Chapter Outline: 19

draws inspiration from the methods of Karl Marx and autonomist Marxists. Marx and the autonomists believed that inquiries into the social and political dynamics of industrialized workplaces must begin from ‘below’ or from the perspective of those individuals

labouring within them. This thesis plots a similar course by speaking with and to those persons responsible for the creation and maintenance of ‘Factory Flickr.’ It does so in an attempt to better understand their thoughts and feelings regarding the social and political dynamics of the unwaged immaterial workplace. Media Studies scholars have thus far neglected any concerted attempt to understand the new forms of subjectivity being produced by and through the biopolitical force of unwaged immaterial labour. What follows, then, is an outline that details the steps through which this thesis travels in an attempt to rectify this neglect.

1.5  Chapter  Outline:    

In Chapter 2, a review of the literature surrounding the theoretical corpus of autonomist Marxism is offered. Beginning with the theoretical implement that sets autonomist Marxism apart from other, more orthodox, variants of Marxist thought, this chapter describes the cyclical nature of the struggles between capital and labour and explains that, at present, we are at the very beginning of yet another cycle of struggle. This chapter details the causes, catalysts, and outcomes of the cycles of struggle that have characterized the history of capitalism. It is focused on describing the processes of

composition, decomposition and recomposition of a class hostile to capital and the ever- expanding nature of that class. The waged immaterial labour of networked individuals the world over is an ambiguous and contentious element of the present cycle of struggle and

moment of recomposition. So too, however, is the unwaged immaterial labour of Web 2.0 content generators. It is to the unique attributes and elements of the Web 2.0 era that the next chapter is focused.

In Chapter 3, a review of the literature regarding Web 2.0 and all of the work required of its ‘users’ is provided. Web 2.0 and UGC have altered the look, feel, and content of the Internet in significant ways. The most salient features of Web 2.0 are explained in this chapter in an attempt to emphasize the active and creative capacities of the ‘users’ of these sites and services. What becomes clear is that Web 2.0 and all of the work undertaken and accomplished by its ‘users’ requires that we amend our

understanding of how ‘work’ can be organized and managed not only within these relatively new contexts, but also beyond them. Axel Bruns’ (2008) concept of Prod- Usage and of the Prod-User nicely summarize the required conceptual modifications and are therefore dealt with in some detail in this chapter.

Chapter 4 of this thesis describes the methodological approach and procedure developed specifically for this research project. Based on and inspired by the Marxist methodologies of A Workers’ Inquiry (Marx, 1880/1938) and Co-Research, the

methodology that this thesis utilizes adapts these historical methods so that they remain relevant to contemporary circumstance. These circumstances are, of course, much

different than those encountered by Marx and the autonomists. They therefore necessitate methodological innovation and modification. Consistent with the methods used by Marx and the autonomists, however, speaking with those individuals responsible for the creation and propagation of digital content remains pivotally important. The logic, method, and means by which these modifications were made are offered in this chapter.

Chapter 5 is devoted to reporting on the interview data obtained in conversation with Flickr members. This chapter presents the results of the semi-structured and open- ended interviews conducted with Flickr members in the Summer of 2010 regarding the nature of the unwaged and collaborative immaterial labour undertaken on the website. Organized around six central elements of the Flickr-verse that function as conceptual pillars for this thesis, this chapter tells the story of how Flickr members regard all of the time, effort, and energy they expend on the site and whether or not they feel exploited by the owners and operators of Flickr. In an attempt to allow the interview data the space required for adequate contemplation of its merits, this chapter refrains from any

theoretical interpretation of these materials. The following chapter, however, faces this task head-on.

Chapter 6 is focused on a theoretical interpretation of the interviews in light of the biopolitical dimensions of unwaged immaterial labour. When the interview data and the six central pillars of the Flickr-verse are projected through the theoretical prisms offered by contemporary autonomist thought, a much clearer picture is created that details the social and political dynamics of this unique space. It is in this section that the primary research question guiding this thesis is answered.

In the concluding chapter, Chapter 7, the central place of struggle in autonomist theory is addressed and interpreted in light of the evidence and arguments presented throughout. This chapter argues that the struggles that characterize the history of capitalism do not materialize from thin air, but go through a procedural and

developmental process that begins with instances of conflict that only later manifest as open struggle. Marxist scholars (Hardt & Negri, 2000, 2009; Harvey, Hardt, & Negri,

2009; Read, 2001, 2002, 2003) have recently identified the production and regulation of subjectivity as a central site of ‘struggle’ in the contemporary era. This concluding chapter argues that while the production and regulation of subjectivity is indeed

important to the recomposition of a class hostile to capital, there is a need to slow down the analysis of this moment of recomposition so as to take into account the procedures through which struggles deserving of their name emerge. Therefore, this chapter examines the sequence through which the recomposition of a class hostile to capital might emerge and argues that the conflicts that exist between the biopolitics of waged immaterial labour and those of unwaged immaterial labour contribute to the strife that may eventually manifest in struggle.

1.6  Contribution  to  the  Existing  Body  of  Knowledge:      

The line of argumentation advanced by this thesis is unique and makes an original contribution to the existing body of knowledge in two central ways. The first contribution to the existing body of knowledge considers the biopolitical dimensions of a form of work thus far never examined in detail by theorists of immaterial labour. Scholars such as Hardt and Negri (2000, 2004, 2009), Maurizio Lazzarato (1996), Paolo Virno (2004), and Franco ‘Bifo’ Berardi (2009) have considered the biopolitical dimensions of waged immaterial labour, but have not considered the biopolitics of unwaged immaterial labour. This thesis’ second contribution to the existing body of knowledge is made by charting a different course than those scholars alluded to above (Terranova, 2000; Fuchs, 2011, 2012; Coté & Pybus, 2007; Andrejevic, 2009; Brown, forthcoming; Cohen, 2008; Kleiner & Wyrick, 2007) that have thus far been preoccupied with the exploitative dimensions of the traditionally conceived political economy of communications (Smythe, 1977; Mosco,