I work on how – legally, practically, and culturally – access to knowledge, creative content and data is shared and withheld. I have expertise in media industries, copyright, technology policy, privacy and human rights. My current research explores where the technical and legal challenges of video game preservation intersect, as an extension of larger discussions about making copyright fit for digital purpose in ways that respect people’s rights to access and use media of all forms. I am active in Open spaces, including Open Culture projects that support the accessibility of cultural heritage collections and institutions. I also edit a weekly newsletter, Copyright & the Public Interest (https:⁠/⁠/copyrightnews.substack.com/). My PhD focused on how asylum seekers manage privacy on social media and how institutions manage their data, and I am adapting my dissertation into a book about the cultural and legal history of privacy.

More information about Matthew Voigts

Fields of interest

I’m interested in how what people actually ‘do’ in the real world meets theory, and finding it out by a mix of field and desk methods. My work explores rights and claims to access, share, distribute, and restrict access to media, especially focusing on where global real-world practices and the law intersect and clash. I have expertise in media industries, copyright, technology policy, privacy and human rights. In short, I work on how – legally, practically, and culturally – access to knowledge, creative content and data is shared and withheld.

More specific topics of interest include how creators get paid in the digital economy; how to translate access & user rights to physical media into digital spaces ruled by licensing agreements; and ensuring cultural heritage institutions can preserve and share their collections

Research

My current research explores where the technical and legal challenges of video game preservation intersect, as an extension of larger discussions about making copyright fit for digital purpose in ways that respect people’s rights to access and use media of all forms.  I am active in Open spaces, including Open Culture projects that support the accessibility of cultural heritage collections and institutions. I also edit a weekly newsletter, Copyright & the Public Interest (https:⁠/⁠/copyrightnews.substack.com/). My PhD focused on how asylum seekers manage privacy on social media and how institutions manage their data, and I am adapting my dissertation into a book about the cultural and legal history of privacy.

Curriculum Vitae

I hold a multi-disciplinary PhD from the University of Nottingham’s Digital Economy programme, drawing from my disciplinary background in Anthropology. I also hold a MSc in Digital Anthropology from University College London and BA in Writing from Wartburg College.  From 2022 – 2024, I served as copyright policy lead at the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), working to support libraries’ rights to collect, preserve, and share digital and material content. My academic work further draws from professional experience in the creative industries as a marketing writing, small-town newspaper editor and film set gopher.

Publications