The Japanese cultural critic Hiroki Azuma has contributed some of the most inventive contemporary propositions for the use of information and communication technologies for democratic practice. In General Will 2.0 (2014), Azuma argues that democratic ideals should be “updated on the basis of the realities of information society” (p. iii). Simply stated, the proliferation of … Continue reading Hiroki Azuma’s General Will 2.0 and Urban Planning
Category: Urban Studies
Watch_Dogs: Legion, part 1: Open Worlds
I love the Watch_Dogs franchise. Or rather, I want to love it. I certainly love the overall concept. The distinguishing features of the series incorporate some of my favorite elements from video games in general, as well as more particular niche interests. For one thing, the games are set in contemporary urban open worlds that … Continue reading Watch_Dogs: Legion, part 1: Open Worlds
City Space as Projective Medium: From Coronavirus Quarantine to Urban Uprisings
The current confluence of the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic and popular political demonstrations has provided strikingly urgent examples of how city space may be actualized as a projective medium. By “projective medium” I mean to describe a repurposing of urban environments wherein public space serves as a canvas not only for the circulation of artistic representations … Continue reading City Space as Projective Medium: From Coronavirus Quarantine to Urban Uprisings
Fair Housing Act: 50 years later
Today is the 50th anniversary of the Fair Housing Act. In Pittsburgh, the occasion is marked by a day of speakers, panels, and other events at the August Wilson Center. From CityLab: How the Fair Housing Act failed black homeowners.
King Assassination: 50 years later
On April 4th 1968 Martin Luther King Jr was killed by an assassin's bullet. In the immediate aftermath African Americans took to the streets of several U.S. cities in a wave of riots and unrest that lasted for days. The killing of the most visible and influential figure of the civil rights movement provoked an … Continue reading King Assassination: 50 years later
Reflections and Reverberations of 1968
Since this past summer I've been immersed in my dissertation project, and this increased workload has not only affected my overall output on this blog but has diminished my ability to draft content based on its mere timeliness. I was photographing the Monroeville Mall (of Dawn of the Dead fame) the day before George Romero … Continue reading Reflections and Reverberations of 1968
An Urban Media History
A Media History of the City A media history of the city could take on any number of forms. The shape of this history would largely be determined by how we defined its key terms. How should “the city” be understood? Such a history could begin in ancient or pre-historical times, starting with the … Continue reading An Urban Media History
Urban Change and Moving Images in London
I've recently returned from London where I attended a workshop on Urban Change and Moving Images hosted by the Birkbeck Institute for the Moving Image. It was intellectually gratifying to engage with scholars of film, media, and cities over several days, as well as personally refreshing to indulge my lifelong passion for cinema. In addition to … Continue reading Urban Change and Moving Images in London
Public space, the public sphere, and the urban as public realm
This essay was originally written as part of my PhD comprehensive examinations. It was written to address connections between theories of the public sphere and concerns about public space, and to conceptualize the urban environment as a public realm. Introduction Questions of space have always been implicated with the concept of the public sphere, but … Continue reading Public space, the public sphere, and the urban as public realm
Community engagement: setting a standard
I used to live one street over from the Penn Plaza apartments, one of the last affordable housing complexes in Pittsburgh's East Liberty neighborhood. The other low income rental units and high rise housing towers, built as part of sweeping urban renewal projects starting in the 1960s, have all been demolished and replaced with market-rate apartments … Continue reading Community engagement: setting a standard