Papers by DIMITRIS BOUCAS
The dataset on Alternative Internet survey is part of the research on Alternative Internets carri... more The dataset on Alternative Internet survey is part of the research on Alternative Internets carried out in the project <strong>netCommons</strong>: Network Infrastructure as Commons H2020 EU project (Grant Number 688768, project URL: http://netcommons.eu). The netCommons project aspires to study, support and further promote an emerging trend, community-based networking and communication services that can offer a complement, or even a sustainable alternative, to the global Internet's current dominant model. Community networks not only provide citizens with access to a neutral, bottom-up network infrastructure, which naturally increases the transparency of data flow, but they also represent an archetype of networked collective cooperation and action, mixing common or communal ownership and management of an infrastructure with a balanced set of services supported by the local stakeholders. Community networks, however, are complex systems that require multiple skills to thrive: technical, legal, socio-economic, and political. They face many challenges and they also need abstractions, models and practical tools to grow and produce a higher beneficial impact on our society. The Alternative Internet survey examines the concerns about internet usage that can be identified among sufficiently competent and regular internet users. Such concerns provide useful input both to community networks and to other stakeholders such as policy-makers and regulators who play significant roles in the telecommunications and internet landscape and, consequently, need to take informed steps as to the regulation of the internet and the ways in which community networks can be part of this landscape. In addition, the survey results provide input as to the attitudes of those internet users regarding the possibility of using community networks. The online survey run on platform limesurvey, which is built on open source code, whilst it also presents convenient functionality, including the possibility of anonymisation of the user. It run for se [...]
Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-bas... more Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-based economy, the paper examines the evolving processes and shapes of the Greek IS, by looking into recent policies promoted by the Greek state. In doing so, it deploys a state/society conceptual approach, which highlights the ways in which European IS policy and its national interpretations are articulated or confronted by national socio-cultural, political and economic idiosyncrasies, as well as the role of the state in articulating global policies with national characteristics. The emphasis of the study is on the period 1998-2007, a period including the first comprehensive IS strategy in Greece, as well as enabling a critical examination of its effects.
Drawing on recent theorisations on the information society/knowledge-based economy (IS/KBE) and t... more Drawing on recent theorisations on the information society/knowledge-based economy (IS/KBE) and the transformation of the roles and functions of the nation-state, the paper argues for the importance of the state and its mechanisms for the sustainability of the IS/KBE. In doing so, it supports the claim in the literature, also proven by the empirical reality in different national contexts) that the state has been transformed towards a generic model of 'competition state' involved in the establishment of the IS/KBE paradigm. Nonetheless, surpassing this model, this paper argues that the state is called upon to operate also in a developmental way, at least in certain national contexts, if a sustainable IS/KBE is to be achieved. The paper draws on the Greek IS/KBE case so as to assess these competition and developmental state aspects.
The British Journal of Sociology, 2017
State power, and indeed the state as an entity, has come under a series of specific challenges. T... more State power, and indeed the state as an entity, has come under a series of specific challenges. These include the consolidation of financial markets and trade, the evolution of supra-national arrangements which bear the seeds of global governance regimes, the rise of wide-ranging social movements, as well digital economy features underpinned by information and communication technologies (ICTs). These challenges to the public sector have given rise to theorisations about, the 'end of the state' (Ohmae 1990; Strange 1996). Other, more critical stances have argued for the persistence of the state as structural entity, albeit transformed with its functions redefined in accordance with changes in the global economic, political and social system (Smith, Solinger and Topik 1999; Mittelman 2000; Sorensen 2004). For them, the national state retains considerable capacities: in strategic terms as a mechanism for integrating the economy into global processes, in political terms as guarantor and defendant of the rights of its citizens, and in socio-cultural terms as intermediary between global processes and national or local social and cultural particularities. Alongside processes of state transformation, the search for and formulation of international and national 'information society' (IS) policies has been a significant development in the last thirty or so years. The concept of 'information society' is rather older and has evolved through different discourses from cybernetics and control in the late 1940s, to economic and occupational definitions in the 1960s and 1970s, spatial and cultural approaches in the 1980s, or technological perspectives in the 1980s (Webster 2006). Godin links the consolidation of
Thanks should be extended to all my interviewees who gave their time generously and contributed t... more Thanks should be extended to all my interviewees who gave their time generously and contributed to the formulation o f several perspectives of the analysis, in particular Yannis Caloghirou, Theodore Karounos and Angelos Tsakanikas who were very helpful with empirical information throughout this process. Thanks are also due to Pavlos Klavdianos for his help in locating material and discussing ideas during the different stages o f this research. I would also like to express my appreciation to my colleagues at LSE who were involved by giving comments and support. The biggest share o f it should deservedly belong to my supervisor Jonathan Liebenau, who has provided thought-provoking suggestions and has been supportive in many respects throughout this effort. Certain foundations and bodies have provided essential funding at various stages o f the process, including the British Sociological Association and the P.Bakala Foundation, whose generous support is much appreciated. A PhD dissertation is a long process. Often, by the time it is finished substantial changes have happened in one's life. List of tables and figures 7 Abbreviations 8 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION-THE INFORMATION SOCIETY AND THE STATE 9 CHAPTER 2: THE INFORMATION SOCIETY AND THE STATE IN A GLOBAL WORLD 17 2.1. Introduction 17 2.2. The information society as a new techno-social paradigm 18 2.3. Between technological determinism and social constructivism 25 2.4. The ambiguous position of Castells 28 2.4.1. Castells' approach 28 2.4.2. Criticism of Castells 31 2.5. Information society as continuity-context and embeddedness of ICTs 39 2.6. Towards a continuity-change approach 43 2.7. The nation-state: roles and functions 46 2.8. Globalisation, ICTs and the nation-state 48 2.9. Continuing importance and transformation of the nation-state 51 2.10. The nation-state and the IS/KBE 53 2.11. Conclusions 60
Human Rights Documents Online
Greece is, today, the EU member state where journalism and the media face their most acute crisis... more Greece is, today, the EU member state where journalism and the media face their most acute crisis. Since the 1980s and 1990s, deregulation has allowed the market entry of commercial channels that increased the viewing choice for audiences in Greece. The legal and regulatory framework actively promoted the concentration of press, television and radio outlets that are owned by large organisations, which coexisted alongside the public broadcaster ERT. Regulation has been ineffective, with private channels operating with temporary licenses and independent regulatory authorities functioning superficially and ambivalently. As a result, the market has been dominated by a handful of powerful newspaper interests which have expanded into audiovisual and online media. Recent laws have further liberalized media ownership and cross-ownership. Historically, the Greek state has intervened in all aspects of economic and social life, the media very much included. It has acted as censor (during the dictatorship), owner (of public television and radio), and subsidiser of newspapers and electronic media. The intertwining of the political elite and the media has generated a journalistic culture that is cautious of reporting news that state officials could find challenging. With media market deregulation, clientelism gradually became deeper and more intricate, with intertwining interests (diaploki) between large media This study identifies the most urgent problems of media policy in Greece as they affect independent journalism. These problems are prioritized byir relationship to European-level policy activity and to OSF concerns. The study is based on desktop research, literature review of sources in English and Greek, as well as a set of in-depth interviews with relevant actors, conducted in Athens in November 2014. The report was drafted before the government scheduled a general election for 25 January.
International Conference on Information Systems, 2008
ABSTRACT Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the know... more ABSTRACT Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-based economy, the paper examines the evolving processes and shapes of the Greek IS, by looking into recent policies promoted by the Greek state. In doing so, it deploys a state/society conceptual approach, which highlights the ways in which European IS policy and its national interpretations are articulated or confronted by national socio-cultural, political and economic idiosyncrasies, as well as the role of the state in articulating global policies with national characteristics. The emphasis of the study is on the period 1998-2007, a period including the first comprehensive IS strategy in Greece, as well as enabling a critical examination of its effects.
Community network (CN) initiatives have been around for roughly two decades, evangelizing a disti... more Community network (CN) initiatives have been around for roughly two decades, evangelizing a distinctly different paradigm for building, maintaining, and sharing network infrastructure but also defending the basic human right to Internet access. Over this time they have evolved into a mosaic of systems that vary widely with respect to their network technologies, their offered services, their organizational structure, and the way they position themselves in the overall telecommunications' ecosystem. Common to all these highly differentiated initiatives is the sustainability challenge. We approach sustainability as a broad term with an economical, political, and cultural context. We first review the different perceptions of the term. These vary both across and within the different types of stakeholders involved in CNs and are reflected in their motivation to join such initiatives. Then, we study the diverse ways that CN operators pursue the sustainability goal. Depending on the act...
Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-bas... more Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-based economy, the paper examines the evolving processes and shapes of the Greek IS, by looking into recent policies promoted by the Greek state. In doing so, it deploys a state/society conceptual approach, which highlights the ways in which European IS policy and its national interpretations are articulated or confronted by national socio-cultural, political and economic idiosyncrasies, as well as the role of the state in articulating global policies with national characteristics. The emphasis of the study is on the period 1998-2007, a period including the first comprehensive IS strategy in Greece, as well as enabling a critical examination of its effects.
This chapter investigates how alternative digital journalism operates in the broader context of t... more This chapter investigates how alternative digital journalism operates in the broader context of the austerity economy in Greece. Using as a background the historical interweaving of interests between economic power, political power and media, the chapter explores the current state of digital journalism in Greece and whether it can flourish and serve the ideals of independence, objectivity and pluralism. The internet provides new possibilities for pluralism in journalism and gives rise to alternative media outlets that purport objectivity and independence from vested economic interests (e.g. advertising) and political pressures. However, the financial sustainability of such ventures is questionable and the regulatory framework in a heavily concentrated Greek media ecology weak or non-existing. In this chapter we examine the origins and mission statements of selected cases of alternative digital media outlets/projects, as well as their financing sources and business models. We then di...
Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-bas... more Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-based economy, the paper examines the evolving processes and shapes of the Greek IS, by looking into recent policies promoted by the Greek state. In doing so, it deploys a state/society conceptual approach, which highlights the ways in which European IS policy and its national interpretations are articulated or confronted by national socio-cultural, political and economic idiosyncrasies, as well as the role of the state in articulating global policies with national characteristics. The emphasis of the study is on the period 1998-2007, a period including the first comprehensive IS strategy in Greece, as well as enabling a critical examination of its effects.
tripleC: Communication, Capitalism & Critique. Open Access Journal for a Global Sustainable Information Society
Digital capitalism is guided by the organising principles of digital automation, information proc... more Digital capitalism is guided by the organising principles of digital automation, information processing, and communication. It rests on the consolidation of relations of exploitation of digital labour based on flexibility and generating precarity. It makes profit from user data under conditions of surveillance. What would an alternative paradigm look like? This paper aims to sketch a possible socialist society resting on digital technology but organised on a different logic, namely that of autonomous production, leisure, and social engagement. It draws on relevant theories of the Left, evaluates them against the reality of digital capitalism, and suggests structural and user practice alternatives that can pave the way towards a digital/communicative socialism. This paper engages with the works of Czech philosopher Radovan Richta (1924-1983) and Austrian-French philosopher André Gorz (1923-2007). It shows that their ideas on the scientific and technological revolution and post-indust...
IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials
Community network (CN) initiatives have been around for roughly two decades, evangelizing a disti... more Community network (CN) initiatives have been around for roughly two decades, evangelizing a distinctly different paradigm for building, maintaining, and sharing network infrastructure but also defending the basic human right to Internet access. Over this time they have evolved into a mosaic of systems that vary widely with respect to their network technologies, their offered services, their organizational structure, and the way they position themselves in the overall telecommunications' ecosystem. Common to all these highly differentiated initiatives is the sustainability challenge. We approach sustainability as a broad term with an economical, political, and cultural context. We first review the different perceptions of the term. These vary both across and within the different types of stakeholders involved in CNs and are reflected in their motivation to join such initiatives. Then, we study the diverse ways that CN operators pursue the sustainability goal. Depending on the actual context of the term, these range all the way from mechanisms to fund their activities and synergistic approaches with commercial service providers, to organizational structures and social activities that serve as incentives to maximize the engagement of their members. Finally, we iterate and discuss theoretical concepts of incentive mechanisms that have been proposed in the literature for these networks as well as implemented tools and processes designed to set the ground for CN participation. While, theoretical mechanisms leverage game theory, reputation frameworks, and social mechanisms, implemented mechanisms focus on organizational matters, education and services, all aiming to motivate the active and sustained participation of users and other actors in the CN.
tripleC: Communication, Capitalism & Critique. Open Access Journal for a Global Sustainable Information Society
Digital capitalism is guided by the organising principles of digital automation, information proc... more Digital capitalism is guided by the organising principles of digital automation, information processing, and communication. It rests on the consolidation of relations of exploitation of digital labour based on flexibility and generating precarity. It makes profit from user data under conditions of surveillance. What would an alternative paradigm look like? This paper aims to sketch a possible socialist society resting on digital technology but organised on a different logic, namely that of autonomous production, leisure, and social engagement. It draws on relevant theories of the Left, evaluates them against the reality of digital capitalism, and suggests structural and user practice alternatives that can pave the way towards a digital/communicative socialism. This paper engages with the works of Czech philosopher Radovan Richta (1924-1983) and Austrian-French philosopher André Gorz (1923-2007). It shows that their ideas on the scientific and technological revolution and post-indust...
This study identifi es the most urgent problems facing media policy in Greece and how they a ect ... more This study identifi es the most urgent problems facing media policy in Greece and how they a ect independent journalism. These problems are prioritized by their relationship to European-level policy activity and to OSF concerns. The study is based on desktop research, literature review of sources in English and Greek, as well as a set of in-depth interviews with relevant actors,
The paper looks into the dynamics of information society policy and its implementation in the Gre... more The paper looks into the dynamics of information society policy and its implementation in the Greek context. It argues that information society development is a contested process, influenced by pre-existing state, economy and society relations. Based on this, it looks into the different aspects of the idiosyncratic path which the evolution of the Greek information society has followed, particularly after 2000. Using Bob Jessop's strategic-relational approach (SRA) to the state as an analytical framework and drawing on a number of in-depth interviews with relevant political actors, it provides insights into policy implementation by examining: the public management of information technology projects, how such projects were received in bureaucratic structures and practices, as well as the relationship between the state and the information and communication technology (ICT) sector in public procurement processes. The emphasis is on the period 2000-2008, during which a major operational programme on the information society in Greece was put into effect. The paper also touches upon the post-2008 experience, suggesting that information society developments might include dynamics operating independently and even in contradiction to the state agenda.
Identifying an empirical gap in the examination and analysis of the information society (IS) in s... more Identifying an empirical gap in the examination and analysis of the information society (IS) in semi-peripheral and middle income countries, the paper seeks to address the evolving characteristics and forms of the “Greek case” of the IS, stressing the dialectic between European policy and the national socio-cultural, political and economic idiosyncrasies, the weaknesses encountered, and the role of the state in articulating the global and the national through rhetoric and policy. Drawing on historical sociology, I propose that the historically developed relationship between the state, and the national economy and society will interact with global IS processes, creating differentiated national IS outcomes. The emphasis of the study is on the period 1998-2006, which includes the first comprehensive IS strategy in Greece and provides the opportunity to assess preliminary results of the policies adopted. Keywords: Information society, IT policy, state, implementation politics
Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-bas... more Building on recent literature on national cases of information society (IS) and the knowledge-based economy, the paper examines the evolving processes and shapes of the Greek IS, by looking into recent policies promoted by the Greek state. In doing so, it deploys a state/society conceptual approach, which highlights the ways in which European IS policy and its national interpretations are articulated or confronted by national socio-cultural, political and economic idiosyncrasies, as well as the role of the state in articulating global policies with national characteristics. The emphasis of the study is on the period 1998-2007, a period including the first comprehensive IS strategy in Greece, as well as enabling a critical examination of its effects.
European Journal of Information Systems, 2005
Uploads
Papers by DIMITRIS BOUCAS