Making (knowledge of) the nation

Online platforms appear democratizing, but Wikipedia shows disagreements over mundane topics expose schisms—not over facts, but whose knowledge is acknowledged and whose downplayed

In addition to governments, scientists, artists and traditional media outlets, ordinary people now produce knowledge about the nation when we share images of what we eat, listen to and how we see the world on social media. The nation, according to recent theorisation, is not only constructed by cultural authorities who make big budget films and bestselling novels (as per Anderson, 1983 and Said, 1978), but in the everyday banalities that, today, are reflected in social media posts and interpersonal communication tools (Vico, 2024). The ability for anyone to produce knowledge about the nation in online platforms appears democratizing: many more people get to contribute to our understanding and construction of a place. But there are undemocratic actors at work as well – actors that are able to use tactics to prevent deliberation by those most keenly affected by such representations. In this talk, I present stories from a three-year study of how Wikipedia represents Australian people, places and events that demonstrate how struggles that appear to be about facts are actually struggles over the meaning of the nation, and how best to represent the truth. Applying theories of disagreement (Dascal, 1998; Martin & Richards, 1995) and controversy (Marres and Moats, 2015, Marres, 2018), we find that, whereas some disagreements can be resolved through consensus, others can only be resolved through the making of new (local) rules that resolve clashing methodologies and still others will never be resolved. What does this mean for the promise of digital public knowledge? Understanding how knowledge is produced on Wikipedia and which knowledges are excluded under which conditions enables us to recognise the limits of platform knowledge and what other knowledges, rules and spaces the nation might require.

Heather Ford is a professor and explorer of knowledge technologies. She researches how digital platforms shape what counts as knowledge and truth and works with libraries, teachers, lecturers and civil society organisations to improve digital and AI literacies for all.