ASAUK NextGen2020+ In Defense of Gossip
A Conversation Between Joyce Nyairo and Keguro Macharia,
Chaired by Eddie Ombagi
What if we think of Gossip as a force, a means through which narratives and the art of narrative making can be achieved? What if we think of Gossip as a way that social and power relations are mediated? What if we think of Gossip as a tool to navigate human relationships in the age of technology and surveillance? What if we think of Gossip as the reason humans developed language in the first place?
Gossip has often been thought of as a vice, that which is morally reprehensible and therefore undesired. We Gossip with our friends, families, neighbours, colleagues and sometimes even with strangers. We Gossip at home, in church, at the train station, bus stop, airport. We Gossip in the office, in class or on the phone.
Gossip is sometimes speculative but it is not inherently untrue. Therefore, what is the cultural, social or sociological context of sharing Gossip? What does it mean to listen to Gossip? What debts do we incur by keeping ‘secrets’ accrued from Gossip? How do we repeat Gossip? (Can we even repeat Gossip?).
In this conversation we are interested in the production, circulation and eventual consumption of Gossip. We are interested in what we Gossip about, whom we Gossip with, why we Gossip, how we Gossip and the nature and ‘taste’ of Gossip and what this means to the eventual production of cultural knowledge of self and others.
Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84637960105
Jul 15, 2021
5:00 PM Lagos
3:00 PM Nairobi
2:00 PM Johannesburg