Lecturer in Digital Methods, The University of Edinburgh
My research sits at the intersection of Criminology and Science and Technology Studies, drawing theory and methods from both. I study how digital infrastructures become sites where power of different kinds is exerted. Using qualitative, computational, and statistical approaches, my research falls into three strands.
The first involves large-scale ethnographic studies of digital infrastructure, such as my research on the Tor network (the subject of a book with MIT Press: https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262548182/tor/).
The second focuses on how digital technologies and infrastructures become used for crime and resistance, drawing on a mix of ethnographic and AI/'data science' approaches to study large qualitative and quantitative datasets.
The third looks at digital infrastructure and state power, including in-depth studies and evaluations of law enforcement interventions (such as FBI takedowns) and a recent project looking at the use of digital influence campaigns by law enforcement and government to shape the behaviour and culture of the public and achieve preventative policy goals.
I draw on a range of theoretical perspectives in my work, most prominently Stuart Hall's cultural studies scholarship and Susan Leigh Star's approach to studying the social worlds of digital infrastructure.
Johannesburg in a time of darkness: Ivan Vladislavić’s new memoir reminds us of the city’s fragility
Economist Chris Richardson on an ‘ugly’ inflation result and the coming budget
Biden administration tells employers to stop shackling workers with ‘noncompete agreements’
Labour can afford to be far more ambitious with its economic policies – voters are on board
IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects