指導老師|肖珺
翻譯|聞葉舟 審核|楊家懿
Introduction: What is “Informationalized Capitalism”?
什麼是“信息資本主義”？
Informationalized capitalism, also known as digital capitalism, first put forward by the American communication political economist, Dan Schiller, at the end of the 1990s, was published [P1] in the book of "Digital Capitalism: Networking the Global Market System".
信息資本主義，也稱數字資本主義，美國傳播政治經濟學者丹·席勒在20世紀90年代末最早提出了這一概念，發表於《數字資本主義：全球市場體系的網絡化》一書中。
In his new book "Digital Depression:Information Technology and Economic Crisis", Dan Schiller briefly pointed out that informationalized capitalism is a stage of capitalism. In this stage, "a capitalist system which is more prone to Information and Communication Technology intensive industries."
丹·席勒在其新作《數字化衰退：信息技術與經濟危機》中簡要地指出，信息資本主義是資本主義的一個發展階段，在這一階段中，產生了“一種更傾向於信息通信技術密集型產業的資本主義體系。”
Compared with the concept of "network society" proposed by Manuel Kast, Dan's "digital capitalism" theory "highlights the importance of communication and information: it has gradually become a new support point that can carry the evolving capitalist political and economic structure."
與曼紐爾·卡斯特提出的“網絡社會”概念相比，丹的“數字資本主義”理論“凸顯傳播與信息的重要性：它逐漸成為能夠承載不斷演變的資本主義政治經濟結構的新的支撐點”。
In fact, informationalized capitalism is a critical deconstruction of the modernized and networked capitalist system, and Dan Schiller's heavy dissemination of political and economic historiography makes his deconstruction extremely powerful and deep in the nature of capitalism.
實際上，信息資本主義是對現代化、網絡化的資本主義體系的批判性解構，而丹·席勒深厚的傳播政治經濟史學觀使得他的解構顯得極為有力，並且深入資本主義的本質。
一
Development: from Information to Digitalization
發展：從信息化到數字化
Broadly speaking, informatization and digitalization are roughly equivalent, which means the course of datamation and networking of something or some processes.
從廣義上來看，信息化與數字化大致等同，都意味著某些事物、進程的數據化與網絡化。
But in a narrow sense of the word, the emphasis of informatization and digitalization is different, they also represent different historical processes.
但從狹義上來看，信息化與數字化的強調方面不同，並且二者也代表著不同的歷史進程。
In early days, informatization is a management method (or "administrative control"). A more efficient information acquisition and transmission system is constructed through computer network: Transnational and monopoly capital and so on are all their fanatical advocates in such process.
早期的信息化是一種管理手段（或者稱為“行政控制”），通過計算機網絡建構起更為高效的信息獲取與傳遞體系——在這一進程中，跨國資本、壟斷資本等都是其狂熱的鼓吹者。
With the improvement and popularization of information technology, informatization has become an internalized normal requirement. On this basis, digitalization will incorporate more realistic transactions into the "network capacities" and make incredibly efficient processing by information technology that is difficult to complete by relying purely on manual work.
隨著信息技術的提高與普及，信息化已經成為一種被內化的常態要求，在這基礎之上，數字化將更多的現實事務納入到“網絡容量”中，並通過信息技術作出依靠純粹手工難以完成的高效處理
From the vertical historical perspective, it can be seen that the extension process of information and digitalization undoubtedly embodies the development of information technology and the process of its integration with the capitalist system, that is, the development process of digital capitalism.
從縱向的歷史角度可以看出，信息化、數字化概念的延用過程，無疑體現出了信息技術的發展以及其與資本主義體系的融合進程，即數字資本主義的發展進程。
二
Reorganization: network, production and labor
重組：網絡、生產與勞動
In his recent book Digital Depression, Dan Schiller tries to deconstruct digital capitalism from four dimensions: labor, production (commodity chain), finance, and military. We focus on the analysis of the first two dimensions.
丹·席勒在其新近的著作《數字化衰退：信息技術與經濟危機》中，試圖從四個維度解構數字資本主義，分別為：勞動，生產（商品鏈），金融，以及軍事。本文試圖著重研究前兩個維度。
How does the network reorganize the labor and production process?
網絡是如何重組勞動與生產過程的？
In the course of history, capital takes the lead in occupying the connectivity with the proprietary network. With the computer network, it supports the modern cooperative production mechanism and integrating the past independent labor division into collective production cooperation, directly docking with the more advanced labor process.
資本在歷史進程中，率先佔用與專有了網絡的連接性，用計算機網絡支撐起現代化的協同生產機制，將過往獨立的勞動分工整合成集體協作的生產過程，並與更高級的勞動過程直接對接。
（The enthusiasm of capital to information technology can be partly reflected in that fact that they regard information technology as the core competitiveness of business success in 21st Century.）
（資本對信息技術的狂熱可以部分體現於，他們將信息技術視為21世紀取得商業成功的核心競爭力）
The features of the mechanism are as following:
這一機制有如下的特點：
1.Improving productivity through information resource sharing and automational task.
2.Strengthening the supervision and intervention to the labor process.
3.Strengthening the association among the production processes which are unrelated before.
1.通過信息資源共享與任務自動化等形式，提高生產力；
2.增強對勞動過程的監管與干預；
3.加強以前互不連屬的生產過程之間的關聯。
The results of network restructuring of labor and production are as follows:
網絡對勞動與生產的重組又產生了如下的結果：
1.The increasing number of information workers, such as the administrative positions represented by white collar workers, the information producers on the Internet, etc.
1.信息工作者的不斷增長，如以白領為代表的行政管理職務、網絡上的信息生產者等；
2.Promoting fragmentation of production and the binding of production system, so as to promote the development of transnational capital and the globalization of capitalism.
2.促進生產的碎片化與生產體系的捆綁化，從而推進跨國資本的發展和資本主義全球化擴張；
3.The network of production has strengthened the problem of exploitation. Automation technology, while raising productivity and profit margins, has led to unemployment and wage stagnation, which, in turn, has dragged consumer’s demand. 【In fact, it is a rebalancing of class power 】
3.網絡化的生產強化了剝削問題，自動化技術在提高生產率與利潤率的同時導致失業問題與工資水平停滯問題，這又反過來拖垮了消費者需求。【實際上是對階級力量的重新制衡】
t is important to note that the cooperative relationship formed through the computer network is not an inherent and unique mode of production of capitalism. Dan Schiller and the academia tend to view it as "an inherent and general feature".
需要注意的是，通過計算機網絡形成的協作關係，並非是資本主義固有、獨有的生產方式，丹·席勒與學術界傾向於將其視為“一種內在的、總體性的特徵”。
Although in essence the computer network and capitalism are independent of each other, the core problem is that, nowadays, the capital is undoubtedly leading the network of cooperative relations, for profit purposes, following a new round of exploitation.
雖然在本質上計算機網絡與資本主義相互獨立，但核心問題在於，目前，資本無疑主導著網絡化的合作關係，為了營利性的目的，進行新一輪的剝削。
三
Contradictory Hour: Depression Progressive Time
矛盾時刻：衰退進行時
For example, in the 2008 global financial crisis (also called the "subprime crisis"), the economic slowdown in 2007 made many people unable to continue to pay mortgage loans, so over-leveraged and fraudulent financial systems began to collapse.
以2008年的全球性金融危機（又稱“次貸危機”）為例，2007年的經濟放緩使不少人無法繼續支付按揭貸款，所以過度金融槓桿化並充滿欺騙性的金融體系便開始崩塌。
So far, America is still in the trend of economic decline, but the information and communications industry has become the relative contrarian growth pole. Dan Schiller named such phenomenon as "Digital Depression" and used it to expand the concept of "Digital capitalism".
迄今為止，美國依然身處經濟滑坡的趨勢之中，但信息與通信產業卻成為了逆勢而行的相對增長極，丹·席勒將這樣的現象稱之為“數字化衰退”，並用此拓展數字資本主義的概念。
Quoting Dan Schiller's insight in his Digital Depression as the epilogue:
借用丹·席勒在《數字化衰退》中的洞見作為結語。
1) the economic contribution of the information and communication industry to the contemporary digital capitalism makes the digital field a fundamental growth pole, similar to the consumer industry in 1930s;
1）信息與通信產業對當代數字資本主義的經濟貢獻，類似於1930年代初生的消費產業，使得數字領域成為根本性的增長極；
1) financial speculation, together with the capital, integrates the digital system into the current political and economic structure in all directions. Both of the two led to the current financial crisis.
2）金融投機行為，連同資本全方位地將數字體系整合進當前的政治經濟結構之中，兩者共同導致了當前的金融危機。”
How to understand?
如何理解這兩點？
On the one hand, information and communication technology is integrated into the political and economic structure by investment from capital. The development stage of digital capitalism is built, which strongly promotes the re-accumulation of capital.
一方面，資本通過對信息通信技術的投資，將其整合進政治經濟結構中，構建起數字資本主義的發展階段——這一過程強有力地推動資本的重新積累；
On the other hand, the restructuring of the capitalist system has many complex and chaotic contradictions in production, finance and military affairs, so digital capitalism has been bankrupt in 2007-2008 years. Since then, the economic depression has continued to today, however, capital is relying on information and communication technology for a new round of exploitation and accumulation.
另一方面，重組的資本主義體系在生產、金融、軍事方面存在許多複雜且混亂的矛盾，因此數字資本主義曾在2007-2008年間破產。之後，經濟不景氣的局面延續至今，但是資本卻在依靠信息通信技術進行新一輪的剝削與積累。
It can be concluded that even the digital capitalist system, which has experienced a restructuring of information, is still entering a chronic, persistent recession, "Digital Depression", because of the inherent defects. Just as Dan Schiller said, "Once capitalism is reborn again, the seeds of the next crisis have long been buried in the political and economic structure".
由此可以得出，即使是經歷了信息化重組的數字資本主義體系，也仍然因為存在的固有缺陷而進入慢性的、持久的經濟衰退——“數字化衰退”之中。正如丹·席勒所言，“一旦資本主義再次重生，下一次危機的種子早已深埋於政治經濟結構中”。
注：文中未詳細註明來源的圖片來自互聯網可被允許使用的作品
參考文獻
[1] 丹·席勒著. 數字化衰退：信息技術與經濟危機[M]. 吳暢暢譯. 北京：中國傳媒大學出版社, 2017.8.
[2] Graham Murdock. The Handbook of Political Economy of Communications[C]. U.K: Wiley - Blackwell, 2011.
[4] Jeffrey A. Frieden. Global Capitalism:Its Fall and Rise in the Twentieth Century[M]. New York:Norton, 2007:371.
[5] Dan Schiller, Digital Capitalism: Networking the Global Market System[M]. Cambridge:MIT Press, 2000.
[6] Dan Schiller. How To Think bout Information[M]. Urbana:University of Illinois Press, 2017:36-57.
編輯：方亞東
