Abstract
Under the administration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the Brazilian state has advocated the use of Free/Livre and Open Source Software (FLOSS) throughout the public sector. How did FLOSS adoption gain traction as a developmental strategy across a large federal bureaucracy that had embraced information technology policies supporting export-oriented growth and market liberalization during the 1990s? In a historical case study, I argue that the FLOSS agenda emerged as a result of the actions of a network of insurgent experts working within elite political, technical, and educational institutions. I trace the history of this mobilization and show how a dedicated network of experts brought about conditions for institutional transformation that contradicted prevailing neoliberal policy proscriptions. The Brazilian FLOSS insurgency offers insights into the means by which a group of elites endeavored to reframe debates about technology-driven economic growth around questions of state-led access to source code and knowledge.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 253-272 |
| Number of pages | 20 |
| Journal | Journal of Information Technology and Politics |
| Volume | 8 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 1 2011 |
Keywords
- Brazil
- Expertise
- Free and open source software
- Politics
- Technology
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Computer Science(all)
- Sociology and Political Science
- Public Administration