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Papers by Renee Penney
Routledge eBooks, Oct 23, 2019
Feminist Media Studies, 2016
A survey of news media coverage surrounding the suicide death of Amanda Todd reveals a preoccupat... more A survey of news media coverage surrounding the suicide death of Amanda Todd reveals a preoccupation with her act of flashing her breasts online, which was framed as a “mistake” in several reports. While the rhetoric of the mistake has protectionist overtones, it can also be viewed as a form of containment, and a continuation of the public shaming Todd experienced when she was alive. Throughout the coverage studied, youth are situated along a sliding scale of innocence and stupidity, exposing intergenerational conflicts at the core of this case. Understanding the impact of this rhetoric, and the significance of the public articulation of it, may shed light on the paradoxical status of incentives designed to protect children and youth that ultimately make them more vulnerable and exploitable.
In the expanding field of communication, Facebook holds a dubious position as both friend and foe... more In the expanding field of communication, Facebook holds a dubious position as both friend and foe. Hailed for its connectivity and its participatory potential, it is equally criticized for its egocentric exhibitionism and its voyeuristic gaze. And yet, Facebook currently boasts over one billion users who friend, share, like, poke, tag, message, creep, and stalk one another (Facebook, 2013a). Facebook's mission is simple: to give people "the power to share and make the world more open and connected" (Facebook, 2013b). Anyone can join Facebook. Anyone can be a watcher and/or be watched. The promise of "power" has transformed Facebook into a multimodal platform of surveillance, which blends interpersonal, institutional, aggregate, and investigative practices. In his text Social Media as Surveillance: Rethinking Visibility in a Converging World, Daniel Trottier considers this complex and conflicted terrain and analyzes the "mutual augmentation" of surveillance practices across user groups (p. 11). Influenced by Mark Andrejevic's concept of "digital enclosures" within the online economy (Andrejevic, 2004, p. 35), Trottier conceives of Facebook as a type of "dwelling" that diverse users occupy but do not own, which heightens the uncertainty associated with their virtual cohabitation. Despite the popularity and ubiquity of social networking sites like Facebook, Trottier argues that users are not prepared for this type of "social convergence" exposure (p. 4). He positions himself as an advocate of surveillance awareness, and as a critic of nonconsensual, third party use of personal information. Trottier's research is informed by surveillance studies and as such, Michel Foucault's articulation of Jeremy Bentham's panopticon as a model for power structures features prominently. Trottier's discussions of social media use among students and the aggregate surveillance of Facebook users by marketers are familiar territory. What sets Trottier apart is his user-centred approach to research and his articulation of the practice and consequences of mutual augmentation. Trottier incorporates a series of face-to-face interviews with individual, institutional, and business users. In doing so, he gathers rich description of user practices to consider what compels them to be on Facebook, how they conceptualize privacy, visibility, and sociality, and how they manage their identity(ies). The interviews themselves add considerable depth to his analysis. Trottier identifies a "pressing need to foreground social media users by having them describe the interface and their position in relation to it, instead of only using the interface to describe users" (p. 26). His criticism of surveillance practices therefore extends to ethnographic research, which situates human subjects as objects of analysis in the absence of subject consent or engagement. Commenting on research that relies purely on Facebook as a data resource, he states: "in addition to issues of generalizability, this kind of research makes assumptions about how concepts like friendships and social ties are operationalized" (p. 25). Trottier's methodology is designed to overcome these obstacles. Throughout the text, students are identified as particularly susceptible to "surveillance creep" (p. 20), but Trottier is quick to note the changing demographics sur-Reviews
Book Reviews by Renee Penney
Canadian Journal of Communication
Conference Presentations by Renee Penney
Invited guest: Alanis Obomsawin Film screened: Gene Boy Came Home (Alanis Obomsawin 2007)
MA Thesis by Renee Penney
Historically speaking, the queer film festival is rooted in grassroots politics and it exists as ... more Historically speaking, the queer film festival is rooted in grassroots politics and it exists as a counterculture space. Conversely, genre cinema is associated with classical Hollywood and it is largely associated with mainstream, heteronormative value systems. The queer romantic comedy represents a major flashpoint as a crossover phenomenon: in its ability to infiltrate these diametrically opposed cultural systems, it is viewed as both traitor and arbitrator simultaneously. The response to this queered genre is directly related to critical debates surrounding the question of whether the queer film festival space has become or seeks to become redundant. Ironically, while the question of redundancy circulates, critical analysis of the queer film festival space has only recently begun to emerge, while the queer romantic comedy itself is virtually nonexistent within genre theory. As such, I argue that the queer film festival and the queer romantic comedy are inextricably linked as sites of transgression, and that, neither are becoming redundant.
Talks by Renee Penney
Film presented: Straightlaced: How gender’s got us all tied up (Debra Chasnoff 2009)
Curatorial by Renee Penney
Program curator for The Scene: Youth Media Festival, an annual youth-centred festival that promot... more Program curator for The Scene: Youth Media Festival, an annual youth-centred festival that promotes media literacy and community engagement. The Festival is dedicated to the presentation of media work that complements the curriculum needs of Saskatchewan secondary schools. With its educational focus, The Scene presents screenings, panel discussions, Q&A sessions with filmmakers, and hands-on workshops. While the Festival targets teachers and students, it is open to the public.
Program curator and producer for Flicks International Film Festival for Young People, a youth-cen... more Program curator and producer for Flicks International Film Festival for Young People, a youth-centred film festival that included film screenings, hands-on industry workshops, a fully subsidized 'roaming workshop' series, a 'school day series' and the Zoom In youth filmmaking competition.
Program Curator for Atlantic Showcase featuring queer films and videos from Atlantic Canada 1998... more Program Curator for Atlantic Showcase featuring queer films and videos from Atlantic Canada 1998, 2001
Creative Production - Theatre by Renee Penney
Guest performer on pilot program for CBC-TV.
Routledge eBooks, Oct 23, 2019
Feminist Media Studies, 2016
A survey of news media coverage surrounding the suicide death of Amanda Todd reveals a preoccupat... more A survey of news media coverage surrounding the suicide death of Amanda Todd reveals a preoccupation with her act of flashing her breasts online, which was framed as a “mistake” in several reports. While the rhetoric of the mistake has protectionist overtones, it can also be viewed as a form of containment, and a continuation of the public shaming Todd experienced when she was alive. Throughout the coverage studied, youth are situated along a sliding scale of innocence and stupidity, exposing intergenerational conflicts at the core of this case. Understanding the impact of this rhetoric, and the significance of the public articulation of it, may shed light on the paradoxical status of incentives designed to protect children and youth that ultimately make them more vulnerable and exploitable.
In the expanding field of communication, Facebook holds a dubious position as both friend and foe... more In the expanding field of communication, Facebook holds a dubious position as both friend and foe. Hailed for its connectivity and its participatory potential, it is equally criticized for its egocentric exhibitionism and its voyeuristic gaze. And yet, Facebook currently boasts over one billion users who friend, share, like, poke, tag, message, creep, and stalk one another (Facebook, 2013a). Facebook's mission is simple: to give people "the power to share and make the world more open and connected" (Facebook, 2013b). Anyone can join Facebook. Anyone can be a watcher and/or be watched. The promise of "power" has transformed Facebook into a multimodal platform of surveillance, which blends interpersonal, institutional, aggregate, and investigative practices. In his text Social Media as Surveillance: Rethinking Visibility in a Converging World, Daniel Trottier considers this complex and conflicted terrain and analyzes the "mutual augmentation" of surveillance practices across user groups (p. 11). Influenced by Mark Andrejevic's concept of "digital enclosures" within the online economy (Andrejevic, 2004, p. 35), Trottier conceives of Facebook as a type of "dwelling" that diverse users occupy but do not own, which heightens the uncertainty associated with their virtual cohabitation. Despite the popularity and ubiquity of social networking sites like Facebook, Trottier argues that users are not prepared for this type of "social convergence" exposure (p. 4). He positions himself as an advocate of surveillance awareness, and as a critic of nonconsensual, third party use of personal information. Trottier's research is informed by surveillance studies and as such, Michel Foucault's articulation of Jeremy Bentham's panopticon as a model for power structures features prominently. Trottier's discussions of social media use among students and the aggregate surveillance of Facebook users by marketers are familiar territory. What sets Trottier apart is his user-centred approach to research and his articulation of the practice and consequences of mutual augmentation. Trottier incorporates a series of face-to-face interviews with individual, institutional, and business users. In doing so, he gathers rich description of user practices to consider what compels them to be on Facebook, how they conceptualize privacy, visibility, and sociality, and how they manage their identity(ies). The interviews themselves add considerable depth to his analysis. Trottier identifies a "pressing need to foreground social media users by having them describe the interface and their position in relation to it, instead of only using the interface to describe users" (p. 26). His criticism of surveillance practices therefore extends to ethnographic research, which situates human subjects as objects of analysis in the absence of subject consent or engagement. Commenting on research that relies purely on Facebook as a data resource, he states: "in addition to issues of generalizability, this kind of research makes assumptions about how concepts like friendships and social ties are operationalized" (p. 25). Trottier's methodology is designed to overcome these obstacles. Throughout the text, students are identified as particularly susceptible to "surveillance creep" (p. 20), but Trottier is quick to note the changing demographics sur-Reviews
Canadian Journal of Communication
Invited guest: Alanis Obomsawin Film screened: Gene Boy Came Home (Alanis Obomsawin 2007)
Historically speaking, the queer film festival is rooted in grassroots politics and it exists as ... more Historically speaking, the queer film festival is rooted in grassroots politics and it exists as a counterculture space. Conversely, genre cinema is associated with classical Hollywood and it is largely associated with mainstream, heteronormative value systems. The queer romantic comedy represents a major flashpoint as a crossover phenomenon: in its ability to infiltrate these diametrically opposed cultural systems, it is viewed as both traitor and arbitrator simultaneously. The response to this queered genre is directly related to critical debates surrounding the question of whether the queer film festival space has become or seeks to become redundant. Ironically, while the question of redundancy circulates, critical analysis of the queer film festival space has only recently begun to emerge, while the queer romantic comedy itself is virtually nonexistent within genre theory. As such, I argue that the queer film festival and the queer romantic comedy are inextricably linked as sites of transgression, and that, neither are becoming redundant.
Film presented: Straightlaced: How gender’s got us all tied up (Debra Chasnoff 2009)
Program curator for The Scene: Youth Media Festival, an annual youth-centred festival that promot... more Program curator for The Scene: Youth Media Festival, an annual youth-centred festival that promotes media literacy and community engagement. The Festival is dedicated to the presentation of media work that complements the curriculum needs of Saskatchewan secondary schools. With its educational focus, The Scene presents screenings, panel discussions, Q&A sessions with filmmakers, and hands-on workshops. While the Festival targets teachers and students, it is open to the public.
Program curator and producer for Flicks International Film Festival for Young People, a youth-cen... more Program curator and producer for Flicks International Film Festival for Young People, a youth-centred film festival that included film screenings, hands-on industry workshops, a fully subsidized 'roaming workshop' series, a 'school day series' and the Zoom In youth filmmaking competition.
Program Curator for Atlantic Showcase featuring queer films and videos from Atlantic Canada 1998... more Program Curator for Atlantic Showcase featuring queer films and videos from Atlantic Canada 1998, 2001
Guest performer on pilot program for CBC-TV.
One-woman show of comedy shorts about body image and sexuality. Presented as part of the Ladi... more One-woman show of comedy shorts about body image and sexuality.
Presented as part of the Ladies Room Comedy Festival which showcased women in comedy from across Canada.
One-woman show of comedy shorts about body image and sexuality.
'Inertia' is a woman trapped in steno limbo. She creates an imaginary world of codes and confidan... more 'Inertia' is a woman trapped in steno limbo. She creates an imaginary world of codes and confidants to escape her plight.
A program of short works that explored body image and sexuality. Co-written and performed with Th... more A program of short works that explored body image and sexuality. Co-written and performed with Thom Fitzgerald and Michael Weir.
An interrogation of the taboos surrounding menstruation. Solo performance presented in the middle... more An interrogation of the taboos surrounding menstruation. Solo performance presented in the middle of the Boston Pride Arts Festival opening reception.
Cabaret-style performance about sexuality and identity formation. Comprised of comedic monologue... more Cabaret-style performance about sexuality and identity formation. Comprised of comedic monologues and musical performances by two characters: Sylvie Plaza and Mana. Co-written and performed with Michael Weir and Thom Fitzgerald.
Program of short works that challenged taboos surrounding body image and sexuality. Co-written an... more Program of short works that challenged taboos surrounding body image and sexuality. Co-written and performed with Thom Fitzgerald and Michael Weir.
A short comedic video about biphobia, 3 mins. This video was presented at various internationa... more A short comedic video about biphobia, 3 mins.
This video was presented at various international film festivals and it was broadcast on Pridevision TV. Festival presentations include:
MILAN 16 FESTIVAL INTERNAZIONALE DI CINEMA GAYLESBICO, Milan, Italy 2002
MIX: 15TH NEW YORK LESBIAN GAY EXPERIMENTAL FILM/VIDEO FESTIVAL, NY 2001
IMAGE + NATION XIV: MONTREAL INTER’L QUEER FILM AND VIDEO FEST, Quebec 2001
INTERNATIONAL CORK FILM FESTIVAL, Cork City, Ireland 2001
WESTERN AUSTRALIA LESBIAN & GAY FILM FESTIVAL, Western Australia, 2001
25TH ANNUAL SAN FRANCISCO INTERNATIONAL GAY & LESBIAN FILM FEST, California 2001
OUT ON SCREEN: INTERNATIONAL GAY & LESBIAN FILM FESTIVAL, Vancouver, BC 2000
A short audio work about the trials and tribulations of failing to live up to the American Dream,... more A short audio work about the trials and tribulations of failing to live up to the American Dream, 12 mins.
Co-written with David Kolber. Directed and produced by David Kolber.
A short, poetic audio work about 'nine lives' of sexual awakening, 12 mins. Director/editor: Dav... more A short, poetic audio work about 'nine lives' of sexual awakening, 12 mins. Director/editor: David Kolber
A short video about a woman who celebrates her period each month, 7 mins. Based on the perform... more A short video about a woman who celebrates her period each month, 7 mins.
Based on the performance piece, Cherriova, written and performed by Renée Penney. Adapted to screen by Thom Fitzgerald. Directed by Thom Fitzgerald.
This film has screened at a variety of film festivals in North America and it was broadcast on WTN and the Independent Eye.
A short film about body image and eating disorders, 3 mins. Co-written with Thom Fitzgerald. Dire... more A short film about body image and eating disorders, 3 mins. Co-written with Thom Fitzgerald. Directed by Thom Fitzgerald.
A short comedic video, 11 mins. Co-written and performed with Michael Weir. This video evolved fr... more A short comedic video, 11 mins. Co-written and performed with Michael Weir. This video evolved from the audio piece 'Lily and Christian.' In the video, Lily and Christian 'dish' about body image and sexuality.
Produced at the Centre for Art Tapes in Halifax, NS.
This video was screened at various film festivals in North America and was presented in Halifax in 2014 as part of a CFAT retrospective.
A short comedic audio work, co-written and performed with Michael Weir, 17 mins. Presented as... more A short comedic audio work, co-written and performed with Michael Weir, 17 mins.
Presented as part of the All-Day All-Gay broadcast on the community radio station CKDU-FM in Halifax, NS. This day of broadcasting was subjected to a CRTC review and this piece, along with a reading of a Beth Brant poem were singled out as 'offensive' to listeners due to their 'explicit' discussion of sexuality. The threat of censorship resulted in a national day of broadcast on community radio stations called 'SEX-FM'