Veronica Barassi - Child Data Citizen: How Tech Companies Are Profiling Us from before Birth

I wrote this book for my daughters, my family, and all the parents and families I met in this life-changing and personal research journey. I owe them everything. Their stories, their thoughts, and their everyday experiences have shaped my understanding of the injustice of surveillance capitalism. They made this book possible; they inspired me, questioned me, surprised me, and reminded me of why we need publicly engaged ethnographic research. I doubt that I will ever be able to convey how much I owe them.

My immense gratitude goes also to my colleagues and friends who have supported me throughout the way. I am thankful for their work, amazing minds, advice, collegiality, critical thinking, and passion for research. Without their support, I would have never been able to finish this project and book. Again there are no real words to express my gratitude.

I would like to thank in particular Lina Dencik, Mila Steele, and Melissa Sevasti-Nolas for being such amazing friends, believing in this book, and making it better with their observations, thoughts, and ideas. I also would like to thank Ben Williamson for his generosity and comments. Without their input this book would have been very different.

The Child | Data | Citizen project would have not been possible without the academic and emotional support of different scholars and friends. I personally would like to thank, Natalie Fenton, Leah Lievrouw, Sonia Livingstone, Nick Couldry, Annette Markham, and Greg Elmer for being there for me during these life-changing times. They have been a constant source of motivation and support. I am deeply indebted to them.

In the last three years different colleagues have inspired me with their work and our discussions. A special thanks goes also to Adrienne Russell, Emiliano Trer, Alice Mattoni, Anastasia Kavada, Stefania Milan, Thomas Poell, Mirca Madianou, Gholam Khiabany, Des Freedman, Milly Williamson, Richard MacDonald, Angela MacRobbie, Clea Bourne, Aeron Davis, Lisa Blackman, Joanna Redden, Arne Hintz, Dan McQuillan, Elefetheria Lekakis, Anne Kaun, Giovanna Mascheroni, Tama Leaver, Tom Boellstorff, Mimi Ito, and Sarah Pink.

I would also like to thank the Department of Media, Communications and Cultural Studies at Goldsmiths and the British Academy for having believed in this project and for giving me their institutional support. I am also profoundly grateful to my friend Craig Barrett for helping me with the design and running of the Child | Data | Citizen website, which has been an invaluable resource for this project.

All my gratitude goes to my family. It goes to my parents, Patrizia and Gianni, for their unconditional love, support, and for being the best examples I have in life. It also goes to my sister Bradawho is always there for me, listens, and encourages me all the timeand to my niece and Ale. Finally, I am really not sure where I can find the right words to thank Paul, my husband, who has read the book from cover to cover, commented, pushed me to achieve more, and always supported me no matter what. In the craziness of our cross-continental life, he has always been there together with my daughters, filling my life with joy and excitement. Thank you.