Rebecca Scharlach
@rscarlets.bsky.social
Postdoctoral researcher PGMT Lab @Uni Bremen | prev. DigitalValues project | Critical Platform Studies | European/German/feminist | first gen | she/her
"[...] In the broadest spectrum of awareness about these matters we need to ask: Are the practices, relationships and institutions affected by people's involvement with networked computing ones we wish foster? Or are they ones we must try to modify or even oppose?" Winner, 1997.
November 3, 2025 at 5:34 PM
"[...] In the broadest spectrum of awareness about these matters we need to ask: Are the practices, relationships and institutions affected by people's involvement with networked computing ones we wish foster? Or are they ones we must try to modify or even oppose?" Winner, 1997.
Reposted by Rebecca Scharlach
«Silicon Valley isn’t building apps anymore.
It’s building empires.»
The Authoritarian Stack: A mapping of firms, funds, and political actors turning core state functions into private platforms, by @francescabria.bsky.social et. al. for @fesonline.bsky.social
www.authoritarian-stack.info
It’s building empires.»
The Authoritarian Stack: A mapping of firms, funds, and political actors turning core state functions into private platforms, by @francescabria.bsky.social et. al. for @fesonline.bsky.social
www.authoritarian-stack.info
The Authoritarian Stack
How Tech Billionaires Are Building a Post-Democratic America — And Why Europe Is Next
www.authoritarian-stack.info
November 2, 2025 at 10:00 AM
«Silicon Valley isn’t building apps anymore.
It’s building empires.»
The Authoritarian Stack: A mapping of firms, funds, and political actors turning core state functions into private platforms, by @francescabria.bsky.social et. al. for @fesonline.bsky.social
www.authoritarian-stack.info
It’s building empires.»
The Authoritarian Stack: A mapping of firms, funds, and political actors turning core state functions into private platforms, by @francescabria.bsky.social et. al. for @fesonline.bsky.social
www.authoritarian-stack.info
Reposted by Rebecca Scharlach
Michelle has been invaluable in that role for nearly a decade now, but the time has come for @aoir.bsky.social to find a new coordinator to take on these vital duties. 2/2
Job posting is on our listserv. Please share & apply! listserv.aoir.org/pipermail/ai...
Job posting is on our listserv. Please share & apply! listserv.aoir.org/pipermail/ai...
[Air-L] AoIR is searching for a new Association Coordinator!
listserv.aoir.org
October 24, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Michelle has been invaluable in that role for nearly a decade now, but the time has come for @aoir.bsky.social to find a new coordinator to take on these vital duties. 2/2
Job posting is on our listserv. Please share & apply! listserv.aoir.org/pipermail/ai...
Job posting is on our listserv. Please share & apply! listserv.aoir.org/pipermail/ai...
@elinorcarmi.bsky.social tackling my pessimism with inspiring work on “the human data good practice” - very curious to see how this project will develop 🙂 #ZeMKI20
October 24, 2025 at 12:56 PM
@elinorcarmi.bsky.social tackling my pessimism with inspiring work on “the human data good practice” - very curious to see how this project will develop 🙂 #ZeMKI20
Very much enjoyed this presentation on the role of social norms & demarcation in platform regulation by @nathalievanraemdonck.com - long story short “democracy is hard” @ckatzenbach.bsky.social #ZeMKI20
October 24, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Very much enjoyed this presentation on the role of social norms & demarcation in platform regulation by @nathalievanraemdonck.com - long story short “democracy is hard” @ckatzenbach.bsky.social #ZeMKI20
Also very much enjoyed the presentation by @hheuer.bsky.social on co-creating social media with some peak visuals #ZeMKI20
October 23, 2025 at 12:27 PM
Also very much enjoyed the presentation by @hheuer.bsky.social on co-creating social media with some peak visuals #ZeMKI20
Throughly enjoyed this talk by Marilia Gehrke and @eedanamitdanhi.bsky.social on gendered disinformation as violence (as always, slides were 🔥) #ZeMKI20
October 23, 2025 at 9:55 AM
Throughly enjoyed this talk by Marilia Gehrke and @eedanamitdanhi.bsky.social on gendered disinformation as violence (as always, slides were 🔥) #ZeMKI20
Last session on a Friday afternoon is always a hard one, but we made the most of our small round table discussing lessons of the @aoir.bsky.social flashpoint on platform & AI governance. thx to @tomdivon.bsky.social @taylorannabell.bsky.social @deeliu97.bsky.social & Thales Lelo!! #aoir2025
October 18, 2025 at 12:30 PM
Last session on a Friday afternoon is always a hard one, but we made the most of our small round table discussing lessons of the @aoir.bsky.social flashpoint on platform & AI governance. thx to @tomdivon.bsky.social @taylorannabell.bsky.social @deeliu97.bsky.social & Thales Lelo!! #aoir2025
Hey #AoIR2025 catch me today at 4 pm with a wonderful group of scholars - Taylor Annabell, Diyi Liu, Thales Lelo and Tom Divon - for a roundtable on the future of tech governance research. This is going to be an open discussion, so please join and share your thoughts!
October 17, 2025 at 1:43 PM
Hey #AoIR2025 catch me today at 4 pm with a wonderful group of scholars - Taylor Annabell, Diyi Liu, Thales Lelo and Tom Divon - for a roundtable on the future of tech governance research. This is going to be an open discussion, so please join and share your thoughts!
Olá #AoIR2025, I’m in Rio and have already been very much enjoying my time in this beautiful, beautiful city!
Feel free to reach out if you wanna chat! ☕️
Feel free to reach out if you wanna chat! ☕️
October 15, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Olá #AoIR2025, I’m in Rio and have already been very much enjoying my time in this beautiful, beautiful city!
Feel free to reach out if you wanna chat! ☕️
Feel free to reach out if you wanna chat! ☕️
Reposted by Rebecca Scharlach
1/ A longtime Wired editor just wrote a mush-brained essay about how he totally missed the political rot of Silicon Valley (& still doesn't get it).
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
September 24, 2025 at 6:36 PM
1/ A longtime Wired editor just wrote a mush-brained essay about how he totally missed the political rot of Silicon Valley (& still doesn't get it).
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
But in the late 1990s, a Wired journalist warned of a toxic ideology bubbling up from tech. Paulina Borsook has largely been erased. Let's change that
I'm really trying to follow US news but what the actual f is even happening at this point?!
September 24, 2025 at 8:51 AM
I'm really trying to follow US news but what the actual f is even happening at this point?!
Reposted by Rebecca Scharlach
"As for the algorithm, if the concern had been that TikTok could be a conduit for Chinese government propaganda—a concern the Supreme Court declined to even consider —people can now be concerned that TikTok could be a conduit for U.S. government propaganda."
www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
EFF Statement on TikTok Ownership Deal
One of the reasons we opposed the TikTok "ban" is that the First Amendment is supposed to protect us against government using its power to manipulate speech. But as predicted, the TikTok "ban" has onl...
www.eff.org
September 22, 2025 at 11:17 PM
"As for the algorithm, if the concern had been that TikTok could be a conduit for Chinese government propaganda—a concern the Supreme Court declined to even consider —people can now be concerned that TikTok could be a conduit for U.S. government propaganda."
www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
www.eff.org/deeplinks/20...
insert “this is fine” meme
Andreessen Horowitz, which will be one of three firms to lead the acquisition of TikTok, is headed by Marc Andreessen, a Silicon Valley tech titan who considered himself to be "an unpaid intern" of Elon Musk's DOGE. But he's not the only major Trump ally involved with this deal
TikTok’s U.S. business would be controlled by an investor consortium including Oracle, Silver Lake and Andreessen Horowitz under a framework the U.S. and China are finalizing.
September 17, 2025 at 11:11 AM
insert “this is fine” meme
Working on my syllabus for an undergrad class on "Tech Cultures: Innovation, Ideology & Influence." think cyberlibertarianism, tech bros, manosphere, tech/politics entanglements.
Anyone already designed classes on these topics & willing to share their syllabus? happy to share mine once finalized!
Anyone already designed classes on these topics & willing to share their syllabus? happy to share mine once finalized!
September 15, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Working on my syllabus for an undergrad class on "Tech Cultures: Innovation, Ideology & Influence." think cyberlibertarianism, tech bros, manosphere, tech/politics entanglements.
Anyone already designed classes on these topics & willing to share their syllabus? happy to share mine once finalized!
Anyone already designed classes on these topics & willing to share their syllabus? happy to share mine once finalized!
Reposted by Rebecca Scharlach
BIG NEWS (!!) I’ve received an ERC starting grant for my project PAY4PLAY: Entrepreneurial Organizing in the Platform Society. Please prepare to hear me talking about how platforms, creators, 💸, organizing, and power for the next five years. Read more here: www.blakehallinan.com/pay4play
PAY4PLAY — blake hallinan
www.blakehallinan.com
September 4, 2025 at 11:25 AM
BIG NEWS (!!) I’ve received an ERC starting grant for my project PAY4PLAY: Entrepreneurial Organizing in the Platform Society. Please prepare to hear me talking about how platforms, creators, 💸, organizing, and power for the next five years. Read more here: www.blakehallinan.com/pay4play
Shout out to @adriennemassanari.bsky.social for introducing me to David Golumbia. Already shed some tears over the foreword. Considering the current state of…things, I’m both excited and terrified about reading his work. But here we go
August 19, 2025 at 8:03 PM
Shout out to @adriennemassanari.bsky.social for introducing me to David Golumbia. Already shed some tears over the foreword. Considering the current state of…things, I’m both excited and terrified about reading his work. But here we go
💥new paper out in New Media & Society💥
In this collaborative paper, led by @blakeplease.bsky.social, we compare Community Guidelines using the typology of harms from the Trust and Safety Professional Association to identify policy priorities and exclusions. Check out Blake’s thread for the deets👇
In this collaborative paper, led by @blakeplease.bsky.social, we compare Community Guidelines using the typology of harms from the Trust and Safety Professional Association to identify policy priorities and exclusions. Check out Blake’s thread for the deets👇
How does the professionalization of Trust & Safety shape global content moderation practices? We compare Community Guidelines using the typology of harms from TSPA to identify policy priorities and exclusions, available #openaccess in New Media & Society: doi.org/10.1177/1461...
Priorities and exclusions within Trust and Safety industry standards - Blake Hallinan, CJ Reynolds, Rebecca Scharlach, Dana Theiler, Noa Niv, Omer Rothenstein, Isabell Knief, Yehonatan Kuperberg, 2025
Platform governance is simultaneously a matter of public concern and a professional calling for Trust and Safety, the nascent field tasked with setting and enfo...
doi.org
July 21, 2025 at 12:49 PM
💥new paper out in New Media & Society💥
In this collaborative paper, led by @blakeplease.bsky.social, we compare Community Guidelines using the typology of harms from the Trust and Safety Professional Association to identify policy priorities and exclusions. Check out Blake’s thread for the deets👇
In this collaborative paper, led by @blakeplease.bsky.social, we compare Community Guidelines using the typology of harms from the Trust and Safety Professional Association to identify policy priorities and exclusions. Check out Blake’s thread for the deets👇
“We all know that senior scholars need to do more to help out. But I also think it’s important for junior scholars to think about how to create an academic climate that they want to be a part of rather than just waiting for senior scholars or administrators to fix it.” ✊
I did this interview back in November. It's so so so weird to read it now. Especially the stuff about US politics. But hopefully the other parts are helpful to junior researchers. www.journalofculturaleconomy.org/a-sociology-...
A Sociology of Dragons: danah boyd on AI, Trump, and critique | Journal of Cultural Economy Journal of Cultural Economy
www.journalofculturaleconomy.org
July 8, 2025 at 3:07 PM
“We all know that senior scholars need to do more to help out. But I also think it’s important for junior scholars to think about how to create an academic climate that they want to be a part of rather than just waiting for senior scholars or administrators to fix it.” ✊
shocker
In a study of professors, women got 378 new work requests over 4 weeks vs 118 for men. Women spent more time on service, advising & teaching; men on research. Orgs should track who is taking extra duties & ensure they are rewarded and distributed fairly. www.forbes.com/sites/kimels...
Being Too Helpful At Work Can Hurt Your Career—Here’s How To Say No
Women are more likely to take on behind-the-scenes duties at work—extra tasks like onboarding or event planning—and it's hurting their careers. Here's how to say no.
www.forbes.com
July 8, 2025 at 2:51 PM
shocker
Reposted by Rebecca Scharlach
Are you attending #AoIR2025 @aoir.bsky.social in Brazil? Are you an early-career scholar? Then maybe you'd like to help me coordinate and organize the face-to-face early-career workshop!
Reach out if you are interested or if you know anybody who might be the right fit.
Reach out if you are interested or if you know anybody who might be the right fit.
a woman in a black dress is walking down a street with #schitts creek written in the corner
ALT: a woman in a black dress is walking down a street with #schitts creek written in the corner
media.tenor.com
June 30, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Are you attending #AoIR2025 @aoir.bsky.social in Brazil? Are you an early-career scholar? Then maybe you'd like to help me coordinate and organize the face-to-face early-career workshop!
Reach out if you are interested or if you know anybody who might be the right fit.
Reach out if you are interested or if you know anybody who might be the right fit.
I've gotten a lot of review requests recently & this isn't the first time I've come across this evaluation, but I really wonder how much more unpaid labor by journals (who make huge profit, just think of the ridicoulously high OA fees) will be put on academic reviewers?
June 25, 2025 at 12:30 PM
I've gotten a lot of review requests recently & this isn't the first time I've come across this evaluation, but I really wonder how much more unpaid labor by journals (who make huge profit, just think of the ridicoulously high OA fees) will be put on academic reviewers?
Heyyy excited to see a new edition of this conference happening! Also a great space for continuing the discussions of the AoIR Flashpoint Symposium, and to add some more and much needed non-Western perspectives :)
Working on platform governance?
Join for PlatGovNet 2025
Free online conference Dec 1-2
Extended abstracts (800-1000 words) due Sep 2
Amazing community, opportunity to share work, get feedback, meet others working in this area.
Glad to be part of organizing it
Details: platgov.net/conferences/...
Join for PlatGovNet 2025
Free online conference Dec 1-2
Extended abstracts (800-1000 words) due Sep 2
Amazing community, opportunity to share work, get feedback, meet others working in this area.
Glad to be part of organizing it
Details: platgov.net/conferences/...
2025 Conference Call for Submissions — PlatGovOpen MenuClose Menu
2025 Conference Call for Submissions
platgov.net
June 24, 2025 at 1:47 PM
Heyyy excited to see a new edition of this conference happening! Also a great space for continuing the discussions of the AoIR Flashpoint Symposium, and to add some more and much needed non-Western perspectives :)
Reposted by Rebecca Scharlach
June 16, 2025 at 11:36 PM