Event Date: November 4, 2015 - 12:00

WILLIAM WALTERS, Carleton University.

Presented by the CIPS and the International Theroy Network (ITN).
Free. In English. Registration is not required. Seating is limited and available on a first come, first served basis.

Actor-network theory and governmentality have contributed to new understandings of publics in which objects and material practices are taken seriously. No longer can we assume that publics are made out of values, opinions, spirits and texts alone. This paper asks what challenges the issue of political secrecy might bring to the study of material publics. It raises two questions in particular. First, how should we make sense of objects which achieve power over publics not through their presence but because they are missing, rumoured, hidden, or otherwise obscure? Second, how are the rather liberal presumptions that apparently underpin research on material publics challenged once we recognize that bringing things into the forum can be a matter of life and death; that making secrets public often requires incredible courage? To answer these questions the paper draws examples from the 9/11 Commission, arguing this public inquiry is a fascinating political event in its own right, not least as a study in the making of publics and new opacities.

William Walters is a professor at Carleton University where he is cross-listed between Political Science and Sociology. Originally trained as a chemist at Imperial College, he studied politics at City University New York, and York University, Canada. Walters has authored or edited many books, the most recent being Governmentality: Critical Encounters (Routledge 2012). He has published extensively in such areas as citizenship studies, political sociology, governmentality, borders and migration, and security studies. His work has been translated into six different languages, and republished in numerous edited collections. He is co-editor of the book series Mobility & Politics (Palgrave Macmillan), and active on the editorial committees of the journals Economy & Society, Citizenship Studies, Foucault Studies, Materiali Foucaultiani, and Palgrave Communications. In addition to researching the politics of secrecy he is also engaged in collaborative projects on the logistics and infrastructures of migration.

*Please note: Photos and/or video recordings of this event may be posted on the CIPS website, newsletter and/or social media accounts.