The essays collected in Law and Media present German media theorist Cornelia Vismann investigating how law functions through the media technologies used to produce, disseminate, and preserve it—from papyrus and the codex to courtroom stenography and Stasi files. Expanding on the understanding of the cultural techniques of law advanced in her landmark first book, Files, Vismann explores topics including the history of Roman law, the development of law books and archives, the transcription and translation of laws and legal proceedings, and the techniques and technologies of bureaucratic administrationTranslated here for the first time into English and featuring an introduction situating Vismann's thought in terms of her scholarly interlocutors, this book brings Vismann's creative theoretical work, in the form of lively and accessible essays, to readers in cultural studies, media studies, political philosophy, and legal history. For first-time readers of Vismann, these essays will provide a valuable introduction to her key concepts and ideas, while those familiar with the pioneering media theorist will find additional insight into the theories and scholarship that shaped her unique approach.
Cornelia Vismann (1961–2010) was Professor for the History and Theory of Cultural Techniques at the Bauhaus University in Weimar. She is the author of Files: Law and Media Technology (Stanford, 2008), her only other book in English.
