AP/ANTH 4220 6.00 The Cultures of the Web

This course focuses on the fact that ethnographers enter their “fields” and conduct research in conjunction with theoretical ideas about anthropology alongside histories of experience and practice. Cultural anthropologists do “ethnography” and produce “ethnographies” through fieldwork. This course will primarily focus on contemporary cultural anthropology by introducing you to “digital ethnography.” Issues related to ethnographic field methods have been hotly debated for many years. This class will allow you learn about some of these debates as well as the personal foibles and insights of other anthropologists who have entered the digital “field.”  

In order to truly understand what it is like to be a cultural anthropologist, you need to “get your feet wet” – have the experience of doing fieldwork. In this course, you will have the opportunity to immerse yourself in observation, participation, and interviews concerning specific research projects as you move through the practical and experiential aspects of a digital ethnography. You will map out and complete every stage required for a full-blown research project. You will spend time (online) with research participants and learn how to analyze accumulated data. Overall, you will have the opportunity to develop a tool kit of experiences and practice that will allow you to see what it is like to be a professional, qualitative researcher wh0 is producing a “digital ethnography.” 

Course Director: L. Mannik - lmannik@yorku.ca