In a media dominated world characterized by ubiquitous communication and entertainment technology, consumers are literally being consumed by what they see daily. The following is a story outlining the affordances & constraints of being a part of this world.
Overview of Social Media During Disaster and Crowd Power in Disaster Response
Prepared for Otago University, COMP113 Social Media and Online
Presented by Catherine Graham
January 29, 2013
Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of so...Ian McCarthy
Traditionally, consumers used the Internet to simply expend content: they read it, they watched it, and they used it to buy products and services. Increasingly, however, consumers are utilizing platforms –— such as content sharing sites, blogs,
social networking, and wikis–—to create, modify, share, and discuss Internet content. This represents the social media phenomenon, which can now significantly impact a firm’s reputation, sales, and even survival. Yet, many executives eschew or ignore this form of media because they don’t understand what it is, the various forms it can take, and how to engage with it and learn. In response, we present a framework that defines
social media by using seven functional building blocks: identity, conversations, sharing, presence, relationships, reputation, and groups. As different social media activities are defined by the extent to which they focus on some or all of these blocks,
we explain the implications that each block can have for how firms should engage with social media. To conclude, we present a number of recommendations regarding how firms should develop strategies for monitoring, understanding, and responding to different social media activities.
Signal - social media, considerations for public safety and emergency managementIntergen
Social media’s significant usage and ongoing growth creates
opportunity for public safety and emergency management.
Information in and around social media can greatly enhance
intelligence and the common operating picture.
The now commonplace use of social media should encourage
public safety and emergency management agencies to get
involved. The level of involvement can be staged with
monitoring usually being the best place to start.
Many social media monitoring tools have been created to help
organisations manage the deluge of information and gain
intelligence. However, not all tools are alike especially when
it comes to features specific to public safety and emergency
management. Organisations should consider their requirements
carefully when investing in social media monitoring.
In a media dominated world characterized by ubiquitous communication and entertainment technology, consumers are literally being consumed by what they see daily. The following is a story outlining the affordances & constraints of being a part of this world.
Overview of Social Media During Disaster and Crowd Power in Disaster Response
Prepared for Otago University, COMP113 Social Media and Online
Presented by Catherine Graham
January 29, 2013
Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of so...Ian McCarthy
Traditionally, consumers used the Internet to simply expend content: they read it, they watched it, and they used it to buy products and services. Increasingly, however, consumers are utilizing platforms –— such as content sharing sites, blogs,
social networking, and wikis–—to create, modify, share, and discuss Internet content. This represents the social media phenomenon, which can now significantly impact a firm’s reputation, sales, and even survival. Yet, many executives eschew or ignore this form of media because they don’t understand what it is, the various forms it can take, and how to engage with it and learn. In response, we present a framework that defines
social media by using seven functional building blocks: identity, conversations, sharing, presence, relationships, reputation, and groups. As different social media activities are defined by the extent to which they focus on some or all of these blocks,
we explain the implications that each block can have for how firms should engage with social media. To conclude, we present a number of recommendations regarding how firms should develop strategies for monitoring, understanding, and responding to different social media activities.
Signal - social media, considerations for public safety and emergency managementIntergen
Social media’s significant usage and ongoing growth creates
opportunity for public safety and emergency management.
Information in and around social media can greatly enhance
intelligence and the common operating picture.
The now commonplace use of social media should encourage
public safety and emergency management agencies to get
involved. The level of involvement can be staged with
monitoring usually being the best place to start.
Many social media monitoring tools have been created to help
organisations manage the deluge of information and gain
intelligence. However, not all tools are alike especially when
it comes to features specific to public safety and emergency
management. Organisations should consider their requirements
carefully when investing in social media monitoring.
500,000 people die on this planet every year from acts of intentional violence and homicide such as war, terrorism, domestic violence, infanticide, gang violence, honor killings and state executions.
As a former soldier I accept that soldiers die during times of war, but what I cannot understand is why so many people die from intentional violence and murder.
So I went in search of answers. This is what I've learned...
Americans have drastically expanded their active communities online and offline. Their world is expanding and narrowing at the same time because of social media’s hyperlocalization quotient. And “cyberdisinhibition”—being more willing to behave online in ways they wouldn’t in person—has both emboldened users and led them to inappropriate behavior. These are among the findings from a nationwide study on social media conducted by Euro RSCG Worldwide. Despite buzz to the contrary, online social networking is having the effect of enhancing, not deteriorating, relationships among Americans. This new study, of 1,228 American social media users, found that by interacting through online media, consumers are more connected than ever.
In October 2009, Euro RSCG Worldwide commissioned a survey to map the trajectory of social life and social media usage in the United States, quizzing 1,228 Americans from all online demographics. This white paper looks at the macro developments in social media; it also brings in numbers and verbatims about people’s hopes for their social life online and offline before finally drawing conclusions and implications for marketers and their clients. The study found, for instance, that by interacting through online media, American consumers are more connected than ever and have dramatically integrated social networking tools into their lives. According to the study, their world is expanding and narrowing at the same time because of social media’s hyperlocalization quotient. Among the takeaways for marketers: It’s impossible to predict how bits of communication will spread across social media; as most traditional media converge online, communication flows among them, and consumers become messengers. Go to eurorscgsocial.com to see Euro PR’s blog and website that grew out of the survey and white paper.
Web 2.0 2001–PresentAssignment OverviewIt is a truism in the st.docxdavieec5f
Web 2.0: 2001–Present
Assignment Overview
It is a truism in the study of human technology that any tool that gets the public’s attention will eventually be used for purposes entirely unforeseen by its inventor(s) and probably contrary to the general public interest. This has certainly been the case with information technologies and the Internet. E-mail is great, but spam is not. Online video of the grandkids is wonderful; online pornography accessible to little Johnny, not so much. Despite much breast beating, it is difficult to have the good without the bad—and even differentiating the good from the bad is often a matter of opinion. As
Miles’ Law
says, “Where you stand depends upon where you sit.”
Recently, we have become so saturated with and dependent upon social media such as Facebook and Twitter that we have not always noticed the potential “dark side”—most specifically, the ability to use these tools not only to connect individuals in cyberspace but also to mobilize groups for action in the real world. One example is the “flash mob”—defined most generally as a group of people voluntarily assembled at a particular place and time for a particular purpose, coordinated through shared access to social media. This is not altogether a new invention—the telephone and, before that, the telegraph or even a good strong voice have been tools for assembling flash mobs in the past. But what has been recently discovered is how easy it is using modern social media, and how effective such mobs can be.
As we said, whether or not you consider this to be a good development or a bad development depends a lot on how you evaluate the purpose of the mob. Public assemblies to install democracy in an authoritarian state sound pretty good; assembling gang members to break windows and burn cars would not strike most of us as all that great. Here is a sampling of different points of view on this general subject:
Tavoulareas, E. (2011, August 22). Social media: The Jekyll & Hyde of media?
Changemakers
. Retrieved from
http://www.changemakers.com/blog/social-media-jekyll-hyde-media
Goodman, J. (2011, August 17). Debate over social media incitement as flash mobs strike. The Lede: Blogging the News.
New York Times
. Retrieved from
http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/08/17/debate-over-social-media-incitement-as-flash-mobs-strike/
Brennan, E. (2011, August 19). Flash Mobs – The dark side of social media revealed. Retrieved from
http://www.i-policy.org/2011/08/flash-mobs-the-dark-side-of-social-media-revealed.html
Lum, R. (2011) Spreading the happiness one flash mob at a time.
CreativeGuerillaMarketin
g. Retrieved from
http://www.creativeguerrillamarketing.com/guerrilla-marketing/spreading-happiness-flash-mob-time/
Optional Reading
Kelly, L. (2011, March 22). Advertising with flash mobs.
JSNCafe
. Retrieved from
http://www.jsncafe.com/advertising-with-flash-mobs/
Heaney, F. (n.d.) The short life of flash mobs.
Stay Free!.
Retrieved from
http://www.alternet.
64The Empire Strikes Back Social Media Uprisings and .docxevonnehoggarth79783
64
The Empire Strikes Back:
Social Media Uprisings and
the Future of Cyber Activism
by Ramtin Amin
ramtin amin is a Master in Public Policy
student at the John f. Kennedy school of
Government at Harvard University where he
concentrates in international and global
affairs. He has conducted extensive
research at the nexus of technology and
democracy and plans to pursue doctoral
work in this field upon graduating.
Neda Agha-Soltan and a few close friends
headed toward the center of Tehran, Iran,
in June 2009 to join thousands of others
in an anti-government protest following
the disputed presidential election. After
becoming stuck in traffic, Agha-Soltan
and her friends eventually decided to exit
the car to cool off. As she stepped out and
gazed at the crowd, the sound of a
gunshot rang through the air. A single
bullet was fired, and she fell to
the ground.
Bystanders captured her last moments
on a cell phone, and within hours the
grainy, low-resolution footage was
uploaded to the Internet and soon spread
virally across the globe. With links to
the video posted on YouTube, Facebook,
and Twitter, the amateur clip eventually
harnessed the attention of the mainstream
media, grabbing headlines on CNN and
in the New York Times.
Agha-Soltan’s death became a symbol for
the Iranian anti-government movement,
and online social media amplified that
symbol for the rest of the world to see.
TRADITIONAL POWER CIRCUMVENTED
The image of Agha-Soltan’s death was not
one that Iran’s government wanted the
world to see. In a country notorious for
its media censorship, the emergence of
online social networking sites and cell
phone cameras now allows citizens to
bypass state-censored media instantly and
transmit a message or video clip to
countless others at little or no cost. Digital
media has enabled average citizens,
including the two bystanders at the scene
of Agha-Soltan’s death, to provoke
outrage and motivate millions of people
to their feet at the touch of a button. Such
a level of power was previously limited to
just a small number of people within a
governing regime or those leading an
opposition group.
But this phenomenon is not unique
to Iran. Around the world, social
networking sites like YouTube and
Facebook are becoming unlikely leaders
of political power, as citizens circumvent
single political or religious leaders to
become champions of their
own campaigns.
DIGITAL ACTIVISM IN ACTION
Digital activism, also known as cyber
activism or e-activism, describes how
citizens can use digital tools to effect
social and political change. These digital
tools range from mobile phones and
digital cameras to Web 2.0 social
networking sites like YouTube, Facebook,
and Twitter.
65harvard kennedy school review | volume 10 | 2009–2010
unlikely leaders
activism became recognized as a source of
political power.
NOT WITHOUT LIMITATIONS
The Burmese and Moldovan cases also
demonstrate tha.
the instructions Please choose one of the following questions .docxlaurieellan
the instructions:
Please choose one of the following questions:
1. The reading discusses the efforts to revitalize city areas that have historically been less affluent, the process of gentrification. What are the potential effects of gentrification on the economy and current residents of the neighborhood? NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) protests occur when concerned citizens band together to speak up against something that will impact them negatively. Who is more likely to be involved in NIMBY protests and where do they occur? Give an example of a NIMBY protest and whether you support it or not.
2. Consider what you have learned about collective behavior, social movements, and social change this week. How is the global expansion of social media likely to affect how people pursue social change? How has it done so already? Use specific examples as you analyze social movements, social change, technology, and the media.
The Week 8 Forum meets the following course objectives:
Apply a sociological perspective to the social world.
Analyze contemporary social issues using the sociological imagination and use sociological theories and concepts to analyze everyday life.
Explain collective behavior, social movements, and social change.
Instructions for all Forums:
Each week, learners will post one initial post per week. This post must demonstrate comprehension of the course materials, the ability to apply that knowledge in the real world. Learners will engage with the instructor and peers throughout the learning week. To motivate engaged discussion, posts are expected to be on time with regular interaction throughout the week. All posts should demonstrate college level writing skills. To promote vibrant discussion as we would in a face to face classroom, formatted citations and references are not required. Quotes should not be used at all, or used sparingly. If you quote a source quotation marks should be used and an APA formatted citation and reference provided.
this is my post:
Introduction to Sociology
Week 8 Social Institutions
Question 2: Consider what you have learned about collective behavior, social movements, and social change this week. How is the global expansion of social media likely to affect how people pursue social change? How has it done so already? Use specific examples as you analyze social movements, social change, technology, and the media?
Social movements are groups working towards a common goal. This team might try to bring change or stop change (anti-globalization movement). This group creates social shift across the continents. The social change nowadays is greatly influenced by the expansion of social media and its acceptance the community. It is important to note that social movement originates typically where there is a dysfunction in the relationship between systems.
I believe that the global growth of social media will promote the social change due to high acceptance it receives by the groups ...
Tell Me More's social storytelling series using #NPRBlacksinTech ends on December 20th. Since Decem- ber 2nd, black tech innovators from all over the country have spent a day tweeting about their lives. The social media series is creating new storytelling opportunities that run parallel to what Tell Me More does every day on the radio.
If you have been engaging with the #NPRBlacksinTech hashtag, please share your thoughts, comments and suggestions.
1. C OV E R S TO RY Ammar Yasir
Debunking the myth
Understanding what social media can and
cannot do in case of a revolution
At a local gathering, a group
of people was asked if they
blogged, they shook their
heads in disagreement. They were
then asked if they changed their
Facebook statuses or shared videos,
articles etcetera on social media; to
this, they enthusiastically agreed in
unison. Not many of them knew that
using social media – albeit for status
updates, moderate sharing of website
links and videos – is micro-blogging,
which makes them all bloggers. The
social media cloud is now so powerful
that a teenager in a small town of
Noshero Feroz can address an
audience in New Jersey; but it all
comes down to the message one
intends to convey. down time maintenance that would have
The Iranian elections in 2009 are often disrupted the ensuing drama. So did a
reported as a case study, being the first revolution take place? None whatsoever.
global event where the world witnessed You can blame the fake Twitter ids for
the potential of social media as a painting the wrong picture, the global
propaganda jukebox and a platform for digital divide that kept a significant
cyber-activism. The day the election results population out of the loop, or the Iranian
were announced, anonymous Twitter residents who were indifferent to the so-
handles were created; these became the called ‘green revolution’. Whoever you
main sources of information from Iran to blame, the fact remains that the revolution
the rest of the world. These anonymous never came.
users asked the global audience to change A couple of revolutions did, however,
their current location to Tehran, their take place two years later. They triggered a
display pictures to green (Pakola fan, domino effect in the Arab world, with
anyone?) and share every news item that autocratic regimes in Tunisia and Egypt
contained the hashtag #iranelections. Not crumbling down, and the setting off of
surprisingly, the US State Department uprisings in Bahrain, Libya, Jordan and
asked Twitter to suspend its scheduled many more. Mainstream news channels
| 37 | march 2011 | SPIDER
2. C O V E R S T O RY
What works
Here, it would be appropriate to mention
Take Back the Tech, an initiative taken to
use technology to create awareness about
women issues, and to educate women on
how to protect their online presence. The
campaign encourages women to use
technology for their benefit, and highlights
cases where technology was misused for
gender violence. The success of this
campaign lay with the women and men (yes,
you read that right) who came together for
the cause. They had a common goal, a
direction and most importantly a strategy.
Though the campaign is mainly advocated
on social media and mostly covers
technology related issues, all persons
involved sit together from time to time to
brainstorm ideas and execute a strategy.
like Al Jazeera, field reporters, journalists
and activists on ground took up social media What does not work
tools to create awareness and spread the Misinformation coming from an unidentified
word. The impact (of social media) became source, no matter how exhilarating or
such that the revolution in Egypt was being seemingly-correct, can create confusion and
dubbed as the revolution of the damage the cause. How many times have
Facebook generation. So we must ask we received and/or forwarded text
ourselves: Is it inevitable for social messages or e-mails that eventually turned
media to be responsible for future out to be a hoax? Last year’s blanket ban on
revolutions in the modern world? Facebook stands as a valid example, as this
Online activism can be divided into was when text messages and e-mails were
three main categories: circulated to disseminate all sorts of
Awareness/advocacy, erroneous updates and information.
organisation/mobilisation, and
action/reaction. In this article, we will Organisation/mobilisation
try to debunk some of the myths of Author and public speaker Malcolm Gladwell
social media activism, based on the made waves and enemies with his article in
aforementioned categories. The New Yorker, titled ‘Small changes: Why
the revolution will not be tweeted’. Though
Awareness/advocacy: he was widely criticised by cyber-activists for
Social or free media empowers ordinary, his theory, he made some valid points.
non-partisan individuals to publicise According to Gladwell, acquaintances that
issues that otherwise don’t make it to we make online are weak compared to the
the mainstream media (local and bonds of friends and family in the real life.
international) for numerous He also opined that, when online, people put
reasons. Alternate and social their minimum at stake, to accomplish goals
media allow issues such as that are achieved putting in minimum effort.
child abuse, gender-based
violence, bureaucratic What works
transgressions etcetera – which Fund raisers, donations, relief efforts serving
the mainstream media is the common goal with little or no risk
reluctant to address – to receive involved. The flood relief efforts organised by
the attention they deserve. Pakistani civilians and NGOs is an example
| 38 | march 2011 | SPIDER
3. C O V E R S T O RY
of successful mobilisation using
social media. As members of such
a team, this writer and his peers
were able to collect aid of over a
million rupees in two days, using
Facebook, Twitter, e-mails and text
messages. Worth mentioning is the
fact that when people distrust the
government, they are more open (to
donate money) to people they know
via social media. Hence, real-world
ties versus social-media ties are
case-specific.
What does not work
Since social media gives every user an viruses and send out mass e-mails (e-mail
equal opportunity to speak, it is a double- bombs) to create annoyance and disruption.
edged sword. “So how do you make difficult
choices about tactics or strategy or What works
philosophical direction when everyone has Setting up of websites, e-petitions, blog
an equal say?” asks Malcolm Gladwell. posts, podcasts, Facebook pages and live
As there is no defined leadership structure coverage of events on Twitter etcetera often
or hierarchy, it can be quite difficult to reach works. However, their effectiveness varies
consensus and prioritise goals. Also, since from case to case. Some issues garner
there are no defined rules of engagement, more attention than others – irrespective of
social networks can be the eyes and ears of their importance.
the enemy.
Exhibit A: Wael Ghonim, a prominent What does not work
Egyptian internet activist and currently the Relying solely on social media for numbers
Head of Marketing of Google Middle East is not a good idea. When the Former
and North Africa, gives much credit to social President of Pakistan, Pervez Musharaf, was
media; but in Egypt’s case, the country was asked why he thought he was popular
already united behind a common goal: Get among the Pakistanis, he credited his
rid of Mubarak. 300,000-plus fans on Facebook. However,
Exhibit B: Notwithstanding the when it came to on-ground support, hardly a
overwhelming yet disproportionate role of thousand gathered to demonstrate their
technology, religious parties in Pakistan support for him.
have always been able to pull in big
numbers in their rallies in comparison to the At the end of the day
tech-savvy liberals. Social media is an excellent tool to raise
awareness and promote social causes. But
Action/reaction when it comes to toppling down an
Conditions, cultures and traditions vary from autocratic regime, one has to do more than
one nation to another. In the past, to merely check-in a protest via Foursquare.
highlight the importance of their dedication
to a cause, activists marched on the streets U.S. State Department speaks to
and caused traffic on busy roads. Now, there Twitter over Iran
The Sites
are other, more civilised yet radical ways to tinyurl.com/UStwitteriran
advocate a cause. Some activists turn to New Yorker: Small change
hacktivism to propagate their political tinyurl.com/ny-smallchange
stance; they take down websites by using From power to politics
Denial of Service attacks, upload Trojan tinyurl.com/PMpower
| 39 | march 2011 | SPIDER