The politics of mapping platforms

Participatory radiation mapping after the Fukushima Daiichi disaster

Bibliographic Data

ID11268664
AuthorsJean-Christophe Plantin (0000-0001-8041-6679, University of Michigan, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume37
Issue6
Pages904-921
Publication date2015-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueMedia Culture & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0163-4437 • E-ISSN: 1460-3675
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0163443715584102
OpenAlexW1601129006
LanguageEN
Citations received14
References cited20

The release of the Google Maps API in 2005 spurred a trend of mapping mashups, adding cartography to online participatory culture. This article will present how the affordances of these ‘platforms’ give shape to the online participation of concerned citizens willing to access information during an environmental crisis. Based on the analysis of the radiation mashups created after the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant in 2011, this article will highlight two types of online participation. First, participation as data extraction, where concerned actors either monitored data using Geiger counters or extracted and republished data from official websites. Second, participation as data aggregation, where maps were used to display and compare radiation measurements from official or crowdsourced venues. The conclusion will highlight the necessity to study how online platforms assign a place and temporality to online participation

Affordance · Citizen journalism · Citizen science · Human–computer interaction · Mashup · Participatory culture · Political science · Politics · Temporality · The Internet · Web 2.0 · World Wide Web · Computer Science · Geographic Information Systems Studies · Media Studies and Communication · Radio, Podcasts, and Digital Media

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Open DOISci-HubOpen Access