The sketch says the text is about the cultural impact of the webcam on Trinidadian, focuses specifically on the affordances of the webcam and its implications for human communication
"Miller and Sinanan call their introduction a conclusion. They put forth their claim and use the remaining chapters as evidence for their claim."
The cover shows a picture of two webcams facing each other, evoking the ways that technology is used to connect and communicate. I find it significant that there is no mention of people in the cover image, perhaps highlighting their stance on how ‘all communication is mediated'.
"Miller and Sinanan begin with the theoretical claim that all communication is mediated, and verify that by demonstrating how webcams are just as mediated as in-person communication. They challenge assertions that tech-mediated communication is somehow less human / less authentic."
The sketch proposes both a documentary to "play around with showing the webcam (and how it shapes communication practices) through a camera” and a "shared museum exhibit” to "a live stream between two exhibits at different museums and patrons at one museum can sit and chat with patrons at the partner museum.” These seem compelling and a great way to get participants, particularly lay people who are interested, involved.
Elementary or middle school activity where students are broken into two different groups where one group works in person and one group works remotely using webcams (or some form of video chatting) to see the differences in the two practices. Potentially also an oral history of how people have used webcams in their lives and how it’s both different from and similar to communication in the past.
Miller and Sinanan call their introduction a conclusion. They put forth a theory of attainment, which claims that technology, in this case, the webcam, facilitates new ways of being human rather than changes the nature of being human. The remaining chapters are evidence for their claim, with each chapter discussing a new theme that arose during their interviews - for example, intimacy - and relating it to their theory of attainment. This structure invites ongoing critique of the conceptual argument, as one understands the argument and its weaknesses as evidence is presented.
