Dynamics of Digital Spaces: Rethinking Democracy Online

In this episode of Terms of Service, host Mary Camacho engages with Nathan Schneider, assistant professor of media studies at the University of Colorado Boulder and director of the Media Economies Design Lab. Together, they explore the challenges of building digital communities, the nuanced relationship between decentralisation and centralised power, and the need for democratic practices in online spaces. Nathan shares insights from his latest book, Governable Spaces, and explains how governance, technology, and collective action intersect to create better digital futures.

Key Takeaways

• Decentralisation often coexists with centralszed structures, creating power dynamics that require deliberate accountability mechanisms.
• Early internet protocols left governance vacuums, enabling centralised economic powers to dominate the digital landscape.
• Treating online spaces with the same intentional governance as offline communities can empower users and address systemic challenges.
• Democratic practices and community-driven governance frameworks can build resilient and equitable online spaces.
• Tools like community rules and open protocols provide pathways for collaborative decision-making in digital environments.

Topics Covered / Timestamped Sections

• 01:05 - Introduction to Nathan Schneider and the Media Economies Design Lab.
• 03:58 - From religion to technology: Nathan’s journey to studying decentralised governance.
• 08:38 - Lessons from Occupy Wall Street and Ethereum: Empowering movements with digital tools.
• 13:14 - Implicit feudalism in online spaces: How admin power structures shape digital governance.
• 17:52 - The interplay between decentralisation and centralised authority in online systems.
• 25:01 - Friction as a teacher: Why democratic governance in tech requires investment and experimentation.
• 34:27 - Imagining equitable online sovereignty and collaborative digital communities.
• 36:50 - Local control in digital spaces: Lessons from social movements and cooperative models.

Guest Bio and Links

Nathan Schneider is an assistant professor of media studies at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he leads the Media Economies Design Lab and the MA program in Media and Public Engagement. He is the author of four books, most recently Governable Spaces: Democratic Design for Online Life, published by University of California Press in 2024, and Everything for Everyone: The Radical Tradition that Is Shaping the Next Economy, published by Bold Type Books in 2018. He edited Vitalik Buterin’s book Proof of Stake: The Making of Ethereum and the Philosophy of Blockchains and co-edited Beautiful Solutions: A Toolbox for Liberation and Ours to Hack and to Own: The Rise of Platform Cooperativism, a New Vision for the Future of Work and a Fairer Internet. Recent scholarship has been published in New Media & Society, Feminist Media Studies, the Georgetown Law Technology Review, and Media, Culture & Society, among other journals. He has also reported for publications including Harper’s, The Nation, The New Republic, The Chronicle of Higher Education, The New York Times, The New Yorker, and others, along with regular columns for America, a national Catholic magazine. He has lectured at universities including Columbia, Fordham, Harvard, MIT, NYU, the University of Bologna, and Yale. He serves on the boards of Metagov, Start.coop, and Waging Nonviolence. 

Resources Mentioned

• Section 230 - A pivotal U.S. policy shaping platform liability and governance.
• Media Economies Design Lab - CU Boulder initiative fostering equitable governance models for online communities.

Further Reading / Related Episodes

• Episode 2: "Beyond Honeypots: Privacy, Security, and the Future of Distributed Webs"
• Episode 3: "Empowerment Tech: Unlocking Customer Data for Better Choices and Better Business"

Call to Action

Want to explore how we can build better digital communities? Listen to Nathan Schneider’s vision for governable spaces and find out how collective action can shape the future of the internet.

• Nathan’s Website
• Governable Spaces – Learn more about his latest book.

🎧 Listen now: Episode Link

Credits

Host: Mary Camacho

Guest: Nathan Schneider

Produced by Terms of Service Podcast

Sound Design: Arthur Vincent and Sonor Lab

Co-Producers: Nicole Klau Ibarra & Mary Camacho