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Article . 2025 . Peer-reviewed
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The Origins of Digital Colonialism

Authors: Özgür Yılmaz;

The Origins of Digital Colonialism

Abstract

This article explores the historical and structural foundations of digital colonialism by examining how contemporary digital infrastructures, dominated by powerful multinational corporations and nation-states, replicate and extend traditional colonial hierarchies. Drawing on perspectives from political science and communication studies, the study conceptualizes digital colonialism as a multidimensional phenomenon encompassing economic, technological, epistemic, and cultural domination. It argues that digital platforms function as tools of extractive capitalism, enabling the appropriation of data, algorithmic governance, and monopolization of digital infrastructures. The article highlights how this digital hegemony disproportionately affects the Global South, reinforcing dependencies and limiting technological sovereignty. Utilizing the ethnography of written texts as a methodological framework, the study contextualizes digital colonial practices within broader histories of imperialism and capitalist expansion. While mapping the ideological and structural mechanisms of digital colonialism, the article also investigates possible resistance strategies, including digital sovereignty, open-source alternatives, and transnational cooperation. Ultimately, the article advocates for a critical rethinking of global digital governance structures to promote justice, autonomy, and equity in the digital age.

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    This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
    3
    popularity
    This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
    Top 10%
    influence
    This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
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    impulse
    This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
3
Top 10%
Average
Average
gold