ME3V250027.5 ECTSQ2EnglishBachelor
Media, Platforms and Infrastructures
FaculteitFaculty of Humanities
NiveauBachelor
Studiejaar2026-2027
Beschrijving
Course goals
- Students develop a strong understanding of foundational concepts and theories from platform studies, infrastructure studies, and critical AI studies.
- Students can critically analyze a (media) platform or infrastructure using theoretical and methodological approaches from media and cultural studies.
- Students can assess platforms and infrastructures in terms of their societal, cultural, economic, and environmental impact.
- Students can communicate research findings effectively in written and oral formats, demonstrating analytical rigor and clarity.
Content
In a world deeply mediated by digital platforms and infrastructures, this course investigates the foundational and material elements that underpin global digital media, culture, and society. While platforms such as Netflix, YouTube, Uber, and AI systems like ChatGPT transform communication, media, and labor, their underlying infrastructures—including data centers, undersea cables, cloud computing systems, and energy grids—remain essential yet often invisible.
This course introduces students to platform, infrastructure, governance, and critical AI studies to analyze how platforms act as non-neutral intermediaries in the production and circulation of media, communication, and information. Students reflect on ownership models, governance structures, and regulatory challenges across different types of platforms, including social media, gaming, and streaming services. Students also examine the material foundations of these systems (e.g. their data, algorithms, and infrastructures), their environmental impact, and the uneven labor systems that sustain them.
This course introduces students to platform, infrastructure, governance, and critical AI studies to analyze how platforms act as non-neutral intermediaries in the production and circulation of media, communication, and information. Students reflect on ownership models, governance structures, and regulatory challenges across different types of platforms, including social media, gaming, and streaming services. Students also examine the material foundations of these systems (e.g. their data, algorithms, and infrastructures), their environmental impact, and the uneven labor systems that sustain them.
By examining how platforms and infrastructures function as socio-technical systems, students will critically assess their impact on everyday practices, global power relations, and cultural flows, while raising important ethical dilemmas and sustainability concerns.
This is the second course in the specialisation AI Cultures & Global Digital Society.
Additional information
Priority rules
This course has priority rules and a waiting list. Your enrolment is guaranteed if you
This course has priority rules and a waiting list. Your enrolment is guaranteed if you
- are a student in the BA Media and Culture and this course is part of your specialisation (verdiepingspakket)
- are a student in the BA Liberal Arts and Sciences or Taal- en Cultuurstudies and this course is part of your specialisation (kernpakket)
- are enrolled in the Media Data and Platform Studies minor
- are an exchange student and meet the course’s entry requirements
In all other situations, you will be placed on a waiting list if you enrol in this course. For any remaining slots in the course, lots are drawn among the students on the waiting list.
Equivalency
This course is equivalent to the courses ME3V21002 Infrastructures of Digital Cultures. If you have already completed this course, you may not take Media, Platforms and Infrastructures due to too much overlap in content.
Equivalency
This course is equivalent to the courses ME3V21002 Infrastructures of Digital Cultures. If you have already completed this course, you may not take Media, Platforms and Infrastructures due to too much overlap in content.
Reviews0 reviews
Nog geen reviews voor dit vak. Wees de eerste!
Heb jij dit vak gevolgd?
Deel je ervaring met toekomstige studenten. Inloggen met je Universiteit Utrecht mailadres duurt één minuut.
Schrijf een review