Currently reading: Wretched of the Screen by Hito Steyerl, 2012, eflux Journal, Sternberg Press. Edited by Julieta Aranda, Brian Kuan Wood, Anton Vidokle.
Part 5/5
Spam of the Earth: Withdrawal from Representation
Steyerl’s essay on spam is of interest because this is the image rubbish of the digital world, although digital rubbish is an area I have consciously omitted from the main part of my research, instead choosing to focus on rubbish of the physical world.
In defining image spam, Steyerl notes: “Image spam is one of the many dark matters of the digital world; spam tries to avoid detection by filters by presenting its message as an image file. […] Image spam is our message to the future. (p.161). Image spam, […] is a negative image (what it is not).” (p.165)
Steyerl bring the class issue back into focus and mentions trash TV (p.166): “The numbing presence of trash talk and game shows has led to a situation in which TV has become a medium inextricably linked to the parading and ridiculing of the lower classes.” Just recently the BBC published an article on the socio-economic class divide of readers and watchers: England ‘divided into readers and watchers’ By Hannah Richardson 11/03/14 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-26515836
