The Noise of Silent Machines: A Case Study of LinkNYC
The following blog post, written by Audrey Amsellem, is an exploration of her article “The Noise of Silent Machines: A Case Study of LinkNYC,” which appeared in a recent issue of Surveillance & Society.
///
I first encountered LinkNYC kiosks, ten-feet high totem-like hubs equipped with large screens and interactive capabilities, including free Wi-Fi, when I started graduate school in New York City. Walking around the Morningside Heights neighborhood, I found myself standing in front of a tower that immediately made me think of a panopticon. I later noticed eleven LinkNYC
kiosks installed within a ten-block radius of my apartment. I also noticed, especially in the evening, small groups and individuals, often homeless people, interacting with the kiosk: listening to music on YouTube, bringing couches and chairs to set up around the kiosks, re-appropriating the public space by gathering and enjoying the warm summer nights.
Freshly starting my degree in ethnomusicology at Columbia University, I became fascinated with this new possibility for citizens to interact with each other and the city through interacting the kiosks. Investigating the cultural practices of users of LinkNYC became the subject of my MA Thesis. I conducted fieldwork around the kiosks, until, a few weeks in, CityBridge, the company operating the kiosks, announced they will be shutting down the web-browsing option. CityBridge explained that shutting down the web-browsing will make the kiosks more “accessible.”
At first, I thought my project was over and that I should change topics. I informed my advisor, Professor Christopher Washburne, who told me to do the exact opposite: embrace the change, and tell us what it says about the kiosks’ place in the city. Following his advice took me on a long road of investigation: the obscure ownership of the kiosks as a Google-backed project and with important city leaders in its management, the at times coalescing, and other times disparate, interests of public and private entities, and the privacy concerns of many citizens and organizations.
My project was suddenly a lot bigger than what I set it out to be. I encountered many people along the way: users of the kiosks, homeless organizations, privacy advocates, concerned citizens and CityBridge employees. Exchanging with these people made me realize how competing interests are shaping the city of the future. As some public and private powers move toward a “smart” model, others promote a “responsive” model. Homeless or marginal populations remain largely excluded from the conversation. Simultaneously, privacy advocate warn against the potential danger of these connected devices, which gather massive amount of data in order to function. Investigating the new devices that populate our daily lives, often without our consent, is crucial to understand the kind of the city we, all, want for the future.
