Biomedical risks and citizenship: depoliticizing cell site deployment in the Netherlands and Southern California

M.B. de Graaff, C. Bröer and R.A. Wester

Journal of Risk Research, 2017, vol. 20, issue 9, 1195-1210

Abstract: Cell phone technology has become a ubiquitous quasi-utility worldwide. Meanwhile, controversies around its health risks are continually emerging in locations around the world. In this paper, we argue that the ongoing controversy is primarily the effect of practices that are trying to govern cell site risks, rather than inherent uncertainties or qualities of the technology. We understand this as a process of medicalization that engenders bio-citizenship. We extend bio-citizenship theory by exposing how actors show an astute and reflexive awareness of the mobilizing potential of medicalization.We study the governance practice of cell site deployment in the Netherlands and Southern California, USA and investigate how the risk issues and citizenship concerning cell site deployment are co-produced in four main governance practices. Network roll-out practices move health risks backstage, prevention practices push health risks and uncertainties into the future. Design practices actively avoid cell site risks, whereas care practices contain them. Government and industry have become aware of the contentious effect of cell site deployment and govern this to protect the roll-out of the technology. We call this depoliticization. Depoliticization can unintendedly open up new avenues for citizen mobilization.

Date: 2017
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/13669877.2015.1071864 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:jriskr:v:20:y:2017:i:9:p:1195-1210

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/RJRR20

DOI: 10.1080/13669877.2015.1071864

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Risk Research is currently edited by Bryan MacGregor

More articles in Journal of Risk Research from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().