EventsDr. Joyojeet Pal (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA): "Technopopulism: Social Media and the Evolution of Populist Politics"Research ColloquiumDatum: 25. June 2025Time: 16:15Street: Linzer Str. 4Room: 60.070The idea of technocracy in politics, which presents the rational management of policy and administration as a means of legitimacy, has taken on a new populist logic in India’s digital age. As the world grapples with the reality of Silicon Valley in the US Presidency, we examine the ways the discourse around technology and the people who run the technology industry has provided cover for charismatic leadership in India. We frame contemporary articulations of an Indian configuration of technopopulism within aspirations related to the technology jobs and computing artifacts since the 1990s, tracing their progress through the branding and public outreach of Indian politicians like Chandrababu Naidu and Narendra Modi. We consider ways in which social media and an alliance with the technology industry have allowed politicians to performance a language of technological modernity to obfuscate underlying institutional capture in various countries including El Salvador, Rwanda, Argentina and the United States. In conclusion, we look at the audience through the lens of the normative cover it offers elites, and the cruel aspiration it holds out for the citizenry at large.CVJoyojeet Pal is an Associate Professor of Information at the School of Information at the University of Michigan. In June 2025 he is ZeMKI Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Bremen. His work is on the role of technology in political outreach and polarization. He received his Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of California at Berkeley. Outside of his academic work, he has researched and produced ‘For the Love of a Man’ a Netflix feature documentary on the cult of personality around filmstar fan clubs in India.
