But Did He Carry a Gun? State-Building, Identity, and the Rise of Digital

Explore the complex relationship between state-building, identity, and digital technology in this thought-provoking 29-minute talk from the Alan Turing Institute. Delve into concepts of despotic power, infrastructural power, and symbolic power, using Timor-Leste as a case study. Examine the citizen's perspective on living within a state and analyze the impact of digital technologies on governance. Investigate the role of distance in state-building and consider the implications of India's Aadhaar system on modern state formation and identity management.

Intro
A quick introduction
Roadmap
Despotic power and reach
Infrastructural power
And symbolic power...
Timor-Leste
What does it feel like to be in a state?
What does digital do?
Distance and the Aadhaar state