#digitallives

[zoininelives]

Marry Jane

She didn’t come to escape. She came to listen – to the sea, and to herself.

[officialsaraazad-blog]

But First, Let Me Take A Selfie

A selfie is a photographic self-portrait shared on social media.

We've all taken them when we felt good, looked good, or wanted to capture ourselves with someone/something. Selfies are a integrated part of our modern digital society, yet there seems to be an underlying stigma to them. If everyone takes selfies, why do people get made fun of or harassed for taken selfies?

From Lindgren's chapter on "Digital Visuality and Visibility", we discussed many things about selfies. One of things topics was the attitude of others towards selfies. Pamela Rutledge said in the chapter; "if the people in selfies aren't famous or being paid to pose, then it must indicate a moral failing and they are labeled bragging, attention seeking, self-focused, or narcissistic." Why? For a society that tries to stop body shaming and encourage self-confidence, why would you label someone who takes pictures of themselves, for whatever reason, narcissistic or attention seeking?

According to Google, 93 million selfies are taken everyday, and that's just from Android phones. Quartz Media discusses the hypocrisy of taking/hating selfies here;

"this paradox is explained by a simple psychological theory dating back to the early 1970s: the self-serving bias, an ego-based attribution. “We naturally try to explain our behavior in terms that flatter us and put us in a good light,” says Sarah Diefenbach of Ludwig-Maximilians-University in Munich, the study’s co-author. “Self-presentational motivations may be associated with narcissism and regarded as less reputable, and therefore attributed to others rather than to oneself. For oneself, one prefers relations to be more reputable character traits such as self-irony or authenticity.”

Selfies are a part of our society now, so stop criticizing it and let people feel good about themselves and their pictures.

The affordances of phones allow for a front-facing camera, also known as the "selfie" camera because it is the camera people use for taking selfies. Companies run promotion campaigns that enter you into a contest if you take a selfie with their merchandise. Snapchat gives users filters for their face/surroundings if they hold down their finger on their screen when using the front-facing camera. Selfies are a major part of digital society now, and the shaming of taking selfies is ridiculous as a result, and should be stopped. Selfies allow for others to see the subject's surroundings/situation/friends, connecting real life to digital life and establishing networks.

I know I like taking selfies; I like to capture myself on good days when I am happy, feeling good, or looking good. And I hope others can do the same without being criticized or labelled as narcissists. 

[zoininelives]

Bliss Bay, early hours. The shore looked calm, but the town was already awake inside itself.

Not every story reaches the surface. Some stay in the sand, written by wind and erased by the next wave.

The sea listens. The city remembers. And somewhere between calm mornings and restless nights, lives begin to tangle – quietly or not at all.

[zoininelives]

The pause is never empty.

[officialsaraazad-blog]

#MeToo, Sexual Assault, and Social Media

The hashtag #MeToo spread virally in October of 2017, its purpose to denounce sexual assault and harassment. Created in response to the sexual allegations against Harvey Weinstein at the time, through this media campaign more and more women are coming forth about the sexual assault and harassment they faced in their workplaces,  this effect now referred to as the "Weinstein Effect" as similar men to Weinstein in power and standing are being accused.

Social media is essential in this campaign, as initially it helped to spread the hashtag, and now continues to allow individuals the affordances of joining the movement. The recent Kevin Spacey scandal also shows the power of media. After the first man, Anthony Rapp, spoke out about Spacey's sexual misconduct, more and more men went to social media, the producing companies, and other sources to say their stories. Citizen journalism is becoming stronger as more and more people have access to cellular devices and computers to get their words out into the open.

#MeToo is all about reporting what is going on behind the scenes, and bringing it to center stage. People who would otherwise have kept these sexual harassments and assaults to themselves are now coming forward, and as Howard Rheingold from Lindgren's chapter on Interactions and Identities says; "[cyberspace is] a place that people often end up revealing themselves far more intimately than they would be inclined to do without the intermediation of screens and pseudonyms." Without social media platforms like Twitter, which allow users to broadcast their opinions and thoughts with their real names or pseudonyms, social movements like #MeToo where people are finally talking about the elephant in the room that is Sexual Harassment would not exist.

As chilling as it is to hear about all these people who have faced such injustices within their work environments/lives, it is also inspiring to see that, through #MeToo and the supporting users, people are finally coming forward about what they faced, coming to terms with it and fighting for change within society. As Jenkins spoke about the political power of social media, #MeToo talks about the power of social media combined with the power of people who are striving to move society forward. Through social media, people are able to get a leg up against the fight against social injustices, and societal change is sure to come as a result.

[officialsaraazad-blog]

Research Ethics

Would you out someone just for the sake of your own gain? Would you tell someone about something you found out, even though it wasn't your information to share?

Ethics are a serious issue no matter where you go or what you're researching. "It is critical to remember that Web 2.0 research involves people, not technologies." is a quote from the reading we did this past week on Barry Rooke's Four Pillars of Internet Research Ethics with Web 2.0. In the article it describes these pillars as security of the individual, anonymity, safety, and use of mined data and information. These concepts are key in allowing research to be for purposeful means only, and for making sure ethical boundaries are not crossed.

As mentioned before in class and in reading, often times the Terms and Conditions of an online service are often skimmed over or not read at all. Because of this, "users may not see themselves as research subjects, and ethics demands clear disclosure." says author Jeremy Harris Lipscultz in his article, Social Media Research Ethics Clarity Needed, for the Huffington Post. Especially with research where subjects do not know they are participating in research, the ethics involved in the personal information and security of subjects is by no means a small issue.

If ethics are not properly respected, it could lead to situations like the one we discussed in class, where the reporter lied about who he was and went onto Grindr to see which Olympians were there.

I found this to be such a repulsive thing to do, to lie about your own sexuality in order to find out about the sexuality of others, to out those individuals just for your own personal amusement or gain. 

In in these situations identity conflict occurs, and offline identity clashes with online identity. For example, the reporter who outed those athletes, he did so without their consent, without their knowledge. Some could have faced extreme backlash from being outed, such as those from countries where homosexuality is considered illegal.

With research ethics, its imperative that the four pillars are respected and protected; that subjects are able to continue on with their lives without any consequences from the publication of the research they are involved in. Each person has the right to privacy, expression, and identity, and no one should be allowed to take that away from them.

[officialsaraazad-blog]

Is The Internet Improving Us or Hindering Us?

Where are you in the cybernet debate?

Are you a cyberpessimist or a cyperoptimist? We discussed the reading on this very topic, and the middleground came up; hope for the best, keep in mind the worst. 

Frankly, I can see where all the debate spurs from.  I do know that “Google-ing” something is much easier than looking it up in hard copy. I do know that people are constantly on their devices. That communication has suffered because of it, that people are looking down into screens instead of up into faces, and conversation and interaction is being replaced by silence or the dull sound of music from headphones. I do know that thoughts can be broadcasted around the world with just a click of a button, giving power to  to good people and bad people; people who have something important to say and people who think what they’re saying is important. I do know that students are compiling notes online, for those who missed class, for those who don’t take notes, for those who want to help, and I also know that this can lead to cheating. I know that each advancement in technology comes with affordances and constraints, and as social media buzzes inside our pockets we are left to wonder where our authenticity has gone.

I know all this; so do others. That’s why we sends notes but not assignment papers. We donate to websites like Kickstarter to encourage advancements and new ideas. We try to turn our phones off (or at least on silent) when we’re in class. We cite our sources to give credit where its due. We engage with communities all over the world. We video call our relatives to show them they are never forgotten. We use websites like FreeRice (where each correct answer donates 10 grains of rice to the World Food Program to end world hunger) , and browsers like Ecosia (where over 80% of the profits from your web searches are used to plant trees where they are needed most). We are taking courses like Digital Lives in school, where we try to understand technology and how to better use it in our lives. 

I feel people have now reached the middleground, where we are focusing on the good of technology, keeping the bad on the backburner as a reminder, and striving towards doing what we can with the resources we now have.