mindmymarketing-blog

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Nice post aleksnajd. I follow the activist groups on social media, myself. A pity that some posts by these groups are just randomly shared, and not always checked for facts. I feel they waste my time in reading all the hype comments debating on what is and isn’t true. I think activists should be active in confirming the truth from the lies. It’s the reason I’ll take time out in my busy schedule to hear what they have to say :-)

Week 6: Digital citizenship 2 - Activism and protest.

What is Digital Citizenship? Digital citizenship is used to refer 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, 2008, p. 1). It helps technology leaders, teachers and parents to understand what children/students/technology users should know how to use technology in the appropriate way. It is more than just a teaching tool, it was a way to prepare users for a society full of technology (Mike Ribble, 2015).

The cyber activists who want to shut down ISIS:

In August 2014, a Twitter account that was affiliated with the hacker group Anonymous, declared a full scale cyber war against ISIS. Anonymous will do its part in combating ISIS’s influence in social media and shut them down (Simon Cottee, 2015).

Anonymous is believed to be setting up protest in a number of major cities across the globe for masked members to show unity against the Islamic State.

When the terrorist attacks happened in Paris, a group that were associated with the hackers’ known as Anonymous had announced #OpParis, a social media campaign against ISIS (Brian Mastroianni, 2015).

“This is only the beginning, ISIS. We will hunt you, take down your sites, accounts, emails and expose you … You will be treated like a virus and we are the cure,” stated a masked activist in a video posted on YouTube. “We are Anonymous. We are legion. We do not forgive. We do not forget. ISIS, it is too late to expect us” (Brian Mastroianni, 2015).

While French, Russia and the United States bombers are targeting Islamic Sate areas from the sky, Anonymous are making their own devastating campaign against the terrorist origination. They are using computer codes rather than a high-powered weapons and say that the hacktivist group has built tools that might be a better approach than the world governments tool to combat ISIS (The Daily Sheeple, 2015).

In a YouTube video by Anonymous, the group had said: “More than 20,000 Twitter account belonging to ISIS were taken down by Anonymous.” They have provided a whole list of accounts that have been taken down (The Daily Sheeple, 2015). But answer this, how effective has the web-based operation really been counteracting the terrorist group effective reach?  

References:

Mike Ribble, 2015, Digital citizenship, using technology appropriately, Retrieved 8 December, 2015, from http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/

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

Simon Cottee, October 8th 2015, Can Cyber Activists Chase ISIS off Twitter? [Weblog], Retrieved 8 December 2015, from http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/10/anonymous-activists-isis-twitter/409312/

Brian Mastroianni, November 24th 2015, Anonymous vs ISIS: Who has the upper hand in social media war? [Weblog], Retrieved 8 December 2015, from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/anonymous-vs-isis-social-media-war/

The Daily Sheeple, 2015, YOU’RE A VIRUS, WE’RE THE CURE’: ANONYMOUS TAKES DOWN 20,000 ISIS TWITTER ACCOUNTS. [Weblog]. Retrieved 8 December 2015, from http://www.thedailysheeple.com/youre-a-virus-were-the-cure-anonymous-takes-down-20000-isis-twitter-accounts_112015

Anonymous protest: http://blogs.ft.com/photo-diary/files/2013/11/anonymous.jpg

Keep calm: http://data.whicdn.com/images/64595778/large.png

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Nice post mysocialmediafan. I have to admit too that I’m a slacktivist. I can’t blame myself though lol. I don’t trust the fundraisers, unless I know someone who is personally involved. I tend to stick to support local campaigns too. And digital citizenship makes it simple and free and fast for myself and friends to hear about it :-)

Week 6 Digital Citizenship 2 Activism and Protest

Digital citizenship is a term that has been used to refer 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 etal 2008, p. 1).

This is the modern take on civil unrest where protest signs have been traded in for Twitter accounts, and sit in’s are now log in’s.  These digital citizens live all over the world like the Middle East and we eagerly follow the protesters on You tube, Twitter or Facebook after the upload their footage.

So why is social media being described as powerful tool for activism and change?

1.Connect with more people - you can send more message to more people quickly

2. Allows people to hear fair and balance news coverage rather than only what the media chooses to report.

3. Social media allows people to call out inaccuracies, injustices and misunderstandings that allow people to better understand other people and cultures.

4. By organising creating and supporting hashtag campaigns people all over the world can get involved. 

There are different types of activists, and enthusiasts.  Activists use social media to organise strategies.  they stick to a movement until their is change, An example of this is culture jammers which is used to subvert media culture.   Culture jammers use forms such as performance art, graffiti art, and adbusting. The following video shows an example of an adbusters campaign.

In contrast Social Media enthusiasts also known as clictivism or slacktivisim is where people only sit behind a computer and hit like or posting a hashtag on Twitter or Facebook but don’t really support any campaign and are likely to forget the cause soon after posting.

the following video defines both

Hmm looking at this video it really made me think - I am more a slacktivist not an activists.  Ok yes i can’t physically go to Africa and help out, but i can get more involved in the causes that are here in my own backyard.

References

Webroot - The Digital Citizen - A  New Type of Grassroots Activism  http://www.webroot.com/au/en/home/resources/articles/digital-citizenship/ethics-digital-citizenship viewed 20 December 2015.

Khann-Ibarra S, Nov 14 2014, Huffington Post The Case for Social Media and Hashtag Activism http://www.webroot.com/au/en/home/resources/articles/digital-citizenship/ethics-digital-citizenship viewed 30 Dec 2015.

Thrash Lab, April 15, 2013,Slacktivists vs. Activists   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EQFKKJBjwE viewed 30 Dec 2015

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Hi elliotconte. Yes anonymity online is a large factor re: digital citizenship and cybersafety. But I like the fact that GenY aren’t too worried and I’m concerned for the GenX and Boomers who are falling behind with technology and capabilities. In a few years the GenYs will be the major group in the workforce and I really can’t have a GenY earning more than me. For that reason, I’m online, I’m taking all privacy precautions I can and I’ll go with the phenomenon and see it where it leads us :-)

Week 7

Society is currently debating very vigorously regarding the significance of anonymity online. Anonymity is ‘the condition of being ‘anonymous’, “anonymous” is used to depict scenarios where the name of focus is unidentified.

Facebook is one of the world’s largest social media website, founded by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004. It allows everyone to interact with their friends and family and even business associates in an easy, digital way; you update your profile with your personal information, date of birth, full name, where you live, what category of books and television shows you are interested in and more. Facebook is a form of social media that requires ‘real name’ information to be published. However, on the other side of argument are a wide range of different websites including the likes of reddit, Yik Yak and 4chan. These websites believe that being anonymous and having fake information such as a fake name, made up information, and uploads of other users images are important factors in how someone builds an online identity. That forming an identity online is manipulative and up to your own mind to create.

(Nagel, Frith, 2015)

The popular application Yik Yak allows users to post statements anonymously and then receive thumbs up or thumbs down to see if the public enjoyed your post. The popular online dating site OkCupid prohibits users to reveal their real name, however demands users to upload various images of themselves. Dating sites like this make you wonder if the human race is only looking for attraction rather than personality and love. These sites would not exist if anonymity is enforced. Yik Yak and OkCupid are useful and enjoyable sites, however if users abuse there power that is when anonymity becomes questionable.  

(Nagel, Frith, 2015)

Reddit, other known as ‘the front page of the internet’ when you search it on google, is a popular website where anonymity is encouraged. The main goal of Reddit is to post links to various news websites, or other exciting content that would amuse the users. The posts get up votes by the public that enjoyed it, or down votes by the public that did disliked the post. All the posts, up votes and down votes are kept anonymous, this is to keep a save place for open discussion. Various subreddits are posted on the site such as ‘r/gonewild’ which is where ‘males rank and comment on female bodies’ (Nagel, Frith, 2015). The posts with the most up votes will be places on the front page of the site generating for views, giving the users what they want the second they open the website.

Having a place to discuss varies issues and categories anonymously is positive. People discussing their sexuality and how they express themselves without having to reveal their identity for various reasons is acceptable. However, people abuse their power and use it in cruel and disloyal ways.

Chief Internet Evangelist & Google Vice President Vint Cerf, also referred to as the ‘Father of the Internet’ had an interview with RT America on his views of anonymity. The ‘Father of the Internet’ begins by expressing his opinion  “I don’t believe someone needs to identify themselves in order to use the Internet” (RT America, 2013)

Mr Cerf states that users can create their own identity  “that are convenient” to them- keeping in mine that cyber bullying is a massive issue in today’s society. (RT America, 2013)

Gaming consoles such as PlayStation, Xbox, and desktop PC’s are a large part of cyber bullying. Gaming is a massive part of society today; it generates more money than movies. (Brooker, 2009) The main type of game children and young teenagers play are ‘role-playing games’ that support and persuade them to begin a ‘new persona online’. These games are appealing to kids as adolescent as 12 years of age, and almost always have violence and other content for mature audiences. Without realising it, these children adapt the behaviour of the gameplay into their life, which engages them in cyber bullying and various other violent acts.  Most of these games are very realistic and challenging, which makes them highly addictive, resulting in further time to cyber bully.   (Nobullying.com, 2013)

References

Emily van der Nagel and Jordan Frith. “Anonymity, pseudonymity, and the agency of online identity: Examining the social practices of r/Gonewild”

Higgins, G. (2012). Battle of the sexes: An examination of male and female cyber bullying. [online] International Journal of Cyber Criminology.

Emma A. Jane (2014) ‘“Your a ugly, whorish, slut” Understanding E-bile’ Feminist Media Studies Vol. 14, No. 4, 531–546

RT America, (2013). 'Father of the Internet’ defends online anonymity. [online] YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qXozlWy-A8 [Accessed 28 Oct. 2015].

Brooker, W. (2009). Camera-Eye, CG-Eye: Videogames and the ‘Cinematic’. Cinema Journal, 48(3), 122-128

Nobullying.com, (2013). The Rise of Bullying in Online Games. [online]

Sarah Buhr, 2014. “Facebook won’t budge on letting drag queens keep their names,” TechCrunch (18 September

Facebook, 2013. “Statement of rights and responsibilities,”

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Nice post elliotconte. I also have no interest and little time for politics. I guess it’s not in my control so I devote myself to things that are in my control. On that note, I like your mention that you only learned of the Lint attack via your Facebook page. Thank goodness for digital communities and technology that we’re kept in the know about things outside of media control :-)

Week 5:

This week’s blog is on politics, which unfortunately I am not very knowledgeable and interested in, however I do like to keep up to date with various news happening around the world. I tend to only tune into politics when bad stuff in the world goes on.

Politics within social media has become a bit part of how people get their sources of information today. What I do is I ‘like’ various news pages on Facebook and they post articles of updating news from their website. This is the way I access news, I don’t watch the news at 6-7pm, I just scroll my Facebook newsfeed and let the news find me.

I studied abroad in America last year when the Sydney Lint terrorist attack went off; and the only news I heard about it was from my Facebook news feed, none of the television news stations aired any news outside of America.

Another reason why social media is now such a good tool to source news is to target a younger demographic. Think of it this way, when I was younger and didn’t have Facebook or media was not sourced there I had no idea about the news, I was never going to watch the news at 6pm. But, when interesting stories come up and other countries and new inventions are coming out its wash more interesting then the weather and sports updates at 6pm.

After understanding Young’s reading ‘News, political reporting and the internet’ I have thought about online voting and how it could work successfully. The world is rapidly digitalizing so I wouldn’t be surprised if this did begin. A lot of political campaigns are turning to the internet for marketing advantages; having various advertisements to enhance the popularity of the campaign.

References:

Young, S 2010, ‘News, political reporting and the internet’, in How Australia Decides, Cambridge University Press, Victoria, Australia.

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Nice post socialskeptic. I particularly like ‘Do not feed the trolls’. I’ve listed ways to avoid them or beat them at their own game. Check out my blog :-)

Also thanks for reminding me of Charlotte Dawson tragedy. It’s horrific to know these trolls can affect innocents of any age.

Week 7: Digital citizenship 3: Trolling and social media conflict

Troll Image, https://drupal.org/project/cave, viewed 30 May 2014

In Week 7, we look at trolling and social media conflict.

I really like this picture of a cartoon impression of a troll; it is how we always imagine a troll to look like. It resembles the trolls under the bridge story. But sadly the trolls do not look like this; they are normal people like you and me. But they hide behind their anonymity, the fact that they can say what they like and no one will know them.

Trolling is “deliberately trying to distress someone online but usually just to disrupt and often anonymously. It is frequently inflammatory and abusive” (Nichol 2012)

Trolling and social media conflicts are a type of bullying, but in this case it is done via social media. Swedish Psychologist – Dan Olweus narrowed down 3 ongoing components of bullying; repetition, aggression, and imbalance of power (Boyd 2014)

As the troll, you affirm a playful mastery of Internet lore and practice that outstrips that of my target (Wilson et al 2013)

This passage was taken from Wilson et al, ‘Trolls and the negative space of the internet’. This article also states “Do not feed them!” Meaning do not respond to their bullying tactics, as most times they are laying bait and waiting for someone to bite.

This then becomes their target. I was quite shocked to learn that to these people, this was a past-time for the bored, insecure and antisocial. As the name describes they troll the waters to find someone who will bite.

Charlotte Dawson

Trolling has been in the news with the sudden passing of celebrity Charlotte Dawson. Charlotte was a television personality who was renowned for fighting back the trolls and confronting them trying to get the trolls to express some empathy towards their victims. Charlotte was a victim of celebrity culture. The trolls targeted her in any which way they could, as she was a celebrity. She tried hard to stand her ground, but unfortunately her depression and constant cyber-trolling got the better of her and she took her own life. Maybe Charlotte felt she could have used her celebrity status to fight the trolls and create media spectacle around the issue.

Charlotte Dawson Image, Google Images,  http://www.thehothits.com/news

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.

Nichol, S 2012, ‘Cyber-bullying and trolling’ Youth Studies Australia, GALE Academic OneFile, Vol 31, No.4, viewed 30 may 2014

Wilson et al, 2013, Special issue: Trolls and the negative space of the internet , Fibreculture Journal

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Hi thisisclarewright. Some feedback for you: You could make it more visually appealing by adding some images. It’s a nice way to break up the text. 

I’m a hashtag girl myself. The hashtag feature rates really high in Google search in the right mediums. Thanks for your post :-)

Crowdsourcing Power

Blog # 6

Week 8

The good, the bad, the ugly, we all have our opinions on Social Media. The way it has filtered into our lives and revolutionized the way we connect with each other in our personal and business lives, but what about the use social media in global scale disasters? By posting photos, comments and hashtags we rapidly spread information globally for disaster relief via social media sites. This is the crowdsourcing power of open social media platforms.  

The main advantage of crowdsourcing is the immediacy in which disaster status reports and emergency information can be dispersed compared to more traditional methods. The use of social media platforms provides the opportunity for status reports to be communicated urgently to relief organisations and the public (Gao, Barbier, Goolsby 2011 p. 11).

Crowdsourcing tools collect data by creating hashtags. Hashtags are a user-generated tool for marking a message with a specific topic or theme. As an example, the twitter hashtag #qldfloods was created in 2011 for the Queensland flood crisis. By using a hashtag tool we are able to coordinate user activity on social media platforms (Bruns, Burgess, Crawford & Shaw 2012 p.7).

Social media platforms, in particular Twitter, have proven to be a main source of news and media information. In the Queensland flood crisis first hand images were posted and shared in a context that is referred to as “citizen journalism” (Bruns, Burgess, Crawford & Shaw 2012 p.34). Citizen journalism, like all social media post ranges from the informative to the boring, but gives the public a true, first hand sense of the scale of the disaster in real time.

The platform Ushahidi was created specifically for crowdsourcing power.  Ushahidi enables anyone to create their own mapping website for events in which public can post reports to. This means that even in remote locations, with the use of Ushahidi, we can use crowdsourcing power to organise events and citizen contribution reporting in global disasters (Ford 2012).

Crowdsourcing has proven to report information and advice quickly in crisis situations, often developed with very little prior planning from authorities. This platform provides scope for up-to-date information and coordination of emergency management of global disaster procedures.

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 September 2015, <http://www.cci.edu.au/floodsreport.pdf>.

Ford, H 2012, ‘Crowd Wisdom’, Index on Censorship, vol. 41, no. 4, pp. 33-39.

Huiji Gao, Geoffrey Barbier, Rebecca Goolsby 2011,“Harnessing the Crowdsourcing Power of Social Media for Disaster Relief,” IEEE Intelligent Systems, vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 10-14, viewed 11 January 2016 < http://www.cci.edu.au/floodsreport.pdf>.

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Great post melgallimore. I like the blurring of the online and offline statement.

I’d like to add that after researching this subject, I’m not as apprehensive as I was about my teen playing online. My son doesnt play outside as much as I did back in the 80s, but I can rest easy in the fact that he’s; where I can see him, I can constantly check his online activities, we have good communication and he’s online chatting and playing with this school friends whom I know. Apparently online gaming and chatting is the medium for males to build stronger connections with their friends. And it’s where they do the most talking. Unbelievable! :-)

Week TEN

I am not gamer; I have never been good at it and have never tried hard enough. That is not to say I am completely naïve, my brother played games and my boyfriend does. What is interesting to me is the time dedicated to gaming.  

Gaming and its virtual worlds have become the entertainment industry’s highest earning division. (Chatfield, 2009).  Advancements in technology have developed what used to be pixelated standard games into cinematic adventures, where the graphics are so real; it feels like the player is controlling life.

Harry Potter Deathly Hallows Part 2, was one of the largest earning films in box office history, earning $169 million, in box office sales its first weekend. Black Op’s the highly anticipated battle game earned $650 million in its first five days (Cross, 2011).

The entertainment industry is used as a form of escape for society. Being able to relax and enjoy a world that is different to your own is a luxury. Gamers enter a new world with its own governing body; which set out rules by which players abide (Suzor & Woodford, 2013). Take for example the case study EVE online, where $300,000 worth of game time was lost due to a virtual battle (Thornhill, 2014). Irrelevant of the cause, what is most interesting to me is the amount of time spent on the game to fix the mistake. 4000 gamers took part in the online battle that day to regain what was lost in mere moments (Thornhill, 2014). This displays the loyalty players have to a game, and length by which they are willing to go to, to protect their work.

What does this mean for individuals though?

Everywhere we look games are advertised. We see them on social media through examples such as Farmville; we have apps such as the hugely popular Candy Crush.  The below image may look familiar to some…it displays the all too common antisocial behaviour resulting from our attachment to digital technology.

Figure 1: Mobile gaming, Skillz, 2013

This attachment draws us back to a particular point which has been noted in every posts discussion – the blurring of online and offline. Thornhill further discusses how games are valued; which it through the time and skill of the player (Thornhill, 2014). This is perhaps why I have never been interested. I have never dedicated enough time to games to truly see the value.

It goes to show that times and society are changing. Kids no longer have to play sport outside because it is their only option. Instead they are able to enter an alternate reality and become something/someone different – their alter ego perhaps.

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Great blog Peter and ‘my-digital-world’ I have to admit I’m a misinformed voter. I doubt I’m a priority to those wanted my vote. I tend to vote for the smaller (almost insignificant) parties who will never get a chance against the bigwigs. I think I’m where they want me. I’m not a supporter. I’m also not a threat :-) 

Week 5 Digital citizenship Politics and Civic Cultures

A  positive and extensive uptake of social media platforms is the greater participation in democracy, politics and what we refer to as civil society.  A beginning point refers to digital citizenship, an example where social media platforms are used by politicians, staff and supporters as part of campaigning and communicating.

Because of this, we are looking at digital citizenship.  A question would be how do politicians and their party’s connect with their communities state and federal through various social media networks. The following politicians current and former are on Twitter and Facebook.  The Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Kevin Rudd, Julie Bishop and Julia Gillard.

Before Malcolm Turnbull was voted in by his party to become Prime Minister, he spoke with Saad Mohseni.  The short talk was on social change in Afghanistan. Malcolm Turnbull spoke with Saas Mohseni, Chairman of the MOBY Group.  It is Afghanistan’s largest broadcaster the conversation was about social media, broadband access and the companies role in social change in Afghanistan region.

See the video here

The power of amateur political comment

The platforms have been used to spin and broadcast announcements updates and amendments on policy. Malcolm Turnbull will often use Twitter and Facebook when he is on a suburban train or at a public event. 

The expansion of amateur political views, blogs and Twitter, etc. Ordinary citizens like Kath and Kel have decided to have their say. A role of overseer to spread unofficial political media content.

Another video that is worth a look is the rise of the fifth estate.  Media Watch with Paul Barry Episode 36 

28 September 2015.The link is here for you to have a look.

http://www.abc.net.au/mediawatch/transcripts/s4321268.htm

Social media is a good thing for the potential reach of political communication. It gives people more opportunities to have their say. Participate in a discussion on politics provide measured views on policy. One media Scholar Political science professor Jodi Dean. Says it might not be as productive as we would like to to think. Provides opportunities to talk back and participate in political discussion.  It has to be a good thing as long as people have conducted themselves within the laws and regulations of social media.

References

ABC net, 2015,Mediawatch Episode 35 ,28 September 2015, viewed 15 January 2016, <http://www.abc.net.au/mediawatch/transcripts/s4321268>

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

 Malcolm Turnbull and saad mohseni ,2014, Social media talk,2014, viewed 15 January 2016, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57k0h83-fT8.>

 Saturday Night Live 2013, Palin/Hillary Open – Saturday Night Live, 23 September, viewed 15 January 2016, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSOLz1YBFG0>

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Love the stat ‘50% of Females selfie with a head tilt’. Does everyone know this is to reduce the double chin syndrome? :-)  

Week 9: Visual communities and social imaging

The selfie epidemic has been around for a few years now. I realised just the other month that Apple has jumped on board with their imagery organisation. Confession…I took a selfie with my iphone and couldn’t find the image I had just took in my ‘photos’ album. Guess what? With the new software update ios9 Apple has created a “selfies” folder. All images that are taken with the front camera are now in one folder. I couldn’t believe it!

Selfiecity.com is an incredibly fascinating website that is purely dedicated to investigating selfie portraits of six major cities around the world: London, Bangkok, Berlin, Moscow, New York and Sao Paulo. This innovative website in true selfie style is very visually stimulating backed up with some very interesting data. Right around the world in these six major cities females predominantly are the selfie takers; males that take selfies are usually around 23.7 years. Selfies produced in Bangkok have the largest smiles and Moscow selfies have the least smiles. 50% of Females selfie with a head tilt, where as only 12.3% men will post a selfie with a head tilt (selfiecity, 2016). Another fact which was an obvious fact to me, selfie takers predominantly live in the city.

Influence: like any new fad if celebs are doing it, wearing it or eating it so is our next generation. 2015 was full of silly waist trainers, super food must haves: coconut oil, goji berries and kale, dudes rocking the Ned Kelly hipster beard, drinks were served in maison jars and tattoos, tattoos, tattoos. Did Kim Kardashian West start the selfie phenomenon??

Frenchgirlsapp.com gets creative with your selfie. You upload your selfie on the app, an artist will recreate your image as a drawing and then its sent back to you (Frenchgirlsapp.com, 2016). The strangers that illustrate your selfie may not necessarily recreate your portrait, I’ve included a few humorous portraits.

References:

Frenchgirlsapp.com, (2016). French Girls. [online] Available at: https://www.frenchgirlsapp.com [Accessed 4 Feb. 2016].

Kim, (2016). Kim - Kim. [online] Available at: https://www.kimkardashianwest.com [Accessed 4 Feb. 2016].

selfiecity, (2016). selfiecity. [online] Available at: http://selfiecity.net/london/ [Accessed 4 Feb. 2016].

SMOSH, (2016). 29 Hilarious Selfie Parodies From The ‘French Girls’ iPhone App. [online] Available at: http://www.smosh.com/smosh-pit/photos/29-hilarious-selfie-parodies-french-girls-iphone-app [Accessed 4 Feb. 2016]

[mindmymarketing-blog]

I really enjoyed the REPs concept of teaching children from kindergarten age about cybersafety. Check my blog out. I’ve included ways to beat cyberbullying at their own game :-)

Week 7 - Digital citizenship 3: Trolling and social media conflict

The good the bad and the ugly

Social media opened a world for people to be able to communicate, stay in contact and re-connect all through an internet connection. 

Source: http://www.creativematch.com/news/trolling-and-social-media/101932/

Digital citizenship can be defined as the norms of appropriate, responsible behavior with regard to technology use. (Ribble 2016)

We now have programs in place starting in primary school in the aim to guide our youth to understand the role of digital citizenship and negative and positive aspects the internet and social media offers. Taken from Digital Citizenship.net the following shows a program offered to children 

Respect, Educate and Protect (REPs) available at <http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/Nine_Elements.html>.

The concept of REPs is a way to explain as well as teach the themes of digital citizenship.  Each area encompasses three topics which should be taught beginning at the kindergarten level.  When teaching these ideas the top theme from each group would be taught as one REP.  For example the first REP would be: Etiquette, Communication and Rights/Responsibilities.  This would continue through REPs two and three.  By doing this all students will have covered the topics and everyone would understand the basic ideas of digital citizenship. Respect Your Self/Respect Others

- Etiquette

- Access

- Law

Educate Your Self/Connect with Others

- Literacy

- Communication

- Commerce

Protect Your Self/Protect Others

-Rights and Responsibility

- Safety (Security)

- Health and Welfare

source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/240590805064813190/

Does all that information and knowledge stop trolls or encourage those who use social media to do so positively? It would be naive to think trolls or bullies will ever disappear. There has always been bullying, cruelty and hate through the ages and kids have been the target of bullies for as long as we can remember, it simply has a far greater reach via means of the internet. There are so many situations that have tragically ended with a victim committing suicide. The governance of social media sites also comes into play, how can a person on the other end of a trolls abuse, report incidents and, are they taken seriously and resolutions achieved.

source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/240590805064813190/

 References

Ribble, M 2016, Nine Themes of Digital Citizenship, Digital Citizenship, viewed 5 February 2016, <http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/Nine_Elements.html>.  

Trolling and social media, viewed 5 February 2016, http://www.creativematch.com/news/trolling-and-social-media/101932/.

http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/Nine_Elements.html

Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/pin/240590805064813190/

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Nice one sayitisntsojo. Yes I like your selfie by the way! LOL. I wanted to add that I particularly liked an idea that I came across with regards to selfies. That GenX and Boomers were brought up with the notion that it’s rude to not stare and gawk. This is really interesting when you think that the selfies are actually close ups of the face - and this may just be what is making oldies feel uncomfortable about the whole phenomenon.

Week 9: Visual communities and social imaging

Like my selfie?

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3185027/Keep-yourselfie-Kim-Kardashian-s-selfie-book-Selfish-sells-just-32-000-copies-three-months-despite-reality-star-boasting-41-4-million-Instagram-followers.html

Selfie royalty Kim Kardashian has released a book of selfies, called - ‘Selfish’. A ‘must have’ book, to add to ones already impressive accumulated selfies collection in what is now a selfie culture. Choose an app, add a filter, turn slightly to the right, find your key lighting, purse those lips and ‘voila’ the perfected selfie, that only took 30 tries and 50 different angles. Welcome to the generation of appearing effortless and all it took, was a mere 2 hours of your time to perfect….thank you key lighting!

The rise of the selfie – usually defined as an arms-length mobile phone camera self-portrait shared via social media – is a prominent part of the rise of ubiquitous photography and social imaging. It involves a number of factors, including new forms of visual communication and public intimacy, the presentation of the self and of place and location, and also new interactions with the cult of celebrity. (Bishop 2016).

Social media sites like Instagram, and more recently Snapchat where one can snap themselves for a few seconds and show their ‘story’ to friends and followers are just a few of the platforms that form the selfie culture foundation.

source: https://adespresso.com/academy/blog/snapchat-vs-instagram-which-should-you-use/ 

While the selfie culture seems like normality for most teens, tweens and youngster an, well by nearly everyone in today’s society. The lastest  phenomenon, as reported in an Huffington Post article found:http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/selfies-at-auschwitz_n_5564106.html?section=australia

It touches on teens and selfies-at-inappropriate-places. The article describes how teens are taking selfies at landmarks like Auschwitz, places of deep meaning for those who may find a selfie and posting to a social media site distasteful. While the norm for the new millennials to document every detail of their lives through a selfie or photo taken on a mobile device…..doesn’t necessarily give way to it being appropriate. Having touched on digital citizenship in previous posts - selfie etiquette isn’t such a bad idea.

#selfiesatfunerals

source: http://www.ranker.com/list/selfies-at-funerals-tumblr/robert-wabash

Reaching our real and ‘cyber’ friends through visual communities through social media sites like YouTube has seen viewers be able to watch their favourite bloggers - actually named ‘vloggers’, vlogging -a video blog. Allows a follower to watch their desired person instead of just reading from a blog or website. 

Top 10 Most Popular Vloggers On Youtube

source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OM-CZyZLG-E

References

Bishop, R 2016, ‘MDA20009: Digital Communities Week 9: Visual communities and social imaging ’. Learning materials on Blackboard, Swinburne University of Technology, 18 January, viewed 5 February 2016.

Keep them to yourselfie! Kim Kardashian’s selfie book, Selfish, sells just 32,000 copies in three months, {image}, viewed 5 February 2016, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-3185027/Keep-yourselfie-Kim-Kardashian-s-selfie-book-Selfish-sells-just-32-000-copies-three-months-despite-reality-star-boasting-41-4-million-Instagram-followers.html

Snapchat vs. Instagram: Which Should You Use, {image}, viewed 5 February 2016, https://adespresso.com/academy/blog/snapchat-vs-instagram-which-should-you-use/

Teens Post Selfies At Auschwitz In Controversial Facebook Group,HuffPost Live, viewed 5 February 2016, http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/selfies-at-auschwitz_n_5564106.html?section=australia

51 Best / Worst Selfies at Funerals {image}, viewed 5 February 2016, http://www.ranker.com/list/selfies-at-funerals-tumblr/robert-wabash

Top 10 Most Popular Vloggers On Youtube, viewed 5 February 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OM-CZyZLG-E

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Great blog Tanya. I like the idea that gaming lowers stress levels. Hi sayitisntsojo. I have a teen also whom I let play games all school holidays. I do hear however that the connectedness males have with their friends while playing online games is a medium they actual 'talk' on while playing games which is great to know. He is too aware that it's now back to school (yr 10 in fact) so schooling comes first :-)

#8 (wk10) Social gaming: Playing the crowd

What is ‘social gaming’ and how does it help to inform online publics?

“What many began to realize was an explosion of casual gaming through which I believe the awareness of each others’ gaming activities was a catalyst for.” - (O’Neill, 2008) 

Social gaming refers to ‘multiplayer’ games which are based on social media platforms such as Facebook . O’Neill (2008) describes ‘social games’ as having one or more of the following features:

Turn-based - where the online players take turns much like in a traditional board-game however in the case of online gaming your opponent may be completely unknown to you.

Awareness of the actions or presence of other players -  the game aids in providing or forming an identity 

Casual gamer’s- social gaming is available when and where you want to play, you do not need to be a ‘serious’ gamer to engage in this activity.

How can we understand the participatory nature of social media more fully through online gaming?

“As with most participatory media, there is a commodification of player engagement, but this should not necessarily be read as exploitation.” (de Zwart & Humphreys 2014 p.78)

The incentive to play these online games lies in its participatory nature; being aware of the actions of other’s playing in the game presents challenges. Perhaps to beat a ‘friends’ top score or to help them out by sending ‘lives’ so they can keep playing. 

The social context of gaming means that unlike other creative media, such as film, the narrative of the video game is generated by the user. It is often through the willing engagement of the game players that games are enabled to develop (de Zwart & Humphreys 2014 p.78). 

How does online ‘social gaming’ influence offline communities?

“As the implementation of the online expands within everyday offline contexts, notions of online identity community and expression are changing.” (Hjorth, 2011 p.66) 

Whilst it could be argued that social gaming is simply a form of entertainment, it is important to look at social gaming within the broader realm of both online and offline contexts.   

Studies have shown that gaming can cause adverse behavioral issues in people; such as being more prone to addiction and violence (Sifferlin, 2015). Over-dependence on social -gaming could foster social isolation and may even cause people to confuse reality with fantasy.

Yet studies have also shown gaming to be an effective tool for learning and helping to teach critical thinking skills. Gaming can help to develop fine- motor skills in children and to develop skills in planning, multi-tasking and problem- solving in adults. Gaming can also lower stress levels (Granic,Lobel and Engels, 2014 p.68-69)

Are you a Social Gamer? If so why does gaming appeal to you?

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.

Granic,I, Lobel, A, Engels,C. M. E. 2014, ‘The Benefits of Playing Video Games’, American Psychologist, vol. 69, no.1, pp. 66-78.

Hjorth, L 2011, Games and Gaming: An Introduction to New Media, Berg publishers, New York. EBL book Library. 

O’Neill, N 2008, ‘What Exactly are Social Games?’, Social Times, 2 July, viewed 13 January 2016, <http://www.adweek.com/socialtimes/social-games/1695>.

Sifferlin, A. 2015 ‘Violent Video Games Are Linked to Aggression, Study Says’, Time.com, viewed 10 January 2016, <http://time.com/4000220/violent-video-games/>

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Is Reality for Losers Who Don’t Play Video Games?

This subject is of real interest to me. I’m an 80s child. Today’s massively connected, multiplayer online games depicting a wide range of worlds didn’t exist then. My idea of a computer game was Pac Man in 2D with a joystick.

I have a teenage boy who spends a lot of time playing online games. To my amazement, my son and his friends are happy and content playing networked games with voice chat, even when they’re in the same room! Is this affecting their social skills? The benefit of voice chat is I can hear everything that is going on. And my occasional peeks at his screen makes me feel better. I can claim I feel I have a good grip in regards to his online activity.

The Benefits of Online Gaming:

Computers are most important tool of modern society

Makes you smarter

Feeling of connection

Builds stronger connections between friends

A major way boys talk with friends

More socially well adjusted

Positive effects on brainpower – visuospatial ability, standard IQ tests, working memory, critical thinking, problem solving, advanced literacy skills

Creativity

Abiding by rules of virtual gaming worlds

Risks involved in Online Gaming:

Cybersafety

Addiction

Cyberbullying

Cybersafety

A must watch video regarding cybersafety is by ZodiacTheMac on Facebook dated 4th February 2016. Stone implores us to violate our children’s privacy. He contests its better we as a parent intrude on their online activities, rather an online stranger. I just admire this advice.

Addiction

You might want to know if your teen a game addict. Let’s investigate the matter.

Apparently, only two of three following warning signs are required for a teen to be considered dependent to his virtual, online gaming world:

Preoccupation – irritable or seemingly distracted when away from a game

Downplaying Computer Use/Defensiveness – in denial about the amount of time he/she spends in the digital gaming community

Lack of Control/Loss of Time – unable to self-regulate amount of time playing games or not realising the amount of time passed away while sitting at a gaming screen

Negative Impact on Other Areas of Life – neglects other areas of life

Hiding From Negative or Awkward Feelings or Situations – may hide in the digital gaming world to escape having to deal with reality

Misuse of Money – overspending on computer-related items

Mixed Feelings – temporary euphoric feelings followed by guilt

What to do if you suspect your teen is experiencing online cyber issues? Phone AMCA on 1800 880 176 (within Australia).

Feel free to leave a comment for discussion. In particular I’d love to hear your experiences with social gaming.

  REFERENCES

ACMA. 2015. Australian children getting smarter about online risks. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.acma.gov.au/theACMA/acma-media-release-842009-8-july-australian-children-getting-smarter-about-online-risks. [Accessed 07 February 16].

Glasbergen. 2000. Your spending way too much time on the internet. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.glasbergen.com/?s=surfing. [Accessed 05 February 16].

Nam. 2014. Hacking and Cheating Online Games. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.slideshare.net/hoangnamnguyen1694/ce-hv6-module-51-hacking-and-cheating-online-games-37231530. [Accessed 06 February 16].

Psychology Today. 2012. The Many Benefits, for Kids, of Playing Video Games. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/201201/the-many-benefits-kids-playing-video-games. [Accessed 07 February 16].

Stone. (2015). Alert Alert. [Online Video]. 4/02/2015. Available from: https://www.facebook.com/ZODIACTHEMAC?pnref=story. [Accessed: 05 February 2016].

Video Game Addiction. 2009. Symptoms of Video Game Addiction in Teens. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.video-game-addiction.org/symptoms-computer-addiction-teens.html. [Accessed 05 February 16].

Young. 2014. ASAPSCIENCE: HOW VIDEOGAMES CAN MAKE YOU SMARTER. [ONLINE] Available at: http://pixelkin.org/2014/01/27/asapscience-how-videogames-can-make-you-smarter/. [Accessed 07 February 16].

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Selfies. Love em or Hate em. Guide me to perfection please.

The urban dictionary describes social imaging as the online creation of a virtual flawless existence, which does not exist in reality.

In the past, personal photography was beneficial for ‘social cohesion’. It was a family social moment of being together for a photo – captured in time, in memory. Digital technology and social media has changed the way we take photos and the process is now an individual practice. Selfies (whether snapped by ourselves or someone else) has taken precedence in order to capture that perfect pose for our digital community profiles.

Interestingly, Kawasaki describes the three factors to social imaging enchantment in his video:

Be likeable

Trust others and be trustworthy

Be DICEE = deep, indulgent, complete, elegant, emotive

Our digital community is very much a visual community. The selfie. The cursed selfie. The bane of existence for some. For those that don’t yet know their best side or have not yet mastered the pout, the trick (I’m told) is to pull a funny face. Dark Creek Farm describes selfies as an emerging art form. Selfies are interesting in that we can see; how we see ourselves, how others see us and how we choose for others to see us.

Who is guilty of culling and editing their selfies in search of the perfect pose? We strive for perfection and the ability to control our online images is exciting. Social media has become a tool for social self-formation. We’re learning to manage aspects of our intimate everyday lives and what we choose to make accessible to others in the digital world.

Technology is amazing and traditional photography techniques can now be incorporated into selfies by users. Users can enhance their selfie images and add impressive effects – and some with the simple touch of a button. With powerful computer software such as Photoshop, here are some image enhancing tools of inspiration for your selfies:

Gritty effect to add a dramatic bronze effect

Movie photo effect for a Hollywood film look and feel selfie

Extreme contrast photo for intense contrast effects

Soft focus and Glow effect for a dreamy and surreal selfie

Vintage photo effect for brightness/contrast

Digitally manipulate hair colour

Add weather (like falling snow) to photos

Use the healing tool to improve skin

Are you a selfie extraordinaire? Perhaps you own a selfie stick? Did you know group selfies are now called USIE (pronounced like fussy)?

  REFERENCES

Dark Creek Farm. 2014. Dark Creek Farm describes selfies as an emerging art form. Selfies are interesting in that we can see; how we see ourselves, how others see us and how we choose for others to see us. . [ONLINE] Available at: http://darkcreekfarm.com/2014/01/22/daily-prompt-mirror-mirror-felfies-selfies-and-the-long-tradition-of-the-self-portrait/. [Accessed 04 February 16].

Kawasaki. (2011). Social Imaging Enchantment. [Online Video]. 01/08/2011. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dHOdX8yqI4. [Accessed: 03 February 2016].

Laurinavicius. 2009. 22 Professional Photoshop Image Enhancing Tutorials. [ONLINE] Available at: http://sixrevisions.com/photoshop/22-professional-photoshop-image-enhancing-tutorials/. [Accessed 04 February 16].

Pinterest, (2012), Pusheen's guide to selfies [ONLINE]. Available at: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/459507968205652777/ [Accessed 04 February 16].

Garden of Sounds, (2014), The Photography IQ [ONLINE]. Available at: https://gardenofsounds.wordpress.com/ [Accessed 05 February 16].

Urban Dictionary. 2011. Social Imaging. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=social-imaging. [Accessed 04 February 16].

WeeklyStoryBook, (2014), Okay, but no, not really [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.weeklystorybook.com/comic_strip_of_the_daycom/film/page/8/ [Accessed 05 February 16].

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Social Media in a Crisis.

It’s not uncommon for our communication systems to go down in the event of a crisis and at the most crucial times. Our communication tools are vital both; in the response process to provide precise, timely information and to put actions in order, as well as in the recovery process.

At these times we also see a great deal of innovation in the use of communication tools, including social media. I’ll describe crises management in natural disasters, and the benefits of social media and crowdsourcing.

Types of Crises and Crises Situations

According to APR there are three types of crises:

Immediate crisis – natural disaster or major emergency type

Emerging crisis – can be anticipated and minimized at early stages

Sustained crisis – involves situations that may linger for years

According to Blanco, there are 6 different types of crises situations:

Family disruption or disturbance

Natural disasters

Suicide

Economic changes

Community resources

Life events

Natural Disaster Crises Management

Moe and Pathranarakul wrote the 5 steps to disaster management:

Prediction

Warning

Emergency relief

Rehabilitation

Reconstruction

Tun described 4 essential activities in the natural disaster management life cycle:

Mitigation

Preparedness

Response

Recovery

Kline and Smith (2006) wrote that the 2 significant steps to successful crisis management are communication and coordination.

In an emergency, traditional media are still important channels to reach the public, but social media offers emergency responders the opportunity to understand in real time what their communities care about and need. Emergency services and mainstream news media are making innovative use of social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

Social Media in Natural Disaster Situations

The Australia government and emergency organisations use media tools to engage, inform and support Australian communities. Some examples of Australian Police engaging with communities via Facebook are:

Queensland Police Facebook

Victoria Police Facebook

Western Australia Police Facebook

Police Reports – South Australia Facebook

Tasmania Police Facebook

ACT Policing Facebook

Northern Territory Police Force Facebook

The QPS describe the following benefits of social media in their 2011 Disaster Management case study:

Allows Police to immediately provide large volumes of information to large volumes of people

Large amounts of information can be targeted to specific communities

Provides access to immediate feedback and information from the public

Provides situational awareness for members who otherwise have no other means of communication

More benefits as described by Wilson are:

To allow citizens to easily and anonymously assist in upholding and enforcing the law

Gain feedback to improve services

Crowdsourcing

Crowdsourcing means to use contributions by the general public for a project, usually via the internet and without compensation.

Pelling wrote that essentials in disaster situations are:

strengthening of local capacity, and

strong partnerships between community-based organisations, the local and federal governments and businesses

Marchionda said crowdsourcing was hindered by communication challenges such as; audience reach, expense and inefficiency. Social Media technology is now more popular and sophisticated which allows for more efficient crowdsource campaigning than ever before.

The benefits of crowdsourcing is to gain critical intelligence on emergencies and natural disasters. For example, in 2012 ABC Australia adopted a web platform which extracts information from tweets, Facebook, SMSs, satellite maps and online videos. It’s basically a ‘mash-up’ of relevant information which is collated and mapped out to provide real time situation reports.

With such a connected world, we can all now help a community recover from a disaster. Our goodwill and aid can be extended as ‘remote volunteers’ who aid directly, or ‘donators’ who contribute things in need.

Are you a digital humanitarian? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

  REFERENCES

Blanco. 2012. Elements of a Crisis. [ONLINE] Available at: http://study.com/academy/lesson/crisis-situations-types-examples.html. [Accessed 05 February 16].

Bullas, (2012), During an emergency [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.jeffbullas.com/2010/08/11/how-do-we-use-social-media-in-a-disaster/ [Accessed 05 February 16].

Center for the Study of Lodging Operations. (2006). Crisis planning for the meeting planning and convention industry. West Lafayette, US: Kline, S., & Smith, S.

Moe, T. L., & Pathranarakul, P. (2006). An integrated approach to natural disaster management: public project management and its critical success factors. Disaster Prevention and Management, 15(3), 396-413. [Accessed 05 February 2016].

Oak, (2013), Cloud [ONLINE]. Available at: http://oak.dcs.shef.ac.uk/smile/ [Accessed 03 February 16].

Pelling, M, 2003. The geography of urban disaster. The Vulnerability of Cities: Natural Disasters and Social Resilience, [Online]. 3, 22-27. Available at: https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=cjjBdCzB-C0C&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=natural+disasters+and+social+media&ots=RJGE-vI597&sig=_u7N-AF52A47H72dV9iuuq79WnU&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false [Accessed 05 February 2016].

PR Accreditation. 2011. Crisis Communication Management. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.praccreditation.org/resources/documents/APRSG-Crisis-Comm-Management.pdf. [Accessed 05 February 16].

Prescient. 2011. Crowdsourcing Spreading like Wildfire with Social Media. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.prescientdigital.com/articles/web-2.0/crowdsourcing-spreading-like-wildfire-with-social-media. [Accessed 03 February 16].

Reed, (2015), Protracted displacement [ONLINE]. Available at: http://whnt.com/2015/07/21/report-nearly-20-million-people-displaced-by-natural-disasters-in-2014/ [Accessed 05 February 16].

Queensland Police Service. 2011. Disaster management and social media - a case study. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.police.qld.gov.au/corporatedocs/reportsPublications/other/Documents/QPSSocialMediaCaseStudy.pdf. [Accessed 05 February 16].

Tun, L. M., Gehbauer, F., Senitz, S., & Mueller, M. (2007). Balanced scorecard for natural disaster management projects. Disaster Prevention and Management, 16(5), 785-785. doi:10.1108/09653560710837073

Victoria University. 2012. Crowdsourcing during crisis. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.vu.edu.au/news-events/news/crowdsourcing-during-crisis. [Accessed 04 February 16].

Weinberg, (2014), During an emergency [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.connectingjusticecommunities.com/disasterlegalaid-lawhelpny-webinar-outlines-best-practices-in-post-disaster-social-media-useage/2014/04/ [Accessed 04 February 16].

Wilson. 2015. Cops Increasingly Use Social Media to Connect, Crowdsource. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.govtech.com/social/Cops-Increasingly-Use-Social-Media-to-Connect-Crowdsource.html. [Accessed 05 February 16].

[mindmymarketing-blog]

Internet Trolling. An Act of Terrorism on our Teens.

Online trolls are wicked. Trolls haunt the comment sections of internet sites. They target innocent people. They don’t follow the rules or terms of service. They relish making others feel ashamed. Trolling can turn into cyberstalking and cyberbullying.

Velez said: “Whether its bullying, bigotry, or hate speech online, the problem is a global one”.

I’ll describe; how to deal with trolling, steps to defeat trolling and what to do if cyberbullying is happening to you.

I’m an 80s child. This internet world didn’t exist when I was young. I wasn’t playing in an online virtual world. Instead, I was climbing trees and building huts and playing soccer in the park. The invention of the internet gives us the ability to communicate globally and connect with others like never before.

Let’s look at our Gen Ys and technology and trolling.

It’s no longer just playground abuse they need to cope with. There is also online global peer to peer bullying, forms of harassment or stalking, trolling, hating, flaming and other forms of online conflict.

How to deal with trolling:

Site administrators tend to block and remove anyone engaging in trollish behaviour. But of course it’s no easy task to manage a global website 24/7.

Streight wrote an article detailing steps to defeat an online troll:

Ignore the troll

Post ‘don’t feed the trolls’ in the thread and leave

Or, don’t give in and be insistent with your viewpoint

Twist what they say “I agree. Thanks for supporting my views. Glad you finally agree”

Give sarcastic praise – then sign off and leave with “you sad and silly troll”

Last week I would have argued that our young ones should not be using internet chat sites. I know they don’t have the life experience or emotional maturity to deal with the online bullying problems. Now however, I realise it’s not really about a child’s emotional maturity. It’s about the trollers’ emotional immaturity. It’s about trollers’ inhuman behaviour. It’s an act of terrorism. Terrorising people online. It’s disgraceful. I won’t be bullied into avoiding the internet. Instead, I’ll be educating everyone I know about how to deal with these lowlifes.

What to do if cyberbullying is happening to you:

Keep calm

Talk to someone

Record evidence

Ask the person to delete it

Report it to the website

Report it your phone company

Block the bully

Talk to your teacher, school counsellor or principal

Apply for a protection order

Contact a fee legal service in your area about legal action

Report it to the police

Notice how I didn’t write about how to avoid trolling? In this technological age, there is no 100% troll-proof guarantee. Trollers can simply log in with different computer and use a different name. Most are hackers. Instead here’s an article with advice for parents whose children use social media.

Has your child been a victim of trolling? Do you let your children chat online? I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences.

 REFERENCES

DailyKos, (2016), Internet troll at the computer [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/1/3/1463556/-Don-t-suffer-internet-trolls-gladly [Accessed 04 February 16].

LinkedIn, (2013), How to Deal With Online Trolls, Jerks, and Bullies [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.slideshare.net/mprofs/tips-for-dealing-with-online-trolls-jerks-and-bullies [Accessed 05 February 16].

Streight. 2015. How to Identify and Defeat an Internet Troll. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.peorian.com/technology/technology-news/trolls-cyberbullies/1079-how-to-identify-and-defeat-an-internet-troll. [Accessed 04 February 16].

Thistle, (2014), Dear Mom and Dad [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.steamfeed.com/parents-child-uses-social-media/ [Accessed 04 February 16].

Velez. 2016. Don't suffer internet trolls gladly. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/1/3/1463556/-Don-t-suffer-internet-trolls-gladly. [Accessed 05 February 16].

Vital Magazine, (2015), Don't feed the trolls [ONLINE]. Available at: https://vitalmagazine.com/pulse/new-research-shows-trends-in-online-trolling [Accessed 04 February 16].

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[mindmymarketing-blog]

Give me an A for Activisim. Give me a P for Protest.

A form of digital citizenship might be a social media community engaged to protest and take action on a particular issue. These (passionate) groups use online blogging to express and interact with supporters to enable community action.

Actions include;

Building and sustaining of communities

Spreading messages and views

Raising funds for a particular issue

Resisting politics

Confronting dominant institutions

Criticising social and cultural ways of society

Culture jamming

Blogging is inexpensive, has a lower rate of contest from outsiders and avoids media control.

I’m fascinated by Adbusters after watching their video showing how a global network of activists dedicate advertising to anti-consumerism and anti-capitalist issues. It’s worthwhile taking a peek.

‘Adbusters Media Foundation’ campaign efforts for:

Anti-Tobacco industry profiteering

Anti-Car pollution to the environment = World Car Free Days

Anti-Beauty Industry = Beauty Industry is the Beast

Anti-television = TV Turnoff Week

Anti-Economic Progress = world’s biggest problems such as overproduction/homelessness

Anti-Logging = NO Tree Farms thanks

And much more. (I’m now following their Facebook page)

The stand out for me is the American ‘Thanksgiving Day’ protest. A ‘Buy Nothing Day’ campaign is advocated every year. Think about that for a second. A BUY NOTHING. DAY CAMPAIGN.

I like it! It’s something that crosses my mind - especially when hot cross buns are bizarrely ready to buy right after Christmas – I refuse to buy a hot cross bun until Easter thanks greedy suppliers and smart marketers. Now I need to know more.­­

Similarly, there is a ‘Buy Nothing New’ group who campaigns for a whole month’s worth of buying nothing new to bring a halt to wasteful consumption.

Ever heard of ‘Buy Nothing Christmas’? I discovered the ‘Mennonites’, a religious group of activists who believe we should all buy nothing for Christmas because the best gifts come in no packages. Their ‘Buy Nothing Catalogue’ is impressive too with DIY ideas for fun at NO cost.

The above activist groups are all campaigning for a social change. But activism can consist of efforts to support, inhibit or guide changes in;

Social issues

Political issues

Economic issues

Environmental issues

How exhilarating to be part of something you’re passionate about. Some famous quotes I’m reminded of:

‘We can change the world and make it a better place. It’s in your hands to make a difference’ – Nelson Mandela

‘The Ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do’ – Steve Jobs

‘I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples’ – Mother Teresa

Please leave a comment. I’d love to know of an activist group you’re passionate about – or if you’re guilty of buying a hot cross bun in January.

  REFERENCES

AngelFire, (2005), World Peace Love Harmony [ONLINE]. Available at: http://www.angelfire.com/az/peacepledge/ [Accessed 03 February 16].

Buy Nothing Christmas. 2002. Introducing Buy Nothing Christmas. [ONLINE] Available at: http://buynothingchristmas.org/. [Accessed 03 February 16].

Buy Nothing Catalogue. 2002. Come discover what you already have. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.buynothingchristmas.org/catalogue/index.html. [Accessed 03 February 16].

Buy Nothing New. 2016. How to Buy Nothing New. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.buynothingnew.com.au/how/. [Accessed 03 February 16].

Digital Royalty, (2013), Revolution Tools [ONLINE]. Available at: http://digitalroyalty.com/innovating-activism-through-social/ [Accessed 03 February 16].

Facebook. 2010. Adbusters Magazine. [ONLINE] Available at: https://www.facebook.com/adbusters. [Accessed 04 February 16].

Howard, (2013), Fists [ONLINE]. Available at: http://digital-activism.org/2013/11/report-on-digital-activism-and-non-violent-conflict/ [Accessed 03 February 16].

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