Tuesday 13th January, 2015
The power of social media
On 7th January 201512 people were fatally shot in the Charlie Hebdo offices in France.
Supporters of freedom of speech and freedom of thepress quickly started spreading the Je Suis Charlie slogan and within days the hashtag on Twitter was one of the most popular in Twitter history.
News companies were eager to report on the rapid social media response to the shooting; accurate or not.
Fox New of course had something to say about the subject.
Perhaps one of the most ridiculous things to air from the show:
In response to Fox News' reports, one member of the public started Fox News Facts on Twitter alongside many other satirical replies and another hashtag trend called #FoxNewsFacts.
The tragic events that occurred in Ferguson a few months prior to the attack in Paris also provides evidence on the power of social media and the ease in which information can be spread worldwide within seconds.
Twitter as a platform holds a huge power in that it allows connection to thousands of people within seconds. It not only gives those a voice who are overlooked or silenced but the trending feature ensures that accurate accounts from those experiencing the live events get their view shared.
☆ Hypodermic Model - completely powerless to our own actions because we've SEEN others do it e.g. violent films
☆ Uses and Gratifications - all the power is with you. You research things because you want to and aren't effected. The individual. Gravitate towards groups that are reflective of our interests
☆ Cultural effects - general trend towards stuff
☆ Two Step Flow - prior to social media existing. You will follow what individuals in your life say or do because you trust them. You will connect to it.
People look for something to blame especially when it comes to media and behaviours.
A recent scandal that involved Jennifer Lawrence's private photos being leaked sparked another internet debate about privacy, and in particular (more often than not men's) toxic view that if a woman doesn't want her pictures hacked or spread, she shouldn't take them.
This crime could be explained in that the culpritts are only interested in hacking their documents because they're celebrities and it contradicts an image; celebrities personas.
Of course, everyone has perception of others and others have perceptions of us whether we like it or not. Often, preparation goes into the image we place and allow people to see but this is heightened with celebrities.
☆ Doxing - opinionated stance in an argument. People take your personal documents and information such as address and spread it all over the internet. Common form as an attack on celebrities and within the gaming community.
Cartoon animation is an accepted form on the uncanny valley scale. We're not watching it because it's realistic; it has to have some of the same relatable characteristics as humans in order for us to relate.
Psychologically we are more likely to keep watching something that we can't see but can hear clearly - such as this video going viral within days of posting (in part due to the shock factor) could be argued if the video wasn't so emotional to watch and a 'controversial' topic perhaps would not have been spread so much because of visual quality.
