Andra Siibak, University of Tartu (Estonia)

Andra Siibak is Professor of Media Studies and Director of the Doctoral Program in Media and Communication at the Institute of Social Studies, University of Tartu, Estonia. Her main research themes are the opportunities and risks surrounding Internet use, social media usage practices, childhood data dating, new media audiences, privacy and cybercrime. Her most recent book, Datafied Childhoods: Data Practices and Imaginaries in Children's Lives, co-authored with Giovanna Macheroni, was published in October 2021. Siibak is a member of the Estonian Youth Academy of Sciences (since 2016), and in 2021 was nominated to become a member of the Cinema, Media and Visual Studies section of Academia Europaea.

Abstract

How does growing up - and being watched - by data transform childhood?

The cult of data fostered by the digital industries, the press, and marketing, on the one hand, and society's expectations about who are 'good parents', on the other, have normalized a constant technological gaze on the part of parents and educators , which feeds the surveillance of children carried out through data collection. Meanwhile, digital parenting tools and educational platforms tend to ignore issues related to children's digital rights and privacy. Thus, despite the opportunities that datafication can bring for personalized learning, social inclusion or civic and political empowerment, this process can also result in discrimination, exclusion and marginalization. Although European public policies emphasize the role of families and caregivers in protecting children's privacy, their personal data and their online reputation, it is necessary to make these issues more present in the general conscience and in public opinion.

Chair: Cristina Ponte (NOVA FCSH - ICNOVA)

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