Young people, sex, love and the media. This project aims to discover what young Australians are learning about sex, love and relationships from popular media, as well as the impact that it is having on their behaviour and attitudes towards sexuality and intimate relationships. It will make recommendations about how to promote ethical and safe sexual practices and attitudes.
The internet of toys: examining connected toys for children. This project aims to investigate the emerging communication world of the internet of toys where toys relate one-on-one to children and also connect to other toys, other children and/or database data. The project will examine the emerging benefits and risks of these connected toys through engaging with families and industry, as well as with regulatory and policy developments. It will inform and influence policy makers, toy designers and ....The internet of toys: examining connected toys for children. This project aims to investigate the emerging communication world of the internet of toys where toys relate one-on-one to children and also connect to other toys, other children and/or database data. The project will examine the emerging benefits and risks of these connected toys through engaging with families and industry, as well as with regulatory and policy developments. It will inform and influence policy makers, toy designers and families of children too young to understand the implications of data privacy and security that these toys bring. It will benefit decision-making regarding the design and regulatory environments in which these toys are made.Read moreRead less
Television Presenters as Cultural Intermediaries. With significant changes in television programming, especially its preoccupation with everyday life through formats such as lifestyle shows and reality TV, it is important that research maintains its understanding of television's social and cultural function. This project will examine what kinds of ethical and social advice are being presented to the public, how this advice is being given and what the context of such advice is. The hypotheses inv ....Television Presenters as Cultural Intermediaries. With significant changes in television programming, especially its preoccupation with everyday life through formats such as lifestyle shows and reality TV, it is important that research maintains its understanding of television's social and cultural function. This project will examine what kinds of ethical and social advice are being presented to the public, how this advice is being given and what the context of such advice is. The hypotheses investigated will enable hard data to be inserted into debates about the media's role in society, benefiting the industry itself as well.Read moreRead less
Safety, risk and wellbeing on digital dating apps. This project aims to build an evidence-base scoping and strategic planning of health promotion campaigns targeting Australian dating app users. The rise of digital dating apps generates a number of issues regarding cultures of health and wellbeing, including concerns regarding risks of sexual assault, and sexually transmitted infection transmission. Popular media reports raise concerns regarding sexual privacy breaches, in the form of ‘revenge p ....Safety, risk and wellbeing on digital dating apps. This project aims to build an evidence-base scoping and strategic planning of health promotion campaigns targeting Australian dating app users. The rise of digital dating apps generates a number of issues regarding cultures of health and wellbeing, including concerns regarding risks of sexual assault, and sexually transmitted infection transmission. Popular media reports raise concerns regarding sexual privacy breaches, in the form of ‘revenge porn’, sexual harassment and sexual assault. Despite this, little evidence exists regarding the role apps currently play in users’ everyday negotiations of consent, condom use, contraception, and other aspects of sexual health and wellbeing. The outcomes of this project will establish foundations for future health interventions promoting sexual health and safety for digital dating app users, and take an innovative participatory approach. This will result in practical, strategic recommendations regarding the future planning, and implementation of digital health promotion campaigns targeting diverse populations, including heterosexual and same-sex-attracted young people aged 15-30.
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A hand up: Disrupting the communication of intergenerational welfare dependency. Some families rely permanently on welfare support and communicate this dependency to the next generation. Children growing up in these families find it difficult to break out of poverty. With the help of twelve families and members of the St Vincent de Paul Society (Western Australia), this project aims to create ethnographies which illuminate turning points and opportunities for change. It will look to use creative ....A hand up: Disrupting the communication of intergenerational welfare dependency. Some families rely permanently on welfare support and communicate this dependency to the next generation. Children growing up in these families find it difficult to break out of poverty. With the help of twelve families and members of the St Vincent de Paul Society (Western Australia), this project aims to create ethnographies which illuminate turning points and opportunities for change. It will look to use creative and educational interventions to explore new ways of delivering services and disrupting the communication of welfare dependency. Ending inherited poverty is a significant step in helping individuals reach their potential and frees resources for people facing sudden hardship.Read moreRead less
The Monitored Audience: Control of Personal Information in the Digital Era. In an era when the internet can gather detailed information about citizens and mobile phones can target ads to them based on their location, consumers need a say in the policies and practices governing the use of their personal information. Research indicates Australians are concerned about the collection and use of their information. This project would explore what they are doing about it and what information handling p ....The Monitored Audience: Control of Personal Information in the Digital Era. In an era when the internet can gather detailed information about citizens and mobile phones can target ads to them based on their location, consumers need a say in the policies and practices governing the use of their personal information. Research indicates Australians are concerned about the collection and use of their information. This project would explore what they are doing about it and what information handling policies and practices they support. The findings will provide a citizen perspective on deliberations over information and data handling policy as well as on ethical and legal debates about commercial monitoring at a time when the technology for capturing personal information continues to develop at a rapid pace.Read moreRead less
Young, Mobile, Networked: Mobile Media and Youth Culture in Australia. Mobiles are a common part of life for young Australians, yet there is very little reliable data about how these are used and their social and cultural implications - especially new services such as mobile music, cameras and television. The qualitative and quantitative data from this project will give a detailed, national picture of mobile media use, and will be highly valuable for Australian companies, policymakers, regulator ....Young, Mobile, Networked: Mobile Media and Youth Culture in Australia. Mobiles are a common part of life for young Australians, yet there is very little reliable data about how these are used and their social and cultural implications - especially new services such as mobile music, cameras and television. The qualitative and quantitative data from this project will give a detailed, national picture of mobile media use, and will be highly valuable for Australian companies, policymakers, regulators, non-governmental organizations as well as researchers. It will provide new knowledge to inform planning and innovation, and contribute to a better understanding of the social and cultural implications of mobile technologies.Read moreRead less
Using machine vision to explore Instagram’s everyday promotional cultures. The advertising-driven business models of social media platforms increasingly depend on automation. The technologies used by platforms are rapidly advancing, and include ‘machine vision’ systems that automatically classify faces, expressions, objects, and brand logos in images. The results are used to provide targeted content to users, often without their knowledge and without sufficient public oversight. Using a novel co ....Using machine vision to explore Instagram’s everyday promotional cultures. The advertising-driven business models of social media platforms increasingly depend on automation. The technologies used by platforms are rapidly advancing, and include ‘machine vision’ systems that automatically classify faces, expressions, objects, and brand logos in images. The results are used to provide targeted content to users, often without their knowledge and without sufficient public oversight. Using a novel combination of computational and cultural research methods, this project aims to: examine how machine vision works in platforms like Instagram; explore its role in everyday visual contexts through qualitative case studies of festivals, food, and lifestyle sports; and improve public understanding of machine vision systems.Read moreRead less
Young Australians and the promotion of alcohol on social media. This project aims to determine how young people engage with alcohol and nightlife marketing on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. Companies now leverage the power of social media to create advertisements that are made and shared by young people, targeted to them in particular times, places and contexts, and are thus difficult to monitor and regulate. The project will use computational, big social data app ....Young Australians and the promotion of alcohol on social media. This project aims to determine how young people engage with alcohol and nightlife marketing on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. Companies now leverage the power of social media to create advertisements that are made and shared by young people, targeted to them in particular times, places and contexts, and are thus difficult to monitor and regulate. The project will use computational, big social data approaches and youth informants to assess the pervasiveness of branding on social media and how it shapes youth cultures. This work will extend media and cultural studies and support the development of effective monitoring and regulation of online marketing in general, with a particular focus on alcohol.Read moreRead less
Locating television: an international study of the changing socio-cultural functions of television. This project investigates the socio-cultural function of television in nation-states so far largely ignored by media studies: Mexico, Cuba and the Philippines. Combining cultural studies and anthropology, it uses publications and symposia to provide a more detailed global account of television's continuing influence in the post-broadcast era.