The Brazilian indigenous peoples and the Internet

Eliane Fernandes Ferreira (University of Bremen, Germany) [BIO]

Email: elianefer@gmail.com

 

ABSTRACT:

Just like many indigenous peoples around the world the Brazilian indigenous peoples use the Internet in order to overcome the geographical and social isolation. This use of this technology of representation concerns the fight to reach cultural and social acknowledgement, and empower their political situation, making their voice heard. The internet also plays a revitalising role in their culture, through digital documentation and production of websites.

I’m going to present the findings of my three years research about the use of the Internet by the Brazilian indigenous peoples. My research was focussed on the questions about why and how the Brazilian indigenous peoples use the Internet, what are the goals, hopes, in what way is their operational readiness level connected to the Internet, in what form are the ethnic groups represented on the Internet itself, and what are the consequences of this encounter with the new media technologies. The cultural dynamics and processes that result from the entrance of the indigenous peoples into the new media were some of the central characteristics of investigation of this research project.