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How about we tweet AND talk instead?

Over the last few months there have been countless amounts of allegations made across Hollywood and the globe, which are based on sexual assaults. Harvey Weinstein a Hollywood movie director was accused of being a sexual predator and the hashtag #metoo has been seen around the world. A number of men across Hollywood have since also been accused and the #metoo campaign represent women who have been sexually assaulted.

Whilst in theory, digital activism seems like a good idea but in reality, what is it actually doing? Whilst I understand different women are uniting as one and it makes the sexual assault issue more spoken about however what does it actually stop? People who are sexually assaulting their victims aren’t getting charges pressed against them, which is what actually needs to happen. I believe the campaign of #metoo and other social campaigns such as #blacklivesmatter are what we would refer to as slacktivism. Slacktivism is best described as “actions taken to bring about political or social change but requiring only minimal commitment, effort, or risk” (Dictionary.com, 2018). I fear that although people may feel like they are feeling empowered and a part of something, I hope that people aren’t let down when the same thing happens time and time again. Slacktivism may cause an empty connection with no significant result (Swinburne, 2018). Has the #metoo campaign gone too far though? Below I have added a video of a discussion for women discussing the campaign.

https://youtu.be/tOM9dwQmeks

Whilst I firmly believe that the #metoo campaign is overall a positive for women across the globe, I stand by my thoughts of thinking more needs to be done. There needs to be more charges laid, more conversations happening and more examples to be made. Men who are found to be guilty need to not work in the industry anymore and they need to be held accountable for what they have done.

Yes, I realise this blog may seem a little feminist; however it’s something that I really feel as a society needs to change.

References:

Dictionary.com. (2018). the definition of slacktivism. [online] Available at: http://www.dictionary.com/browse/slacktivism?s=t [Accessed 1 Feb. 2018].

Swinburneonline.instructure.com. (2018). Swinburne Online. [online] Available at: https://swinburneonline.instructure.com/courses/77/pages/6-dot-2-local-digital-activism?module_item_id=6775 [Accessed 1 Feb. 2018].

#mda20009

Is that a troll hiding behind the screen?

Growing up, I always imagined that a troll was an ugly creature that hid behind rocks. Funnily enough, I think the digital troll is somewhat the same. Digital trolling can be described as someone who hides behind their company screen and posts provocative and misleading comments, with the intent to cause conflict (Klyueva, 2013). Quite similar to the mythical troll, where they would hide behind rocks and throw stones and branches to injure someone or to cause physical pain. They may have even thrown out an insult in their troll language to hurt someone’s feelings. This is also, what we would consider as a bully. The problem with the digital troll though, is there is no one to police what the troll is doing. With a troll like bullying character, there is often a teacher, police officer or parent to stop the behaviour of this troll, whereas a digital troll can hide behind their computer screen with no consequences (Moreau, 2017). It’s easy for them to insult someone, they don’t need to see the reaction in someone’s face when they get their feelings hurt, and they certainly don’t have to see the tears from someone when they read the troll’s comment. I imagine it makes them feel powerful, in a somewhat twisted way.

(Morningside IP, 2018)

There has been some horrific online bullying and trolling cases that have recently come to light. Take Amy “Dolly” Everette. Amy was a 14 year old girl from the Northern Territory who took her own life after being the victim of cyber bullying aka trolling. As someone who has been a 14 year old girl, many years ago, I couldn’t even imagine what she went through. I was bullied in school but I always knew I could get away from my bullies. I had a home life where I could switch off. The cyber world can follow you anywhere and I image she must have felt like she was drowning.

Many reality television stars also are subject to cyber bullying. Whilst many people say that because reality television stars put their lives on show they should be used to it, this shouldn’t happen. For women to call other women fat and ugly, it’s not helping to lift each other up. We need to remember that at the end of the day, these people are still just people and words can cause more pain than they think. Charlotte Dawsey was an Australian reality television star. She was made the target of an organised online bullying campaign where people regularly gave her death threats and told her to stick her head in a toaster and eventually she ended her own life (The Sun, 2013). I wonder if the trolls and bullies would have imagined that to be the end result.

Trolling and bullying is a dark concept. It’s a concept that should not be taken lightly and a process to prosecute these trolls and bullies needs to be put in place. If it’s this bad now, I don’t even want to imagine how bad it might get in the future.

References:

The Sun. (2013). Cyber-bullied stars: The celebrity victims of vile online abuse. [online] Available at: https://www.thesun.co.uk/archives/news/911035/cyber-bullied-stars-the-celebrity-victims-of-vile-online-abuse/ [Accessed 31 Jan. 2018].

Moreau, E 2017, ‘Internet Trolling: How Do You Spot a Real Troll?’, Lifewire, 13 June, viewed 19 December, 2017, < https://www.lifewire.com/what-is-internet-trolling-3485891>

Heath, R L (ed.) 2013, Encyclopedia of public relations, vol. 2, SAGE Publications, Inc., Thousand Oaks, CA, viewed 28 December 2017, doi: 10.4135/9781452276236.

Image Reference:

Morningside IP (2018). Troll. [image] Available at: https://www.morningsideip.com/life-just-got-harder-for-patent-trolls/ [Accessed 31 Jan. 2018].

#mda20009

China - Leading the way OR Lagging behind

I have friends of mine who live in Guangzhou, China. They are based there on a 12 month contract with the company they work for. Whilst they enjoy their life in China, they have told me that it is exceptionally difficult to keep in regular contact with friends back in Australia. In order for them to use Facebook or Whatsapp, they need to enable their VPN (virtual private network) and even then it’s not always guaranteed they will be able to log on. I always presumed that China just didn’t allow any social media and I didn’t realise there was China’s Great Firewall. “China’s Great Firewall (GFC) is among the most technically sophisticated internet filtering/censorship systems in the world” (Open Democracy 2013). China’s Great Firewall is a human powered firewall which allows censorship on content that may be posted. The Firewall can block content, hijack content and allows key word content inspection (Open Democracy 2013). Whilst China still doesn’t allow what I would consider as normal social media platforms, they do have their own. Some of China’s popular social platforms include QZone, WeChat, and Sina Weibo. Thinking back, it seems ridiculous of me to think China just didn’t have social media. The Chinese market is so advanced in technology it seems so obvious now they would have their own.

(Onniix Mobile, 2018)

It’s hard for me to agree with the reading from Chiu, Lin and Silverman's (2012) claim that 'Social media is exploding worldwide, and China is leading the way.' Whilst I have no doubt that China has incredible social media platforms, unless that platform becomes a worldwide known company, I don’t believe they can be known to be leading the way. The most popular social platform in China is QZone, which has 625 million users (Open Democracy 2013). I believe that if China was leading the way in social, I would have heard of this platform or potentially even used this platform. In the Video attached below, they talk about how some of the more popular platforms are based on US companies, making a claim that WeChat is Whatsapp on steroids. If China was leading the way, then surely Whatsapp would be copying what WeChat are doing and not vice versa? Until the companies in China start branching outside of Asia, I will struggle to believe they are leading the way in Social Media but then again, in ten years’ time I might think this opinion is also ridiculous.

References:

Chiu, C, Lin, D & Silverman, A 2012, China's social-media boom, McKinsey & Company, viewed 22 January 2018, <http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/marketing_sales/chinas_social-media_boom>.

The Great Firewall of China 2013, Open Democracy viewed22 January 2018, <https://www.opendemocracy.net/china-correspondent/great-firewall-of-china>

Video Reference:

DLDconference 2013, DLD13 - How Social Media is changing China and Asia, 7 February, viewed 22 January 2018, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rG3z2ucaR6A>.

Images:

Onniix Mobile (2018). http://oniixmobile.com/chinese-social-media-internet-ecosystem/. [image].

Social Gaming - Online dream or nightmare?

As much of a Social Media fan I am, Social gaming has never really appealed to me. I frequently get requests through to play Candy Crush or Farmville but swiftly delete them as they appear. Maybe my brain isn’t wired to enjoy these or maybe I just don’t understand them. I know my husband loves them and he’s not your typical gamer. He plays the game Bejewelled blitz because its mind numbing and he doesn’t need to think about it, it’s a break from his everyday life. The Vice President of Gaming at Zynga, the company that created Candy Crush and Farmville says that social is the backbone of every game that is created at the company. The ability to play with all of your social friends makes them stand apart from regular online games (Zynga, 2014). In 2006 this company aligned themselves with Facebook and leveraged off the user base of Facebook to grow. It’s even been implied that maybe Social Games were the reason why Facebook grew so quickly.

( (http://www.casinoaffiliateprograms.com/blog/how-social-gaming-will-change-online-gaming/, 2018)

Social Gaming has their own codes of practice and rules that players must abide by, particularly in the massively multiple online role-playing games (MMORPG) space. The game rules are established to create a field of interaction and deliberately differentiated the games for competitive, social, cultural and commercial exchange (de Zwart et al, 2014 p 1). Although there are rules and regulations in place, it seems like the online social gaming world is quite unregulated. Reuters (2007) says that there are people lurking online in multiplayer games, harassing their victim by bullying, tormenting or thwarting other players in the game and whilst this article is eleven years old, this still exists and may have even got worse. Stopbullying.gov (2018) says that with 72 percent of teens gaming online and as there is anonymity of players, they may not be held responsible for their actions. There have been known cases of if someone is not performing well, other users may curse or make negative remarks that turns into bullying.

So where do we go to from here in Social Gaming? On one hand, it’s seen as being a mind numbing activity and on the other hand, it seems like a deep dark online path? Is the answer more rules and regulations and having to show identification in order to register? Or is the answer for developers to take more responsibility in the games they develop?

References

Zynga, 2014, viewed 3 August 2016, <www.zynga.com>.

de Zwart, M & Humphreys, S 2014,' The Lawless Frontier of Deep Space: Code as Law in EVE Online', Cultural Studies Review, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 77-99.

StopBullying.gov. (2018). Kids on Social Media and Gaming. [online] Available at: https://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/kids-on-social-media-and-gaming/index.html [Accessed 18 Jan. 2018].

Reuters (2007). A new type of cyberbully hits online gaming world. [online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-internet-bullying/a-new-type-of-cyberbully-hits-online-gaming-world-idUSN0343424320070705 [Accessed 18 Jan. 2018].

Images:

http://www.casinoaffiliateprograms.com/blog/how-social-gaming-will-change-online-gaming/ (2018). http://www.casinoaffiliateprograms.com/blog/how-social-gaming-will-change-online-gaming/. [image].

#mda20009

Visual Communities – Create your own digital storyline

Instagram is my preferred social platform. I like that people don’t tend to share their whole life story and I like that the photos are the focus in the content. It’s easy to not have to read the caption that has been written and it’s easy to create your own story from the image that’s been shared. This is digital storytelling. Instagram is an example of a visual community and can be considered as a platform to reflect your own digital storyline. Hand (2012, p.5) says that a visual community includes photos and images that are part of our personal lives and sharing them online can be to represent ourselves and is our own personal communication. The major downfall about Instagram is the ability for someone to create a perfect looking life, without it being perfect at all. The comparison of offline digital storytelling and the online life are now converging (Vivienne et al 2013, p283) and people can manipulate their own personal image and give the public a certain perception. Users can photoshop their images to make their selfies look flawless, to make their waist look smaller and to make their legs look longer. This worries me as what type of perception is this creating for the younger youth of today? I believe it’s sending a message of insecurity and may lead to further issues of not truly loving yourself. Snapchat is another platform I use regularly and enjoy. You can send videos and photos that have an expiry date on them however you can also have conversations with your friendship list. Like Instagram, Snapchat also lets you add filters to your photos but it seems less staged than what Instagram may seem. From my personal experience, Snapchat seems like a more raw image of someone’s digital storyline.

Below is a snapshot of an Instagram page called Fit girls motivation. This page shows images of females who look confident in themselves and how they look, Do they really though? Nobody knows what these girls may experience on a day to day basis. These photos are only one aspect of their life.

(Instagram, 2018)

Visual communication has made the ability to connect to people all over the world without saying a word easier. “Publics can now be reactors, remakers, redistributors and can be engaged in shared culture and knowledge through discourse and social exchange” (Mizuko Ito, 2008 page 2). Without someone knowing you, they are able to see part of the story you want to share. Tagging photos and videos is now something we see and do across major digital communities such as Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. There are two types of tagging available in the digital community, Hash-tagging and tagging. Hash-Tagging means that rather than someone searching for you specifically they can search for the tag you have made and tagging means someone has added you into their content. On a platform like Facebook I have added a function to approve images and posts that I have been tagged in, to ensure that my name does not get associated with something I don’t like. This means that I can control to a certain degree the connection there is to my name.Once again, controlling my own digital storyline.

References:

Hand, M 2012, Ubiquitous Photography, Polity Press, Cambridge

Mizuko, I 2008 ‘Introduction’, in K, Vamelis, ed. Networked Publics, MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, p 2

Vivienne, S & Burgess, J 2013, ‘The Remediation of the Personal Photograph’, Journal of Material Culture, vol. 18, no. 3, p283

Image Reference:

Instagram (2018). Fit Girls of Instagram. [image] Available at: https://www.instagram.com/fit_girls_of_ig [Accessed 18 Jan. 2018].

#mda20009

Crowdsourcing – Protect yourself but don’t lose faith

The world seems like a much smaller place as we are able to access and gain more information in real time of major world events. Often when I hear of a global tragedy, I want to be able to help and without the digital world, this would seem like a difficult task. Whilst crowdsourcing is a relatively new concept, it’s a concept in most cases, which has been welcomed with open arms. Crowdsourcing is seen as being the practice of obtaining specific needed services or content from large groups of people, especially from the online community (Merriam Webster Online, 2014). Whilst crowdsourcing can be done on a large scale like assisting with natural disasters, it can also be done on a local level such as paying for a child’s medical bills.

In times of natural disasters, crowd sourcing and digital communities have been essential for the support teams. Twitter, Facebook as well as other sites has created the ability to have a social map, so that a crowdsourced picture of an event unfolding is available (Ford, 2012 p 35). This has meant they have been able to gather information surrounding the event in real time and have been able to use this to their advantage. In a similar fashion, Facebook has also created a notification button through a personal Facebook account to mark yourself as safe. Through both of these fairly new functions, we hope that in times of an emergency, the best resources are available to assist. Below is an example of a social map that was created in the 2010 Haiti Earthquake. This map was created by Patrick Meier who wanted to do something to help. This is one of the first crisis maps that had been created and crisis mapping was popularized after this crisis (PA Times Online, 2018).

(PA Online, 2018)

Whilst there are many examples of crowdsourcing being used as a positive, there have been situations of it being used as a scam. Fredman (2015) has written that “because crowdfunding is built on trust, it’s ripe for fraud”. In 2015, the Federal Trade Commission settled its first crowdfunding fraud case in Australia and in the US a woman used a GoFundMe page for her child’s cancer treatment, when her child was healthy (Fredman, 2015). I personally have seen many GoFundMe accounts, where the story seems a little too farfetched to be true.

When it comes to crowdsourcing, I believe the positives outweigh the negatives. As with all scenarios in the digital world, we need to be careful in what we believe, where we lay our trust and always use a legitimate money transfer company.

References

'crowdsourcing entry' 2014, Merriam Webster, viewed 3 August 2016,http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crowdsourcing

Ford, H 2012, 'Crowd Wisdom', Index on Censorship, vol. 41, no. 4, p 35

Fredman, C. (2015). Fund Me or Fraud Me? Crowdfunding Scams Are on the Rise. [online] Consumer Reports. Available at: https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/money/crowdfunding-scam [Accessed 15 Jan. 2018].

PA TIMES Online. (2018). Crisis Mapping: An Overview of Social Media Mapping Response to Disaster. [online] Available at: https://patimes.org/crisis-mapping-overview-social-media-mapping-response-disaster/ [Accessed 18 Jan. 2018].

Image Reference:

PA Online (2018). Patrick Meier’s Haiti 2010 Earthquake Map, Ushahidi. [image] Available at: https://patimes.org/crisis-mapping-overview-social-media-mapping-response-disaster/ [Accessed 18 Jan. 2018].

#mda20009

Think Before You Tweet

As someone who uses social media on a daily basis, I used to follow only my friends and celebrities who interested me. Nowadays, I not only follow friends and celebrities but I also follow both local and international politicians. Part of me does this so I can read their war of words between each other, however there is also a part of me that does it to keep up to date with news in the political world. Twitter as an example, has up to the minute reaction news and is now seen to be breaking new stories (ABC News, 2017), so why would I got to a media website where the information could be skewed and delayed?

Social Media is not only a space for Politicians to voice their opinions, concerns and points of views; however it’s also becoming a platform where the public can express their own thoughts. Jericho (2012, p 254) asks us, how many voters are on Twitter? I believe he is implying that there can be people voicing strong opinions on Social Media but are they really voting in that direction? In the United States, it was led to believe that Hilary Clinton was a clear front runner for the American Presidency. The media outlets had reported this and it seemed like the obvious choice with the amount of anti-Donald Trump propaganda that was released through Social Media. This was not the case. Donald Trump won the Presidency and is now the 45th President of the United States.

(Telegraph, 2015)

Whilst people are now expressing more opinions through their Social Media accounts, there is a need to be careful about what you post. Jericho (2012, pg 255) gives an example of an ALP Candidate in Queensland, Peter Watson, who had made homophobic comments on his social media accounts. Another example is One Nation candidate, Richard Eldridge. Richard Eldridge was running for the local council in Perth, when old Tweets were released. These tweets were to be of a derogatory nature and he ended up standing down from the election (The Sydney Morning Herald, 2017). American President Obama once gave the advice to a group of high school students, “I want everyone here to be careful about what they post on Facebook, because in the YouTube age whatever you do, it will be pulled up again later somewhere in your life”. This advice is something that I will use throughout all of my online endeavours. Whilst it can seem easy to do a quick tweet or Facebook post with an opinion, it’s something that is permanently out there, therefore there is a greater need to think before you tweet.

References:

ABC News. (2017). Is Twitter the news outlet for the 21st century?. [online] ABC News. Available at: http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=7979891&page=1 [Accessed 11 Dec. 2017].

Jericho, G 2012, 'How many votes are there on Twitter?', in The Rise of the Fifth Estate, Scribe, Victoria, Australia.

The Sydney Morning Herald. (2017). One Nation, do you even speak to your WA candidates?. [online] Available at: http://www.smh.com.au/comment/view-from-the-street/one-nation-do-you-even-speak-to-your-wa-candidates-20170216-gueb4s.html [Accessed 11 Dec. 2017].

Image Reference:

Telegraph (2015). How do you stop Twitter Trolls?. [image] Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/social-media/11535405/How-do-you-stop-Twitter-trolls-Unleash-a-robot-swarm-to-troll-them-back.html [Accessed 18 Jan. 2018].

#mda20009

Is Social Media killing our Social Experiences?

We all know Social Media needs it’s users to survive but do the users of Social Media now rely on it to survive socially? Social media has not only changed the way that I can socialise with people who may not live in my direct community but it has also changed the way I socialise with my closest friendship group. There are a number of ways that my social experiences are bound up by social platforms and this begins by Facebook and the use of their events. All events such as birthday parties, group gatherings and social outings are generally organised through our Facebook accounts, whether it be through the group chat function or through events. Siapera (2012 p.204) mentions that there is a study that suggests networking sites would increase weak ties in networks however I personally disagree with this theory. I believe that I have stronger friendships because there is an ease of organising a group lunch, outing or event by giving me the opportunity to socialise with someone who I may not have ever met previously.

Social Platforms have also made it easy to make recommendations on where to dine, drink or socialise. Instagram has pages such as “Breakfast in Perth” which allows you to share images of the food you have consumed in a restaurant. In previous times when you were to recommend a restaurant you would pick up the phone or in tell someone in person (Psychology Today, 2017). This now makes it easier for you to share an experience you had quickly, whether it be negative or positive one. This is useful when thinking of new places to try but is also useful for business’s to expand their clientele and network. Through Facebook there is also a “Check in” option which I use. When Facebook originally announced this feature, they described it as a way to “Connect people, in real space”. The function was created to let the public and friends know where they are to meet up with them, or once again go to for a recommendation (Singel, 2010). This function is extremely good to use, if you are researching somewhere to socialise and you can see that a friend has previously checked in to that venue. This makes it easy for you to get an honest opinion, in a fast time.

I believe Social Media has made socialising easier for people who have social accounts. It’s opened up new opportunities for people to not only meet new people but also to try new experiences. We can now organise events quickly, without worrying about posting invitations or waiting for people’s responses. It’s easier for us to get recommendations on new places to dine, drink and socialise, where we feel confident someone in our network has tried and tested already. So although there is a fear that social media is weakening our friendships, I believe Social Media is strengthening our relationships and is increasing our social experiences.

References:

Psychology Today. (2017). 10 Reasons Why People Post Food Pictures on Facebook. [online] Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/comfort-cravings/201008/10-reasons-why-people-post-food-pictures-facebook [Accessed 6 Dec. 2017].

Siapera, E 2012, 'Socialities and Social Media', in Understanding New Media, Sage, London, p 204

Singel, R. (2010). Facebook Launches 'Check-In' Service to Connect People in Real Space. [online] WIRED. Available at: https://www.wired.com/2010/08/watch-facebooks-location-sharing-announcement-live/ [Accessed 6 Dec. 2017].

#social media #social mda20009

Social Media & Digital Communities

Social Media is something that I use on an everyday basis. On the two main social platforms I use, I have 919 friends on Facebook and 564 followers on Instagram. These numbers don’t reflect the people I really count as friends. As Wilken & McCosker (2014) explain my Social Media accounts have a self-presentation of what I want to show the public and will only show the personal details I want the public to see. I decide what my social media friends will see, rather than them forming their own opinion on what I am like by having a face to face relationship. Having a social media presence means I rarely feel unconnected. If it is late at night, I know that I can go on to one of my social platforms and feel like I have some form of bond. Has Social Media made people lonely but afraid of intimacy (Turkle TED-Ed 2013)? I am perpetually connected and always on, however this doesn’t mean I don’t have a sense of feeling alone (boyd 2012, p 72). I believe Social Media gives a false sense of relationships. If you can’t have a face to face conversation with someone, how can you truly build a relationship with them?

Before Social Media and Digital Communities, people needed to socialise with each other through communities and societies. These communities and societies are now being reformed digitally and are being referred to as networks. On my Facebook account I am a member of communities such as a reality TV group, where we discuss gossip from our favourite shows and a slow cooking group where recipes are shared. Both of these groups have members who are based globally. Siapera, E (2012, pg 194) states that virtual communities are based on shared social practices where a physical community is based on shared social activities and a similar location. Digital communities make it easier to connect with people; however how connected are you really if you don’t see them in person? I believe that with the movement towards more networks and digital communities, it has further isolated people from the publics around them.

Social Media and Digital Communities have revolutionized the world. It’s made it easier to connect with old colleagues, school friends and people with similar interests who may be based on the other side of the world but at what cost? Have people forgotten how to build relationships with someone whilst having a face to face conversation? Have they lost the ability to make eye contact? Whilst I believe that Digital Communities and Social Media are important to have, we need to be mindful to take the opportunity to meet someone in person to really form and build a relationship and bond.

References:

Wilken, R & McCosker, A 2014, 'Social Selves', in Cunningham & Turnbull (eds), The Media & Communications in Australia, Allen and Unwin pp. 291-295.

TED-Ed 2013, Connected, but alone?- Sherry Turkle, 19 April, viewed 17 November, 2017, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv0g8TsnA6c>.

Boyd, d 2010, ‘Social Network Sites as Networked Publics’, in Papacharissi, Z, A Networked Self: Identity, Community, and Culture on Social Network Sites, Routledge, Hoboken, p. 72

Siapera, E 2012, 'Socialities and Social Media', in Understanding New Media, Sage, London, p. 194

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