Disease knows no borders
an online ethnographic case study during the Covid-19 pandemic
Maja Klinga
Supervisor's name: Marietta Radomska Gender Studies, LiU
Master’s Programme
Gender Studies – Intersectionality and Change Master’s thesis 15 ECTS credits
ISRN: LIU-TEMA G/GSIC3-A—20/002-SE
Acknowledgements 2
Abstract 3
Introduction 4
1.1 Aim and research questions 6
1.2 Situated knowledge 6
2. Background 8
2.1 Covid-19 8
2.2 Infodemic 9
2.3 Spain and Sweden during Covid-19 10
3. Previous research 11
3.1 Epidemics and society 11
3.2 Biopolitics and pandemics 12
3.3 Pandemics and equality 14
4. Theoretical framework 17
4.1 Intersectionality 17
4.2 Biopolitics and power 18
4.2.1 Biopolitics, the urban problem and epidemics 20
4.3 The cultural politics of emotions 21
4.3.1 Sociality of emotions 22
5. Method 23
5.2 Online ethnographic case study 24
5.3 Analyzed material 25
5.4 Ethical considerations 26
6. Analysis 27
6.1 Freedom of movement 27
6.2 The hard and the soft way 30
6.3 Conspiratory theories and responses 33
7. Discussion 34
8. References 39
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, I would like to thank my supervisor Marietta Radomska.
Thank you for guiding me and making me believe in moments of doubt. I am forever grateful for having you as a supervisor both during the first and the second master thesis. I would also like to thank Edyta Just for being who you are. This master program wouldn’t have been the same without you.
Thank you to my fellow student colleagues for all the laughs, frustrations and conflicts. They made me grow.
I would like to thank my partner Victor and my family for your unconditional love and support during these years and for believing in me at all times.
And last but not least although you can not read, thank you Cleo, for being my purest source of joy and love. They say it is absolutely normal to talk to your pet when in quarantine.
Abstract
The aim of this thesis is to analyze the reactions and expressions towards the governmental regulations amongst Swedes in Spain during the Covid-19 pandemic. This is a qualitative online ethnographic case study where a online forum is analysed through a content
analysis. The data has been understood through intersectionality theory, biopolitics as outlined by Michel Foucault and Sara Ahmed’s work on the cultural politics of emotions. The analysis identified various themes and as well as emotions circulating around these. Swedes in Spain are expressing their frustration and critique towards illogical and counterproductive regulations as well as showing irritation directed to their freedom of movement being taken away. Frustration and uncertainty are circulating in the discussions. Sociocultural categories such as class, nationality, gender and age as well as how they intensifie each other appear. The Covid-19 pandemic is affecting people in various ways, and the intersectional lens makes it possible to analyse how people depending on their privileges (or lack of) are able to cope with the regulations. This research shows on the importance of an feminist intersectional lens when evaluating the effects of the regulations during the Covid-19 pandemic in each country.
1.
Introduction
A pandemic crisis has been pointed out as one of the most alarming threats that our globalized world could face. The expression “disease knows no borders” captures a renewed sense of vulnerability to infectious diseases in the interconnected world we are living in. The central features of a global modern society makes the world extremely vulnerable in the happening of a pandemic crisis.
The Covid-19 pandemic is now giving us answers on what diverse effects a pandemic crisis in our modern time can have, and how people are affected in various ways. Whole countries are put into quarantine and from one day to the next, the movement of people is strictly regulated. Borders are closed. The examples on responses towards the pandemic around the world are many, as well as varying.
This is an online ethnographic case study with focus on Swedish people in Spain and their expressions and response towards the regulations set up by the Spanish and Swedish governments during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. While the world is
adapting to a new reality of quarantine and social distancing, the online world is more alive than ever. People are apart, but at the same time close together.
An intersectional framework will be adapted throughout this research and make it possible to shed light on several dimensions in the analysis. The intersectional framework will be used alongside biopolitics as understood by Foucault and Sarah Ahmed’s work on the cultural politics of emotions.
From the very beginning, I want to make clear that this study is taking place in a european context. It is putting focus on people who have the freedom of speech, and this research is limited to those who feel safe expressing their emotions and thoughts during this time. This means that the results found must be considered in relation to this. It must be acknowledged that there are people without this possibility, that are facing the Covid-19 pandemic under other circumstances. Therefore, a light will also be shed on silence. What groups in our societies turns silent in a crisis? What realities are not shared in an ongoing pandemic with countries put into quarantine and lockdown? This is necessary to discuss in order to understand how regulations are affecting people differently and what can be done in another way in future pandemics to prevent that some people’s realities are forgotten
and turned silent. This is crucial to analyse as the regulations might lead to an amplifying vulnerable position for some people in an already existing vulnerability.
Throughout history, the world has faced many epidemics and pandemic crises. These crises have had huge impacts on historical change and development, and are as crucial to understand as wars, economic crises and demographic change.
By conducting this research a greater understanding is hoped to be reached regarding how Swedish people in Spain are coping with the regulations and rules set up by the governments and authorities. Through the use of intersectionality and biopolitics, a focus will also be put on the effects of the regulations themselves, and how the silence from some groups in our societies can be understood and problematised. What are the effects of a pandemic crisis if we look beyond the medical? Are there other aspects that should be considered in order to give a fair picture of the consequences?
1.1 Aim and research questions
The aim of this thesis is to analyze the reactions and expressions towards the governmental regulations amongst Swedish people in Spain during the Covid-19 pandemic. The reactions will be understood in a biopolitical context, and will also be evaluated through Sara
Ahmed's work on emotions as a social and cultural practise. By conducting this research, the intersectional framework will be used as an overall lens to make it possible to account for many different dimensions in the analysis. This study is designed around the following research questions:
- How do Swedes living in Spain during the Covid-19 pandemic express their reactions and emotions in relation to the regulations introduced by the Spanish and the Swedish
authorities in result of the pandemic crisis?
and
- How can these regulations be understood through an intersectional lens?
1.2 Situated knowledge
In this section, I will share how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected myself, from the position I hold. I believe this is important in order to be transparent about the context in which this research is taking place, as well as how I am related to the topic.
I am a 26 year old woman from Sweden but I live in Spain, on the island of Mallorca. I am working with photography and writing and my academical background is in sociology, political science, rhetorics and journalism. My partner is working as a pilot, and we have a dog. My dad is working as a ambulance nurse in Sweden and through his stories and experiences this whole situation is becoming very real. It is a hard time to be separated from the ones you love, yet I am really thankful for hopefully being able to see them again in a short future. This is not the case for everyone who is far away from the ones they love.
Mallorca has not been hit so hard during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic
compared to the rest of Spain, but the regulations are the same. For two months we have been in quarantine and allowed outside only to walk the dog, buy food and visit the pharmacy. People with work considered essential have been allowed to continue working. Schools are closed and home schooling is put into place. Those who can work from home are told to do so. After seven weeks, a time schedule were declared with hours for
exercising outside. Not allowing outside exercise during the seven first weeks made the Spanish quarantine one of the worlds strictest.
For me personally, this has been quite a journey mentally. Initially, I felt like I was in the middle of something very unrealistic. It was hard to understand what was going on, and our freedom of movement was taken away so drastically. It felt absolutely crazy not being allowed outside to breath the fresh air and exercise, and only the thought of how it will affect the immune systems of the people in this population made me feel dizzy. At the same time, I felt and I still feel grateful for many things. I am not in a risk group and I live in a country where the health system allows everyone to get treatments. We don’t have to worry about food, we can follow the hygiene recommendations. So far, none of my closest family and friends have been in a critical condition due to the virus. I am still in a position with many privileges, yet, a frustration is growing inside me regarding what made me feel dizzy in the beginning. It is a challenge to follow rules that are meant to work, but seems to work counterproductive.
I believe that my position, as a Swede in Spain, is important to share in relation to what I will study in this research. I will conduct an online ethnography on forums for Swedish people in Spain, and I will be very careful about how I understand the discussions and comments in order not to let my preconceived thoughts affect the results in the analysis. At the same time, I view my position as an asset throughout this research as well, as I am well aware of the situation in Spain as well as in Sweden.
2. Background
In the following background section, Covid-19 will be introduced and explained. In order to understand the expressions and reactions amongst Swedish people in Spain, the
regulations and strategies by Spain and Sweden in the fight against the Covid-19 will be presented as well.
2.1 Covid-19
Covid-19 is traced back to a market in Wuhan, and suspected to have emerged from animals to humans through exotic animals sold for food. In December 2019, the virus SARS-CoV-2 that causes the disease Covid-19 appeared on a market in Wuhan in the Hubei province in China and was transferred to human from animals. The virus was identified as a coronavirus and given the name SARS-CoV-2. The disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus is called Covid-19. Throughout this research the term Covid-19 will be used, referring to the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The outbreak of Covid-19 spread fast from its origin in Wuhan. Wuhan, a large city with 11 million inhabitants, is a city serving as a hub with the rest of the country and the world and these conditions made it possible for the highly communicable virus to spread worldwide. (Kahn, 2020) A virus that travels from animals to humans is called zoonosis. These viruses are often a
consequence of human exploitation of wildlife and nature. (Kahn, 2020)
Covid-19 was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation on the 11th of March 2020 (WHO, 2020). At that point, Covid-19 had spread to 143 countries, states and territories. As a response to the virus, countries are using different approaches to delay the major surges of patients in order for the health care systems to have the possibility to give treatment to those in need. Most national response strategies consist of quarantine, whereas a minority advocates self-isolation and social distancing.
The effects of the virus in terms of how different countries are acting are easier to describe and understand than the virus itself. There is still much uncertainty about the virus since it is a new virus. We are not yet sure of all symptoms, how long you are carrying the virus when your symptoms are gone and not about the mortality rate either. These are just some examples of things that no one can be completely sure of yet, and of course, this is
not helping in the work to prevent the virus to spread, and also not for people who get anxious and are looking for answers and explanations. The uncertainty is what most of all is surrounding the world at the moment. This calls for attention to be focused on exactly this: the uncertainty. How are people coping? How is the uncertainty affecting them? How are people reacting?
2.2 Infodemic
Alongside the Covid-19 pandemic, there is also an ongoing infodemic. While the virus is spreading, a lot of information is circulating amongst people too. On the 11th of March, the world health organisation declared that the world is facing an ongoing pandemic. On the 15th of March during the Munich Security Conference, the General-Director of WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said “we are not just fighting an epidemic; we’re fighting an infodemic” (Zaracostas, 2020) As a response to this, the world health organization has made a site devoted to rumours and myths about the Covid-19 virus. The world health organization is also providing accurate and updated information on the virus and many things related to it on their website (WHO, 2020). At the same time, the world health organization is aware of the amount of misinformation as well as how fast social media allows it to spread. It’s a new challenge to face while fighting the virus (Zaracostas, 2020). As a result of this, tech-companies are facing different difficulties in keeping up with protecting their sites from being used to spread false or inaccurate information (Hern, 2020)
At the same time, Google Scholar has made all their research available through open access, and newspapers are opening their sites in order to make research on Covid-19 accessible for all. Yet, this “all” does not really mean everyone. There are still people in different areas around the world that are not reached by accurate information for different reasons, as well as people who are not educated in source criticism. The ability to use source criticism is very important due to the incorrect information spreading through social media, but also because desinformation is spread through traditional mass media as well. (Zaracostas, 2020) This will be discussed further in the section on Epidemics and Equality.
The new means of online communication makes it harder for a state to hide a virus
outbreak, and it also makes it harder for a state as well as an organization to control the information that is spread about the virus. Profiteers have used the internet and social media as arenas for selling “cures” as well as health and wellness products that are said to protect people against the virus.
2.3 Spain and Sweden during Covid-19
The national responses in Europe have been focused on public health measures such as handwashing as well, but also on expanding intensive care places. Large-scale public gatherings are postponed or cancelled. (Bedford et al, 2020) In order to fully understand the expressed reactions amongst Swedish people living in Spain, a brief summary of the two countries regulations during the Covid-19 pandemic will be presented.
Spain is one of the countries with the strictest quarantine rules. The Spanish
government declared a national emergency on the 14th of March, and it has been extended several times. The schools has been closed since, and only those with work considered essential has been allowed to continue working. The current status is that the state of alarm is continuing until the 24th of may, but it might as well be extended again. During the time of quarantine, Spain was in lockdown for seven weeks. During these seven weeks, people were allowed outside to buy food, visit the bank, walk their dog and visit the pharmacy to buy medicine. No outside activity such as walking or other kinds of exercise was allowed. (Sweden abroad, 2020).
After seven weeks of lockdown, a de-escalation plan was put into place. During the de-escalation plan, the restrictions will be lifted slowly. The plan includes a time schedule for outside exercise, movement regulations as well as many different rules that shops, bars and restaurants need to adapt to in order to open up their businesses again. Social
distancing is still advised and people are allowed to meet in small groups, the number depends on which phase of the de-escalation plan that a certain region is in. (Sweden abroad, 2020).
The Swedish authorities has decided not to put the whole country into quarantine with lockdown as one of few countries. Instead, people with a high risk of serious illness if getting infected by the virus are advised to self-isolate. If possible, they should let someone else do their shopping and avoid crowded place. The schools have remained opened, with
an exception for Universities and high schools that are practising online education. Many workplaces have made it possible for their employees to work from home.
(Folkhälsomyndigheten, 2020)
3. Previous research
In the following chapter, previous research within the fields of pandemics, society and equality will be presented. The previous research will put this study in context as well as being of help when understanding and analysing the material in this study. First, I will put focus on epidemics and society. Further on, a section will be devoted to biopolitics and pandemics. The final section is dedicated to pandemics and equality.
3.1 Epidemics and society
In Epidemics and society (2019), historian Frank M. Snowden gives an overview of epidemics throughout the history and how societies around the world reacted and got affected in different ways during different times of infectious diseases. The book is particularly interesting due to its focus on the societal effects of infectious diseases, and how the effects are different depending on the society it hits. Snowden focuses on
epidemics in terms of how they affect historical change and development. Snowden argues that epidemics and pandemics are as important to understand as other historical events such as economic crises, wars as well as demographic change in order to understand what makes a society change (Snowden 2020).
The spontaneous reaction amongst people throughout history when a epidemic disease is spreading has been to flee. These reactions will be interesting to keep in mind when analysing the expressed reactions of Swedes in Spain during the Covid-19 pandemic. Snowden argues that different epidemics throughout history has had an impact on the individuals but also on religion, modern medicine, public health, arts and intellectual history to mention a few areas. The focus in the book lies on Western Europe and North America, the so called “modern societies”. It raises questions regarding how prepared we are to confront the challenges a pandemic would mean today, and how the global
community deals with these issues can be an important factor in determining the survival
of our society, and perhaps even of our species. For some time, the understanding amongst researchers was that science and innovation eliminated the microbial threat. In 1969, the US Surgeon General declared the end of an era of infectious diseases, and schools of medicine such as Yale and Harvard closed their departments of infectious diseases. This was a terrible mistake that has been proven wrong (Snowden 2020).
In the end of the nineteenth century there was a shift in the conceptualization of microbial threat (McInnes 2016). In this shift, the understanding that science and
innovation alone cannot protect us against emerging diseases was put into focus, as well as how globalization connects the world in a new way and means of transport serves the spread of a virus. These aspects called for a global corporation to limit these risks by setting up global surveillance mechanisms and rapid biomedical response capacities. The expression “disease knows no borders” captures a renewed sense of vulnerability to infectious diseases in the interconnected world we are living in. The central features of a global modern society make the world extremely vulnerable in the happening of a pandemic. (Bengy Puyvallée & Kittelsen 2019).
3.2 Biopolitics and pandemics
In “Biocommunicability and the Biopolitics of Pandemic Threats” (2009) Charles L. Briggs & Mark Nichter draw attention to the H1N1 virus, more known as “swine flu”. The swine flu was noticed the first time in the United States in 2009 and was declared a public health emergency shortly after. During the first weeks of the swine flu a general discussion was ongoing questioning how big the threat of the virus really was, and if the threat was “real” or “overblown”. Briggs and Nichter further discuss how the rhetorical acts by politicians as well as the reports on the virus from newspapers had a big impact on how the citizens reacted. At the same time, new players, digital ones, entered the scene which meant that alternative theories and sources of knowledge started to circulate. Internet became the prime source for many people during the pandemic, instead of the advices communicated by experts and authorities in the mainstream media (Briggs & Nichter, 2009).
The public was warned to not fall victims for internet scams were useless drugs and ineffective face masks were said to be a protection against the virus. Also, the online
context became the place for conspiracy theories to be spread. While states, and corporate biosecurity regimes are regulating knowledge about infectious diseases, a big percentage of the people are willing to explore alternatives (Briggs & Nichter 2009). A big shift has taken place regarding the accessibility to knowledge. The politics of knowledge has changed in many parts of the world and knowledge is now one web-search away at least for growing segments of the world. This is a big shift in how knowledge is controlled, and it also calls for a discussion on an open internet atmosphere world wide. I will discuss this more into detail shortly. We still know little about how this big shift is empowering the citizens: if it leaves people overwhelmed from an overabundance of information or draws attention away from structural issues of environmental justice and access to health care. (Briggs & Nichter 2009) This will particularly be interesting to discuss in relation to the findings on the online forum, as well as in relation to the biopolitical framework. An increasing number of platforms to discuss and spread knowledge about health expand the opportunities of biopower in a neoliberal state. At the same time, they also challenges it because it increases the possibilities for others to share and spread information, as well as alternative knowledge. It plays a role in the report on a virus outbreak as well, as this new technology makes it harder for nations and global authorities to hide a disease outbreak. This means that a nation is less likely to be able to hide a virus outbreak in order to protect the nations tourism, trade, institutional politics, political alliances and national images. (Briggs & Nichter 2009)
This research puts focus on the regulations made by the Spanish and Swedish
governments during the Covid-19 pandemic, but also on the responses by people in online forums. How are people looking at infectious diseases? In the article “Immunity,
Biopolitics and Pandemics: Public and Individual Responses to the Threat to Life” (2015) the authors reveal how influenza is seen as something unavoidable, no matter how much one might try to avoid it. The participants in this study are talking about the immune system and how one can “build” one’s immune system strong and resistant. It becomes clear that the interviews are held in a western society where running water is seen as a given right. Also, it shows several interesting aspects regarding how people are looking at their immune systems as something that one can influence. This points us in the same direction as the running water, in this study people feel as if they can have an impact and
some kind of control over if they will get affected by an influenza or pandemic. It is a feeling of “it will not affect me, it will only affect others”.
3.3 Pandemics and equality
In “The Coronavirus Is a Disaster for Feminism” British author Helen Lewis exemplifies how the current pandemic, Covid 19, is hitting women differently than men. She is doing this by bringing examples from previous epidemic outbreaks, explaining how women are more likely to be put in a caring position when schools are closing, and how women’s part time contracts and lower wedges is a part of the structural way in which women are punished in the situation of a pandemic.
In France, reports of domestic violence increased by 38% after the quarantine was put in place. (Svt, 2020) Similar alarming reports are to be found around the globe, and shelters are desperately trying to communicate these problems. At the same time, kids in dysfunctional families with physical and mental violence are becoming even more vulnerable when schools are closing, all activities are cancelled and they are locked up inside for a long time.
In “Care in the Time of Covid-10” (2020) a discussion on how neoliberalism and capitalism is failing humanity and how it becomes clear during the Covid-19 pandemic is held. The discussion puts focus on the United States, and it is questioning the health care system in the country. The unevenness of access to affordable healthcare is a problem from many perspectives. First, those who will get diagnosed might not afford the loss of income for being put into quarantine and might therefore not test themselves at all. Second, even if people are diagnosed they might not be able to finance the medical costs if they would need treatment. The pandemic crisis in the United States makes the most vulnerable the least able to cope. (Neely & Lopez 2020) In the United States, 91% of all nurses are women, and nurses are the ones spending the most time with infected patients. Also, 29% of licensed practical nurses in the US identified as ethnic or racial minorities according to the National Nursing Workforce Survey 2017. (Neely & Lopez 2020).
Globally, women comprise more than 70% of the health workforce. Women are on the medical frontline during the Covid-19 pandemic, risking their own health in favor for the society. Women are delivering the world’s health care, yet most decision making including
national budgets lies in the hands of men. (Herten-Crabb & Davies 2020) It is also important to have a closer look on the category women that appear here, to conclude that this is a diverse group as well. Many of the women fighting on the line against Covid-19 are women of colour, many of whom live with uncertainty in the anti-immigrant climate in the United States. (Herten-Crabb & Davies 2020)
There are also many other (low paid in a western context) workers who are putting their health at risk by serving the society during this time. Those working with sanitizing and cleaning as well as in the grocery shops only to mention a few are also heavily exposed to the virus. The class perspective is important to account for regarding equality in the Covid-19 pandemic, and so is ethnicity, as well as gender, and most of all, how they intensifie each other. There are many levels to discuss here apart from what is already brought up in the example from the United States.
Closely related to my topic is the digital divide between the rich and poor. Internet is not only a place where people express their emotions and reactions, it is also a place where information is spread about the Covid-19 virus. This is not the case in all communities to the same degree, and there are low-income communities without access to transparent, responsible and current information. (Braun et al, 2020) This is also closely linked to what possibilities there are for online learning while schools are closed. Internet plays a
significant role in this research, which is already clear due to its methodological framework. The access to internet and communication technologies is not a right for everyone, even if the western world might make it appear as if it is. It is also important to acknowledge that there are rich communities, where the technology and internet is developed, but the state is regulating the internet and deciding what people should get access to and not.
A big amount of articles about the Covid-19 virus are published daily. Researchers are discussing the economical effects as well as putting focus on the medical outlooks, but not as much are produced with focus of how people are feeling and making sense of the situation, and not much is yet produced in the field of gender studies. Social research takes time.
In the article “Why WHO needs a feminist economic agenda” (2020) Herten-Crabb & Davies argue for the importance of a feminist economic lens that incorporates
intersectionality in the work of WHO. This approach addresses the power dynamics between genders and other dimensions of diversity such as nation states, ages, abilities, ethnicities and how they are playing a role in understanding gender equality and the economy. Some of these issues have been brought up by journalists throughout this crisis, and it is great that they are shedding light on how this pandemic (and future ones) might affect women and men differently, but also how marginalized groups in our societies suffer harder. Yet, the journalistic focus is not enough, as we will need research in order to make our governments acknowledge these issues more and in order for them to have data to refer to when analyzing this pandemic in order to conclude what we can learn from the current situation in order to prevent some people to suffer harder than others because of
inequalities in a pandemic crisis in the future. This study aims to contribute to this knowledge gap by focusing on areas that are not put in focus in the same scale as others.
4. Theoretical framework
Presented in what follows is the theoretical framework that will be used to analyze and understand the material in the analysis. In order to understand how the regulations affect the people and how the people react, a combination of theories will be used to account for the many different layers that are to be analysed.
First, Intersectionality as a theoretical framework as well as an overlying method in this research will be presented. The intersectional lens will account for several dimensions in the analysis, instead of focusing on only one. Second, biopolitics and biopower as
understood and theorized by Michel Foucault will be introduced in order to understand the governmental role in a pandemic crisis, and how their regulations are affecting the people. These two frameworks will be followed by Sara Ahmed’s work on the cultural politics of emotions in order to approach the reactions from people experiencing the pandemic and the different regulations made by different states.
4.1 Intersectionality
Intersectionality will be used as a tool when understanding how different sociocultural categories appear in the material, and how these categories have an impact on the expressions. The framework will also allow a discussion on the silence, and who the people are who have got a voice and possibility to share their experience and emotions. Intersectionality is a concept coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw in order to make sure that one account for the dynamics of difference and the solidarities of sameness when conducting work within the context of antidiscrimination and social movement politics (Crenshaw et al, 2013).
Even though many feminist researchers agree on the importance of accounting for the intersectional approach with its different sociocultural categories, there are many ways of describing how this should be done. Nina Lykke (2010) describes her take on
intersectionality like this:
“Intersectionality can, first of all, be considered as a theoretical and methodological tool to analyze how historically specific kinds of power differentials and/or constraining
normativites, based on discursively, institutionally and/or structurally constructed sociocultural categorizations such as gender, ethnicity, race, class, sexuality,
age/generation, dis/ability, nationality, mother tongue and so on, interact, and in so doing produce different kinds of societal inequalities and unjust social relations ” (Lykke 2010,
s. 50)
This is how intersectionality is understood and used throughout this research, to put focus on how different sociocultural categories interacts and reinforce each other. In the analysis, the intersectionality framework will be present and used in order to account for different sociocultural categories that can be visible and performed in the material, and the possible effects of them too. An intersectional reading of the regulations will also make it possible to discuss the effects of them properly.
This framework will also make it possible to account for the silence during the first weeks of the pandemic, to shed light on what it means that some people have the possibility to share their voices, while some people do not have this possibility due to a variation of reasons. An intersectional feminist analysis will be beneficial when
understanding the connection between the regulations, the effects on the society and on the people living in them. It will allow for several dimensions to be accounted for and
discussed, which is important in order to draw conclusions on how future pandemics can be dealt with.
4.2 Biopolitics and power
In what follows, Foucault’s understanding of biopolitics as well as power is presented. This framework will be useful when understanding how the human body is controlled by the states during the Covid-19-pandemic.
In his oeuvre, Michel Foucault substantially focuses on the question of power and the ways power operates on different levels in Western Societies. Foucault argues that biopower controls, modifies and shapes the biological lives of human populations. An individual is not only a citizen and a political subject, but also, most importantly, a biological entity belonging to the human species. Foucault means that biopower is the
result of a fundamental shift in how power is operated in the west, power is no longer exclusively sovereign, but operates in a different way. (Foucault 1976). This shift happened in the end of the nineteenth century and is closely related to capitalism.
Biopower focuses on controlling life, instead of death. The exercise of power over living beings no longer carries the threat of death (associated with the power of the sovereign: the ‘power to kill’), but instead takes charge of people’s lives. (Foucault 1976). The population must be as productive as possible, the population should not die because we need them to work, and especially, the population must reproduce itself so that there are workers secured for the future production.
The state’s control over bodies and their movement are in center within Foucault's biopolitics. Foucault looks on how bodies are controlled by the state apparatus through discipline and regulation, and how this is set to action by prohibition and punishment, but also through public health measures, insurance programmes, and the like. Power is productive and produced through norms and culture, and knowledge is closely related to power as well. The norm can be enforced both on a body one is wishing to discipline, but also on a population one is wishing to regularize.
How power operates interested Foucault (1979, 1989, 1990) who exemplified this through his work on different institutions as well as on sexuality. People notices that they are observed, and ones they do, people start to internalize as if they are observed. In this way, power disciplines the body, and citizens becomes internalized by the ones subjected to that power. The norm is a strong power dynamic in the society, and people breaking the norms will be punished in different ways. This is closely linked to prohibition and
punishment: the norms are working to prohibit people from doing and acting in different ways, and this is happening through the punishment that someone will face when breaking the norm (Foucault 1976). This framework will be very interesting to use when analysing how people react to the different regulations by governments that are made to control the movement of people. The most effective way to use regulations is when the regulations become the norm. In this way: people who are breaking the regulations will be punished both through fines, and socially by negative reactions from the other people. Can this also be seen in the material of this research? Sara Ahmed’s take on norms and how they work
will be presented later on in this theoretical framework, and this understanding will be used side by side with how Foucault suggest that norms work.
4.2.1 Biopolitics, the urban problem and epidemics
Biopolitics is the control and regulation of individuals and populations through methods related to the body. Biopolitics involves a set of processes, and one of the first examples Foucault gives is the rate of reproduction, and how this is something that the state seeks to control. According to Foucault, this emerged in the end of the eighteenth century and has developed itself since. In the end of the eighteenth century, epidemics were not the central threat, but rather the illnesses that caused more frequent deaths and effected the strength of the population which lead to several consequences: it shortened the working week and cost money, both in treatment but also in loss of production. Illness is seen as a phenomena affecting a population in a negative way. Biopolitics is closely linked to development of capitalism, and when workers are ill and can not work, they are not bringing benefit to the capitalist. (Foucault 1976)
Foucault comes back to epidemics and how, during the first half of the nineteenth century, epidemics came to happen due to the swamps made by people. Discussing this, Foucault also points at the environment and how the environment is a result of human actions. The environment is not natural, and that the environment, as a result of human actions, also affects humans in different ways. This point resonates very clearly with contemporary environmental humanities and feminist posthumanities research which emphasises the human impact on the environment and relationally between humans and their milieu, which also includes questions of health (e.g. Alaimo 2010, Åsberg & Braidotti 2018).
One of the effects that Foucault points at is epidemics, and this is a part of what he calls the urban problem. Foucault points at medicine as a “power-knowledge that can be applied both to the population and the body, both the organism and biological processes, and it will therefore have both disciplinary effects and regulatory effects“ (Foucault 1976, s.252) The thoughts of Foucault on the urban problem can be adapted to the Covid-19 situation due to its origin, and also due to the human made environment where it started to spread. The ways in which viruses are jumping from animals to humans are a result of the human meat
consumption, and in the particular example of Covid-10, a result of the sold of exotic animals in markets. This is not a “natural” condition. These animals did not naturally end up in this market. The environment in which diseases that are new to humans occur are constructed by humans. The human destruction of nature is pointed out as one of the reasons for the spread of diseases such as Ebola, SARS, dengue and HIV. By invading tropical forests and other wilds landscapes we are not only interfering with many species of animals and place, we are also interfering with many unknown viruses within those
creatures. Unless humans change their promiscuous treatment of nature there will be more deadly pandemics such as Covid-19 warns scientists who have analysed the link between viruses, wildlife and habitat destruction (Vidal 2020, Watts 2020).
This will be interesting to keep in mind when discussing the different regulations, as well as the reactions of people towards them.
4.3 The cultural politics of emotions
In the cultural politics of emotion Sara Ahmed explores how emotions work to shape the surfaces of individual and collective bodies. Ahmed argues that bodies take the shape of the very contact they have with object and others and she investigates how emotions plays a role in shaping collective bodies and sheds light on the shared experience of emotions. By doing this, Ahmed takes a step towards the view within sociology and cultural studies, and away from the understanding of emotions as expressed within psychology. She turns away from the look on emotions as something occuring inside of people travelling outside, and shows instead how emotions can be understood as coming from the outside to the inside. Ahmed does this by explaining how emotions circulate around the body. In Ahmed’s work (2014), emotions are described as social practises and this means that emotions define who we are and at the same time shape what we do. In the world of politics, emotions are powerfully at play by keeping us invested in relationships of power (Ahmed 2014). Using this approach, it may be beneficial to see how emotions circulate on the forum analysed in the online ethnography.
Ahmed argues that there is a hierarchy between emotion and thought. Some emotions can be signs of cultivation, and thereby awarded and positively seen, whereas other
emotions are seen as signs of weakness. Ahmed discusses the ability to control emotions, as well as showing the “right” kind of emotions given a certain situation. Further on she outlines how within contemporary culture, emotions can be seen as something really important and sometimes better than thinking and logics, but only when someone manages to use them as “tools”, which is then seen as a form of intelligence.
4.3.1 Sociality of emotions
Ahmed explores what emotions do and how they circulate between bodies. Emotions are intentional, and they are “about” something, and Ahmed discusses how they are directed or orientated towards objects, people or places. It is not only by direct contact with an object that emotions might arise, it can also be by having contact with an object through
memories and imaginations (Ahmed 2014).
Objects in which emotions are involved can both be real and imagined. One can have a memory of an object, and that object might trigger a feeling. The memory can be the object of a feeling in both senses: the feeling is shaped by contact with the memory, and also involves an orientation towards what is remembered. One might feel pain when one remembers a certain thing because in the memory and imagination some objects can be closely related to being painful. A person who got bullied in school can for example feel a strong resistance when coming close to the school, as well as when meeting the ones bullying somewhere else than in school. The feelings of discomfort can be related to the environment where it happened (the school) as well as to the people (the bullies) who did it, also when the bullying is not taking place. If any objects were used in the bullying, the discomfort can be associated to these objects as well.
Ahmed then continues to move from the look on emotions as something happening inside a body, what she calls the “inside out model of emotions” to suggest that emotions should be considered as social and cultural practises. (Ahmed s.9, 2014)
In Ahmed’s model of sociality of emotions, she suggests that emotions create the very effect of the surfaces and boundaries that allow to distinguish an inside and an outside in the first place. Emotions are not something “I” or “we” have. It is through emotions as well as how we respond to others and objects, that surfaces or boundaries are made.
The “I” and the “we” are constructed and adjusted through contact with others. Ahmed suggests that the emotions circulate, and are located between bodies. It is the objects of emotions that circulate, rather than the emotion as such. It is also important to remember that even if we are feeling the same feeling, when a feeling is passed around, we might have a very different relationship to the feeling and might as a result respond very
differently. Ahmed talks about “intense” spaces and rooms, where a strong intense emotion is laying over the room like a thick fog. Yet, this strong fog alike emotion can yet be understood and received differently by the ones in the room depending on their history and experiences. This can lead to misunderstanding and miscommunication. (Ahmed 2014). Ahmed’s work on the cultural politics of emotions enables me to shed light on the
reactions and emotions on the online forums that will be analysed in this research. Can the emotions be understood as circulating, is there a certain way of feeling that seems to turn into what is the most appropriate, normative way of reacting, or are there several emotions circulating at the same time? These will be interesting aspects to analyse further on.
Ahmed moves further to discuss what happens when feminists speak out against different forms of violence, power and injustice - and what roles emotions play when speaking out against such forms of power? In 2001, feminist sociologist, academic and activist Sunera Thobani spoke out against the “war on terrorism” lead by George Bush and the United States. The reactions were strong and hateful, and illustrates the risk of speaking out against established “truths”, which is seen as speaking out against and betray the very “foundations” of this world. (Ahmed 2014, 169ff) The reactions towards Thobani
demonstrate what can happen when speaking out against “universal truths” in a community. It will be interesting to see on the online forum if there are any similar universals truths established, and if that causes big reactions when questioned.
5. Method
A qualitative method is used in this research. The reason for conducting a qualitative study is the wish to come close to the phenomena studied in order to understand it properly. Qualitative data consist of words no matter if they are spoken or written, and visual images both observed or creatively produced. Throughout the analysis, I am focusing on the
emotions and reactions of people. I am interested in the environments were these are spontaneously expressed as well as the ways they are expressed.
I will conduct an online ethnographic case study on a facebook forum. A case study is beneficial when one wishes to study a certain, restricted environment in depth. Online ethnography will be used as the method in this case study and a content analysis will be used to approach the dialogues and comments. These approaches will be explained more in detail in what follows, as well as how they will be useful in this research.
5.2 Online ethnographic case study
This research takes the shape of a case study which means that the research questions as well as the analysis focus on one instance, and makes it the opposite of a mass study. What a case study can do is to study things in detail, and thereby pay attention to things that might not have been highlighted in a more superficial research. (Denscombe 2010)
Online ethnography derived from ethnography, but turns its focus towards the worlds on the internet. Ethnographers wish to study phenomena in their “natural” way, without interfering with the study objects. Online ethnography builds on the same idea, to study the worlds on the internet and social media by observing them and analysing the actions and expressions of people. With its focus on cultures and human understanding, online ethnography will be a good tool in order to investigate the expressions and emotions of people in a pandemic crisis. (Denscombe 2010). An online ethnography is a way of approaching worlds and communities online, and is a good choice when studying electronic communication (Hine, 1994).
The Covid-19 pandemic has led to states putting whole countries into quarantine and people are forced to change their behaviours in different ways. People are isolated around the world, but this doesn’t mean that people are not socializing. The social interaction has movet to take place online instead. Video-calls, internet forums, chats etc make it possible for people to stay close while being apart. These circumstances make it even more
important to study these places where much of the interaction has moved. An online ethnography builds on the study of online spaces and communities, and it takes the world produced by technological subjects seriously. This situation opens up for a new field within online ethnography; a focus on how the cyberworld is used amongst people to share
their emotions and reactions as well as a tool to find information and meet in a pandemic crisis.
One of the research questions in this study it centered around how people express their emotions and reactions towards the restrictions made by governments during a pandemic crisis. This is a non participant online ethnographic qualitative study of a facebook forum for swedish people living in Spain. This approach is suitable for this study since my research question is focused on the emotions and reactions of people and how they are spontaneously expressed.
The analysed material consists of texts, and therefore a content analysis is a suitable method to use aside of online ethnography as it follows a rather simple procedure. The text is divided into smaller units and analysed sentence by sentence. One can also choose to analyse the text word by word or line by line, but I am choosing to analyse sentences as it minimizes the risk of taking something out of its context. A content analysis is particularly beneficial as an analytical method because its straightforward way of approaching text is easy for other researchers to repeat.
The sentences will be analysed and coded depending on what is found in the material. I will not search for any specific themes but rather use an inductive approach when
analysing the material in order to let the material speak for itself. This is also a way of preventing pre-assumed categories to create a certain reality that might not be
representable for the material and phenomena researched. (Denscombe 2010).
Once the texts are put into categories and coded, the frequency of different themes and how often they occur will be presented. The phenomenon will then be understood and discussed in relation to the theoretical framework as well as the background in order to answer the research questions and draw conclusions.
5.3 Analyzed material
The analyzed material will consist of data collected on a facebook group for swedish people living in Spain. On the forum, people are posting questions as well as sharing thoughts on the ongoing situation. The other members of the forum can then respond to the questions and thoughts, and discussions take place.
The data has been assembled during the first eight weeks of quarantine in Spain during 25
the Covid-19 pandemic, from the 14th of March until the 10th of May 2020. The material consists of text published during this period, of which identified themes will be presented in the analysis. The themes are examples of the most recurring phenomenon found in the material. The language used on the facebook forum in which the people are
communicating and writing is swedish. I have translated citations representing the most frequently recurring themes in order for them to be presented properly in the analysis.
5.4 Ethical considerations
There are several ethical considerations to take into account when conducting a study, and some aspects are important to keep in mind when using the internet as the arena for the research. It is important to remember that the cyber worlds created on the internet consists of private places too, and that sensitive information no matter if it is found on the internet or elsewhere must be treated in a responsible and respectful way (Denscombe 2010).
The group in which the study was taking place and where the material was collected is a public facebook group. I have chosen a public group because of the focus in this research, namely the expressions and reactions of people towards the regulations as communicated by the government. More private discussions would require different tools and a different time scale. Within the field of online ethnography some researchers choose to interact in the forums, while others decides not to. In this study, there has not been any interaction. This is due to the research questions focus on the expressions and reactions of people.
A challenge when conducting an online ethnography research might also be the amount of information circulating on social medias made by robots. Since this study is focused on a group with a limited amount of active members, it will be possible to double check the accounts commenting to make sure that they are real accounts by people. This is an important aspect to consider when conducting online ethnography. In some studies, it might be of relevance to consider the actions of robots, but in this research it is not centralized due to the research questions and since the aim is to study the expressions of people. It is regardless of the focus important to bring this aspect up, to declare that the material is analysed with care and with the knowledge of robots existing in the cyber world too.
6. Analysis
There are several themes that are recurring on the forum analysed, and those will be presented and understood in relation to the background, previous research and theories in what follows. The analysis will be divided into different categories, and these sections are a result of the content analysis where the material was coded and the most recurring phenomenon divided into categories.
6.1 Freedom of movement
The first identified category has been named “freedom of movement”. This category consists of dialogues on travels, as well as guesses and speculations on when it will be possible to travel again. People are asking what they need to be admitted into Spain after the borders closed, and many people are posting questions and discussing if and how it is possible to go back to Sweden. These questions are asked in relation to the lockdown, and a wish to travel to Sweden where the regulations are what they understand as less strict. People are expressing themselves in frustration regarding not being able to travel and move freely in between countries. A strong norm is showing in this context: the ability to travel and move freely as one wishes. At the same time, the ones asking for advice regarding their travels are overwhelmed with comments on how they can possibly think about travelling when the authorities tells them not to.
“Since Spain will be in quarantine for a while I am thinking about going home to my family in Malmö and I wonder if there is someone else who would like to come along? I am going to Malmö, and I have a new and quite big car and I am going with my german shepherd Smilla.
I have been completely isolated with my dog in more than three weeks, so I am more or less sure of not carrying the virus. The reason why I would like to go home is because I have my family in Sweden, so kindly spare me your comments, thanks!”
“We are gonna go by car to Sweden. What do we need to drive through Europe? What certificates? Thankful for serious answers”
These persons are asking for advice on driving through Europe back to Sweden. Driving is seen as one of the final options if one wishes to go. The comments point to many
interesting aspects when using the intersectional lens. It points us in the direction of nationality as an important marker, but also on class. These people have a residence in Spain, but also in Sweden. The person has got a big car. These aspects points at a higher class, which will also make itself visible in other discussions on the forum.
Through the biopolitical framework we can conclude that the authorities have the control over who is obliged and permitted to go where and who is not, and one’s
nationality becomes even more important in relation to this. People are asking about what documents they need to be able to drive, and a document of nationality or a certificate of national registration are necessary in order to be released through the closed borders. The right to move becomes a matter of nationality/national registration. We can conclude that there is still a way for people to travel, even if it is not by plane. The restrictions might be similar for all, but the ways in which people can find ways around the restrictions are different. If you can afford to pay and are a holder of the right documents, you can drive. On the forum, there is another discussion as well regarding travel amongst people with a second residence in Spain, but with a national registration in Sweden. Due to the closed borders, they are not allowed in to Spain. Intense discussions are held regarding this. There are disagreements on if it is ok to strive for being able to go to Spain, or if it is stupid. Thus, this is in the hands of the authorities no matter what they think themselves. You are only allowed in to Spain if your national registration is in Spain, having a property is not enough.
“I will wait. In a situation like this, one needs to be more smart than tempted by going to Spain. When the countries announce that the threat is over, open all borders and airlines starts to fly, then it’s time to look for the next trip. Idiotic to believe you can go soon. And… as swedish we currently have a bad reputation in the rest of the world due to the soft restrictions. Let’s see if
anyone will welcome us. I take it easy, my apartment and Spain will still be there, even next year if I have to wait until then.”
This becomes very interesting as well in relation to the means of transportation that we recall as one of the most significant characteristics of the modern world. This characteristic is also one that is pointed out as one of the threats in a pandemic crisis, and the
governments are asking people to avoid unnecessary travels. It might be hard to define what is necessary since this is a very subjective question, but regardless, people that express a wish to travel will have to defend themselves on the forum. The debate gets intense, and people are reacting to each other’s posts showing a lot of passion for whatever their standpoint is. Strong emotions are clearly starting to circulate amongst those taking part in the discussions.
A mix of uncertainty and frustration is present in almost all discussions. Every once in a while someone states that “no one knows yet” referring to the virus and what actions to take. The uncertainty seems to be what people are struggling with the most, there are no answers. At the same time, there is a general collective feeling in the forum as well. People seem to acknowledge that even if everyone is not in the same boat, they are all in the same storm.
The norm of moving freely is strong. When this freedom is suddenly taken away, people seem to reflect on how the freedom is given to them by someone or something, namely, the authorities. Foucault describes how biopower is aiming to control people without them noticing it. In the normal everyday life of people it seems to work, but in this situation, it seems like people are starting to notice that their lives are regulated. They are not as free as they might have thought.
“When I saw the military circulate outside my window and hand out fines to people, I booked the first flight I could to go to Sweden. Although I miss my spanish home and my friends.”
People are reacting strongly to the ways in which the authorities in Spain are
demonstrating their power, and some decided to leave and go to Sweden because of this.
This leads us to the next section of the analysis: the discussions on the Spanish regulations as well as the Swedish.
6.2 The hard and the soft way
Even though the moderator of the group has announced over and over again that
discussions on how different countries deal with the virus should be left out on this forum, these discussions find their way back and becomes part of the infodemic the world health organization has addressed as a threat alongside the virus itself.
In the western world, people tend to rely on scientists and the knowledge produces. Foucault discusses this as a central part of biopolitics: how the knowledge produced frames what the politicians and authorities can do. Scientists and researchers gets a central
position in how we understand the world due to this power dynamic. The uncertainty during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic is therefore very interesting to have a closer look at, and how people cope with the different strategies that countries are choosing. It is a new experience for people in the western world to face a problem without a given solution.
“I am sitting and observing everything that is going on in Spain and Sweden. Sweden looks quite bizarre with all these idiotic statements from the welder and Tegnell and the total paralysis and complete failure of handling what is going on is starting to look like a genocide in my eyes how can any swede be happy with the ones in charge according to the media the Social democrats gets the highest support in a long time according to the most recent measure how is it even possible? How hard is it to shut down like in the rest of the world to come to an end with this?”
There is one side of people who express themselves in a lot of frustration and anger over how the swedish government is dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. There is also one side who embraces the way Sweden deals with the situation, compared to the stricter way that Spain has chosen. Discussions occur repeatedly on the regulations by the authorities, and regarding which country that has the better strategy. There are a lot of emotions circulating in the threads discussing this. Again, frustration is shown, which might be the
most common emotion identified, but also anger. The expressions point in a direction of dissatisfaction. At the same time, people are questioning the way in which the spanish authorities are dealing with the virus too.
The following example comes from this side. “He” in this comment refers to the prime minister Pedro Sánchez, and is written in a thread about another extension of the state of alarma.
“He can’t continue like this unless he wants to let the whole country sink. Ease up the regulations and let people take care of their health as a first
prioritization. Children and women are put in a vulnerable position, the suicide rates are increasing and the drug dealing doesn’t stop. Is it worth to put the whole country in a deep depression. People are living in big families in Spain so a quarantine in this way will not help.”
Several interesting aspects are brought up in this comment as well as in many other of similar character. People are really worried about the effects of the quarantine. Even if it leads to a temporary reduction of infected people, there are other consequences that people worry about a lot. It is interesting how people are questioning the rules, especially in Spain regarding not allowing outside activity and the health effects of this, but yet, because of the risk of punishment most people listen. Prohibition and punishment, just like described by Foucault, seems to work in terms of regulating people's lives. Foucault discusses norms as a result of the prohibitions regarding what people can and can not do. He means that most effective way to use regulations are when the regulations becomes the norm, and this is also interesting to observe in this group. It is ok to question the regulations, but one should still follow them. On the forum, the so called “informers” are brought up. The informers are described as those who are calling the police if someone is breaking the quarantine rules. This could be neighbours of people who have other people and family visiting their homes, as well as people who recalls someone walking too far away from their house with their dog. Through the risk of punishment, people are willing to listen to authorities even when there is no logic to some of the regulations that are put into force.
“Spain needs to watch out so the people don’t start to demonstrate. Either you will catch the virus or your existence will get infected by unemployment, bankruptcy, assault and so on… Many more people will get affected by other shit than Corona. So what is the worst really??”
“My goodness… here you are, the swedish retired people in houses with terraces facing the sea, thinking that all of this makes sense!? Do you know how people are feeling? kids? there are plenty of research on how dangerous it is to lock people up. It’s way more dangerous than the virus, that still won’t go away.”
Through these comments, a light is shed on those who, for understandable reasons, won’t be able to speak out in an online forum. There are alarming reports from around the world on how the quarantine does not benefit, but rather failures, those women and children who are victims for abuse and assault in their homes. These comments are also shedding a light on the economical effects of the quarantine as well as questioning the health effects the quarantine will have, both mentally and physically. People are also pointing at the privileged position that many Swedes in Spain have, and that it might be problematic to cherish the government for its actions without thinking about other groups in the society. Connected to this, there are also several comments on the fact that Spain was under dictatorship until 1970. This is not very long ago, and people are comparing what is going on now with how things are done in a dictatorship. To illustrate this, people argues for the ways in which the hard quarantine is a way of showing power, without much logical arguments for why people cannot do harmless things as going out on walks and exercise. These citations are examples of this repeatedly shared viewpoint:
“A scary situation that is starting to remind me of a dictatorship that is not very historically distant”
“But my dear, the virus is not gone just because you have been locked inside.
Your lack of exercise, lack of D-vitamin and mental illnesses has made the situation worse by at least one hundred percent”
“Worse health conditions = more pressure on the healthcare and hospitals. If you don’t think about the negative consequences when creating rules they will come back and hit you hard.”
These comments illustrates again the feeling of frustration, but also of worry. And while the uncertainty regarding the virus is wrapped like a veil around the forum, there are some things that people actually know: the effects of being isolated and as well as refused to go outside and exercise will have negative consequences. There is a clash here when it comes to the regulations in Spain and Sweden, and the people on this forum receive information from two sides. The swedish are telling people to exercise, enjoy nature and move their bodies because it is important to strengthen their immune systems. At the same time, the Spanish authorities prohibits this and if one feels like taking a walk in the woods it will cost them a minimum of 300 euros. This might be the answer to the worry and frustration that people are expressing on this forum. They are meant to follow rules and regulations that is said to be harmful from other authorities.
6.3 Conspiratory theories and responses
The final section of this analysis is linked to the infodemic, as described in the background. On the forum, there is a response to the spread of false information as well as conspiratory theories. The moderator of the forum has been posting repetitively about not allowing conspiracy theories and misleading information to be spread on the forum.
This points in the direction as explained in the previous research section regarding the shift in how information is spread because of the online world. It also challenges the ways in which knowledge, according to Foucault, is primarily controlled by the authorities as a part of how power is operated. Because of social media, there has been a shift in who has got this opportunity. Not only governments and authorities are able to regulate information.
“This group is not about what other countries are doing in the fight against the virus. Posts that calls for violation of quarantine rules will be deleted. The ones posting these kinds of posts will be deleted and blocked from the groups. The comments will be closed when the threads get too long, and threads resulting in guesses as well as speculations will be deleted completely.”
It shows how the online communication is allowing others than the governmental
authorities to manage what information is spread, which is interesting from a biopolitical perspective. In this group, there is a moderator who states that she, when she notices it, will delete “personal opinions” and that she wants what is shared to be verified. It doesn’t really seem as if this is followed, but it is important to say that there is someone who is
modifying the forum.
“I understand that many people are worried and that there is a lot of oddities circulating through some medias. BUT this group is still not about what different countries are doing against the virus. Different countries is including Sweden too. The tone in the last post was really OVER the limit. More
comments of that characteristic and I will start to block people!!”
Again, the feeling of frustration makes itself visible in the posts from the moderator of the group. Due to the tone of some posts the moderator have deleted them. This can be related to the uncertainty too, in the ways in which people are showing off attempts to try and understand what is going on during this time.
The moderator of this specific group has decided not to allow any conspiratory theories or misleading information. Yet, people are trying over and over again to post what the moderator understand as questionable information about the virus.
7. Discussion
Different interesting themes were identified in the online ethnographic case study, and in this section these themes will be discussed further. The expression “disease knows no borders” captures a renewed sense of vulnerability to infectious diseases in the
