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#7 Digital Communities and Trolls: Understanding Social Media Conflict

Social media can be a really great place to share memes, have a laugh, positive contents however sometimes it can also not be a great place, with lots hate, bullying, harassment and more. What comes with posting on social media, can also come with conflict. 

Sometimes the joke can go too far and actually offend or potentially bully the person. Online harassment cane be name-calling to serious abuse (Marwick, Caplan, 2018). Online harassment is getting worse and affects the user mentally and emotionally, fearing for personal safety. 70 per cent of Australians have experienced online harassment (Johnston, 2017) and the numbers are increasing. 

Urban dictionary defines the term ‘troll’ as being ‘…the deliberate act, of making random unsolicited and/or controversial comments…with the intent to provoke an emotional reaction…”. Since there is a lot of freedom within the digital scope and social media is very powerful, some people take this advantage and use tit to troll other users online. Claiming that it is ‘funny’ but in fact comes under harassment and bullying. 

(Image taken from https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/789044797204687231/)

The best way to deal with this is to ignore them, yes as hard as it is do it. Respond with kindness, it is unexpected and would not want them to come back since they would realise that it doesn’t get to you. Stand on your ground, be confident with your words and own it. 

It is healthy to call for help or look into ways on how to stop this because this is an issue that needs to be addressed especially since it is increasing. We don’t want negative social media conflict but positive and spreading kindness and being an ethical digital citizen on the online platforms. 

Refereces: 

Alice E. Marwick & Robyn Caplan, 'Drinking male tears: language, the manosphere, and networked harassment 'Feminist Media Studies Volume 18, 2018 - Issue 4: Pages 543-559 | 

Gizmodo Australia. 2020. Online Harassment Is Getting Worse – Gizmodo Australia. [online] [Accessed 6 June 2020]. 

Urban Dictionary. 2020. Urban Dictionary: Trolling. [online] [Accessed 6 June 2020].

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#6 Gaming Communities, Social Gaming and Live Streaming

I don’t come as being a gamer person and usually people who I meet and to know me don’t really guess that about me, but gaming has been part of my life since I could remember. I absolutely love it, from computer games to more consoles now but up to this day I still game and I enjoy it. Gaming has been known for social gathering where you would go to arcades or even just play that snake game on those old Nokia phones. 

Gaming community has come a long way and it defiantly has become huge and it is a shared experience. ‘Online games provide a playful space…are a venue, an excuse to get together’(Stuart, 2013). It is a space were people can come together, connect, and socialise via gaming and creating conversations, it is kind of like a hanging out but online gaming. 

Twitch is the ‘world leading live streaming’ for gamers where you can watch and chat with many around the world. ‘The numbers grow each year…platforms like Facebook, Instagram and YouTube also increasingly encourage people to share and watch live stories (Hernandez, 2018). I myself watch and have been subscribed to ‘Pewdiepie’ or Felix Kjelberg who has been making gaming videos since 2010 on YouTube. His content contains him making all sorts of video of him gaming and his viewers would watch him play and it is entertaining. This is a now become a common content for many of the gamers to show a live stream and many follow this pattern. 

The game that has been the talk during social distancing has been Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Sadly, I don’t have the switch to play this game but from seeing other people play it is honestly the best and I do wish I had the chance to play this on my own. ‘Animal Crossing is packed full, each precious incident serving as bite-sized mental-health break’ (Buchanan, 2020). The game is like the well-known Sims where you create your own world and do whatever you want to do. This game also allows you to visit other people’s island so that way you are still having that social gaming with each other. 

(Image taken from https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/793900240551086587/)

It’s great how timely Animal Crossing: New Horizons is and even other games that even through social distancing you can still be social through gaming; a place where you can hang out and enjoy gaming together. 

References: 

Nytimes.com. 2020. Animal Crossing Is The Perfect Way To Spend Quarantine. [online] [Accessed 6 June 2020]. 

Stuart, K., 2013. Gamer Communities: The Positive Side. [online] the Guardian. [Accessed 6 June 2020]. 

The Verge. 2020. The Twitch Streamers Who Spend Years Broadcasting To No One. [online] [Accessed 6 June 2020].

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#5 Digital Communities, Political Enagement and Activism

Digital platform holds so much power in reaching, educating and informing the digital communities in engaging with political topics, ‘66% of social media users have employed the platforms to post their thought about civic and political issues…’ (Rainie, Smith, Schlozman, Brady, Verba, 2012). 

Activism as google dictionary states is ‘The policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about political or social change.’ Messages spread so quickly when positing on social media about any topic that is trending and is the best way to get the digital community to stand with the issue. Over the years there has been many political issues and social changes by the help of social media and the increase number of users by millennials really made it a movement so voices can be heard to a greater audience.

Twitter has been a great main hub by conversating political engagement since the amount of celebrities, people who are involved in politics and many more. This is by having the hashtags and creating more awareness about the issues. 

On May 25, George Floyd died during a police arrest who pressed his knee to Floyd’s neck for almost 10 minutes and in those last minutes he was unconscious and has no pulse. This violence quickly spread across the United States and internationally quickly as being a police violence against other black Americans. #BlackLivesMatter and many other hashtags has been a consistent presence on Twitter for the last five years (Anderson, Toor, Rainie, Smith, 2018) and has spread on all platforms such as Twitter, Instagram and more are talking about the issue and protesting developed all around the world. 

(Image taken from https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/756252962417930895/)

This activism is helping the digital community to come together and to bring up conversations and change to the societies by learning, educating themselves and getting involved in political and social topics. There has also been so many other issues that through the presence of social media has bought change and there are still heaps more to go.

References: 

Pewinternet.org. 2020. [online] [Accessed 6 June 2020]. 

Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech. 2020. 2. An Analysis Of #Blacklivesmatter And Other Twitter Hashtags Related To Political Or Social Issues. [online] [Accessed 6 June 2020].

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Hey :)  I really like the way you’ve talked about this topic and it is so vital to build awareness on this especially keeping in mind about the younger audiences.  Looking forward to read more of your posts! 

Digital Health and Cosmetic Surgery on Visual Social Media

In the digital world, it’s very casual for you to run into a sexualised post, it’s almost highly unavoidable, especially om Instagram. It can be defined as “pornification” which means their photos is extremely sexualised. The purpose of this is to maximise the numbers of “like” on a post (Drenten et, 2019). A study of 172 female influencers conducted by Drenten Et, showing that these influencers often present themselves as porn-chic or ‘fuckable’ to gain attention on Instagram (Drenten, 2019). The most relevant example is Kylie Jenner’s Instagram page, she has 175 millions followers, she is well-known for her ‘amazing’ body, or at least that’s what the Internet assumes. This example isn’t to put Kylie in the spotlight, many other influencers and fashion brands do so, it has become a marketing tool to help them promote their products. 

https://www.instagram.com/kyliejenner/

These ideal images on Instagram contribute to the suffering of people with BDD (Body Dysmorphic Disorder), a mental health issue that makes people “fixated on their imperfections” (Adkins, 2018). Constant exposure to altered images can lead to an unhealthy pressure to achieve unrealistic body types (adkins, 2018). These images create insecurities in younger audiences who haven’t fully developed their personalities and a lot more about their body types. This can result in people reaching out for plastic surgery as the solution to achieve the ideal body image. 

https://online.king.edu/news/social-media-and-body-image/

Instagram has turned into a marketing tool in recent years for many businesses and industries, the cosmetic surgery industry is one of them. There is a lack of  education and understanding of when  “shopping”  around  for  plastic  surgeons (Robert G Dorfman, Elbert E Vaca, Eitezaz Mahmood, Neil A Fine and Clark F Schierl, 2018). A lot more people seeking aesthetic surgery to improve their appearance on Instagram and other social media (Robert G Dorfman, Elbert E Vaca, Eitezaz Mahmood, Neil A Fine and Clark F Schierl, 2018).  The study at Oxford University on Plastic surgery related on Hashtag Utilisation on Instagram suggests that only 17.8% post about plastic surgery are from ABPS and RCPSC board-certified surgeons and 80.4% of the posts are from physicians. This raises another problem that people who want  plastic surgery, could often run into unprofessional plastic surgeons, that could cause unexpected consequences. The study also suggests that 37.0% of posts by plastic surgeons were self-promoting, there are stories such as plastic surgeons reaching out for influencers and offering them surgery at a cheap price.

Therefore, it’s important to build awareness and educate digital citizens on plastic surgery, provide them with proper information. On the audience’s side, especially young audience, they should keep in mind that everything people show them on social media  is a persona, influencers has the ability of choose what you can and cannot see on social media, be more aware and more collective of the information.

References:

Robert G Dorfman, Elbert E Vaca, Eitezaz Mahmood, Neil A Fine and Clark F Schierle, ‘Plastic Surgery-Related Hashtag Utilization on Instagram: Implications for Education and Marketing’, Aesthetic Surgery Journal, Volume 38, Issue 3, March 2018.

Drenten et al ‘Sexualized labour in digital culture: Instagram influencers, porn chic and the monetization of attention’ Gender, Work and Organization 

King University Online, 2019, The Link Between Social Media and Body Image | King University Online, viewed on 11 March 2020,<https://online.king.edu/news/social-media-and-body-image/>.

Adkins. A, 2018, How Social Media Contributes to Body Dysmorphic Behavior — The Lexington Line, viewed on 12 March 2020,<https://www.thelexingtonline.com/blog/2018/5/7/how-social-media-contributes-to-body-dysmorphic-behaviors>.

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#4 Digital Health Campaigns: Body modification and Cosmetic Surgery on Visual Social Media

This week’s topic is on body modification and cosmetic surgery which has been increasing issue through social media. Social media is a great platform where you can express anything according to the what the user wants. This freedom allows you to post or interact with other in a friendly and ethical way. However, this can also have a negative impact and that is the way user portray themselves in social media. 

We are so synonyms to this issue that it has become the normal to people who are heavy social media users, Everyone is all about the aesthetics however it can be taken in a damaging way the term ‘aesthetic labour’ has been describe has being an aspect of sexualised labour, where the focus is poses, accessories, proper or superficial work on the body. 

I watch Keeping up with the Kardashian and honestly it is a guilty pleasure show for me. Over the years they have had so many changes to the way they look, and it has been highlighted through their tv show and through social media. Many women are phased into having that body shape or lip fillers how some of the Kardashian have proposed. “…42% of surgeons report that their patients are seeking aesthetic surgery to improve their appearance on Instagram, Snapchat …” (Dorfman, Vaca, Mahmood, Fine and Schierle, 2018). This is so the women desire to have the emphasize on their body image to have a certain appearance or look in the digital community. 

(Image taken from https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/280489883031284475/)

However, sometimes celebrities and influencers do take it far and considering the number of following they have on all different platforms; they take that to their advantage and fabricate self-branding, persuading the followers to purchase and use their brands. On Instagram they use that following and appear to be ‘objectified’ in social media by highlighting the body in a sexual way. “Sexualised labour is performed by influencers in the digital era and is precarious potential to monetized by generating attention” (Drenten et al, 2018). This focuses on aesthetic labour rather than the emotion. 

(Image taken from https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/411446115944086043/)

As this being so normal that many are not aware by the damage it is done to not only the physical body but to mental health. Body Dysmorphic Disorder or BDD affects 1.7% to 2.9% of the general population (Prevalence of BDD, n.d). This is link to the young people that triggers the way they wish to change their appearances. Many struggles with this and the way some influencers or celebrities depict a perception of having the ‘ideal body’ is unachievable and unhealthy to follow. 

References: 

BDD. 2020. Prevalence Of BDD - BDD. [online] [Accessed 6 June 2020].

Drenten et al ‘Sexualized labour in digital culture: Instagram influencers, porn chic and the monetization of attention’ Gender, Work and Organization, November 2018 

Robert G Dorfman, Elbert E Vaca, Eitezaz Mahmood, Neil A Fine and Clark F Schierle, ‘Plastic Surgery-Related Hashtag Utilization on Instagram: Implications for Education and Marketing’, Aesthetic Surgery Journal, Volume 38, Issue 3, March 2018, pp 332–338

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#3 Digital citizenship case study: Instagram, Influencer and the Slow Fashion Movement

In the most recent years, the slow fashion movement has caught my eye and has made me think twice about what I am wearing. I have been more conscious about what I purchase more as this awareness is growing everywhere. The most amazing thing about this generation is the way we all support each other and have a stronger voice, (thanks to the generations before that have sacrificed for us) to open up to this issue day by day and even influencers all around the world are supporting it. 

(Image taken from https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/853221091883408249/)

The term ‘Slow Fashion’ goes by …” eco-, green- slow-, and ethical – fashion …” (Lai, E. Henninger, J. Alevizou, p.82, 2017). Slow fashion is a movement to provide sustainable and long-lasting products and that have an ethical approach to fashion. It is more sustainable, have better quality over quantity products and respects workers and the environment. “Second to oil, the clothing and textile industry is the largest polluter in the world” (Fashion Industry Waste Statistics, 2020). This is due to ‘Fast Fashion’ where the products are produced in “mass productions to generate cheap clothing at a rapid rate” (Slow Fashion - A Guide To Sustainable & Ethical Fashion, 2019).

Slow fashion garments maybe a bit more expensive however the quality and the duration are far better than the fast fashion garments. This is where the consumer is compelled to buy a cheaper quality product mass produced and is deceived to buy more once the fabric or the product is used which happens when not worn many times. To bring more awareness to the ‘slow fashion movement’ influencers have a huge role to play especially those who are fashion-based influencers, in note that it is important for a wider audience and for everyone to know the importance of supporting slow fashion. 

(Image taken from https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/716776096926849064/)

Influencers have a responsibility to be ethical and have safe behaviours with technology use and interaction with other users within the digital community. There are many influencers who support ethical and sustainable fashion. ‘Unmaterialgirl’ or ‘Leah’ who is Australian based is a ‘Former Fast Fashion Addict turned Slow Fashion Activist’ as her bio on Instagram states. With the following of 19.1K followers she has a role to influence the community about slow fashion. Her website consists blogs, resources, student interviews and many more but keeping her practises ethical. I do follow her account on Instagram and love her content she brings new inspiring and unique ideas and thoughts about the sustainable fashion. 

There are more ethical fashion influencers that I also follow and watch such as Freya Haley, Kristen Leo and many more to be discovered. Supporting and maintaining the slow fashion movement is important as not only would it help the retailers and workers; it would also help the Earth. 

Influencers mentioned: 

Instagram: @unmaterialgirl // Website: http://www.unmaterialgirl.com/

Instagram: @freyahaley // Website: https://www.freyahaley.com/

Instagram: @kristenleo // Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/KristenElleTV

References: 

E D G E. 2020. Fashion Industry Waste Statistics. [online] [Accessed 16 May 2020]. 

SLO active. 2019. Slow Fashion - A Guide To Sustainable & Ethical Fashion. [online] Available at: [Accessed 17 May 2020]. 

Zhen Lai, Claudia E. Henninger and Panayiota J. Alevizou ‘An Exploration of Consumers’ Perceptions Towards Sustainable Fashion – A Qualitative Study in the UK’, in Sustainability in Fashion A Cradle to Upcycle Approach, edited by Henninger, C.E., Alevizou, P., Goworek, H., Ryding, D. (Palgrave: 2017)

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#2 Digital Citizenship

What is ‘Digital Citizenship’? Digital citizenship is the ‘participation in society online: economic opportunity, democratic participation and inclusion in prevailing forms of communication’ (Mossberger et al. 2008).

As technology rises the world is becoming more and more dependent on the internet and social media for everyday life. Each platform has a unique identity in how they perform and possess certain kind of behaviours. ‘Platformization’ is “evoke language and politics of platforms to represent themselves as social utilities …” (Gillespie 2010; McCosker 2016). However, within the platforms there is unity being able to talk to each other and to share opinions, thoughts, and many more. 

(Image taken from Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/622622717219394531/)

Social media has influenced and is being heavily used by everyone all around the world. Politicians and members are using these platforms as part of campaigning and communicating. “Twitter as a political space in which idea, issues, and policies are discussed and debated between politicians and constituents …” (Nelimsrkka, Laaksonen, Tuokko, Valkonen, p.2, 2020). During political campaigns it is important for the politicians to have a web presence so they can reach out to the community easier and talk about issues to the voters. Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders used twitter to attack on each other and use twitter to raise up issues. “Politicians using social media to further the political discussion is working …” (→, 2017). Politicians using twitter or any other social media platforms can be both positive and negative however is it a great way to express and debate issues and be more involved with the community is by having more of a social media presence. 

Not only has there been a rise in the political sphere utilising the twitter platform but in the music industry Soundcloud and Bandcamp has been both growing music platforms and are being used by the general public. These two music platforms allow musicians, commentators and more to upload music and tunes on there and the community can listen to for free. “The appeal to SoundCloud has been stimulated by stories of the platform’s role in enabling ordinary users to achieve success and fame.” (Hemondhalgh, Jones, Rauh, p.2, 2019). Many of the well-known artists such as Lorde, Billie Eilish, Post Malone and many more who have now successfully become big in the music industry. This platform is a great way to explore different artists and by supporting them with being within the digital space. Since this platform is a free space is allowing the public to participate in this online society.

(Image taken from Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com.au/pin/393924298654176428/) 

References: 

→, V., 2020. Politweets: ‘The Growing Use Of Twitter And Social Media For Politics’ | Techbytes. Blogs.umass.edu. viewed 10 May 2020 

Nelimsrkka, Laaksonen, Tuokko, Valkonen, 2020, ‘Platformed Interactions: How Social Media Platforms Relate to Candidate-Constituent Interaction During Finnish 2015 Election Campaigning’ Social Media + Society, April-June 2020: 1-17, viewed 10 May

Hemondhalgh, Jones, Rauh, p.2, 2019 ‘SoundCloud and Bandcamp as Alternative Music Platforms’ Social Media + Society October-December 2019: 1–13, viewed 10 May

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Hey Sophie! 

It is interesting to see the how many blogs and users there are in Tumblr and the depiction through the data in the picture you used! I agree with the way that Tumblr is a digital space where there is freedom to express however the user wants to and be anonymous. I personally haven’t used Tumblr as much as-well as a lot of my friends did when it was the big in high school hahah, but it is a great digital space to be unrestricted and connected with the community compared to other social platforms. I really like the way you have explained the public sphere and emerging that with Tumblr! Looking forward to reading your posts in the coming weeks. 

Post 0: “How does Tumblr Function as a digital community?”

Before getting into today’s question, I thought I should introduce myself,  my name is Sophie and to be honest I don’t have a lot of experience with Tumblr. When I was younger I tried making a Tumblr account because all my friends did, I would just scroll through my feed but I never actually posted anything, so I’m really a newbie to this platform. :)) 

Tumblr functions as a digital community in a variety of ways.As the Tumblr platform states;  “Tumblr lets you effortlessly share anything”. Archived through posting text, photos, quotes, links, music and videos. I often hear people say they utilise Tumblr as it is a cross between a social networking site such as Facebook, twitter and a blog. The site was founded in 2007 and is one of the worlds largest blogging platforms. Tumblr hosts over “200 million blogs” and has over “420 million users”. The site is particularly popular with young people, with approximately 69% of  monthly users  identifying as millennials (Heine, 2015; Smith, 2017)

The platform’s primary difference from most other social media platforms, stems from the notion that the site has no personal profiles or networks of friends, leaving many Tumblrs’ anonymous.  Although Tumblr’s predominant use is for blogging, it is also commonly used to find artistic based media on each individuals interest. Tumblr can be looked at as a platform that prioritises aesthetics.

Jurgen Habermas concept of the public sphere, “is a construct of its time, and the mass media- dominated environment. It has proven to be an influential model for our understanding of media and communication process. Ultimately the public sphere is seen as a domain of social life where public opinion can be formed” ( Habermas, 1991, 398). The way Tumblr functions as a digital community surrounds how the users across the world can communicate with each other through their posts, Ultimately enabling them to connect with people who have the same hobbies and interests as them.  Users can share their views online as Tumblr gives them a creative outlet to do so. People are able to comment and interact with posts, creating a community.  Tumblr allows freedom of speech and more importantly freedom of their own creativity. It is not surprising that the ability to be anonymous is a major reason that the primary users are teenagers and in particular young feminist. Tumblr is a safe place they can express their opinions and outlooks without being attacked but still have that open discussion in the comments. Dara a 14 year old girl who uses Tumblr regularly was asked,  when talking about her experience with sexism which platform would she use, she replied “ I might put it on Tumblr because I feel very anonymous and I like that”. This is a primary example how people can express their thoughts is a safe environment. The platform allows a community to be formed without the direct and personal attacks on the users, it also allows people to voice their opinions and to be listened to and heard.

Sorry for the long first post, I had a lot to say. I hope you enjoyed the read and feel free to give me your opinion on Tumblr and what you use it for?

“It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.” Madeleine Albright

References:

·       Jessalynn Keller, “Oh, She’s a Tumblr Feminist”: Exploring the Platform Vernacular of Girls’ Social Media Feminisms, Social Media + Society Volume: 5 issue: 3, 2019

·       Anon 2020, Habermas’ Public Sphere, viewed 15 April, 2020, <https://opentextbc.ca/mediastudies101/chapter/habermas-public-sphere/>.

·       Bruns, A & Highfield, T 2016 Is Habermas on Twitter? Social media and the public sphere. In A Bruns, G Enli, E Skogerbø, AO Larsson, & Christensen, C (Eds.) The Routledge Companion to Social Media and Politics. Routledge, New York, pp. 56-73

·       Anon 2020, TechCrunch is now a part of Verizon Media, viewed 15 April, 2020, <https://techcrunch.com/2013/02/18/tumblr-is-not-what-you-think/>.

·       Anon 2020, Explainer: What is Tumblr?, viewed 15 April, 2020, <https://www.webwise.ie/parents/explainer-what-is-tumblr-2/>.

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#1 How does Tumblr function as a digital community ?

Tumblr was established in 2007 founded by David Karp and since then it has been the fastest-growing social media platform in 2014 gradually moving up.

Tumblr is a microblogging platform, what is microblogging? Google states it is “the activity or practise of making short, frequent post to a microblog’ This is so making it easier to communicate with audience quickly evolving a public sphere. Twitter, Printrest, Instagram and many more other social media platforms are popular as being a microblogging space, including Tumblr being the highly popular microblogging platform. 

However, as Van Dijck (2013) challenges, ‘users intentionally present distinctive versions of themselves according to explicit and implicit understanding of individual platforms’ states that every social media platform is different and according to that the way a user would interact on that specific platform. 

Habermas ([1989] 1991:27) defines the public sphere as a place where “private people come together as public.” All of the social media platforms all are public spheres since they are all a place where different opinions are expressed, problems are discussed, and solutions are developed as a community depending on which social media platform you are expressing yourself. 

(Image taken from: https://www.freepik.com/free-photos-vectors/background)

Tumblr functions as a digital community since it is where people from all over the world unite in a public space to share different values and opinions about all sorts of different topics from. Your canvas, your creativity in which you can decide on what you want to post and how you want to customise your content. It is a place where you follow or tag topics that allow you to connect with millions and millions of people from different communities where conversation can be started. It gives more ‘free of speech’ to users by posting anomalously and freely than other different social media platforms and has equal participation.

(Photo by Polina Zimmerman from Pexels)

References: 

Scolere, L., Pruchniewska, U. and Duffy, B., 2018. Constructing the Platform-Specific Self-Brand: The Labor of Social Media Promotion. Social Media + Society, 4(3), p.205630511878476. 

 Van Dijck, J. (2013). ‘You have one identity’: Performing the self on Facebook and LinkedIn. Media, Culture & Society, 35, 199–215. 

 Anon 2020, Habermas’ Public Sphere, viewed 24 April, 2020, https://opentextbc.ca/mediastudies101/chapter/habermas-public-sphere