2025/05/15 by Chafic Tony Najem · 2 voices · 1 citation
Computer Science · Social Sciences · #Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis #Internet Traffic Analysis and Secure E-voting #Public Spaces through Art
paper · doi:10.1093/ccc/tcaf008
openalex publication_date 2025/05/15 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30
Abstract This article explores the use of smuggled digital technologies by prisoners in Lebanese carceral spaces. Since 2012, prisoners have smuggled cellphones to document and share their experiences and protests, despite efforts by authorities to restrict this access. The study adopts Martín-Barbero’s mediaciones and Mattoni’s activist media practices, to propose “prison media mobilization”—the strategic and illicit reconfiguration of digital technologies by prisoners to subvert constraints and amplify dissent. The analysis focuses on four approaches: representation, production, circulation, and material practices. By examining recordings and contextual information from significant events in Lebanese prisons, the research shows how contraband digital technologies catalyze mobilizations. These technologies document, incite, propagate, and aid prisoners perform acts of defiance against prison conditions. The study highlights the complexity and innovation in prisoners' media practices, calling for a comprehensive framework to understand media mobilizations in carceral spaces.