There Is No Net Neutrality in Digital Archaeology

Paterson 406

The fourth Shannon Lecture of 2018, which took place on November 23. Dr Katherine Cook, Université de Montréal. Colonisation, at its core, is the extraction of resources from those without power. What then gets extracted in digital colonialism and what does this have to do with archaeology in Canada? Considering the critiques, questions, and fallout regarding digital corporations, capitalism, and politics over the course of the past year, we are ever more acutely aware of the much darker underbelly of the digital world. Yet we still act as if digital technology is ‘the answer!’ to solving those ‘Great Challenges’ facing archaeology today, namely the lack of equity, inclusivity, access and the unwavering manifestations of (neo)colonialism. This discussion will consider the realities of digitally disrupting archaeology, the opportunities it presents but also the dangers it poses, to argue that not all data, not all audiences, and not all archaeologists are treated equally in digital practice. Digital archaeology will not save us from bad archaeology, so we must decolonize the digital first.