Building digital platform observatories

The need for digital observatories emerges from the limits of existing approaches to digital platform research and accountability which tend to emphasise transparency over the creation of “conditions for the practice of observing” (Rieder & Hoffman, 2020, p. 3). If observability is not only about converting the invisible into the visible, then an observatory is more than research tools or methods. In astrophysics, observatories are known to play a crucial role in advancing research in that they “organize and mobilize a range of multidisciplinary skills for achieving a coherent and sustainable capability” (Illingworth, 2017, p. 1). The potential of the observatory is no different for humanities and social science researchers. In fact, this potential can be greatly exceeded by establishing the observatory as a public institution that enables everyday practices of observability among the public; frameworks of governance and regulation; and the production of trustworthy observations by researchers.

This workshop brings together researchers who have been developing major research infrastructure initiatives to make digital platforms and their automated models more open to public observation and accountability.