KK DIGITAL

A blog for Digital Communities - Assessment 1 by Kristina Katsoutas 

[weliveinadigitalworld-blog]

‘Selfie’ was The Oxford Dictionaries word of the year in 2013 meaning “a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media site” (Oxford Dictionaries 2013). Selfies are like a visual diary entry, providing evidence you were in a...

[kkdigital-blog]

Great blog post by 'weliveinadigitalworld' - I found your post really interesting. It is so scary/creepy the amount of apps there are out there now that can save and screen shot your snap chats without you being aware. The whole point of snap chat was to see if someone opened it or if they screenshot it...now this is just pure creepy! It's insane the way the world is heading. 

[kkdigital-blog]

Behind the Great Firewall of China

Michael Anti (aka Jing Zhao) has been blogging from China for 12 years. Despite the control the central government has over the Internet -- "All the servers are in Beijing" -- he says that hundreds of millions of microbloggers are in fact creating the first national public sphere in the country's history, and shifting the balance of power in unexpected ways.

[kkdigital-blog]

The Golden Shield Project

While we all know that social media has quite literally taken over the majority of our lives, and has become an extremely popular tool for communication as well as a source of entertainment in households worldwide.

 Although, what you may not know is that the largest population of Internet users in the world is China. Though, China has one of the most restricted Internets around the globe. The great firewall is said to be the most technically sophisticated Internet filtering/censorship system in the world. (Riggall, 2013)

 8 different Internet service providers that are all controlled by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology provide China’s Internet access. There are various multifaceted systems in place that censor the population of China such as IP blocking, DNS hijacking and keyword content filtering. (Riggall, 2013)

 Think about sitting down to your laptop or iPad after a long day at work, and attempting to log into Facebook. A censor message appears on the screen, and you are denied access to our favourite social media site. How would you feel? What would you think? Well, for the Chinese population this is a regular occurrence.

Though while they do not have access to Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, they are provided with alternatives that include Baidu (search engine like Google), Sina Weibo (blogging site like Twitter), Renren (their equivelant of Facebook) and Youku Tudou (Video site similar to YouTube).

Chiu, Lin and Silverman (2013, Pg 1) claim that “social media is exploding worldwide and China is leading the way”. While it is obvious that social media has indeed blown up so to speak, on a global level, I do not agree that China has been leading the way. Most countries including us here in Australia do have some censorship in place, but it is nowhere near what China is undertaking. This pretty much goes against our beliefs and values as Australian citizens, including freedom, free speech, and our rights as human beings to do as we please, provided it is still legal of course. 

I really hope that China doesn’t continue to attempt to change the way the world is able to utilise their Internet usage, because I certainly don’t want to log into Facebook one day to find that it has been blocked. Do you?

 References: 

- Riggall, M. (2013). Virtual Reality!: Behind the great firewall of China. [Online] Virtualreality91.blogspot.com.au. Available at: http://virtualreality91.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/behind-great-firewall-of-china.html

- Wikipedia, (2015). Golden Shield Project. [Online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Shield_Project

[michelleschaerer]

Social gaming refers to playing games as a way of social interaction, as opposed to playing games in solitude. With the introduction of gaming through social networking sites the popularity of these games has increased significantly. Facebook has had a large impact, being the first cross-platform...

[kkdigital-blog]

Great post by Michelle. I completely agree that Facebook has had a huge impact on the way that people now play games online, and it has become so easy and accessible while on the go. Users are consumed with these games and can play them at home, on the train/tram/bus to and from work. Not sure how good this is going to be for society in the long run. 

[kkdigital-blog]

Social Gaming Making a Killing

Following the social media explosion of Facebook back in 2007 is the world of social gaming. If you are an avid Facebook user and pay any attention to online gaming you would know about the countless number of games that are available for download “free to play” – which in laymen’s terms basically means that it is free to download the game, but the many extras cost money.

I’m sure we have all come across stories about people who have spent ridiculous amounts of money on a game, which ends up costing them a lot, more than the average $70 at JB Hi-Fi. For example, a report has emerged about a Belgian teenager who spent nearly $50,000 in a single game. (Forbes, 2014)

 If you’re a creator of a free to play game, stories like that might warm your heart. You probably don’t want players this extreme – it’s kind of bad publicity – but you want to find the kind of players who are willing to spend far more than the price of a typical video game, right? (Forbes, 2014)

Wrong!

Research has shown that the biggest sources of revenue aren’t necessarily the gamers who spent the most, but the most social players. This has been one of the key findings of Ninja Metrics - an analytics firm who explores data about how players interact in a social gaming environment. (Forbes, 2014) “Some influencers spend no money but generate hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Ninja Metrics CEO Dmitri Williams said. “That also applies to game time, as well.” (Forbes, 2014)

 A game that provides players with the need to play together as apposed to alone, creates a stronger effect. This data is extremely useful to these sorts of companies, as it aids game developers to target the right social media players, retain their current players and attaint new users, all while getting them to spend money on the extras the game has to offer.

Remember kids – don’t be fooled into thinking things are ever going to be given away absolutely free! This explains how the creators and owners of these ‘free’ games are able to make a killing.

References: 

- Forbes, (2014). The Moneymakers For Social Games Aren't The Big Spenders. [Online] Available at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2014/10/03/the-moneymakers-for-social-games-arent-the-big-spenders/ - Adweek.com, (2008). What Exactly are Social Games?. [Online] Available at: http://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/social-games/1695 - Wikipedia, (2015). Social network game. [Online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_network_game

[kkdigital-blog]

Generation Selfie

The question on everyone’s lips…has the generation of the ‘selfie’ turned us all into narcissists? We live in an age where social media accounts and selfies have become a natural progression, and it’s completely normal to police pictures of ourselves on Facebook and Instagram, and un-tagging ourselves wherever we feel necessary. I admit that I am a girlie girl, who enjoys makeup, getting my hair done and tanning every now and then, but I have never thought of myself as extremely high maintenance. Though I have begun to learn my good angles and my good side when taking photos with friends, and of course selfies. I have a couple of go-to filters on Instagram, and have perfected my selfie smile, and as cringe worthy, as it is to admit – my pout. In saying all of this, I know that I am not alone. “Launched by the media theorist Lev Manovich and digital analyst Daniel Goddemeyer, selfiecity.net analyses Instagram selfie patterns around the world. From it, we learn that the average age of the selfie-taker is 23.7; of people under 40, women take more selfies than men; over 40, men become the main culprits (perhaps because their female peers are anxious about ageing).” (Hart, 2014) Every one of us is familiar with the ways that the digital movement have changed the way we socialize, shop, and even eat, but I did not envisage that my smart phone would change the way I perceive myself, the way I look, and how concerned I am with the ways in which other people perceive me. Though according to psychologist and the author of The Willpower Instinct, Dr Kelly McGonigal, being overly concerned about pictures of yourself doesn’t make you a narcissist. “It’s entirely normal, and from a survival perspective helpful, to be obsessed with gossip about yourself, pictures of yourself or responses to you online. Such status anxiety is part and parcel of being in a society. We are interested in what friends and family are doing, saying, thinking and feeling – particularly if it’s a response to us. This is how we establish our place in society, how we form supportive relationships with like-minded people.” (Hart, 2014) Is the selfie a positive portrayal of us? Or are we simply too obsessed with the way we look and the way others perceive us? Are we becoming a generation full of narcissists, or are we simply becoming more and more vein? It is yet to be determined wether or not it is doing more harm than good within our society, and unfortunately I think this is a debate that will continue for many years, and generations to come. References: - ABC News, (2013). Social media, sexualisation and the selfie generation. [online] Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-09-23/gorman-the-selfie-generation/4974132 - Hart, A. (2014). Generation selfie: Has posing, pouting and posting turned us all into narcissists? - Telegraph. [Online] Telegraph.co.uk. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/womens-life/11265022/Selfie-obsession-are-we-the-most-narcissistic-generation-ever.html - Saydaily.com, (2015). Making Sense of the Selfie Generation. [Online] Available at: http://www.saydaily.com/2014/12/selfie-generation

[kkdigital-blog]

Crowd Sourcing - The Way of The Future.

We live in a world where we are able to transfer information by the simple click of a mouse. It is actually quite amazing when you stop and think about it. This is emphasized throughout times of crisis and when there is a breaking news story. We are now able to disperse information through online forums, blogs, social media platforms – you name it. This has almost taken the place of our traditional media forms such as newspapers, television and radio. It is preferred by many people now, that information be dispersed via an online method, in particular social media platforms, in times of crisis in order to spread the word as fast as possible. What more effective way to do that than via Twitter, Facebook or Instagram? Crowd sourcing has been effectively used throughout a number of crises, natural disasters and breaking news stories over the years. This particular way of communicating has given authorities a way to communicate with the public from all corners of the globe. During the 2011 Queensland Floods, Twitter was the most utilized social media platform to share vital information and updates with the public. A large number of different emergency services provided updates and people caught up in the floods could provide emergency services, and people concerned around the world, with first hand information including photographs, videos and descriptions. (Bruns et al, 2012) Even ABC who is known to be the ‘emergency broadcaster’ turned to social media with the intention to engage with a wider number of people during these tragic situations, with the conviction that ‘employing well-organized social media could have a profound impact in an emergency situation’ (Posetti & Lo, 2012). I can put my hand up and honestly say that I have followed breaking news stories and crisis through an online platform. The #bringbackourgirls hash tag and story had me fascinated every single day, as did the Malaysian Airlines and Air Asia missing planes, and in really recent times the Sydney siege. While I work full time, I found myself ‘Googling’ what was happening during work hours, and jumping on Facebook every chance I got so that I could see if the situation had changed, or whether there was any updates or deaths. I followed this crisis particularly closely, even though I live outside of Melbourne, I had been staying in Martin Place not that long before the siege on a holiday with friends. I was amazed to see the flood of social media messages and support on Facebook and Instagram in particular, from photos to hashtags the world was definitely behind the people of Sydney. There are many benefits to crowd sourcing, though there are the obvious negatives to it as well, with information being fabricated. I do believe that crowd sourcing is the way of the future, and a fantastic way for information to be dispersed around the globe. References - Bruns, A, Burgess, J, Crawford, K & Shaw, F 2012, Crisis Communication on Twitter in the 2011 South East Queensland Floods, Arc Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation available at: - Postetti, J & Lo, P 2012, The Twitterisation of ABCs Emergency & Disaster Communication, Australian Journal of Emergency Management, Vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 34-39.

[kkdigital-blog]

Social Media and Cyber Bullying - Will There Ever Be a Solution?

Alongside the dramatic rise in social media use in our day-to-day lives, there has also been a dramatic rise in cyber-bullying, which has unfortunately become inescapable for many children and teenagers in today’s society. They are no longer safe from bullies in their own homes, which is a scary and alarming reality for these children, teenagers and parents, across the world. “The charity ChildLine says it has seen a large increase in the number of children contacting it with concerns about online bullying. It saw 4,507 cases of cyber bullying in 2012 to 2013, up from 2,410 in 2011 to 2012.” (BBC News, 2014) The charity has also seen a rise in concerns for children and teens in regards to self-harming, as depression and difficult family relationships were also the top reasons for them seeking help. This is an alarming matter, and a huge wake-up call for the greater community. "Far too many of the nation's children seem to be struggling and in despair. It's so important that we support children to talk about issues and look out for signs that they're not able to cope. No matter how hard-pressed we are, we must commit to giving children time and space to talk about their lives." (BBC News, 2014) Peter Wanless, the Chief Executive of the NSPCC charity, which runs ChildLine, said: "The issues facing children today are very different from those that faced us as children. Stranger danger, for example, rarely comes up in contacts to ChildLine but depression, self-harm, online bullying and even suicide contacts are increasing exponentially. If we are to help young people we need to listen to what they are telling us about the issues they are facing.” (BBC News, 2014) The media has followed and covered a large number of stories on cyber bullying and the long last effects that it has had on individuals. They have covered horror stories about many individuals who have suffered at the hands of faceless cyber bullies, including Australian celebrity Charlotte’s Dawson, who ended her own life after a long battle with depression and dealing with extensive cyber bullying for many years. The Megan Meier case, the Jessica Logan case, and the Amanda Todd case, and unfortunately these cases are only the beginning. At this stage, I do not believe there is a solid solution on how to stop people from being bullied online, and I doubt very much that there will be one. The same way as it is almost impossible to stop children from being bullied in the playground, and adults from being bullied in the workplace. Though, implementation of laws around bullying in all forms is going to be a great step in the right direction, and social media accounts need to become more accountable for their users and their actions. References: BBC News, (2014). Cyberbullying 'on rise' - ChildLine. [Online] Available at: http://www.bbc.com/news/education-25639839 BBC Newsbeat, (2015). Cyberbullying: How to keep safe online and deal with it. [Online] Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/25648391

[kkdigital-blog]

Digital Activism

Social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and various blogs have become the latest, and fastest form of social activism and protest in the current digital age. They are used as tools to enable faster communication to a wide audience, and to be able to spread current events, news and information and promote awareness and change within society. Research has begun to address how activist and advocacy groups within the United States and Canada are using social media to achieve digital activism objectives. In recent times, the most widespread and commonly known form of digital activism was the “Bring Back Our Girls” campaign. On April 14th, 2014, Boko Haram, an Islamic extremist group, designated as a terrorist group by many countries including the United States, kidnapped over 300 school girls form their dormitory in Northern Nigeria. (Gonzalez-Bailon, Borge-Holthoefer and Moreno, 2013) A protest movement gradually began, and the hash tag #bringbackourgirls was started, though nobody is quite sure of where the hash tag started or who created it, the hash tag trended globally on Twitter as the story continued to spread around the world, and by the 11th of May 2014 it had gained 2.3 million tweets. There were a number of high profile celebrities and political leaders who showed their support for the cause, including Cara Delevigne, Usher, Alicia Keys, Sean Combs, Drake, and in particular, Michelle Obama who posted a photo of herself holding a sign that read #bringbackourgirls, her particular picture was re-tweeted 56,866 times. Though, we are now 6 months on, and still no progress in this case has been made, and there are currently still 219 girls that are missing, and only 57 of the original 300 were able to escape. (Ogene, 2014) In turn, this raises the obvious question of how much impact does digital activism really make? The coverage and hype surrounding cases such as Kony 2012 and the #bringbackourgirls campaign only ever seems to last for a weeks or even few months, and then the realm of social media rolls onto something new and exciting, and fails to follow through with what it started. In some aspects, maybe this is an easy way for people to feel as though they are doing their part and contributing to a movement, in other aspects it may be an attempt to try to create and facilitate change, and for others it may all just be a ploy for some extra-added attention to their social media accounts. References: - Gonzalez-Bailon, S., Borge-Holthoefer, J. and Moreno, Y. (2013). Broadcasters and Hidden Influentials in Online Protest Diffusion. American Behavioral Scientist, 57(7), pp.943-965. Online at: http://digital-activism.org/2014/05/what-you-need-to-know-about-bringbackourgirls/ - Wikipedia, (2014). Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping. [online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chibok_schoolgirls_kidnapping#Reaction - ljazeera.com, (2014). Abandonment of 'Bring Back Our Girls'. [online] Available at: http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2014/10/abandonment-bring-back-our-girls-2014101494119446698.html

[kkdigital-blog]

Barak Obama's address to Griffith University students regarding the G20 Summit, social media, beer, and Aussie jokes.

[kkdigital-blog]

Social Media and Politics.

Social media alongside social media platforms are changing the world as we know it. It alters the way we interact with family, friends, work colleagues, it even changes the way we consume our food. Before we start digging into our delicious meal at *insert name of fancy restaurant* or before we devour our N2 ice cream, we better not forget to post a photo on Instagram. In conjunction with altering our social lives, it is also taking an affect on the political world, with more and more politicians utilizing their social media accounts predominantly on Facebook and Twitter, in order to engage their prospective followers. “There is no doubt that social media had a huge impact on the recent elections in the US. In 2008, there were about 1.5 million election-related tweets. In 2012, there were 31 million. The population of people using social media has changed since that time also.” (The Social Media Monthly, 2013) During 2008 the majority of avid social media users were the younger demographic, though now it reflects the population as a whole, with a much wider range of people becoming more engaged in social media platforms. “But it’s not enough to look at these changes and talk about social media as just a new platform. Social media is not a change in technology; it is a change in how people communicate. This change has to be reflected in how candidates behave, not just online but everywhere.” (The Social Media Monthly, 2013) A great example of how politicians attempt to make themselves more relatable and likeable with not only the youth of today, but also all people in general is Baraka Obama who is an avid Twitter user. The following video is Barak Obama addressing University students in Queensland, Australia. The address was targeting the G20 submit, and climate change. Though he was able to throw in some references about drinking, Twitter, and a few Aussie jokes. It makes people feel as though they have more in common with him, than the “us against them” mentality that some people have towards politics and politicians. - The Social Media Monthly, (2013). How Social Media Has Changed Politics: It’s Not Just Tactics - The Social Media Monthly. Available at: http://thesocialmediamonthly.com/how-social-media-has-changed-politics-its-not-just-tactics/ - Wright, T. (2014). G20 summit: Barack Obama wows youth with social media and beer references. The Sydney Morning Herald. Available at: http://www.smh.com.au/business/g20/g20-summit-barack-obama-wows-youth-with-social-media-and-beer-references-20141115-11ngup.html

[kkdigital-blog]

Digital Communities & Social Media - Help or Hindrance?

Social media describes the different digital communities in which users are able to connect with one another from all corners of the globe, and being able to engage in various social medial platforms such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Snap chat, Pinterest and many more. There are various substantial arguments both for and against the avid use of social media platforms in society today, though one of the most common arguments to be made against the incessant use of social media as a method of communication and connection is that while people may feel as though they are connected and united, it can be quite the opposite. People can find themselves disjointed from genuine face-to-face interaction with their family and friends, co-workers, or other people they encounter throughout their day-to-day life. Partaking in a face-to-face conversation is a rare form of connection in our modern society, as digital ‘likes’, ‘emojis’, texts, tweets, and comments have taken over our lives and replaced our physical connections with digital connections, not the mention the amount of time individuals dedicated to scrolling through their news feeds and checking their notifications. Amongst the negative arguments toward social media encounters, there are also added benefits to engaging in a social and digital community. With one of the most obvious benefits being able to contact and engage with people in different geographic locations and different time zones within the world. Social media platforms break down the barrier of physical space and time, and allows the world to become one in an online community. Therefore this creates a sense of belonging for some people, who may feel disconnected from people in their lives. They have been granted the opportunity to join like-minded, similar individuals in an online world whether it is in a blog, a group on Facebook, a specific hash tag on Instagram, they have the opportunity to find their place in the world. Though it is still quite impossible to distinguish whether or not social media interactions help or hinder the human experience and their interactions. References: Socialmediaandsociety.com, (2014). Social Media & Society | 2015 International Conference (July 27-29, Toronto). [online] Available at: https://socialmediaandsociety.com/ Cowling, D. (2014). Social Media News Blog Australia. [online] Socialmedianews.com.au. Available at: http://www.socialmedianews.com.au/