I am a media and communication researcher, teaching at Communication for Development, K3, Malmö University. My research is situated on the crossroads between audience studies, aesthetics of technology and image politics. I was a member of the Danish Council for Ethnic Minorities from 2014 to 2018. Address: www.bojanaromic.com
This report presents outcomes of the second phase of CEDAR’s work: a foresight exercise aiming to... more This report presents outcomes of the second phase of CEDAR’s work: a foresight exercise aiming to present a research agenda for the field as it would stand in the year 2030. In order to do this, the consortium, having used a systematic literature review already, conducted a trend analysis exercise, a stakeholder consultation exercise and a horizon-scanning exercise to arrive at a set of implications and research recommendations for the field of audience studies looking into the immediate future. This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, to run between 2015-2018.
This chapter builds upon central findings arising from consultations with stakeholders about audi... more This chapter builds upon central findings arising from consultations with stakeholders about audiences’ engagement in the content flows, defined as an ever evolving ecology of online and offline content produced by a number of more and less institutionalised content producers, ranging from news organisations to YouTubers. First, we note that increasing use of audience analytics tends to fragment the monolithic audience into tangible sub-communities. Second, we discuss how production routines of legacy media change in response to small acts of engagement via digital interfaces. Third, audience creativity enters economic relations and amateur production struggles with a tension between being creative and economic logic of production. Fourth, we look at transformations related to (dis)trust as a mutual dynamic that not only concerns audiences’ trust or mistrust in legacy media, but which is increasingly significant in regard to media’s trust in content produced by audiences as well, making it more difficult for audiences to engage with the content produced by media institutions.
Based on an extensive literature review, this contribution explores current and future challenges... more Based on an extensive literature review, this contribution explores current and future challenges for media and communication scholars when enquiring people’s engagements with digital media. Structuring the existing literature around four themes (affordances, the political economy of digital audiences, self-representation and identity, domestication and (problematic) uses of ICT), an overview of the current state of the field is provided. As such, three challenges are defined: exploring the diversity of digital audiences that now engage with digital media, allowing more room for the semiotics and contexts in which people experience digital media, and moving beyond the functionalistic uses of the concept ‘affordances’.
This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Re... more This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, to run between 2015-2018.
This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Re... more This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, to run between 2015-2018.
The central interest of this paper is the anthropomorphic social robot Ai-Da (Aidan Meller Galler... more The central interest of this paper is the anthropomorphic social robot Ai-Da (Aidan Meller Gallery/Oxford University), perceived as an actor in the interplay of cultural and representational gestures. These gestures determine how this robot is presented—that is, how its activities are articulated, interpreted and promoted. This paper criticises the use of a transhistorical discourse in the presentational strategies around this robot, since this discourse reinforces the so-called “myth of a machine”. The discussion focuses on the individuation and embodiment of this drawing robot. It is argued that the choice to provide Ai-Da with an evocative silicone face, coupled with an anthropomorphic body, is a socio-political decision that shapes public imaginaries about social robots in general.
This review of the literature published between 2005 and 2014 presents an overview of the methodo... more This review of the literature published between 2005 and 2014 presents an overview of the methodological environment in which audience research is transiting towards the study of online audiences. Online audience research is a mix of long-established research rationales,
Transformations: Journal of Media, Culture and Technology, 2022
In this conceptual article my aim is to challenge the attribute "creative" when applied to the te... more In this conceptual article my aim is to challenge the attribute "creative" when applied to the technical nonhumans (computers, robots or AI). Whilst acknowledging the long history of technical objects involved in a creative production, I suggest that such phrasing carries a surplus of meaning that may lead to ambiguous and possibly deceptive narratives about technical nonhumans amongst non-professional audiences. I shall be using science and technology studies (STS) theories as a methodological backdrop, and I shall rely on the theoretical paradigms about the myth of technology.
In this article, we develop the concept of small acts of engagement (SAOE) in a networked media e... more In this article, we develop the concept of small acts of engagement (SAOE) in a networked media environment as a conceptual framework to study specific audience practices and as an agenda for research on these practices. We define SAOE, such as liking, sharing, and commenting, as productive audience practices that require little investment and are intentionally more casual than the structural and laborious practices examined as types of produsage and convergence culture. We further elaborate on the interpretive and productive aspects of SAOE, which allow us to reconnect the notions of a participatory culture and a culture of everyday agency. Our central argument is that audience studies’ perspective allows viewing SAOE as practices of everyday audience agency, which, on an aggregate level, have the potential to become powerful acts of resistance.
The central interest of this paper is the anthropomorphic social robot Ai-Da (Aidan Meller Galler... more The central interest of this paper is the anthropomorphic social robot Ai-Da (Aidan Meller Gallery/Oxford University), perceived as an actor in the interplay of cultural and representational gestures. These gestures determine how this robot is presented-that is, how its activities are articulated, interpreted and promoted. This paper criticises the use of a transhistorical discourse in the presentational strategies around this robot, since this discourse reinforces the so-called "myth of a machine". The discussion focuses on the individuation and embodiment of this drawing robot. It is argued that the choice to provide Ai-Da with an evocative silicone face, coupled with an anthropomorphic body, is a socio-political decision that shapes public imaginaries about social robots in general.
In this article, I aim to accentuate the importance of the cultural imagination about robots, obs... more In this article, I aim to accentuate the importance of the cultural imagination about robots, observing it 'as a mixed register of fantasy and an actual practice' (Kakoudaki 2007, 165). I emphasise the field of robotic art, which, I argue, is in a fluid state of exchange with other areas of robotic research, equally benefiting from the larger context of the cultural imagination about robots. Furthermore, I discuss artworks that offer valuable commentary on robots even though they are not defined as robotic art in a narrow sense (Penny 2013), given that they feature only the representation of robots or robot-like characters. Nevertheless, these artworks contribute to the circulation of symbolic registers that revolve around the multifaceted figure of a robot.
Based on an extensive literature review, this contribution explores current and future challenges... more Based on an extensive literature review, this contribution explores current and future challenges for media and communication scholars when enquiring people's engagements with digital media. Structuring the existing literature around four themes (affordances, the political economy of digital audiences, self-representation and identity, domestication and (problematic) uses of ICT), an overview of the current state of the field is provided. As such, three challenges are defined: exploring the diversity of digital audiences that now engage with digital media, allowing more room for the semiotics and contexts in which people experience digital media, and moving beyond the functionalistic uses of the concept 'affordances'.
This report presents outcomes of the second phase of CEDAR’s work: a foresight exercise aiming to... more This report presents outcomes of the second phase of CEDAR’s work: a foresight exercise aiming to present a research agenda for the field as it would stand in the year 2030. In order to do this, the consortium, having used a systematic literature review already, conducted a trend analysis exercise, a stakeholder consultation exercise and a horizon-scanning exercise to arrive at a set of implications and research recommendations for the field of audience studies looking into the immediate future. This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, to run between 2015-2018.
This chapter builds upon central findings arising from consultations with stakeholders about audi... more This chapter builds upon central findings arising from consultations with stakeholders about audiences’ engagement in the content flows, defined as an ever evolving ecology of online and offline content produced by a number of more and less institutionalised content producers, ranging from news organisations to YouTubers. First, we note that increasing use of audience analytics tends to fragment the monolithic audience into tangible sub-communities. Second, we discuss how production routines of legacy media change in response to small acts of engagement via digital interfaces. Third, audience creativity enters economic relations and amateur production struggles with a tension between being creative and economic logic of production. Fourth, we look at transformations related to (dis)trust as a mutual dynamic that not only concerns audiences’ trust or mistrust in legacy media, but which is increasingly significant in regard to media’s trust in content produced by audiences as well, making it more difficult for audiences to engage with the content produced by media institutions.
Based on an extensive literature review, this contribution explores current and future challenges... more Based on an extensive literature review, this contribution explores current and future challenges for media and communication scholars when enquiring people’s engagements with digital media. Structuring the existing literature around four themes (affordances, the political economy of digital audiences, self-representation and identity, domestication and (problematic) uses of ICT), an overview of the current state of the field is provided. As such, three challenges are defined: exploring the diversity of digital audiences that now engage with digital media, allowing more room for the semiotics and contexts in which people experience digital media, and moving beyond the functionalistic uses of the concept ‘affordances’.
This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Re... more This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, to run between 2015-2018.
This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Re... more This report has been produced by the CEDAR network which was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, to run between 2015-2018.
The central interest of this paper is the anthropomorphic social robot Ai-Da (Aidan Meller Galler... more The central interest of this paper is the anthropomorphic social robot Ai-Da (Aidan Meller Gallery/Oxford University), perceived as an actor in the interplay of cultural and representational gestures. These gestures determine how this robot is presented—that is, how its activities are articulated, interpreted and promoted. This paper criticises the use of a transhistorical discourse in the presentational strategies around this robot, since this discourse reinforces the so-called “myth of a machine”. The discussion focuses on the individuation and embodiment of this drawing robot. It is argued that the choice to provide Ai-Da with an evocative silicone face, coupled with an anthropomorphic body, is a socio-political decision that shapes public imaginaries about social robots in general.
This review of the literature published between 2005 and 2014 presents an overview of the methodo... more This review of the literature published between 2005 and 2014 presents an overview of the methodological environment in which audience research is transiting towards the study of online audiences. Online audience research is a mix of long-established research rationales,
Transformations: Journal of Media, Culture and Technology, 2022
In this conceptual article my aim is to challenge the attribute "creative" when applied to the te... more In this conceptual article my aim is to challenge the attribute "creative" when applied to the technical nonhumans (computers, robots or AI). Whilst acknowledging the long history of technical objects involved in a creative production, I suggest that such phrasing carries a surplus of meaning that may lead to ambiguous and possibly deceptive narratives about technical nonhumans amongst non-professional audiences. I shall be using science and technology studies (STS) theories as a methodological backdrop, and I shall rely on the theoretical paradigms about the myth of technology.
In this article, we develop the concept of small acts of engagement (SAOE) in a networked media e... more In this article, we develop the concept of small acts of engagement (SAOE) in a networked media environment as a conceptual framework to study specific audience practices and as an agenda for research on these practices. We define SAOE, such as liking, sharing, and commenting, as productive audience practices that require little investment and are intentionally more casual than the structural and laborious practices examined as types of produsage and convergence culture. We further elaborate on the interpretive and productive aspects of SAOE, which allow us to reconnect the notions of a participatory culture and a culture of everyday agency. Our central argument is that audience studies’ perspective allows viewing SAOE as practices of everyday audience agency, which, on an aggregate level, have the potential to become powerful acts of resistance.
The central interest of this paper is the anthropomorphic social robot Ai-Da (Aidan Meller Galler... more The central interest of this paper is the anthropomorphic social robot Ai-Da (Aidan Meller Gallery/Oxford University), perceived as an actor in the interplay of cultural and representational gestures. These gestures determine how this robot is presented-that is, how its activities are articulated, interpreted and promoted. This paper criticises the use of a transhistorical discourse in the presentational strategies around this robot, since this discourse reinforces the so-called "myth of a machine". The discussion focuses on the individuation and embodiment of this drawing robot. It is argued that the choice to provide Ai-Da with an evocative silicone face, coupled with an anthropomorphic body, is a socio-political decision that shapes public imaginaries about social robots in general.
In this article, I aim to accentuate the importance of the cultural imagination about robots, obs... more In this article, I aim to accentuate the importance of the cultural imagination about robots, observing it 'as a mixed register of fantasy and an actual practice' (Kakoudaki 2007, 165). I emphasise the field of robotic art, which, I argue, is in a fluid state of exchange with other areas of robotic research, equally benefiting from the larger context of the cultural imagination about robots. Furthermore, I discuss artworks that offer valuable commentary on robots even though they are not defined as robotic art in a narrow sense (Penny 2013), given that they feature only the representation of robots or robot-like characters. Nevertheless, these artworks contribute to the circulation of symbolic registers that revolve around the multifaceted figure of a robot.
Based on an extensive literature review, this contribution explores current and future challenges... more Based on an extensive literature review, this contribution explores current and future challenges for media and communication scholars when enquiring people's engagements with digital media. Structuring the existing literature around four themes (affordances, the political economy of digital audiences, self-representation and identity, domestication and (problematic) uses of ICT), an overview of the current state of the field is provided. As such, three challenges are defined: exploring the diversity of digital audiences that now engage with digital media, allowing more room for the semiotics and contexts in which people experience digital media, and moving beyond the functionalistic uses of the concept 'affordances'.
This review of the literature published between 2005 and 2014 presents an overview of the methodo... more This review of the literature published between 2005 and 2014 presents an overview of the methodological environment in which audience research is transiting towards the study of online audiences. Online audience research is a mix of long-established research rationales,
Edited by Ranjana Das and Brita Ytre-Arne, with contribution from the CEDAR network.
This repor... more Edited by Ranjana Das and Brita Ytre-Arne, with contribution from the CEDAR network.
This report brings together the work done by CEDAR - Consortium of Emerging Directions in Audience Research, an Arts & Humanities Research Council funded consortium of early-career European audience researchers. CEDAR came together to map trends, gaps and priorities emerging over the past decade in the field of audience studies.
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Papers by Bojana Romic
Furthermore, I discuss artworks that offer valuable commentary on robots even though they are not defined as robotic art in a narrow sense (Penny 2013), given that they feature only the representation of robots or robot-like characters. Nevertheless, these artworks contribute to the circulation of symbolic registers that revolve around the multifaceted figure of a robot.
Furthermore, I discuss artworks that offer valuable commentary on robots even though they are not defined as robotic art in a narrow sense (Penny 2013), given that they feature only the representation of robots or robot-like characters. Nevertheless, these artworks contribute to the circulation of symbolic registers that revolve around the multifaceted figure of a robot.
This report brings together the work done by CEDAR - Consortium of Emerging Directions in Audience Research, an Arts & Humanities Research Council funded consortium of early-career European audience researchers. CEDAR came together to map trends, gaps and priorities emerging over the past decade in the field of audience studies.