Theft in the information age : music, technology, crime, and claims-making

Abstract

This paper examines the construction of claims in an effort to mobilize state activity and criminal sanction to control a newly problematized form of behavior, the sharing of musical files over the World Wide Web. With documents from Canada, the United States, and other countries a process of redefinition of technologies, practices, and multiple other elements such as benefits, harm, competition, etc. is identified and analyzed. The conclusion shows that the problem and its solutions, especially those involving recourse to the criminal justice system, stem from this process rather than from objectively identifiable facts, conditions, or situations.