. (2019). Reframing platform power. Internet Policy Review, 8(2). https://policyreview.info/articles/analysis/reframing-platform-power

Blue Miaoran Dong | Research Assistant

Carleton University

Blue Miaoran Dong is a PhD student at Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication, with more than eight years of experience in project and data management. She has authored and co-authored academic journal articles and book chapters in Cochrane Evidence Synthesis and Methods and Food Studies: Matter, Meaning, Movement. She has presented her research at over ten national and international academic conferences, including the Canadian Communication Association (CCA), Telecommunications Policy Research Conference (TPRC), Association of Internet Researchers (AOIR), International Communication Association (ICA), Canadian Game Studies Association (CGC), Faculty of Public Affairs (FPA), International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA), Association francophone pour le savoir (ACFAS), Analyzing Ghost-management: Dynamics of Corporate Power in a Risk Society, and PODC Oxford.

In addition to her research, Blue is currently working as a data manager for the Global Media and Internet Concentration (GMIC) Project, as well as a research assistant for the Ghost Management project. She has also coordinated and co-chaired several academic conferences, including the Food Matters and Materialities: Critical Understandings of Food Cultures Conference, Data Power Conference, Analyzing Ghost-management: Dynamics of Corporate Power in a Risk Society conference, and CGC. Her research interests include the political economy of platform governance, comparative analysis of internet studies, science and technology studies (STS), public relations, and public policy.

 
Relevant publications and conference papers
 
Dong, Blue Miaoran. 2023. “Investigating how platform companies influence public policies.” The 6th International Conference on Public Policy (ICPP6). Conference paper.
 
Dong, Blue Miaoran. 2023. “How do Corporate Power and Profits Influence Public Policies? A Comparative Study of the Facebook and Google’s “Bigger is Better” Public Relations and Advertising Campaigns in the Week US and UK Magazines.” ICA Conference. Conference paper.
 
Dong, Blue Miaoran. 2023. “A comparative study of platform companies’ corporate captures in US and UK.” Emerging Perspectives: FPA Graduate Conference. Conference paper.
 
Dong, Blue Miaoran. 2022. “Reconstruction and Reform or Deflect and Delay: Facebook’s Ongoing “Regulate Us” Public Relations and Advertising Campaign.” Reflections on New and Not so New Trends in Platform Governance, Communication Law and Policy. ICA 2022. Conference paper.
 
Winseck, Dwayne; Dong, Blue Miaoran. 2022. “Facebook’s “Regulate Us” Public Relations and Advertising Campaign: Toward a New Model of Internet Regulation or Corporate Snowjob?” Analyzing Ghost-management: Dynamics of Corporate Power in a Risk Society. Conference paper.
 
Winseck, Dwayne; Dong, Blue Miaoran. 2021. “Facebook’s ongoing “regulate us” public relations and advertising campaign workbook (February 27, 2020, to October 17, 2021)”, https://doi.org/10.5683/SP3/FYGFYJ.
 
Dong, Blue Miaoran, Three Delusions and a New Path: the Political Economy of the Chinese Food Traceability System (August 2, 2021). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3897461 or
 
 
 

Xiaofei Han | Research Assistant

Carleton University

Xiaofei Han is a Ph.D. student in the School of Journalism and Communication, Carleton University. Xiaofei holds an M.A. in Communications from Hong Kong Baptist University and an Honours B.A. in Communication Studies from Carleton University, with a specialization in Media Industry and Institutions. Her research and previous experience as a marketing communication professional working in Beijing have led Xiaofei to developed a keen interest in the extensive and innovative commodification models that are emerging on major Chinese internet platforms.

Jia, L., & Han, X. (2020). Tracing Weibo (2009–2019): The commercial dissolution of public communication and changing politics. Internet Histories, 4(3), 304-332.

Han, X. (2021). Historicising Wanghong economy: connecting platforms through Wanghong and Wanghong incubators. Celebrity Studies, 12(2), 317-325.

Lianrui Jia | Research Assistant

York University

Lianrui Jia is a SSHRC-funded Ph.D. candidate in the Communication and Culture Program at York University. She holds an Honours degree and a M.A in Communications Studies from Carleton University. Her doctoral dissertation research examines the political economy of Chinese internet development and globalization. She is also a sessional instructor in the iSchool at the University of Toronto.

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