Queer media ecology: A theory of disequilibrium and repair

Building on the conversation to centre critical perspectives, including queer and feminist epistemologies, in media ecology studies, this article explores a pathway to a theoretical understanding of disequilibrium and an ethical commitment to repair through a framework I call ‘queer media ecology’. I define queer media ecology as the study of how power discrepancies, technological disconnections, constrained visibility and affective ambiguity disrupt the apparent status of heteronormative equilibrium around media production and reveal opportunities for reparative queer politics. I further propose three analytical scaffolds for queer media ecology: (1) actors and networks, (2) infrastructures and contingencies and (3) intersectionality. Queering media ecology is a critical intervention that articulates the power dynamics around who has visibility, how culture is represented, and what norms of natural vs. unnatural dictate social relationships in a communication system.