In 2019, the average user spent 3.7 hours on their mobile, signifying how deeply our mobile devices have become interwoven into our daily lives and practices. Smartphones have become a key – if not primary – interface to interact with the world around us. At the same time we carry around ‘smart’ data collection devices that are continuously aggregating data about our location, activities, and app usage. This lecture outlines how we can study social and cultural phenomena through the lens of app stores and how we can examine data flows between app user interfaces and third parties. Ultimately, the app store is seen as an interface highlighting cultural practices and the app as an interface connecting users, their practices, and data to various third-party platforms and databases.
The Screen Cultures public lecture series aims to generate conversations about how screens — of all types — shape our understanding of, and interactions with, the world. Internationally recognized experts deliver the lectures. Like screens themselves, the Screen Cultures public lecture series is for everyone.