CFP: Platform Power and Libraries

by Lacey Torge

Call for Chapter Proposals

Working Title: Platform Power and Libraries
Editors: Christine F. Smith
Submission Deadline: 16 August 2023
Publisher: Library Juice Press

Chapter submissions are welcome to be published in the forthcoming Platform Power and Libraries, an
edited volume to be published by Library Juice Press.

Book Description:

Building on research in critical library systems studies, Platform Power and Libraries aims to traverse the divide between library, communication, and cultural policy research in the realm of platform studies. Organized through the model of what Nielsen and Ganter (2022) call “the five most important aspects of platform power” this book will dissect the power dynamics inherently embedded to platforms that library practitioners and patrons must navigate.

  1. “The power to set standards” to which others have to abide
    1. Exploitative or precarious labour to support platforms used in libraries
    2. “Digital resignation” in libraries (see Draper and Truro, 2019)
    3. Fair use/dealing, copyright, and contract law
  2. “The power to make or break connections”
    1. Relevancy ranking, algorithmic impact on research discoverability in ILS, databases, etc.
    2. Power dynamics in describing people
  3. “The power of automated action at scale”
    1. Private corporation control on available resources, including monopolies, investment portfolios, mergers and acquisitions, discontinued products, etc.
  4. “The power of information asymmetry”
    1. Platform power and agendas for disinformation
    2. Platform power at the expense of libraries, research, and access to cultural artifacts
  5. “The power to operate across domains”
    1. Platform governance, especially as a digital manifestation of the globalization’s impact on libraries
    2. Patron and library surveillance and privacy
    3. Data ownership, brokering and sovereignty

The intended audience of this work includes technical service, e-resource, and systems librarians; library administrators and funding bodies; as well as other academics and researchers in the realms of communication, technology, and political sciences.

Proposals should include the following:

  1. An abstract of no more than 500 words clearly explaining the objectives of the chapter
  2. A brief author biography. Both individual and co-authored pieces are welcome.

Deadlines

  • August 16, 2023: proposals due
  • September 30, 2023: notification of acceptance
  • January 31, 2024: full chapter drafts due
  • February to June 2024: Review and revision period
  • August 2024: Expected publication date

Proposals and additional questions can be sent to Christine Smith

Draper, N. A., & Turow, J. (2019). The corporate cultivation of digital resignation. New Media & Society,
21(8), 1824–1839. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444819833331

Nielsen, R. K., & Ganter, S. A. (2022). The Power of Platforms: Shaping Media and Society. Oxford
University Press.