Big Data, Surveillance and Crisis Management

Big data, surveillance, crisis management. Three largely different and richly researched fields, however, the interplay amongst these three domains is rarely addressed.

In this enlightening title, the link between these three fields is explored in a consequential order through a variety of contributions and series of unique and international case studies. Indeed, whilst considering crisis management as an “umbrella term” that covers a number of crises and ways of managing them, the reader will also explore the collection of “big data” by governmental crisis organisations. However, this volume also addresses the unintended consequences of using such data. In particular, through the lens of surveillance, one will also investigate how the use and abuse of big data can easily lead to monitoring and controlling the behaviour of people affected by crises. Thus, the reader will ultimately join the authors in their debate of how big data in crisis management needs to be examined as a political process involving questions of power and transparency.

An enlightening and highly topical volume, Big Data, Surveillance and Crisis Management will appeal to postgraduate students and postdoctoral researchers interested in fields including Sociology and Surveillance Studies, Disaster and Crisis Management, Media Studies, Governmentality, Organisation Theory and Information Society Studies.

Author Biography

Kees Boersma is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Social Sciences of the VU University, Amsterdam

Chiara Fonio is currently working at the Joint Research Centre with a contract as CA (Contractual Agent)