The event is free and open to the public:

• Tuesday, May 8, 2012
• 6:00-8:000pm
• UW-Milwaukee Union Theater (2200 E. Kenwood Blvd, 2nd floor)

Following the film, a panel of privacy advocates will discuss its implications, including:

• Emilio De Torre, Youth and Program Director, ACLU of Wisconsin
• Stacy Harbaugh, Communications Director, ACLU of Wisconsin
• Angela Maycock, Assistant Director, Office for Intellectual Freedom, American Library Association
• Michael Zimmer, Assistant Professor and Co-Director, Center for Information Policy Research, School of Information Studies, UW-Milwaukee

I am pleased to announce the following student travel grant opportunity for IR 12 in Seattle.

The Center for Information Policy Research (CIPR) is pleased to again offer a CIPR Student Award in Information Policy & Ethics, to sponsor one student (undergraduate, graduate or post-doc) for the Association of Internet Researchers IR12 Conference in Seattle, Washington. The amount of the award is US$500.

The student’s research must focus on some aspect of information policy or ethics, and internet studies, broadly conceived. The recipient must have an accepted paper at IR12 and must attend to present the research.

To apply, please send the following documents to Michael Zimmer at zimmerm@uwm.edu:

• Accepted Paper Abstract
• CV
• Brief statement describing how the paper/research will make an impact on the fields of information policy, ethics, and internet studies.

Application deadline is August 31, 2011. Notification of award will be received by September 15.

The recipient should acknowledge the CIPR grant at IR12 and in any subsequent presentations or publications.

***

The Center for Information Policy Research (CIPR) is the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s multidisciplinary research center for the study of the intersections between the policy, ethical, political, social and legal aspects of the global information society. It is lead by co-directors Dr. Joyce Latham and Dr. Michael Zimmer.

As CIPR Co-Director, I’m very pleased to make this announcement:

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Information Studies (SOIS) and the Center for Information Policy Research (CIPR) is proud to welcome Dr. Nadine Kozak as the 2011-12 Postdoctoral Fellow in Information Policy. Dr. Kozak is an interdisciplinary scholar; she has a BA (Honors) in History from the University of Calgary, a MA in Communication from Carleton University, and a PhD in Communication and Science Studies from the University of California, San Diego.

Dr. Kozak’s research explores government projects and public-private partnerships created with the intent to expand broadband services to unserved and underserved communities, and analyzes how these projects are adopted in rural areas by a variety of organizations and residents. Her dissertation research analyzed the development of broadband services in two regions, rural Wyoming and rural Alberta, Canada, using interview data, ethnographic data, government documents, and newspaper reports.

During her time at SOIS, Dr. Kozak will research projects carried out with federal Broadband Technology Opportunities Program funding. Her work will explore whether these projects achieve their goals of creating sustainable broadband adoption and compare these with older adoption programs in the U.S. and Canada. She plans to complete journal articles about advanced telecommunications and the results of deregulation. In addition to research and writing, while at SOIS, she would like to teach a class on the history of U.S. information policy, starting with the Post Office and culminating with the current state of telecommunications regulation.

While Nadine will greatly miss the Pacific Ocean and San Diego’s amazing beaches, she is excited to live in Milwaukee. During a brief visit to the city in June, she quickly began to appreciate Milwaukee’s age and heritage. Outside of work, Nadine would like to learn about, and enjoy, the region through food, museums, and festivals.

I’m also very happy to announce that Wilhelm Peekhaus, our 2010-2011 IP Postdoc Fellow, will be joining the SOIS faculty this fall.

Postdoctoral Fellowship in Information Policy
School of Information Studies
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

The School of Information Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is accepting applications for a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Information Policy for the 2011-2012 academic year.

The information policy fellowship is designed for recent PhDs who are interested in social, ethical, economic, legal, and technical aspects of information and information technologies with a focus on information policy and information ethics. All applicable research areas are encouraged to apply, but preference will be given to applicants whose work investigates the intersections of information policy, intellectual property, intellectual freedom, governance, power, and identity.

Along with continuing their own research agenda, the fellow will work closely with the Center for Information Policy Research and affiliated faculty, assist in coordination of related events, work with current PhD students, and participate in the academic and intellectual community of the School. The fellow will be expected to teach one advanced graduate course related to her/his research topic in the spring 2012 semester. The stipend for the fellowship will be $38,000 for a 12-month appointment beginning in August 22, 2011, with a $2,000 research and travel stipend. Fellows are eligible for benefits. The stipend for this position may be subject to UW System furlough and budgetary policies.

Application Information:

• Applicants must be scholars who are not yet tenured and who are no more than 3 years past receiving their PhD.
• Applicants must hold a PhD in information studies or related discipline. Applicants who do not yet hold a PhD but expect to have it by August 2011 will be asked to provide a letter from their home institution corroborating the degree award schedule. Verification of completion of degree will be required before the start date.
• Application packages must include: letter explaining research agenda, teaching interests, and appropriateness for the fellowship; a curriculum vitae; a writing sample; and 3 references.
• Send all application materials electronically to both Dr. Joyce Latham (latham@uwm.edu) and Dr. Michael Zimmer (zimmerm@uwm.edu).
• Deadline for application is April 30, 2011. Decisions to be made by May 31 2011.

For more information, please contact either Dr. Latham or Dr. Zimmer, and visit us at http://www4.uwm.edu/sois/ and http://www4.uwm.edu/cipr/.

(We are picking up the reins from our friend Dr. Elizabeth Buchanan, who is now the Endowed Chair and Director at the Center for Applied Ethics, University of Wisconsin-Stout.)

One of our first acts as directors was to update CIPR’s website and tweak (only slightly) its mission:

The Center for Information Policy Research (CIPR) is the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s multidisciplinary research center for the study of the intersections between the policy, ethical, political, social and legal aspects of the global information society. CIPR‘s research and scholarship focuses on such key information policy issues as intellectual property, privacy, intellectual freedom, access to information, censorship, cyberlaw, and the complex array of government, corporate, and global information practices and policies.

With information infrastructures and technologies and the globalization of information evolving at a faster pace than our social, legal, and educational systems, it is imperative that information policy issues be examined systematically in an interdisciplinary environment. Established in 1998 within the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee School of Information Studies (SOIS), CIPR facilitates information policy research through its research agenda, lecture series, consulting and outreach activities, and its various fellows programs.

CIPR welcomes formal and informal collaborations with other scholars, institutions and agencies interested in information ethics, law, or policy. CIPR personnel are available for consultations, advisement, presentations, and related educational and outreach opportunities.

Already this year, CIPR has partnered with UW-M’s Center for 21st Century Studies for the successful “Minding the Gaps: WikiLeaks and Internet Security in the 21st Century” symposium, which featured Laura DeNardis (Yale Information Society Project), and UWM faculty Sandra Braman (Communication) and Richard Grusin (C21, English). And, Joyce and I have represented CIPR at a discussion on “Intellectual Freedom vs. WikiLeaks” at the Brookfield Public Library.

For interested PhD students, we’ve organized an informal reading group on “Information & Power”, led by CIPR Faculty Fellow Sandra Braman.

Stay tuned for announcements of future events and appearances. Follow CIPR on Twitter, and find us on Facebook.

Registration for this event is requested, but not required. To register or to request further information, please call 262-782-4140. Download the flier here, and please join us for this important discussion.

Minding the Gaps: WikiLeaks and Internet Security in the 21st Century

A symposium with Laura DeNardis (Yale Information Society Project), and UWM faculty Sandra Braman (Communication) and Richard Grusin (C21, English).

The title of our symposium comes from the ubiquitous pre-recorded security voice on the London Tube, reminding passengers to “mind the gap” between train cars and platforms. Unlike the physical gaps of 20th century transportation technologies like the Underground, the information gaps of 21st century communication technologies like the Internet pose security issues of a very different kind—as epitomized by the ongoing conflict between WikiLeaks and (especially) the US government.

This symposium will address the questions of WikiLeaks and Internet security from three different perspectives—political, legal, and medial—in order to come to terms with the ways in which WikiLeaks crystallizes some of the major security questions of the 21st century.

Friday, February 4, 2011
2:00 pm, Curtin 175

The School of Information Studies (SOIS) is proud to welcome Wilhelm Peekhaus as the 2010-11 Postdoctoral Fellowship in Information Policy.

Peekhaus earned a Doctorate in Library and Information Science in 2008 from the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario (Canada).  Peekhaus comes to SOIS from the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois where he was the 2008-10 Information in Society Postdoctoral Fellow. In 2003, he earned a Master’s of Library and Information Science from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia and an Honours Bachelor of Arts in 1992 from McGill University in Montréal, Quebec.

Peekhaus’ doctoral study primarily focused on the biotechnology community and information policy in Canada. In 2008, he successfully defended his dissertation, Canada’s Biotechnology Strategy: Struggles on the Knowledge Commons. At Illinois, he taught courses in information policy. In addition to numerous international conference presentations both within and beyond LIS, his work has been published by the Canadian Journal of Law & Technology, Government Information Quarterly, Journal of Information Ethics, and Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society.

“This is new ground for SOIS and we’re eager to welcome Wilhelm to our team,” said Center for Information Policy Research Director Elizabeth Buchanan. At SOIS, Peekhaus will help enhance the research profile of the school while also teaching graduate level courses. “Wilhelm brings a lot of experience with him to SOIS, and we know that he’ll play a big part in advancing our reputation as a leader in information policy.”

“Bringing in Wilhelm is a big step for SOIS,” said SOIS Interim Hope A. Olson. “With our recent grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and a postdoctoral program in place, SOIS has cemented its academic reputation as a leader in library and information science research.”

Postdoctoral Fellowship in Information Policy
School of Information Studies
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

The School of Information Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is accepting applications for a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Information Policy for 2010-2011.

The information policy fellowship is designed recent PhDs who are interested in social, ethical, economic, legal, and technical aspects of information and information technologies with a focus on information policy and information ethics. Specifically, we are seeking candidates with research and teaching interests in the philosophy of information, critical/cultural studies of information, and/or advanced research methods.

Along with continuing their own research agenda, the fellow will work closely with the Center for Information Policy Research and affiliated faculty, assist in coordination of related events, work with current PhD students, and participate in the academic and intellectual community of the School. The fellow will be expected to teach one class in the fall and spring semesters. The stipend for the fellowship will be $38,000 for a 12-month appointment beginning in August 2010, with a $2,000 research and travel stipend. Fellows are eligible for benefits. Stipend for this position may be subject to future UW System furlough policies.

Application Information:

• Applicants must be scholars who are not yet tenured and who are no more than 3 years past receiving their PhD.
• Applicants must hold a PhD in a information studies or related discipline. Applicants who do not yet hold a PhD but expect to have it by August, 2010 will be asked to provide a letter from their home institution corroborating the degree award schedule. Verification of completion of degree will be required before the start date.
• Application packages must include: letter explaining research agenda, teaching interests, and appropriateness for the fellowship, curriculum vitae, writing sample, and 3 references.
• Send all application materials electronically to: Dr. Elizabeth Buchanan at eliz1679@uwm.edu
• Deadline for application is April 30, 2010. Decisions to be made by May 31 2010.

For more information, please contact  Dr. Elizabeth Buchanan at eliz1679@uwm.edu, and visit us at http://www4.uwm.edu/sois/ and http://www4.uwm.edu/cipr/

The School of Information Studies (SOIS) at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) is accepting applications for fall of 2010 for its PhD program in Information Studies.

Building on one of the largest and most varied MLIS programs in the United States, the PhD program prepares researchers, educators, and administrators with specializations in three major areas (with other areas also supported):

• Information Organization
• Information Policy
• Information Retrieval

The School’s international faculty are recognized for their research productivity, ranking in the top five nationally in per capita publications in a recent study among American schools of library and information science (Adkins & Budd, 2007). The School also has established agreements and collaborations with a number of institutions around the world that offer students international learning and research experiences. SOIS is home to the Center for Information Policy Research (CIPR), which facilitates information policy research through its lecture series and research paper series, outreach activities, and Information Ethics Fellows program. The School also supports an Information Organization Research Group (IOrg), Research Group for Information Retrieval (RGIR), as well as an Information Intelligence & Architecture Research Lab, which serves as a hub for research on information analysis, system design & evaluation, digital libraries, data mining, and usability.

Located in a residential neighborhood near Lake Michigan, UWM serves a diverse community of over 30,000 students, faculty and staff. The very livable city of Milwaukee offers the cultural amenities of a large metropolitan area with the conveniences of a smaller city.

Financial aid is available in the form of competitive graduate assistantships (full-time students), tuition scholarships, and adjunct teaching opportunities. Priority consideration for admission will be given to applications received by January 15, 2010.

Detailed information about the program is available on the SOIS website (http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/SOIS/academics/doctoral.htm). For additional information, please contact Dietmar Wolfram (dwolfram@uwm.edu).