Behind a veil of technology

For over a century humankind has used larger and larger portions of the radio spectrum for wireless communication. At the same time as the number of used frequencies have increased, so have the number of wireless services. They are plenty today compared to the early 20th century. But since radio waves know no national boarders and some have very long reach, agreements on an international level are desirable. This project studies the implementation of the rules and regulations agreed upon by international institutions and organisations for telecommunication during the 20th century. The purpose is to unveil the process of frequency allocations for broadcasting in Europe, which earlier works (and sometimes the actors themselves) have regarded apolitical but which, on the basis of recent work in history of technology, we can expect to be very political indeed. More specifically I want to investigate what kind of politics was carried out, and if it is possible to talk about a specific culture of frequency allocations.

Project leader is Nina Wormbs.

Participants at the Division: Nina Wormbs.

The project is financed by Vetenskapsrådet.
Start: 2006 - End: 2009.