(Dis)assembling authoritarianism in everyday digitally mediated neighboring

In this commentary, we argue that neighboring, an inevitable form of collectivity rooted in spatial proximity, and its digital environment constitute a crucial arena for both enacting and contesting authoritarianism. Drawing on the assemblage framework, we examine everyday digitally mediated interactions among neighbors in large Russian cities to demonstrate how authoritarianism emerges not solely from above but through the interplay of people, infrastructures, and technologies. We conceptualize authoritarianism as an assemblage that enacts the state as a central actor, attributes problem-solving capacity to it, legitimizes its role in control and discipline, and authorizes it to include or exclude individuals from local life. This enactment occurs through repeated discussions and actions on citizen-led neighborhood digital platforms, which serve as key points where authoritarianism can be situationally “switched on” or “off.” Our analysis highlights how urban citizens participate in reproducing or challenging authoritarianism in the course of everyday life.