Paper short abstract:

This presentation unpicks digital ethnographic methods used whilst conducting fieldwork on "digital deaths" online. By transparently detailing my methodology, it aims to contribute to an honest and extensive debate on processes, challenges, and the future of research collaboration.

Paper long abstract:

At a time in which the deaths of celebrities quickly become hashtags on Twitter, we all have to face the question of what happens to our own digital afterlives, as well as those of our loved ones. This presentation unpicks digital ethnographic methods used whilst conducting ongoing fieldwork online on “digital deaths”. Here, the latter refers to the digital afterlife, what happens to our online traces and social media profiles after we pass away, and how the advent of social media has changed our relationship with death and grieving. Even prior to Covid-19’s impact, which forced many research projects online, anthropological studies into death and grief via the Internet were facing new challenges, both to explore as a researcher and to reflect on methodologically. These include omnipresent online traces, ethical algorithms, shifting presentations of the self, data storage of (deceased) users’ assets, and an online field-site. By transparently detailing my research methodology with Facebook and Instagram users who have suffered a loss, this presentation contributes to an honest and extensive debate on processes, challenges, and the future of research collaboration. It draws from physically-situated ethnographies to ask whether a methodology rooted in shared anthropology (Rouch 1995) is possible digitally or at what point an in-person element is necessary, especially concerning sensitive and often-tabooed topics. The research goal is a visual accompaniment, one which has, to date, only been possible in auto-ethnographic form. How possible is collaborative filmmaking online? Accordingly, this presentation is interested in discussing these aspects together.