#assignment 1b

During each topic in this unit, we have discussed the importance of visual, including photos and images on social media and the ways in which we connect digitally (Swinburne Online 2018). Using the term 'networked visuality', we can understand how imaging is becoming an integral part of the formation and maintenance of social networks (Swinburne Online 2018). 

Maintaining a central role in society and culture, photographs have become a medium of communication. "Changes in media technologies have engendered changes in how we capture, remember and communicate personal images of everyday and family life" (Vivienne & Burgess 2013 p. 3). Many platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook have embraced the new hybrid practices of personal image-sharing and networked publics (Vivienne & Burgess 2013 p. 6) by incorporating the camera function on the smartphone enabling new visual methods of expression, sharing and communication through posts or popular app features. The smartphone has paved the way for new kinds of personal photography in the form of the selfie, "a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website"(Oxford English Dictionary 2019). In 2013, the Oxford English Dictionary’s chose 'selfie' the word of the year as it had discovered a rise in mainstream media sources using this term. Companies like Apple and Samsung have since advanced their technology of front-facing cameras making it both easier to produce and to share these types of photographs.

The use of visuals has raised legal and ethical issues surrounding privacy and control of our content. Some tools have enabled users vulnerable to unauthorised distribution of their content. Additional concerns surrounding body image have arisen due to favourite social influencers using programs and apps to manipulate their images. Influencers are caught using these apps to create an unrealistic version of themselves by airbrushing pores, lines and pimples, whitening their teeth and even going as far as to change their facial structure and waistline. In recent years the mobile app, Facetune, has become a success by allowing consumers to download their app for free but then charging a monthly rate to unlock all features. Due to its accessibility, user interface and low cost compared to Photoshop and Lightroom it is endorsed by multiple Instagramers and celebrities. People compare these manipulated images to themselves, in turn, experiencing a high level of body dissatisfaction and low self-esteem. As more and more young people are exposed to these images asking the question ‘Why don’t I look like that?’ it is essential we communicate and promote self-love.

References:

Oxford English Dictionary 2019, ‘Definition - Selfie’, Oxford University Press, viewed 9 January 2019, <https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/selfie>.

Oxford English Dictionary 2013, ‘Word of the Year 2013′,  Oxford University Press, viewed 9 January 2019, <https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/word-of-the-year/word-of-the-year-2013>

Swinburne Online 2018, Lecture ‘9.1 This week’s focus’, MDA20009 Digital Communities, Learning materials on Blackboard, Swinburne University of Technology, 9 January 2019, <https://swinburneonline.instructure.com/courses/704/pages/9-dot-1-this-weeks-focus?module_item_id=60106>

Swinburne Online 2018, Lecture ‘9.3 Networked visuality’, MDA20009 Digital Communities, Learning materials on Blackboard, Swinburne University of Technology, 9 January 2019, <https://swinburneonline.instructure.com/courses/704/pages/9-dot-3-networked-visuality?module_item_id=60109>.

In week six we continued to discuss digital citizenship in relation to activism and protest through social media platforms. We aim to identify some of the global contexts in which social media has come to support activism, protest and revolution (Swinburne Online 2018). Local activist groups use social media platforms to post their campaigns in the hope of spreading the message and raising funds for their cause.

Digital activism is the notion of activist groups using social media tools campaigns as part of their campaigns. Digital citizenship "refers to the potential benefit for society as a whole that comes from new digital and social media tools and their ability to ‘facilitate the membership and participation of individuals within society." (Mossberger et al. 2008, p. 1).

Youtube Case Study:

As discussed by Youmans & York social media and technology have “served as venues for the shared expression of dissent, dissemination of information, and collective action.” (Youmans & York 2012 p. 315) In their article, they discussed how social media platforms such as Youtube could be utilised by activists in a range of political systems.

Case study 2, focused on the banning of offensive content from Syria on Youtube and discussed how most platforms use community policing in order to monitor content. As many videos from Syria are incredibly graphic in content, capturing the violent protests, Youtube took the initiative to take down popular videos. These videos were removed as it violated Youtube’s policies and terms of service. Youtube sets out specific standards through the use of “Community Guidelines”, in which users may report others for violating the terms of service, including content that may be offensive or unwanted contact known as “spam” (Youmans & York 2012 p. 321). As there are significant amounts of data posted to Youtube every day, the company uses additional steps to control content including the removal or prevention of posting “certain words, phrases or links" (Youmans & York 2012 p. 321). These automated protocols stop “spammers” working against activist to stop them from censoring the views they oppose.

Culture Jamming:

Culture jamming through graffiti, satire or some other reappropriation of the original medium’s iconography has the effect of subverting mainstream culture for independent communication or to disrupt mainstream communication (Bainbridge, Goc,& Tynan 2015, p. 511)

Cultural jamming has been brought back to life through the use of digital tools. "It is the act of using existing media to comment on those very media themselves, and on political and social conditions more broadly" (Swinburne Online 2018)

One of the most controversial cultural jamming artists is Banksy. His identity remains unknown as he refuses to be interviewed after 20 years being involved in street graffiti. Banksy creates his art using silkscreen prints and stencil painting. He is promoting powerful messages through questionable images combined with slogans. Most recently Banksy attracted headlines after he sent one of his paintings through a shredder moments after it had been auctioned.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Banksy (@banksy) on Oct 6, 2018 at 10:09am PDT

References:

Bainbridge, J, Goc, N & Tynan, L 2015, Media and journalism: new approaches to theory and practice, 3rd edn, Oxford University Press, South Melbourne.

Mossberger, K., Tolbert, C., & McNeal, R 2008, Digital Citizenship: The Internet, Society, and Participation, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass.

Swinburne Online 2018, Lecture '6.1 This week's focus’, MDA20009 Digital Communities, Learning materials on Blackboard, Swinburne University of Technology, 11 December 2018, <https://swinburneonline.instructure.com/courses/704/pages/6-dot-1-this-weeks-focus?module_item_id=60060>.

Swinburne Online 2018, Lecture '6.3 Culture jamming', MDA20009 Digital Communities, Learning materials on Blackboard, Swinburne University of Technology, 11 December 2018, <https://swinburneonline.instructure.com/courses/704/pages/6-dot-3-culture-jamming?module_item_id=60065>.