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Curriculum Vitae

James J. Brown, Jr.

University of Wisconsin-Madison
English Department
600 N. Park Street
6187 E Helen C White
Madison, WI 53706

brownjr@wisc.edu

Education

  • University of Texas at Austin. Ph.D. English, concentration in Digital Literacies and Literatures (2009)
    Dissertation: "Hospitable Texts"
    Adviser: D. Diane Davis
    Dissertation Committee: N. Katherine Hayles, Cynthia Haynes, Clay Spinuzzi, Margaret Syverson
  • Carnegie Mellon University. M.A. Literary and Cultural Studies (2004)
  • Ohio University. B.S. Communications (2000)

Academic Appointments

  • Assistant Professor, English. University of Wisconsin-Madison (2011-present)
  • Assistant Professor, English. Wayne State University (2009-2011)
  • Assistant Instructor. University of Texas at Austin (2004-2009)

Publications

Articles

  • "Composition in the Dromosphere." Computers and Composition. (forthcoming)
  • "Interfaces and Infrastructures: Examining New Media Objects in the English Studies Classroom." Pedagogy. Co-authored with Andy Engel, Whitney Hardin, Donora Hillard, Jason Kahler, Michael McGinnis, Derek Risse, and Conor Shaw-Draves. (forthcoming)
  • "Essjay's Ethos: Rethinking Textual Origins and Intellectual Property." College Composition and Communication 61.1 (2009): 212-231.
  • "From Friday to Sunday: The Hacker Ethic and Shifting Notions of Labour, Leisure and Intellectual Property." Leisure Studies 27.4 (2008): 395-409.
  • "Evil Bert Laden: ViRaL Texts, Collision, and Community." Fast Capitalism 4.1 (2008).
  • "(Re)Make it New." Currents in Electronic Literacy. Spring 2008.
  • "In Between Lauding and Deriding: A pedagogical review of MySpace." Co-authored with Lacey Donohue. Currents in Electronic Literacy. Spring 2007.

Book Chapters

  • "Edit This Page: Wikipedia and the Responsibilities of Digital Rhetorics." The Responsibilities of Rhetoric. Eds. Barbara Warnick and Michelle Smith. Long Grove, Ill.: Waveland Press, 2009: 151-158.
  • "Speech Hacks." The Computer Culture Reader. Eds. Judd Ruggill, Joseph Chaney, & Ken McAllister. Newcastle, UK.: Cambridge Scholars Press, 2008: 44-60.

Reviews

  • "Open Process Software." Review of Expressive Processing: Digital Fictions, Computer Games, and Software Studies, by Noah Wardrip-Fruin. Criticism 53.3 (2011): 481-487.
  • Review of Acts of Enjoyment: Rhetoric, Zizek, and the Return of the Subject, by Thomas Rickert. Co-authored with Joshua Gunn. Philosophy & Rhetoric. 42.2 (2009): 183-190.
  • Review of Color Monitors: The Black Face of Technology in America by Martin Kevorkian. E3W Review of Books. Spring 2007.

Interviews

Invited Lectures

  • "Hacking and Possibility in the Hospitable Network." Holtz Center for Science and Technology Studies. Madison, WI. April 2012
  • "Rhetorical Distributions: How Publics Exist After Circulation." With Dale Smith. Texas Institute for Literary and Textual Studies Symposium on Access, Authority & Identity. Austin, TX. February 2011.
  • "If-Then-Else: Software, Procedural Rhetoric, and the Obama Campaign." Wayne State Humanities Center. Detroit, MI. September 2010.
  • "Girl Talk vs. DJ Spooky: Remixes, Mashups, and Digital Writing." Wayne State Humanities Center. Detroit, MI. October 7, 2009.

Conference Presentations

  • "Paul Cret and the Decorum of Objects." Rhetoric Society of America. Philadelphia, PA. May 2012.
  • "Paignion: An Immersive Style of Engagement." Conference of College Composition and Communication. St. Louis, Missouri. March 2011.
  • "Hospitality, Response-ability, and Ethical Programs." Annual Conference of the Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts. Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. September 2011.
  • "Digital Poetry: Coding Publics." Co-presenter, Dale Smith. Computers and Writing. Ann Arbor, MI. May 2011.
  • "Close Reading Campaign Rhetorics: Procedurality and MyBarackObama.com." Modern Languages Association Conference, Special Session on "Close Reading the Digital." Los Angeles, CA. January 2011.
  • "New Media and the Limits of Lanham's 'Cybernethics.'" Rhetoric Society of America Conference. Minneapolis, MN. May 2010.
  • "Delivery: From Cicero to Beyonce." Conference on College Composition and Communication. Louisville, KY. March 20, 2010.
  • "'After the Bubble Bursts': Wikipedia, Rhetoric, and Software Studies." The Future of Digital Studies. Gainesville, FL. February 25, 2010.
  • "1995: Quickness and Composition." Conference on College Composition and Communication. San Francisco, CA. March 2009.
  • "Delivery: From Cicero to Beyonce." South by Southwest Interactive. Austin, TX. March 2009.
  • "Edit This Page: Wikipedia and the Responsibilities of Digital Rhetorics." Rhetoric Society of America Conference. Seattle, WA. May 2008.
  • "The 'Why?' Question." A multimedia presentation for a special panel entitled "Rhetoric and the Amateur." Rhetoric Society of America Conference. Seattle, WA. May 2008.
  • "Evil Bert Laden: Reality and ViRaL Texts." Conference on College Composition and Communication. New Orleans, LA. April 2008.
  • "Hospitable Texts." Penn State Conference on Rhetoric and Composition. State College, PA. July 2007.
  • "Wikipedia: Modeling a Middle Way for Rhetoric." Computers and Writing. Detroit, MI. May 2007.
  • "Creative Commons in Composition: The Collaborative Construction of a Classroom Identity." Conference on College Composition and Communication. New York, NY. March 2007.
  • "Hijacking Scapegoats: Kenneth Burke, Technology, and the 'Doctrine of Use.'" National Communications Association Conference. San Antonio, TX. November 2006.
  • "What's in the Box? Locke's Abstraction in Computer Programming." Rhetoric Society of America Conference. Memphis, TN. May 2006.
  • "The Grace of a Fat Penguin: The Articulations of Linux Subculture." SWTexas Popular Culture Association/American Culture Association Conference. Albuquerque, NM. February 2005.

Courses

[For details, visit my course website]

University of Wisconsin

Wayne State University

University of Texas at Austin

Grants and Awards

  • Wayne State University Research Grant, Summer 2010. Awarded $10,000 to support book project, "Hospitable Code."
  • University of Texas English Department Dissertation Fellowship, Summer 2008. Awarded $5,000.
  • University of Texas Department of Rhetoric and Writing, James L. Kinneavy Award for Scholarship in Rhetoric and Composition, Spring 2008. For "Essjay's Ethos: Rethinking Textual Origins and Intellectual Property"

Service

National

  • Managing Editor. Enculturation: A Journal of Rhetoric, Writing, and Culture (2009-present)
  • Advisory Board Member. Blogging Pedagogy (2009-Present)
    HASTAC Scholar. Humanities, Arts, Science, and Technology Advanced (2008-present)
  • Blogger. Rhetoric Society of America's Blogora (2007-present)
  • Member. Rhetoric Society of America Site Selection Committee (2007-2009)

University

  • Wayne State University - Committee for Academic Integrity (2010-Present)

Department

  • Wayne State Rhetoric Society (Student Chapter of the Rhetoric Society of America) - Faculty Advisor (2010-Present)
  • Wayne State English Department - Graduate Studies Committee (2010-Present)
  • Wayne State English Department - Undergraduate Studies Committee (2010-Present)
  • Wayne State English Department - Composition Committee (2009-2010)
  • Wayne State English Department - Library Committee (2009-2010)
  • University of Texas Digital Writing and Research Lab - Assistant Director (2006-2008)
  • University of Texas Department of Rhetoric and Writing - Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (2006-2007)
  • University of Texas Department of Rhetoric and Writing - Co-chair of First-Year Writing Book Selection Committee (2005-2006)

Technical Experience

  • Circuit Designer. MCI. Richardson, TX (2000-2003)
  • Programming Languages: Java, Javascript, PHP, Processing
  • Web Design: CSS, HTML, Drupal CMS, Wordpress CMS

Professional Organizations

  • Conference of College Composition and Communication
  • Humanities, Arts, Science, and Technology Advanced Collaboratory (HASTAC)
  • Modern Language Association
  • National Council of Teachers of English
  • Rhetoric Society of America

about

My name is Jim Brown, and I'm an Assistant Professor of English at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. I teach in UW's Digital Studies program. My teaching and research focus on rhetoric, writing, new media, and software studies.