Silvia Semenzin
Biographic Data
| ID | 292211 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Silvia Semenzin |
| GIVEN NAMES | Silvia |
| FAMILY NAME | Semenzin |
| SIGNATURE | SEMENZIN S |
| AFFILIATIONS | Universidad Complutense de Madrid |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-0726-2340 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 7 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 23 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 7 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2020 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
‘My body, my money’
This paper examines the material and ideological entanglements between sex work and blockchain technology through a case study of SpankChain, a blockchain-based platform designed with sex workers as its target users. Employing a mixed-methods approach that integrates digital ethnography, discourse analysis of Reddit discussions, and content analysis of platform-authored materials (including SpankChain’s whitepaper and blog posts), the study inves…
Women’s activism online in Italy
This paper draws on a research study investigating technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) targeting feminist influencers – referred to as ‘influactivists’ – on Instagram in Italy. Using a feminist ethnographic approach, semi-structured interviews with four prominent influactivists reveal how digital platforms serve as both tools for empowerment and arenas for misogynistic abuse. These women face diverse forms of TFGBV, including har…
Blockchain for good
One of the most intriguing discussions concerning blockchain technology revolves around its potential to 'do good'. Consequently, numerous projects and institutions are showing interest in the capacity of blockchain to impact the social sphere positively. However, so far, very little literature has addressed the fundamental notion of 'good' that underlies its implementation or explores its connection to social justice theories. This article aims …
The platformization of gender and sexual identities
Online pornography, like other forms of cultural production, is increasingly subject to processes of platformization. While research has focused on the diffusion of online pornography and its broader implications, less attention has been paid to the algorithmic infrastructures through which platforms distribute and manage pornographic content, and how this might reiterate socially embedded views and perspectives. To fill this gap, we consider how…
Blockchain-based application at a governmental level
Blockchain technology enables new kinds of decentralized systems. Thus, it has often been advocated as a “disruptive” technology that could have the potentiality of reshaping political, economic, and social relations, “solving” problems like corruption, power centralization, and distrust toward political institutions. Blockchain has been gradually gaining attention beyond finance and is thus applied by a range of different actors. This includes l…
Automating Trust with the Blockchain? A Critical Investigation of “Blockchain 2.0” Cultures
This article discusses the cultural conceptions of trust underpinning the experimentation of blockchain startup applications beyond the financial sector. Based on qualitative research undertaken in the context of the so-called “Blockchain 2.0” scene, we show how a peculiar conception of trust, which blends the libertarian views of blockchain inventors with the neoliberal culture of competition and meritocracy that is typical of the startup world,…
The Use of Telegram for Non-Consensual Dissemination of Intimate Images
This article analyses the role of Telegram in orienting, amplifying, and normalizing the non-consensual diffusion of intimate images (NCII). We focus on the sense of anonymity, the platform's weak regulation, and the possibility of creating large male communities, arguing that these affordances are 'gendered affordances' as they orient male participants' harassment behaviors and, in concert with an established misogynist culture, contribute to th…
The Use of Telegram for Non-Consensual Dissemination of Intimate Images
This article analyses the role of Telegram in orienting, amplifying, and normalizing the non-consensual diffusion of intimate images (NCII). We focus on the sense of anonymity, the platform's weak regulation, and the possibility of creating large male communities, arguing that these affordances are 'gendered affordances' as they orient male participants' harassment behaviors and, in concert with an established misogynist culture, contribute to th…
The platformization of gender and sexual identities
Online pornography, like other forms of cultural production, is increasingly subject to processes of platformization. While research has focused on the diffusion of online pornography and its broader implications, less attention has been paid to the algorithmic infrastructures through which platforms distribute and manage pornographic content, and how this might reiterate socially embedded views and perspectives. To fill this gap, we consider how…
Blockchain for good
One of the most intriguing discussions concerning blockchain technology revolves around its potential to 'do good'. Consequently, numerous projects and institutions are showing interest in the capacity of blockchain to impact the social sphere positively. However, so far, very little literature has addressed the fundamental notion of 'good' that underlies its implementation or explores its connection to social justice theories. This article aims …
Blockchain-based application at a governmental level
Blockchain technology enables new kinds of decentralized systems. Thus, it has often been advocated as a “disruptive” technology that could have the potentiality of reshaping political, economic, and social relations, “solving” problems like corruption, power centralization, and distrust toward political institutions. Blockchain has been gradually gaining attention beyond finance and is thus applied by a range of different actors. This includes l…
Automating Trust with the Blockchain? A Critical Investigation of “Blockchain 2.0” Cultures
This article discusses the cultural conceptions of trust underpinning the experimentation of blockchain startup applications beyond the financial sector. Based on qualitative research undertaken in the context of the so-called “Blockchain 2.0” scene, we show how a peculiar conception of trust, which blends the libertarian views of blockchain inventors with the neoliberal culture of competition and meritocracy that is typical of the startup world,…
The Use of Telegram for Non-Consensual Dissemination of Intimate Images
This article analyses the role of Telegram in orienting, amplifying, and normalizing the non-consensual diffusion of intimate images (NCII). We focus on the sense of anonymity, the platform's weak regulation, and the possibility of creating large male communities, arguing that these affordances are 'gendered affordances' as they orient male participants' harassment behaviors and, in concert with an established misogynist culture, contribute to th…
Automating Trust with the Blockchain? A Critical Investigation of “Blockchain 2.0” Cultures
This article discusses the cultural conceptions of trust underpinning the experimentation of blockchain startup applications beyond the financial sector. Based on qualitative research undertaken in the context of the so-called “Blockchain 2.0” scene, we show how a peculiar conception of trust, which blends the libertarian views of blockchain inventors with the neoliberal culture of competition and meritocracy that is typical of the startup world,…
The platformization of gender and sexual identities
Online pornography, like other forms of cultural production, is increasingly subject to processes of platformization. While research has focused on the diffusion of online pornography and its broader implications, less attention has been paid to the algorithmic infrastructures through which platforms distribute and manage pornographic content, and how this might reiterate socially embedded views and perspectives. To fill this gap, we consider how…
Blockchain-based application at a governmental level
Blockchain technology enables new kinds of decentralized systems. Thus, it has often been advocated as a “disruptive” technology that could have the potentiality of reshaping political, economic, and social relations, “solving” problems like corruption, power centralization, and distrust toward political institutions. Blockchain has been gradually gaining attention beyond finance and is thus applied by a range of different actors. This includes l…
Blockchain for good
One of the most intriguing discussions concerning blockchain technology revolves around its potential to 'do good'. Consequently, numerous projects and institutions are showing interest in the capacity of blockchain to impact the social sphere positively. However, so far, very little literature has addressed the fundamental notion of 'good' that underlies its implementation or explores its connection to social justice theories. This article aims …
Women’s activism online in Italy
This paper draws on a research study investigating technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) targeting feminist influencers – referred to as ‘influactivists’ – on Instagram in Italy. Using a feminist ethnographic approach, semi-structured interviews with four prominent influactivists reveal how digital platforms serve as both tools for empowerment and arenas for misogynistic abuse. These women face diverse forms of TFGBV, including har…
‘My body, my money’
This paper examines the material and ideological entanglements between sex work and blockchain technology through a case study of SpankChain, a blockchain-based platform designed with sex workers as its target users. Employing a mixed-methods approach that integrates digital ethnography, discourse analysis of Reddit discussions, and content analysis of platform-authored materials (including SpankChain’s whitepaper and blog posts), the study inves…
Sociology (6 works) · Political science (5 works) · Computer security (4 works) · Gender, Feminism, and Media (4 works) · Blockchain (3 works) · Computer Science (3 works) · Digital Economy and Work Transformation (3 works) · Gender Studies (3 works) · Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology (3 works) · Affordance (2 works)