The Digital Ethnography Initiative (DEI) was founded at the University of Vienna and is the first step towards greater visibility of ethnographic work on “the digital” at the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology. It aims to establish an open space where department-based expertise, experience and research is visible to colleagues, students and the general public, thus also contributing to ongoing interdisciplinary dialogues and public engagements. Although DEI acknowledges and encourages the inherent interdisciplinary nature of digital ethnography, it also places particular attention on the in-depth understanding of historical developments within ethnography in general and its proximity to the discipline of social and cultural anthropology.

DEI is an attempt to establish a space, where longstanding anthropological interest in ethnography meets interdisciplinary dialogue. We do not only aim to engage in the discussion of what digital ethnography means across disciplinary boundaries but also to address specific issues, theories and methods. By providing an online open-access platform for sharing resources, making local expertise and research projects visible, and by organizing regular events, the initiative aims to provide orientation in a messy world of boundaries-crossing methods for researchers and students alike.

Recent Blog Posts

• Grasping the Connection Between Instagram and Digital Activism: A Discussion on Sexual Harassment
  Lea Georgia Locker, Freyja Coreth and Marie Vodicka* This blog post was created for the seminar “The Materiality and Visuality of Social Media” by Philipp Budka for the MA program “CREOLE – Cultural Differences and Transnational Processes” at the University of Vienna. We can observe that gender-based violence against women is still present in many […]
• DEI Network Meeting: Special Issue Launch
  This year, DEI went into the holiday season by introducing the recently published Special Issue “Across Mobile Online and Offline Spaces: Reflections on Methods, Practices, and Ethics” (ed. by Katja Kaufmann & Monika Palmberger) and discussing some of participants’ projects over vegetarian snacks and local wine. Thank you to all the DEI friends and blog contributors […]
• The Cancelation of Colin Kaepernick: Spatial Exclusion and Consequences of Cancel Culture on Social Media
  Taylor Dube* This blog post is a revision of a text written in collaboration with Melanie Strobl for the seminar “The Materiality and Visuality of Social Media” by Philipp Budka for the MA program “CREOLE – Cultural Differences and Transnational Processes” at the University of Vienna. Taking a knee to take a stand Social media […]

Feel free to get in touch with us at info@digitalethnography.at

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Header photo by Daniel Gzz on Unsplash.