Torture, Intelligence and Sousveillance in the War on Terror: Agenda-Building Struggles (Classical and Contemporary Social Theory)

Torture, Intelligence and Sousveillance in the War on Terror examines the communication battles of the Bush and Blair political administrations (and those of their successors in America and Britain) over their use of torture, first-hand or second-hand, to gain intelligence for the War on Terror. Exploring key agenda-building drivers that exposed the torture-intelligence nexus and presenting detailed case studies of key media events from the UK and USA, this insightful volume exposes dominant political discourses on the torture-for-intelligence policy. Whether in the form of unauthorized leaks, official investigations, investigative journalism, real-time reporting, or Non-Governmental Organisation activity, this timely study evaluates various modes of resistance to governments’ attempts at strategic political communication, with particular attention to ’sousveillance’: community-based recording from first-person perspectives. A rigorous exposition of the power-knowledge relationships constituting the torture-intelligence nexus, which re-evaluates agenda-building models in the digital age and assesses the strength of the public sphere across the Third, Fourth and Fifth Estates, Torture, Intelligence and Sousveillance in the War on Terror will appeal to scholars across the social sciences with interests in media and communication, sociology and social theory, politics and political communication, international relations, and journalism. The Social Pathologies Of Contemporary Civilization Explores The Nature Of Contemporary Malaises, Diseases, Illnesses And Psychosomatic Syndromes, Examining The Manner In Which They Are Related To Cultural Pathologies Of The Social Body. Multi-disciplinary In Approach, The Book Is Concerned With Questions Of How These Conditions Are Not Only Manifest At The Level Of Individual Patients' Bodies, But Also How The Social 'bodies Politic' Are Related To The Hegemony Of Reductive Biomedical And Individual-psychologistic Perspectives. Rejecting A Reductive, Biomedical And Individualistic Diagnosis Of Contemporary Problems Of Health And Well-being, The Social Pathologies Of Contemporary Civilization Contends That Many Such Problems Are To Be Understood In The Light Of Radical Changes In Social Structures And Institutions, Extending To Deep Crises In Our Civilization As A Whole. Machine Generated Contents Note: Pt. I Social Pathologies: Addressing The Question -- 1.the Notion Of Social Pathology: A Case Study Of Narcissus In American Society / Alain Ehrenberg -- 2.the Social Pathologies Of Contemporary Civilization: Meaning-giving Experiences And Pathological Expectations Concerning Health And Suffering / Arpad Szakolczai -- 3.modernity As Spiritual Disorder: Searching For A Vocabulary Of Social Pathologies In The Work Of Eric Voegelin / Bjørn Thomassen -- Pt. Ii Social Pathologies: Contemporary Malaises -- 4.the Value Of Houses In The Libidinal Economy: Financialization As Social Pathogenesis / Kieran Keohane -- 5.depression: Resisting Ultra-liberalism? / Bert Van Den Bergh -- 6.the Pathologization Of Morality / Svend Brinkmann -- 7.the Multiple Self: A Social Pathology? / Annalisa Porfilio -- 8.possible Explanations For Increasing Antidepressant Treatment In Modem Society / Gunnar Scott Reinbacher -- Contents Note Continued: Pt. Iii Social Pathologies: Biopower, Subjectification And Civilization -- 9.does Society Still Matter? Mental Health And Illness And The Social Sciences In The Twenty-first Century / Pia Ringø -- 10.evaluations As A Process Of Disenfranchisement / Rasmus Willig -- 11.schismogenesis, Liminality And Public Health / Agnes Horvath. Edited By Kieran Keohane And Anders Petersen. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. In the light of globalization's failure provide the universal panacea expected by some of its more enthusiastic proponents, and the current status of neo-liberalism in Europe, a search has begun for alternative visions of the future; alternatives to the free market and to rampant capitalism. Indeed, although these alternatives may not be conceived of in terms of being a 'perfect order', there does appear to be a trend towards 'utopian thinking', as people - including scholars and intellectuals - search for inspiration and visions of better futures. If, as this search continues, it transpires that politics has little to offer, then what might social theory have to contribute to the imagination of these futures? Does social theory matter at all? What resources can it offer this project of rethinking the future? Without being tied to any single political platform, Utopia: Social Theory and the Future explores some of these questions, offering a timely and sustained attempt to make social theory relevant through explorations of its resources and possibilities for utopian imaginations. It is often claimed that utopian thought has no legitimate place whatsoever in sociological thinking, yet utopianism has remained part and parcel of social theory for centuries. As such, in addition to considering the role of social theory in the imagination of alternative futures, this volume reflects on how social theory may assist us in understanding and appreciating utopia or utopianism as a special topic of interest, a special subject matter, a special analytical focus or a special normative dimension of sociological thinking. Bringing together the latest work from a leading team of social theorists, this volume will be of interest to sociologists, social and political theorists, anthropologists and philosophers. The Social Pathologies of Contemporary Civilization explores the nature of contemporary malaises, diseases, illnesses and psychosomatic syndromes, examining the manner in which they are related to cultural pathologies of the social body. Multi-disciplinary in approach, the book is concerned with questions of how these conditions are not only manifest at the level of individual patients'bodies, but also how the social'bodies politic'are related to the hegemony of reductive biomedical and individual-psychologistic perspectives. Rejecting a reductive, biomedical and individualistic diagnosis of contemporary problems of health and well-being, The Social Pathologies of Contemporary Civilization contends that many such problems are to be understood in the light of radical changes in social structures and institutions, extending to deep crises in our civilization as a whole. Rather than considering such conditions in isolation - both from one another and from broader contexts - this book argues that health and well-being are not just located at the level of the individual body, the integral human person, or even collective social bodies; rather, they encompass the health of humanity as a whole and our relationship with Nature. A ground-breaking analysis of social malaise and the health of civilization, this book will be of interest to scholars of sociology, social theory, social psychology, philosophy and anthropology. Cover Half Title Series Title Title Copyright Contents List of Figures List of Tables Acknowledgements List of Abbreviations 1 | Studying Torture, Intelligence and Media Manipulation in the War on Terror 2 | Strategic Political Communication, Intelligence and its Discontents 3 | The Rise of the Torture-Intelligence Nexus 4 | The Sousveillance Failure of John Walker Lindh 5 | The Surprise of Sousveillance at Abu Ghraib and the Struggle to Contain it 6 | The Persistence of Sousveillance: Baha Mousa and Torture in the British Military 7 | The Absence of Sousveillance 8 Conclusion References Index This book examines the communication battles of the Bush and Blair political administrations (and those of their successors) over their use of torture to gain intelligence for the War on Terror. Exploring the agenda-building drivers that exposed the torture-intelligence nexus and presenting case studies of key media events from the UK and USA, it examines dominant political discourses on the torture-for-intelligence policy and evaluates various modes of resistance to governments' attempts at strategic political communication, with particular attention to 'sousveillance': community-based record In the light of globalization's failure to provide the universal panacea expected by some of its more enthusiastic proponents, and the current status of neo-liberalism in Europe, a search has begun for alternative visions of the future; alternatives to the free market and to rampant capitalism. This book deals with this topic. Rejecting a reductive, biomedical and individualistic diagnosis of contemporary problems of health and well-being, this book contends that many such problems are to be understood in the light of radical changes in social structures and institutions, extending to deep crises in our civilization as a whole.