Digital Communities

There’s only 4 countries in the world that do not have access to the internet; Syria, Iran, China and North Korea, the SICK countries.

Instead China has its very own special internet - Chinanet.

The Great Firewall of China, is the censorship system in place that carefully decides exactly what the Chinese people can access on Chinanet.

Chinanet is not all that different from the normal internet, it basically clones all the sites that you and I use everyday, but re-names it and has total control over it. The Chinese Government has total control over everything in Chinanet. They do this by taking control of the data by storing it in their own servers (TED 2014). With this they can then delete any content that they want in order to ensure the image of the Chinese communist Government is kept in tact.

Surprisingly, China still has access to social networking site, however not the Facebook, Twitter and Intagram that we may initially think of. China has created its very own by cloning all of these from the ‘western internet’ and making their own. With over 625 million user on Qzone alone, it is clear that the Chinese are just as obsessed with social media as the rest of the world. The reason why the Chinese love social media so much is because it gives “the voiceless people a channel to make (their) voice heard” (TED, 2013).

Having said this, there is no doubt that the censorship of Chinanet is strict. People have come up with their own code name or made up words for certain names of those within the Chinese Government because their names are blocked and you cannot search or post anything with their names.

Image: Techniasia, 2013

Fighting this censorship is an army of self-described "hacktivists" such as Bill Xia, a Chinese-born software engineer who lives in North Carolina. “These hacktivist, are busy inventing software and using other tactics to allow ordinary Chinese to beat the "Great Firewall of China" and access information on sensitive subjects such as Chinese human rights and Tibet, the province where pro-independence sentiment has boiled over in recent months” (Wiseman, n.d).

While it’s great to see that there are people fighting for their freedom of speech, I don’t think that the censorship of Chinanet will ever be overthrown.

References:

TED 2012, Behind the Great Firewall of China, June, viewed 8 February 2015, <http://www.ted.com/talks/michael_anti_behind_the_great_firewall_of_china>.

Wiseman, P, n.d. Cracking the ‘Great Firewall’ of China’s Web Censorship, abcNEWS, viewed 8 February 2014, < http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=4707107&page=1>

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 “Facebook-to-Mobile” social networking game developed in 2011. The ease of access that this provided resulted in an eruption in people taking place in the games, and provide yet another avenue of social networking.

 Interestingly, one gamer highlights; “The label “social game”, as it currently seems to be applied, tends to refer to games designed to work with social networks, mainly Facebook. That troubles me somewhat, as compared to other types of game, and other interactions on social networks, these games tend to feel very asocial, turning people into resources rather than friends and agents you have to negotiate and communicate with” (Hayward, 2011).

 Furthermore, the competitiveness of these social games and the amount of time people put into these games can have some real-world consequences. In 2014, the “multiplayer game EVE Online saw its biggest battle erupt” (Thornhill, 2014). It was due to a mistake in the ‘real-world’, someone forgot to pay their bill and resulted in an all out war. Interestingly, a gamer highlighted the fact that the gaming world is “full of grudges and constantly changing politics” (Thornhill, 2014), which supports Hayward’s notion that these games feel very asocial. Additionally, these virtual worlds can also encounter real-world situations like scams and scandals (de Zwart & Humphreys 2014) that can impact players both inside the virtual gaming world and outside in the real world. The mistake by an EVE Online player of not paying his bill on time, resulted in $300,000 of losses in the real-world, as many players use real-world money to access resources within the virtual world. This highlights the amount of time and money that players invest in such games and illustrates the importance of governance within these virtual worlds. Many of these virtual worlds have rules and regulations with people being suspended from the games as punishment, however it is difficult for them to relate and be enforced by real-world laws.

 Overall these social gaming worlds are a way for people to escape the real-world, however gamers must remember that it’s “a tough galaxy out there, and anyone could betray you.” (De Zwart & Humphreys 2014, pg. 82

 References:

 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.

 Hayward, D, 2011, ‘What is a social game?’, Games Brief, viewed 1 February 2015, < http://www.gamesbrief.com/2011/01/what-is-a-social-game/>

I myself love watching funny YouTube videos, particularly of animals. My close friends all know this and they themselves also find entertainment from these. A fair amount of our interaction on Facebook is simply each of us ‘tagging’ one another in a funny YouTube video that we happen to come across on Facebook. Not only does this provide each of us with a minute of enjoyment, it also allows use to feel connected with others. I guess this is what Lange (2009) is referring to when he describes “videos of affiliation” (pg. 71) and result in “feelings of membership in a social network” (Lange 2009, pg. 71).  Similarly, with photos I will ‘tag’ friends that I know will find an image or meme funny or one that they would go “OMG!” to (this is usually to a photo involving food!). I think by tagging your friends and begin tagged by your friends, makes you feel like they are thinking of you. On the negative side, it also means that people can do this to in malicious way. Reflecting back on the week we covered bullying, tagging or even posting pictures of people in order to bring embarrassment or to upset the person can be problematic. Similarly, a friend could innocently post a picture of you that could affect your professional life. You have little control over such actions, and all you can really do is request that they remove the photo, something that not all people will do (particularly if they look ‘good’ in the photo!).

  Snapchat is meant to be an “ephemeral” social imaging app, meaning that the image exists for only a brief period of time. However, people figured out that they could ‘screenshot’ an image on Snapchat and then have the ability to send it to whomever they wish. When this was first discovered it caused a stir with many sending what they thought would be ‘private photos’, which ended up being sent around to everyone. This further emphasises the fact that social imaging can also be used as a medium for bullying. McCarthy summarises this well and reminds us to remember that “1. Nothing is private and 2. Anything you do on social media can last forever” (McCarthy, 2013).

And because I am really liking infographics at the moment, here's one on snapchat!

Image: Snapchat Infographic, 2013

  References:

  McCarthy C, 2013, Why Snapchat is Dangerous (it’s not just because of sexting), MD Mama, viewed 20th Januray 2015, < http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/health/mdmama/2013/02/why_snapchat_is_dangerous_its_not_just_because_of_sexting.html>

  Lange, P 2009, ‘Videos of Affinity on YouTube’, in P, Snickars & P, Vonderau (eds), The YouTube Reader, National Library of Sweden, Stockholm, pp 70-88.

  Image:

Up until this week, I had never really understood the notion of ‘crowdsourcing’. I had always thought it was a term for raising money in order to fund projects like film, TV or music (this I have discovered is actually ‘crowdfunding’ makes more sense huh!). So this week I finally learnt the real definition, that is “the process of obtaining needed services, ideas, or content by soliciting contributions from a large group of people, and especially from an online community, rather than from traditional employees or suppliers” (Wikipedia, 2014). There are various forms and uses of crowdsourcing, however perhaps most interestingly is the use of this during times of crisis.

  Image: Design Crowd, 2011

Crowdsourcing has been used throughout numerous events including natural disasters and has had a significant impact for a number of reasons. This way of communicating has provided an avenue for authorities to communicate with the public and for people to find lost loved ones. During the Queensland Floods in January 2011, Twitter was the platform utilised in order to provide the public with vital information. A large number of different emergency services provided updates and people caught up in the floods could provide emergency services, and people concern all around the world, with first hand information including photographs, videos and descriptions (Bruns et al, 2012). As weird and perhaps not quite right of me to say, I actually find natural disaster really fascinating. I remember when the floods occurred in Queensland, it was the only think on TV and I would happily sit and watch all the updates. Now that technology has become more mainstream and I am actually at work all day, I now find myself checking Twitter and Facebook during a crisis, reading all the updates. Most recently the Sydney Seige was a ‘crisis’ that I followed, particularly because I work not far from where it happen in Martin Place, so I had to find out when I could leave the office and when I could return to the office again. Now reflecting on it, it amazes me how much information was shared and gather through these social media sites. The emergency services provided updates with media outlets also providing information and more startlingly images of the scene and politicians provided messages of support to all involved, all utilising the hashtag ‘#SydneySeige’.

  Overall I think there are many benefits to crowdsourcing, however there are issues concerning control around the information that is shared and whether it is appropriate and the inability to verify all information provided. 

                References:

  Bruns, A, Burgess, J, Crawford, K & Shaw, F 2012, #qldfloods and @QPSMedia: Crisis Communication on Twitter in the 2011 South East Queensland Floods, Arc Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation, pp 7-10, viewed 17 January 2015, <http://www.cci.edu.au/floodsreport.pdf>.

  Wikipedia, 2015 Crowdsourcing, Wikipedia, viewed 17 January 2015, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crowdsourcing>

  Image:

Image: Social Media Monitors (2014)

With the infiltration of networked technologies into our everyday life, the relatively new phenomenon of ‘cyber bullying’ has become inescapable. Danah boyd (2014) highlights an interesting notion “that technology simply offers a new site for bullying” and that these social media sites are simply increasing the “visibility of bullying” (boyd 2014, pg. 132). Boyd goes on to say that “there is little doubt that networked technologies can increase the potential audience size of witnesses, but it's not clear that the contours of bullying or the impact it has on those involved has radically changed” (boyd, 2014 pg.133).  Having said this, I think its important to also note, that it means that through technology, bullying is far-reaching ad simply changing schools cannot stop the bullies from reaching you. Before such technology, changing schools would have significantly reduced the bully’s ability to bully you, whereas now with this technology, they can ‘find you anywhere’. Therefore cyber-bullying has no real limit in terms of geographical location.

  With an increasing amount of horror stories, many of which have resulted in self-harm or suicide of the victims, it has become more and more important that education on how to deal with this sad reality is provided to not only teachers and parents, but also children – both the bullies and the victims. There are many facets to online bullying and many ways to be bullied online.  In order to educate the public and try to combat cyber bullying in Australia, the Australian government has created the ‘cyber smart’ website aimed to educate all Australian about bullying as it is “designed to support and encourage participation in the digital economy by providing information and education which empowers children to be safe online” (Cyber smart, 2015). The site covers aspects such as cyber bullying, sexting, trolling and identity theft to name a few. I think it is a great initiative, but I question how successful the program actual is, as prior to this I had never even heard of the website or initiative.

   I think it is important to note that cyber-bullying does not just affect school children and young adults; it also affects ‘grown’ adults and even celebrities. April reamer is the wife of a successful hockey player in Canada and has been bullied because fans of the hockey team thought that her husband was performing poorly, and thought the best way to react to his performance was to bully his wife over twitter. Makes sense right? (Wyshynski, 2015). Rather than defend herself through twitter and stoop to their level and retaliate, Reimer started an anti-bullying campaign to raise awareness and show support to others.  

  I believe that bullying will be an ever-present facet of life, and therefore society has to work hard to educate everyone and support those who are more vulnerable. Implementation of laws surrounding bullying in all forms is a must, and those who bully should be accountable for their actions and the harm that they cause.

  References:

 Boyd, D 2014, ‘Bullying: Is the Media Amplifying Meanness and Cruelty?’, in It’s Complicated: The Social Lives of Networked Teens, Yale University Press, New Haven, USA, pp 128-52.

Cybersmart 2015, viewed 11 January 2015, <http://www.cybersmart.gov.au/>.

Wyshynski, G, 2015 ‘April Reimer starts anti-cyberbullying campaign after online harassment’, Yahoo! Sports, viewed 11 January 2015, <http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/april-reimer-starts-anti-cyberbullying-campaign-after-online-harassment-155953048.html>

  Image: 

Digital activism is a fairly new concept emerging in the early 1990s and is defined as “an organised public effort, making collective claim(s) on a target authority(s), in which civic initiators or supporters use digital media” (Howard 2013).  A recent example of ‘digital activism’ was the result of the “kidnapping of over 300 school girls from their dormitory in Northern Nigeria” on April 14th 2014 (Adeiza 2014). An Islamic extremist group was responsible for the kidnapping and gained worldwide attention and “a global protest for the release of the girls was born (Adeiza 2014). The hashtag ‘#bringbackourgirls’ was created with a large number of celebrities and influential people getting involved and supporting the online protest, including the American first lady Michelle Obama. Many of these influential people, including Michelle Obama posted pictures of themselves holding a sign with ‘#BringBackOurGirls’ written on it, her picture was re-tweeted 56, 866 times. The hashtag has been tweeted 1.3 million times and also resulted in 30 protests worldwide (Girl Rising 2014). However, six months on and still nothing has happened and there’s still 219 girls still in captivity, with only 57 managing to escape the ordeal. (Ogene 2014).

  Image: Mashable Australia

This therefore raises the question of how much of an impact do these ‘digital activism’ activities really have on such issues. The hype that surrounds these types of protest only ever seem to last a few weeks, maybe a few months tops and then something new comes along and it is forgotten about. These ‘clicktivism’ are just a way for people to feel like they are doing something and perhaps even a way for people to feel better about themselves. There are no real tangible outcomes and I think they create false hope for those affected by the issues. Having said this, I do believe in some situations where online connectivity around social issues can be positive and can have a real impact, but I think this is more towards natural disaster and the financial aid that people provide in support of those affect.

  I am sure there are many that disagree with this, and there are probably some issues that have benefited from digital activism, however I think it should be highlighted that for many issues, digital activism is more a way to show support than to get results.

  References:

  Adeiza, M 2014, ‘Here’s what you need to know about the #bringbackourgirls campaign, Digital Activism Research Project, viewed 13 December 2014, <http://digital-activism.org/2014/05/what-you-need-to-know-about-bringbackourgirls/>

  Girl Rising 2014, ‘Nigeria Action Pack’, Girl Rising, viewed 13 December 2014, <http://girlrising.com/nigeria-action/>

  Howard, P.N 2014, ‘Digital Activism and Non Violent Conflict’, Freedom to Tinker, viewed 13 December 2014, <https://freedom-to-tinker.com/blog/pnhoward/digital-activism-and-non-violent-conflict/>

  Ogene, A 2014, ‘Abandonment of ‘Bring Back Our Girls’’, Aljazeera, viewed 13 December 2014, <http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2014/10/abandonment-bring-back-our-girls-2014101494119446698.html>

 Image: