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A song about the Great Firewall of China

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The Great Firewall of China is the expurgation of any sensitive content that can be found on the Internet. The intention of the Chinese government is simple: they employ individuals to remove threatening and/or embarrassing information that diverges from socially acceptable norms, through the surveillance of the Internet. The reason behind this is that they are under the assumption that their residents will fall prey to malicious cultures and values if they source inappropriate material. This week we were presented with statistics suggesting that, with 513 million Internet users in 2011 (Chiu, Lin & Silverman, 2012) the Chinese population should be dominating social networking websites. However, we were informed that Chinese consumers have restricted access from many popular platforms including Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, contradicting this ideology. Instead, this country has many replacement platforms, as reviewed by Thomas Crampton (2011). Crampton (2011) compares the Chinese social platforms Youku and Tudou (YouTube), Sina Weibo (Twitter) and various versions of Facebook, evaluating that there are improvements in the conventions and technical affordances of the Chinese digital sites. For example, Sina Weibo is the most used microblogging website and has similar affordances to Twitter. The major difference is that Sina Weibo consents more preferences when responding to another person’s comment. In addition, while the character limit still stands at 140 characters, Chinese consumers using Chinese logograms, can in fact use up to 400 English characters when the message is translated. As seen in Chiu, Lin and Silverman’s (2012) paper, China is renowned for a vast effect on online shopping than any other country in the world. The figures in this paper also suggest that China is the leading country in social media practices and engagement via computers, laptops or smartphones. But with limitations in their social network sites, how can we transpose this data and equally compare it with that of the globe? From this knowledge, we can deduce that there are many different technological advances and boundaries between Australia and China. I honestly can’t grasp the fact that China has blocked Facebook, YouTube and Twitter from social media use and if it was not discussed in this week’s lecture, I would have had no idea about it. I’m sure that I am not alone in the sense that I would feel so disconnected from the rest of the world and from my family and relatives overseas if we could not connect as we regularly as we do on the same platforms. Understandably, censorship is required and although they have substitute digital platforms, China has taken it to an unfamiliar level of content restraint. Would this mean that the Chinese population is secluded from any uprisings around the world? What does this mean for them if they decide to travel overseas and they experience culture shock? Will the Government continue to monitor the Internet after 20 or 30 years and will other countries follow in the footsteps of the Chinese Government?

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In recent years, individuals have found themselves pursing online gaming as a frequent and colossal part of their pastime. Online gaming communities allow individuals to bond over common interests through virtual worlds, thus representing such a popular digital community amongst today’s youth. It is somewhat difficult for me to really delve into this week’s topic as I am not a hardcore gamer, however I do see resemblances in terms of the addiction and determination between online games like Halo 4 and fads I have pursued in the past, such as Words with Friends and QuizUp. The advertisement of a game can be crucial in terms of its success. An eye-catching poster or commercial can attract an abundance of gamers, therefore creating more social connections between players and the formation of vast communities around games. This may include opportunities for gamers to meet with acquaintances personally at conventions and expositions (as discussed in the lecture). De Zwart and Humphreys (2014) discuss how gamers may construct their own social norms when entering the online gaming community. They inform us of the typical, aggressive reactions gamers may display (publicly and privately) whilst playing, despite this being a violation of the game’s regulations and code of conduct. Players become obsessed with these virtual realms and find themselves to be regular users and when they lose or their fictional gaming character dies, their emotions are heightened which causes them to act in an undesirable way. Similarly, the content of the game can manipulate an individual’s intellectual thoughts and that individual may react in the same way when placed in everyday situations. In a different academic paper, Humphreys and De Zwart (2012) assessed an avatar by the name of Twixt created by David Myers in the game City of Heroes (CoH). He created conflict within the CoH community by deviating from the standards of the game and implicating his own version of the rules. Other gamers began to target Twixt as his hostile behaviour and rejection of social interaction diminished their enjoyment of the game. Myers stated that the virtual world of the game turned into real life consequences as he received copious amounts of death threats and was dismissed by players when he tried to justify that his behaviour was coherent with the rules of the game. As examined by Suzor and Woodford, it can become serious problem in some cases as legal proceedings may be issued. Online gaming can be a fun leisure and a great environment to meet new people. However, from the above case study, we can observe the damaging effects of diverging from the code of conduct of games. I find that once I download a new game, I totally disregard my priorities just to play that game. We thrive off this need to always be connected in some way and online social games target our demands, but isn’t it enough to just interact in a real life setting?

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In week 9, we discussed new image-sharing platforms such as Instagram and Snapchat and the public consequences of tagging and sharing personal photography and similar visual content. According to Nathan Jurgenson (2014), media objects are the fundamental unit of experiences for networkers to view, remark and share. We live in a networked society in which we believe that informing others on different digital platforms of what we are doing, where we are or what we are eating is a necessity. This is an underlying idea of digital footprints in which we as social network consumers, leave a path of records, snapshots and files of our private lives for the whole world to see. We all that that one person on Facebook who checks into some restaurant or fast food place every day and let’s be honest we all think “who cares?” We are also obsessed with making sure a photo looks perfect before we upload it, with the fear of it being ignored or not getting enough likes because we didn’t use the right filter on Instagram. Although it is important to socialize and post regularly, not everything needs to be publicised. The private sphere focuses on individualistic goals and values whereas public sphere discusses social values comprehensively and collectively. During my group presentation I discussed how the public sphere and private sphere can often overlap with one another. As Anthony mentioned in the lecture the concept of digital cocooning is the intertwining of the public and private in which individuals can communicate privately in a public setting (e.g. by sending a text message to someone while they are at a restaurant). In addition to publishing visuals, the searchability of the content is an important technological concept of visible publics. Hashtags have become a form of interacting, with the ability to locate a writer or post within the digital network. This allows for individuals all over the world to develop ephemeral relationships over similar interests. This is related to videos of affinity where Lange (2009) discusses how unrestricted access to visual information and sharing one’s work can bring individuals a sense of inclusivity or belonging with other network users. One main concern that was heavily reviewed in the tutorial was tagging people in posts or photos on different platforms. It takes less than a minute to upload a photo of someone on Facebook or Instagram and tag that person. Although it is usually done for recreational purposes or as a joke, there is the issue of using the content for humiliation, which then raises concerns of cyberbullying. Despite untagging yourself from the image, everyone can see it on their newsfeed and it becomes such an invasion of privacy and a breach of approval if you don’t want others to see it, especially you’re colleagues at work. An example of unwanted and unauthorised uploading of private photography is the Facebook group and Tumblr blog “Embarrassing Nightclub Photos”. Although most photos are fairly comedic and the individuals aren’t necessarily tagged, it is clear that these photos have been transferred to these platforms without the consent of the individuals in that image. I know that I myself get a little anxious when someone tags me in a horrible photo or post where I don’t want everyone knowing what I was doing or saying. I think that there should be limitations for tagging others however not everyone understands the possible repercussions of it or the anxiety it can cause.

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#truth

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Crowdsourcing uses relevant knowledge and information from online resources straying from traditional employees or suppliers. It is a tool expended in times of a crisis, where the gathered ideas are structured to resolve complications. Twitter is a heavily utilised platform in terms of crowdsourcing. As Posetti and Lo discuss in their article, during the 2011 Queensland floods the Twitter news feed erupted with overwhelming coverage and support, from hashtags such as #qldfloods and regular updates and photos from verified accounts to inform the nation and the rest of the world of the terrible disaster. This allowed local and/or national communities and organisations to employ their skills and supplies to assist. Crowd-mapping was also a significant part of the movement where members of the communities would pin point safe places and risk places within the Queensland area. This is sort of a convergence of technology where different media platforms are used to inform everyone about the crisis. In ‘Crowd Wisdom,’ Ford indicates that people are constantly checking Facebook and Twitter, therefore valid information is quickly dispersed to us online and it is easy for us to respond. By watching the events unfold before us on these various platforms and becoming involved in some way (e.g. by donating, offering emergency accommodation, etc.) we are being addressed and we engage in the crisis through interpellation. As an undergraduate studying media, myself, fellow peers and academics would be aware of the persistence of online reporting by those of high authority and everyday citizens. I think that in times of crisis, material uploaded onto digital platforms are more trustworthy when there is a reliable source or it has been tweeted from a verified account. Although people try to provide support through posts or tweets, it is often the case that they find images that are of different calamities and are not raw or real live footage of the current event. However, these social media networking sites also provide security and empathy for those who want to make sense of the situation.

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The act of “trolling” has been around for quite some time but I have only recently learnt this new terminology through memes and ridiculous phrases on Facebook. Memes can actually be quite hilarious but sometimes these jokes are taken too far and way out of context. In turn, the consequences of trolling, hating or social provocation, as discussed by Anthony McCosker during the lecture, can be severe and potentially damaging, not only to one’s self esteem or popularity but also their existence. Cyberbullying is a way of psychologically tormenting others. The purpose of cyberbullying revolves around continuous harassment and intent to humiliate others for pleasure, boredom or to feel superior. Danah Boyd (2014) writes about how individuals have become extremely vicious and rude within digital communities and that this problem is escalating rapidly, especially for our younger generations. The act of provocation is also a form of bullying as the culprits aim to intentionally initiate a reaction from the victim, testing their limit of emotional tolerance. It is challenging to confront the perpetrator when they have the option of remaining anonymous. This cowardly act of putting someone down to increase their own intrapersonal qualities and self-esteem, or even using an alias to befriend someone is just an example of the sadistic people in this world. Boyd uses the suicide of Amanda Todd as an example of the effects of cyberbullying and online hate, and the fact that people formulated groups and posted about how ‘she deserved it’ is just disgusting. After Todd filmed herself sharing her struggles, she opened a window of opportunity for niche audiences (specifically the teenage/adolescent demographic) to see her side of the story and openly express her emotions. YouTube videos concerning one’s opinions and feelings increase the risk of exposure to more bullying and social conflict, as McCosker spoke about in the lecture and his reading, and as the video was frequently viewed, the mass media saw her being attacked online. This created an affordance for people to intervene. However, it is hard to tackle the antagonist when you are behind an electronic device. In year 10 and year 11, schools in my area made “Gossip Girl” groups and people would send the admins private messages of any rumours they had heard about other students. Despite seeing a majority of dumb rumours, a few school pages were lathered with very intricate and extremely intimate details, and were not only catastrophic to their reputation but to their families and other friends. Although these Gossip Girl pages aren’t quite as extreme as the comments and hate Amanda Todd received, belittling someone in front of their high school peers is probably one of the worst experiences a teenager could have, and unfortunately some individuals don’t have the mentality and confidence to overcome the embarrassment. Trolling doesn’t have to be a side effect of cyberbullying, social conflict or hating (whatever you want to call it). The necessity to put other down not only through physical interaction but through online networking sites demonstrates how gutless and attention-seeking people have become. I can’t even express how offended I am that people laugh at others’ emotional instability and physical insecurity and go further to constantly torment them by telling them to die. Like how does their appearance even affect your life?! Online communication boards allowing anonymity practically scream “recipe for disaster”, but we should all be aware and educated of ways to counteract cyberbullies.

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"There’s a really big world at your fingertips and you know you have the chance to change it" #Social #Media #WiFi #Tumblr #Twitter #InstaPic #Vine #Lol #Fun #Life #Love #Hope #Joy #Peace #Me #NewZealand #PicOfTheDay #Follow4Follow #FollowMe #FollowForFollow#Like

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kdotonlineblog:

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The week 6 readings talked about the most active platforms in terms of promoting and advertising social events. Similarly to week 5, we determined that Facebook and Twitter are very informative platforms that can display very political views. With the influx of real-time “live” reporting, Twitter accommodates for the ‘on-the-go’. According to Paul Mason (as cited in Gerbuado, 2012), Twitter is most commonly utilised for instant news dissemination, Facebook is a community for formulating social events and YouTube, Flickr and Instagram (and other image-sharing platforms) provide evidence of these posts and events. Consequently, the purpose of reporting on media platforms is not necessarily what some may consider as informative to their fellow followers/peers. We learnt in the lecture that “social media incites and organises crowds to participate in acts of public disorder”. Everything we see and hear in the media is mediated and manipulated to attract certain attitudes and responses. People explode on Twitter and Facebook and even record their reactions and (sometimes) aggressive behaviour on YouTube. And thus begins the online activist culture that Youmans and York (2012) and Gerbuado (2012) discuss in their respective articles. Activists can also uses the groups they circulate within by protesting in public where they can gain visibility and a voice. It is also interesting how these groups use digital communities to entice citizens. Youmans and York (2012) consider how activists use social media resources to gain authority. Depending on the target audience and social cliques they entice, activists explore various platforms to promote their views and opinions. Hashtag activists can be extremely powerful for example during the Ukraine riots, people were using the hashtags #antimaiden and #euromaiden on Tumblr and Twitter to inform network users of their opinions and political posts. I think that in addition to Facebook and Twitter, Instagram and other forms of photo-blogging can be equally successful in broadcasting information, because it speeds up the interaction amongst various platforms. People always want to know where you are, they want to see what you’re doing and viewing your images may intrigue them to be involved in campaigning and volunteer/innovative work.

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In week 5 we discussed politics and civic culture. As stated by Greg Jericho (2012), in his piece “How many votes are there on twitter?”, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube have increasingly become the top platforms of advertising and distribution of informative, real-time accounts. In addition, Jericho (2012) explains that individuals who are referred to as ‘heavy internet users’ depend on online communications and networks for updates in the news bulletins. He believes that because of the high demand in virtual interaction, it is in the best interest of political parties’ to utilise to an eclectic range of platforms to display their vocations and policies. Sally Young (2011) adds to this idea, in that demographics comprised of those who use the Internet as a source of news reporting, capture mass audiences and therefore lead to a wide public discussion/debate. As we learnt from the lecture, Video blogging can be advantageous but simultaneously detrimental to a politician’s career and campaign. Barack Obama’s campaign proved to be beneficial however other politicians were not as fortunate. As a student not particularly fascinated by politics, I tend to ignore any political conversations or news broadcasts, as it is a hard concept for me to grasp. I would definitely ignore a video message if it portrayed a politician addressing the nation to get votes for Parliament. I know that many students and younger adolescents would also disregard political content unless a video on YouTube was very successful. If a political video blog had more than one million views, I would take that to mean that it is something worth watching (hopefully something comedic). However, I really enjoyed the KEVIN07 campaign because it was such a catchy slogan and the majority of the population was actively involved.