ReDICo: The Podcast for Digital Interculturality

In the second episode of the series Luisa Conti and Fergal Lenehan, from the Centre for Digital Interculturality Studies, talk to Nathalie Fridzema from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands and Anya Shchetvina from the Humboldt University of Berlin in Germany. Nathalie and Anya are PhD scholars and historians of the Internet, who presented a paper at the ReDICo-Conference in June 2025 called “Nostalgia, DIY and Internet Critique: The Emergence of the Vernacular Web as an Imaginary of Alternative Digital Futures.” The conversation touches on the vernacular web and what exactly this is, platforms dealing with the past of the Internet such as the Yesterweb, and the nostalgia-tinged imagining of Internet futures.
So, is the vernacular web simply a nostalgic-conservative imaginary of the past or is it, actually, a suitable imaginary for re-thinking the future of digitality, beyond the stranglehold of corporate platforms? 
Listen to find out!
For more information on ReDICo and the ReDICo Centre for Digital Interculturality Studies, see: www.redico.eu
To join the ReDICo Hub, go to: https://hub.redico.eu 
Visit the ReDICo YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@DigInterculture 
For more on the work of Nathalie and Anya, see their joint blog: https://matterofimagination.neocities.org    

In the first episode of the series Fergal Lenehan and Luisa Conti, from the Centre for Digital Interculturality Studies, talk to Ethan Zuckerman. Ethan is a world-recognized expert in the field of the digital and is a professor at the Manning College of Information and Computer Sciences at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, USA. He has published widely and his book, Rewire: Digital Cosmopolitans in the Age of Connection, originally from 2013, has been highly influential among those who wish to see more connection between the scholarly areas of Internet Studies and Intercultural Communications. The conversation engages with Ethan’s recent work on digital archives and the topic of random archiving, the different uses of the platforms YouTube and TikTok in different cultural contexts, and concludes with a discussion on the future of the Internet as Fergal asks Ethan to re-visit his arguments from 2013 for the present time. 
Can the Internet, a tool which can potentially connect people rather than contributing further to polarization, really be rethought for the future in a more cosmopolitan manner? 
Listen to find out!
For more information on ReDICo and the ReDICo Centre for Digital Interculturality Studies, see: www.redico.eu
To join the ReDICo Hub, go to: https://hub.redico.eu 
Visit the ReDICo YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@DigInterculture 
For more information on Ethan Zuckerman’s work, see: https://ethanzuckerman.com  
   

In the third episode of the "ReDICo Podcast”, Anna Finzel and activist Bisi Alimi discuss the challenging situation of the LGBTQI+ community in Nigeria, where same-sex relationships are still criminalized.

LGBTQI+ activist Bisi Alimi shares insights on the legal landscape, his personal experiences, and the critical role online communities play for marginalized individuals. Alimi emphasizes the importance of self-acceptance, fighting for LGBTQI+ rights, and supporting cross-border activism. He explains how social media platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook have become safe spaces for the LGBTQI+ community in Nigeria, despite ongoing risks and challenges. Alimi also reflects on his public coming-out and his return to Nigeria, highlighting the significance of solidarity and the ongoing struggle for freedom, a fight that must be earned through perseverance.


For more information see:

www.redico.eu 

https://www.bisialimifoundation.org/

In this episode, Luisa Conti and Roman Lietz explore how individuals and communities are evolving in a postdigital and globalized society.

We begin with a reflection on the freedom of movement that characterizes the digital space: our plural and dynamic identities unfold day by day, click by click, in a culturally hybrid space where the local becomes increasingly less relevant and defining. However, even in the digital space we are confronted with limits: picking up the discussion from the first episode, we examine key factors that frame our (inter)actions online. While some of these apply to everyone, such as algorithms, others manifest themselves in varying ways: introducing a multi-dimensional understanding of the 'digital divide', we give hints about how the quality of postdigital life differs between people. This difference is rooted in social inequalities which, we argue, are both reproduced and actively reinforced in the digital space, not least through the discourses that emerge in anti-pluralist filter bubbles, which gain power by offering simplistic explanations for complex phenomena. After describing the mechanism we have observed in social media, we reflect on the importance of intercultural competence in dealing constructively with unfamiliarity and uncertainty. After presenting a new understanding of intercultural competence, we conclude the podcast with a call to rethink the internet as a whole.   
For more information see: www.redico.eu

In this episode of the ReDICo Podcast, Fergal Lenehan and Yolanda López García explore key concepts of digital intercultural communication. At the heart of the discussion is postdigitality, which highlights the merging of the analog and digital worlds. 

Platforms play a crucial role in this postdigital era and are transforming our everyday reality. A major focus of the discussion is how algorithms can shape our freedom. The episode emphasizes the importance of questioning their influence critically and engaging with them consciously. We also delve into postdigital cosmopolitanism, which promotes openness to the world and solidarity across national borders. The concept of "agency" – individual power to act – is re-examined in the context of digital intercultural communication. Finally, the episode offers a preview of the next topic, where identity and culture will take centre stage.


For more information, please go to: www.redico.eu.