Anarchist Cybernetics: Control and Communication in Radical Politics

Description

From Occupy, to the Indignados and the Arab Spring, the uprisings that marked the last decade ignited a re-emergence of participatory democracy as a political ideal within organizations. This pioneering book introduces cybernetic thinking to politics and organizational studies to explore the continuing development of this radical idea. With a focus on communication and how alternative social media platforms present new challenges and opportunities for radical organising, it sheds new light on the concepts of self-organization, consensus decision making, individual autonomy and collective identity. Revolutionising the way in which anarchist activists and theorists think about organizations, this unprecedented investigation makes a major contribution to the larger discussion of direct democracy. Contents About the Author Acknowledgements Series Preface • Daniel King and Martin Parker 1 2011: The Year Everything Nothing Changed 2 Radical Left Organisation and Networks of Communication 3 Anarchism and Cybernetics: A Missed Opportunity Revisited 4 Control (Part I): Tactics, Strategy and Grand Strategy 5 Control (Part II): Effective Freedom and Collective Autonomy 6 Communication (Part I): Information and Noise in the Age of Social Media 7 Communication (Part II): Building Alternative Social Media 8 Organising Radical Left Populism References Index