ABSTRACT
Networked publics are produced by specifi c geographic, material, conceptual, and experiential processes. In the previous chapters, we have discussed theoretical constructs of public space linked to communal identity, civitas and democracy, and self-expression. 2 Now we shift our focus to explore the quotidian practices as well as other complex conditions that infl uence participation in social media. The fi ndings of an Internet ethnography I completed between 2008 and 2012 will be analyzed; these fi ndings not only represented a test of concepts but also revealed unexpected complexities. The Internet ethnographic data were derived from a multiphase study called “Situated Networks: In Search of the Public” initiated at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, Canada. First, a pilot study was conducted from April 29 to May 30, 2008, and a second, primary study was conducted at the University of California-Berkeley from September 24, 2008 to June 1 2009, with an informal follow-up study completed on April 2, 2012. All data was anonymized. In this multiphase study, I collected 210 surveys: 67 surveys from the phase 1 pilot study, 107 surveys from the phase 2 primary study, and 36 surveys from the follow-up study. The studies were not merged.
