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Helen Pidoulas

Anonymous and the global correction - Opinion - Al Jazeera English - 4 views

english.aljazeera.net/...201121321487750509.html

net308_OUA_2011 anonymous collaboration tools resources ouaNet308-2011

shared by Helen Pidoulas on 09 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Josh van de Scheur on 09 Apr 11
     
    The online protest group 'Anonymous' use web based networking and collaboration tools as effective ways to support and achieve their collective goals. This article follows the technological and social conditions that have shaped the groups innovative use of the internet as a tool for political protest. Like the author states, "as the social, political and technological environment has developed, some have already begun to explore new options, seizing new chances for digital activism"(Anonymous, 2011). In many ways it is hard to see how decentralized networks of like-minded protesters can achieve political change. While Anonymous are aware of how "a loose network of people with shared values and varying skill sets (providing) substantial help to a population abroad is seen as quixotic"(Anonymous, 2011), recent campaigns in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya are generally recognized as highly effective and indicative of what is achievable when collaborating on real world projects via web-based networks (see, Keane, B. 2011). Like Wikipedia and other mass-collaboration projects, it is a global network that drives Anonymous' influence. For example, anonymous use tools such as 'Low Orbit Ion Cannon'; or 'LOIC' (see, Arthur, C. 2010), allowing people from around the world to collaborate together. LOIC enables the group to carry out "distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, involving thousands of computer users who request large amounts of data from a website simultaneously, overwhelming it" (Anonymous, 2011). Online systems of mass-collaboration are proving to be productive and influential vehicles for social or political change. To understand their success we need to acknowledge how the "technological infrastructure that allows these movements has been in place for well under a decade - but phenomena such as WikiLeaks and Anonymous have already appeared, expanded, and even become players within the geopolitical environment" (Anonymous, 2011).
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  • Keith Law on 10 Apr 11
     
    How one man tracked down Anonymous-and paid a heavy price While Anonymous may have seized "new chances for digital activism" it remains subject to investigations and attacks both on the group's concepts and any individuals that can be identified. Its aim to achieve political change through civil disobedience leaves individuals open to prosecution and persecution if identified. This article looks further at attempts to infiltrate Anonymous. It becomes a contest between those seeking to expose the real identities of the Anonymous activists and the activist's responses to these attacks. This article describes one such conflict. It is not clear from the article just what the result was and it is implied that publicity was the aim for an attempt to gain Government Internet Security contracts. The interesting point is that a loose gathering of diversely motivated activists is as vulnerable to cyber attacks as the targets they attack. In a private e-mail Barr is quoted to have said :"They think I have nothing but a hierarchy based on IRC [Internet Relay Chat] aliases!" he wrote. "As 1337 as these guys are supposed to be they don't get it. I have pwned them! :)" (Andersen, 2011) The article claims that from leaked e-mails it attained the full story of how Barr infiltrated Anonymous, used social media to compile his lists, and even resorted to attacks on the codebase of the Low Orbit Ion Cannon-and how others at his own company warned him about the pitfalls of his research. What is 'pwned'? "Pwned" means "to be controlled against your will", or "to be defeated by a superior power". The noun version is pwnage. The "pwn" expression originated in the 1980's from the word "owned". It was used to describe when a hacker would take remote control of a server or another computer. The use of "p" to replace "o" was simply a misspelling at first, but the spelling stuck as a stylistic point. (Gil, 2011) What is 1337? "H
  • Keith Law on 11 Apr 11
     
    What is 1337? "Hacker "Sp33k" for leet, or elite. Originating from 31337 "eleet" the UDP port used by Dead Cow Cult, a hacker group, to access Windows 95 using Back Orifice, a notorious hacking program." (Urban Dictionary, 2011) Works Cited Andersen, N. (2011, March). How one man tracked down Anonymous-and paid a heavy price. Retrieved April 12, 2011, from ars technica: http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2011/02/how-one-security-firm-tracked-anonymousand-paid-a-heavy-price.ars Gil, P. (2011). What is 'pwned'? Retrieved April 10, 2011, from About.com: http://netforbeginners.about.com/od/p/f/pwned.htm Urban Dictionary. (2011). Retrieved April 10, 2011, from Urban Dictionary: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=1337
  • Keith Law on 11 Apr 11
     
    Low Orbit ION Cannon This hacking tool can be downloaded free of charge by anyone from Source Forge. (abatishchev, 2011) This is interesting as it will probably be illegal for anyone to use the tools to "impair the operation" of a computer which includes servers. According to reports on the Source Forge you should note that the program may include Trojans. There is a clear warning: USE ON YOUR OWN RISK. WITH NO ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES. In Great Britain for example anyone who uses Low Orbit ION Cannon would be likely to have committed an offence under Computer Misuse Act 1990. Specifically: "This subsection applies if the person intends by doing the act-(a)to impair the operation of any computer;(b)to prevent or hinder access to any program or data held in any computer;(c)to impair the operation of any such program or the reliability of any such data; or(d)to enable any of the things mentioned in paragraphs (a) to (c) above to be done." "A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable-(a)on summary conviction in England and Wales, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or to both;(b)on summary conviction in Scotland, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or to both;(c)on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years or to a fine or to both." (Computer Misuse Act 1990, 1990) Works Cited abatishchev. (2011, January 23). Low Orbit Ion Cannon. Retrieved April 11, 2011, from SourceForge: http://sourceforge.net/projects/loic/ Computer Misuse Act 1990. (1990). Retrieved April 11, 2011, from legislation.gov.uk: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/18/section/3
  • Amy B on 17 Apr 11
     
    A loosely organised group of hackers is targeting oppressive regimes and says this is just the beginning (Anonymous, 2011). Anonymous presents a mechanism for socio-political change, using the available technological infrastructure that also facilitates such movements as WikiLeaks. This opinion piece, hosted by Al Jazeera, describes an evangelical movement in protest against what they perceive to be oppressive establishments, as governments or institutions. They consider themselves a movement for digital activism, and in this article focus almost exclusively on the plight of the Tunisian people, with mentions of attacks on the Church of Scientology and WikiLeaks, and the Australian government following the introduction of internet censorship laws (Anonymous, 2011). The article reads like a resume of Anonymous' achievements, and the motivations behind their actions, such as the WikiLeaks release of material exposing atrocities perpetrated by the Tunisian government provoking participants in the Anonymous network to attack via distributed denial of service (DDoS) non-essential government websites and replace them with messages of support for the Tunisian people (Anonymous, 2011). Such activities require the concerted efforts of collaborating individuals across a potentially widely dispersed online network. When compared with GetUp!, a community-minded tool for promoting activism for campaigns relevant to Australians, or Avaaz, a global community-minded campaign tool, the Anonymous movement, though also created with the best intentions, still reads in this article as taking matters more directly into their own hands, with limited accountability. The article uses such language as 'information warfare', 'revolution', and 'attacking', and endorses the breaking of laws to achieve what members of the movement believe in; '[t]here is a reason, after all, that those of us who have seen the movement up close have dedicated our lives to what it stands for, and have even vio
  • Helen Pidoulas on 23 Apr 11
     
    One of the problems with digital activism is that the internet is a tool that can be accessed by many people, cross-border and across many different countries. What might be acceptable practice and perfectly legal in a country like Australia, might be liable to prosecution in countries like China where the government censors not only the internet, but people in general. Freedom in countries like Australia is taken for granted. Other countries might not enjoy this freedom, and when people try to access content that is politically sensitive or illegal in their country, questions are raised about who is providing the illegal content, and the person accessing the material can be liable to prosecution. Internet laws are also changing rapidly, and it is very difficult for people to keep up with the constantly changing landscape of laws that are evolving and reshaping. While there is a need for activism, an awareness or a better understanding of the potential for breaking the law needs to be clearly understood when posting politically or socially active sensitive material online. There is a real danger that activities that are legal for people surfing the web in Australia are not legal in other countries, and the implications this can mean for people not only posting material, but those reading and interacting content, especially if they have to by-pass traditional methods of accessing the internet to get through to what they want to read, hear or see. Louis-Jacques, L. (2003). Legal Research on International Law Issues. Retrieved from http://www2.lib.uchicago.edu/~llou/forintlaw.html
  • anonymous on 02 May 11
     
    Digital or online 'Hacktivism' has a perception of existing as a natural extension of more traditional forms of protest. Being that the Internet has moved on from being a relatively static information source and into a dynamic realm where regulation and social policy is conducted by governments, protesting has struggled to find its place. An example of collaboration gone astray can be seen in the story of 22 year old Matthew George. In October 2009, in reaction to the Australian Federal Government's attempts to legislate an Internet filter Matthew volunteered to let his PC take part in a denial of service attack on government websites. In collaborating with other PC's Matthew thought "We hoped to achieve a bit of media attention to why internet censorship was wrong..." (SMH 2011) Charged and bought before court, the hacking was not seen as protest by authorities but more akin to cyber-terrorism. Whilst the 'real world' allows avenues for protest, as in registered street marches...the Internet has no such outlet, with the exception of self-publication on forums and social media. This has led to a situation where online collaborative protest seems to lead frequently to vandalism in the form of denial of service attacks. Meet the hacktivist who tried to take down the government (2011) Retrieved from http://www.smh.com.au/technology/security/meet-the-hacktivist-who-tried-to-take-down-the-government-20110314-1btkt.html#ixzz1L9cdAeuE
tim findlay

The eRevolution - 1 views

www.famousbloggers.net/the-erevolution.html

Flash Mobs ouaNet308-2011 collaboration online activism NET308 OUANET308 resources tools

shared by tim findlay on 11 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • tim findlay on 13 Apr 11
     
    This article is presented on famousboggers.com a blogging site dedicated to academics publishing writing on current events. In this article Mohamed Osam (network and computer engineer) talks about the technological factors leading up to the revolution in Egypt. The "eRevolution" was sparked by a group of young activists on Facebook, they were pushing for reform on freedom and social injustice (Osam, 2011). These Facebook groups attracted more than 85,000 protestors via group posts, and comments, while communicating heavily on twitter and sometimes cell phone SMS services (Osam, 2011). Other Facebook groups were initiated before and during the protests to support the logistics and the massive demonstrations that erupted all over Egypt. The "Rasd News Network (R.N.N)" Facebook group was one of the main contributors to the revolution, sending protest updates, news updates and politician and media reaction (Osam, 2011). With such a public outcry the Egyptian government shut down all Internet communication in Egypt, but by this time things had already escalated beyond the governments repair (Franco, 2011). After a few more days of the increasing number of protestors, high national and international pressures, and a total of 18 days of protesting, Omar Suleiman (the recently appointed Egyptian vice president) resigned his position (Franco, 2011). This article brings up interesting points around the effects of online collaboration and communication. What is the future for these types of online political movements? The factor that seems to be most interesting is the fact that there was social action and results gained by taking the fight online just as offline. The power of online collaboration has obviously proven its point with these recent events in Egypt, so where too next? Could this type of political movement be a stepping-stone for further political activism or just like many other tools be used for both positive and negative behavior? Some see this as
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  • tim findlay on 13 Apr 11
     
    being a dangerous example on creating unrest and instability in society. All these questions can only be answered in time, but it does make you think about social media in a completely different light, representing the power and capability of these platforms to gain exposure and organization to a vast audience. References Osam, M. (2011). The eRevolution. Retreived, April 13, 2011. From http://www.famousbloggers.net/the-erevolution.html Franco, J. (2011). Egyptian government orders Internet blackout amid protests. Retreived, April 13, 2011. From http://www.techspot.com/news/42194-egyptian-government-orders-internet-blackout-amid-protests.html
  • Jocelyn Peucker on 14 Apr 11
     
    Quote: On Jan 25th, 2011, the world for the first time has witnessed a revolution that brilliantly leveraged the power of social networking tools to overthrow a corrupt regime. Facebook, twitter and blogs were all used to mobilize people all over Egypt (Osam, 2011a) . This article can be related to mine in different ways. From further research, the organisation that I have used in this project Avaaz, has also aided to Egypt's cause and is still aiding toward Egypt's plight. In one way, they are seeking one million signatures on a partition called Stand With The People of Egypt, where they hope to "... end three decades of repressive rule" (Avaaz.org, 2011a). This petition includes links to also promote it through the use of Email, Facebook and Twitter to spread the word. Concurrently, Avaaz has also helped Egypt with a petition to stop Mubarak taking "... billions in stolen public money with him" (Avaaz.org, 2011b). Avaaz needed to collect 550,000 signatures, which they were successful in collecting. The author Muhamed Osam wrote the article, The eRevolution (Osam, 2011a), using a variety of sources and incorporates links to them. Osam has written a few other articles, and is very popular in social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and others. His biography states that he is "A network engineer and a security specialist with a BSc degree in Computer Engineering, MS in Computer Networks, MBA in International Business and MS in global management" (Osam, n.d.) I agree with Tim Findlay's thoughts as he concludes that, "... it does make you think about social media in a completely different light, representing the power and capability of these platforms to gain exposure and organization to a vast audience" (Findlay, 2011). These organisations and the use of social networking tools do seem to make the world a smaller but better place.
  • Jocelyn Peucker on 14 Apr 11
     
    References: Avaaz.org. (2011). Stand With The People Of Egypt. Avaaz - The World in Action. Retrieved from https://secure.avaaz.org/en/democracy_for_egypt/?fpla Avaaz.org. (2011). Freeze Mubarak's stolen fortune. Avaaz - The World in Action. Retrieved from http://www.avaaz.org/en/mubaraks_fortune/ Findlay, T. (2011). eRevolution on Diigo - oua_net308_2011 group. Retrieved from http://groups.diigo.com/group/oua_net308_2011 Osam, M. (n.d.). Articles by Mohamed Osam. The eRevolution. Retrieved from http://www.famousbloggers.net/author/mohamedosam Osam, M. (2011). The eRevolution. Retrieved from http://www.famousbloggers.net/the-erevolution.html
  • Josh van de Scheur on 14 Apr 11
     
    This is a great article that describes the technological and social influences that allowed millions of people to network and collaborate online during the protests in Egypt earlier this year. It shows how many citizens of Egypt successfully used various online services and tools in maintaining communications and mobilizing massive group actions throughout this time. The author explains how this was "the first revolution sparked, managed and orchestrated by social networking, by Facebook, twitter, blogs and YouTube"(Osam, M. 2011); and questions any potential harm that may arise from such seemingly powerful tools of social and political change. This supports the article 'Anonymous Uses Collaborative Document Sharing Tool for Social Survival' that I have posted to Diigo. These works investigate the widespread use of both public and anonymous web services in the coordination of information, communications and group movements during social and political protests in the Middle East. They show how these platforms were used as flexible networking and collaborating tools which effectively reached large numbers of people. While the Anonymous article focuses on the creation and distribution of their 'Revolution Survival Guide' for Tunisians - using tools that allowed "simple, free, and publicly "anonymous" way(s) to share and collaborate on information" (Clay, K. 2011); the Egyptian protests were initially "sparked by a group of young activists on Facebook"(Osam, M. 2011). These different networking and collaboration platforms were successfully used as social and political tools against oppressive regimes. References Clay, K. (2011). Anonymous Uses Collaborative Document Sharing Tool for Social Survival. Social Media and Technology. 25th of February 2011. Available from: http://www.lockergnome.com/social/2011/02/25/anonymous-uses-collaborative-document-sharing-tool-for-social-survival Osam, M. (2011). The eRevolution. Retreived, April 13, 2011. From
tim findlay

Power of Twitter, Facebook in Egypt crucial, says U.N. rep - 5 views

technolog.msnbc.msn.com/...k-in-egypt-crucial-says-un-rep

collaboration ouaNet308-2011 NET308 twitter OUANET308 Flash Mobs resources online activism

shared by tim findlay on 12 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • tim findlay on 12 Apr 11
     
    This article presented on msnbc.com highlights the importance that social network platforms provide as an effective collaboration/organisational tool. With the recent events in Egypt and Libya that have been labelled the "Twitter Revolution" this article highlights the fact that these social networking sites are now being recognised and praised by influential figures such as UN ambassador Rice Townhall. Townhall states "Governments are increasingly cognizant of their power," (Townhall, 2011) and praises Twitter and their employees with knowing that their platform is having such an influential effect throughout the world, "The power of this technology, the power of social networking to channel and champion public sentiment, has been more evident in the past few weeks than ever before" (Townhall, 2011) "I hope you have the satisfaction of knowing that it's having real time real impact in parts of the world as far flung as Zimbabwe, where I just learned you have 66,000 users, to of course the Middle East and so many other parts of the world." (Townhall, 2011). Critics of social networks use for activism see these types of protests as inevitable and have been occurring long before the use of the Internet as a form of communication (Popkin, 2011). While protests continued well after the Internet was shut off in Egypt the impact and power of social media can no longer be dismissed, especially when it is acknowledged by the UN (Popkin, 2011). What is interesting about this article is the video that is attached, a questions and answer conference that is being hosted by Twitter to a live audience. Live questions are being posted to the Twitter site from all over the world addressed to Rice. She proceeds to answer these questions sharing information and addressing peoples concerns from all over the globe. This in itself shows the power of such social networking sites, this platform allows peoples opinions to be express and acknowledged for such influential figures to take
  • tim findlay on 12 Apr 11
     
    take notice of. Popkin, H. (2011). Power of Twitter, Facebook in Egypt crucial, says U.N. rep. Retrieved April 12, 2011 from http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/02/11/6033340-power-of-twitter-facebook-in-egypt-crucial-says-un-rep. Townhall, R. (2011). UN Ambassador, Rice Townhall. Live in San Francisco. Retrieved April 12, 2011 from http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/02/11/6033340-power-of-twitter-facebook-in-egypt-crucial-says-un-rep.
Josh van de Scheur

Anonymous Hamburg: Tools to help the Revolutions Part II - Online resistance cell organ... - 1 views

hamburger-anon.blogspot.com/...-help-revolutions-part-ii.html

ouaNet308-2011 anonymous collaboration tools resources network localized cell

shared by Josh van de Scheur on 06 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Josh van de Scheur on 06 Apr 11
     
    This article presents tools and strategies for setting up collaborative networks in the form of localized resistance 'cells'. Anonymous use this system of local and semi-independent networks as storage points for resources and to maintain its global communications beyond larger web services. It is these "autonomously acting local cells" that allow Anonymous to keep "resources, videos, pictures, and most important (their) protest and resistance organization online"(anon, 2011). While these strategies have resulted from challenging oppressive political regimes and fighting to maintain freedom of information, the ideas can be adapted to working in more general and everyday online environments. Anonymous see small local groups acting as autonomous and self-reliant parts of a larger network, to make the entire structure stronger and more resilient as a whole. Their tactics have grown "organically in cyberspace rather than reflecting the cyber version of existing real world phenomena" (Keane, B, 2011) and show how local sub-groups can effectively create strong, flexible networks when collaborating on a global scale. Some of the major advantages of working in a localized cell are identified as being "Local organization only needs a local focus" (anon, 2011), hinting at the benefits of a simpler organizational structure; "You can continue the fight as a team even if cut of from all the other protesters/activists"(anon, 2011), which if adapted to collaboration in general suggests more resilient and efficient networks; and "you can gather resources there, videos pics, voice files, flyers and re-upload it from there if you lose resources to deletion or block"(anon, 2011), showing the benefits of decentralized networks as both data protection and archiving tools. References anon. (2011) 'Tools to help the Revolutions Part II - Online resistance cell organization'. Anonymous Hamburg. 23rd of February 2011. Available from: http://hamburger-anon.blog
  • Amy B on 17 Apr 11
     
    Anonymous, being a decentralised network, relies upon the interest of tech savvy individuals to contribute to their campaigns. When challenged by legal representatives of the targets of their attacks, such as the 'Cult of Scientology' (Anonymous, 2011), their efforts to disseminate information through mainstream channels may be thwarted by take-down notices. In the case presented in this article hosted by Blogspot, they admit to having been frustrated by such interference with distributing videoes, pictures, and other resources online (Anonymous, 2011). The blog entry continues with offering alternatives and suggestions for anyone interested in contributing to Anonymous' on-going campaigns, providing advice and recommendations for useful tools and techniques. It outlines the advantages to contributing in the online movement, such as 'continue the fight as a team even if cut off from all the other protesters/activists' (Anonymous, 2011), suggesting a reward through participation, which is a prime motivator for other online crowd-sourcing initiatives (Belleflamme, Lambert, & Schwienbacher, 2011). The article proceeds to then explain how a user can participate by listing potential resources the assist without danger of being identified, and caught, suggesting such websites as wall.fm, noting that the service probably has a server farm that won't suffer in the event of a Distributed Denial of Service attack. It also explains how to create a social network, including links to free domain registration services, and free webhosting, to facilitate the potential new member of the Anonymous network into building an online resistance cell. Anonymous Hamburg. (2011). We do what we must, because we can. Retrieved from http://hamburger-anon.blogspot.com/2011/02/tools-to-help-revolutions-part-ii.html. Belleflamme, P., Lambert, T., & Schwienbacher, A. (2011). Tapping the Right Crowd. Retrieved from http://ssrn.com/abstract=157817.
Josh van de Scheur

'The Internet is Here' - iConference 2011 | Why We Protest | Activism Forum - 2 views

forums.whyweprotest.net/...2%80%99-iconference-2011.67107

net308_OUA_2011 anonymous collaboration tools resources ouaNet308-2011

shared by Josh van de Scheur on 11 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Josh van de Scheur on 11 Apr 11
     
    This academic paper explores anonymous' internal processes as they collaborated over the internet to co-ordinate both on and offline protests against the church of Scientology in February 2008. The authors analyze the "public, online sources used by members of Anonymous to plan, discuss, coordinate, and execute" their campaign; as well as data "drawn from a quantitative analysis of interactions amongst (the projects) participants at a wiki site"(Underwood, P., Welser, H. 2011). This innovative and skillful use of online networking and collaboration tools allowed Anonymous to successfully mobilize and co-ordinate group activity on a large scale. The work identifies Anonymous' structure as a decentralized network with little "evidence of official leadership positions or formal organizational structures" (Underwood, P., Welser, H. 2011) guiding the groups actions. These processes are seemingly organic to the internet and the study shows how working in this way significantly increased Anonymous' flexibility, as well as how this "collaborative structure allowed the group to work rapidly and democratically"(Underwood, P., Welser, H. 2011). Other advantages of the groups' use of decentralized network structures were found in the "development of highly dynamic and emergent strategies as many individuals with varying ideas and talents... work simultaneously on a project"; and the fact that "large volumes of participants can coordinate their actions even in the absence of an official bureaucratic leadership" (Underwood, P., Welser, H. 2011). references Underwood, P., Welser, H. (2011) 'The Internet is Here': Emergent Coordination and Innovation of Protest Forms in Digital Culture. Available from:http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~welser/Underwood.Welser.2011.pdf
  • Hans Dusink on 13 Apr 11
     
    This article specifically explores "Project Chanology", a project of the worldwide organisation known as Anonymous against the Church of Scientology. The authors point out "that social movements are a basic foundation of contemporary democratic societies" as well as "providing outlets for political positions to be voiced and grievances to be aired"(Underwood & Welser, 2011). Importantly, it is crucial that people participating can see value in the cause and in the form that action may take. This article attracted my attention due to its similarity and differences to flash mobs. Both organisations have no formal organisation structure yet they are able to mobilise large numbers of people by utilising Internet communications (Facebook, twitter, email and Internet Relay Chat (IRC)). Another similarity is that in both cases the public displays appear bizarre and absurd to outsiders. In the case of most flash mobs, the idea is to simply have fun (Taylor, 2003). For Anonymous it is to "present itself as a movement about making a difference through having fun " as well as setting itself apart from "typical street demonstrations"(Underwood & Welser, 2011). But there are also differences. Each flash mob is distinctly separate operation whereas Anonymous has a group identity. Underwood and Welser do point out that members of the group do balk at the notion of being seen as a traditional group (2011).
  • Hans Dusink on 13 Apr 11
     
    Participants in Anonymous activities are also required to learn more about the group and its actions. This requirement seems to be a way of strengthening bonds and a cultural knowledge. There is no such requirement to participate in a flash mob only the desire to have fun. What these movements show is that if the cause (whether it be fun or a political point) is right then it is possible to bring together large numbers of people through the use of new media. REFERENCES: Taylor, E. (2003). Dadaist lunacy or the future of protest? : An introduction to the world of flash-mobbing. Social Issues Research Centre. Retrieved from http://www.sirc.org/articles/flash_mob.shtml Underwood, P., & Welser, H. T. (2011). 'The Internet is Here": Emergent Coordination and Innovation of Protest Forms in Digital Culture. Paper presented at the iConference 2011, Seattle. Retrieved from http://oak.cats.ohiou.edu/~welser/Underwood.Welser.2011.pdf
sheila mclean

The First Twitter Revolution? - 0 views

www.foreignpolicy.com/...the_first_twitter_revolution

collaboration ouaNet308-2011 net308 tools twitter online activism facebook tunisia egypt

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  • sheila mclean on 13 Apr 11
     
    This article, written by Ethan Zuckerman, a senior researcher at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society, discusses the role of social media in the events that led to the Tunisian President Zine el-Abidine fleeing the country on January 14th this year. Zuckerman compares the media coverage and online community support received by Iranians during the 2009 protests and the coverage in Tunisia, which didn't receive anywhere near the same amount of attention. As Zuckerman puts it, "the irony is that social media likely played a significant role in the events that have unfolded in the past month in Tunisia, and that the revolution appears far more likely to lead to lasting political change." (Zuckerman, 2011) The protests in Tunisia began after the suicide of an unemployed university graduate whose informal vegetable stall had been "shuttered by the police" (Zuckerman, 2011). Protests began spreading from city to city. Although Ben Ali's government tightly controlled all forms of media, Facebook remained uncensored throughout the protests. This meant that Tunisians were able to follow unfolding events on Facebook. They were then able to share what was happening with the rest of the world by posting videos to YouTube, and the end result was that "a popular revolt toppled an Arab dictator" (Zuckerman, 2011). One important point that Zuckerman makes is that it is wrong to attempt to credit "a massive political shift to a single factor -- technological, economic, or otherwise --... Tunisians took to the streets due to decades of frustration, not in reaction to a WikiLeaks cable, a denial-of-service attack, or a Facebook update." (Zuckerman, 2011)
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  • sheila mclean on 13 Apr 11
     
    (Post continued) The concluding comment is particularly insightful, considering the article was written before recent events in Egypt occurred: "Scholars aren't the only ones who want to know whether social media played a role in the end of Ben Ali's reign -- it's likely to be a hot topic of conversation in Amman, Algiers, and Cairo, as other autocratic leaders wonder whether the bubbling cauldron of unemployment, street protests, and digital media could burn them next." (Zuckerman, 2011) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- REFERENCE Zuckerman, E (January 14, 2011) The First Twitter Revolution? Foreign Policy Retrieved April 13, 2011 from http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/01/14/the_first_twitter_revolution?page=0,1
  • tim findlay on 13 Apr 11
     
    The ideas around Twitter and other social media sites like Facebook bring up an interesting discussion when assessing their involvement with political activism and collaboration. There does seem to be quite a divided view around the influence and involvement social media has played in recent events as you stated Sheila in Tunisia and also in Egypt. Social media does not take credit for all the peoples contribution and determination to be involved in the protests but it still is an extremely useful tool for the collaboration and organization of people on such a large scale, playing an important role in facilitating these protests (Morozov, 2009). There's no question that Twitter definitely helped to spread the information about what was happening in Tunisia, as demonstrated by the tweets and videos and other media (Ingram, 2011). At least one Tunisian revolutionary, who runs a website called Free Tunisia explained that social media such as Twitter along with cellphones, text messaging and various websites was crucial to the flow of information and helped protesters gather and plan their demonstrations (Ingram, 2011). The reality is that Twitter is an information distribution network that it is in real-time and easily distributed to the masses. Messages can be re-published thousands of times and transmitted halfway around the world in the blink of an eye (Ingram, 2011; Morozov, 2009). That is a very powerful thing, in part because the more rapidly the news is distributed; the more it can create a sense of momentum, both the examples of Egypt and Tunisia demonstrate this power of online collaboration. Some critics see that these issues have been arising throughout history well before the use of social media, which is not underestimated but the interesting point is the way humans are now evolving, using these platforms of communication to their advantage, to collaborate and organise such events. Social media may not be the only factor that is involved in these
  • tim findlay on 13 Apr 11
     
    protests but as recent events have shown, a platform that can organise and communicate with over 85,0000 people to take part in a political protest should never be underestimated (Hauslohner, 2011). References Ingram, M. (2011). Was What Happened In Tunisia A Twitter Revolution? Retrieved April 13, 2011. From http://gigaom.com/2011/01/14/was-what-happened-in-tunisia-a-twitter-revolution/ Morozov, E. (2009). Moldova's Twitter Revolution. Retrieved April 13, 2011. From http://neteffect.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2009/04/07/moldovas_twitter_revolution Hauslohner, A. (2011). Is Egypt About To Have A Facebook Revolution? Retrieved April 13, 2011. From http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2044142,00.html
  • anonymous on 16 Apr 11
     
    Ethan Zuckerman's article brings us closer to a political situation in Tunis during the peak of the reported protests. Included image of the woman protester in the front of a flag makes a headline more interesting and debatable. Zuckerman writes about what sparked the actual protests, reactions of the Tunisian government, Tunisia's protests influencing neighborhood countries and how media off and on line functioned during the events. Zimmerman also writes about the reactions from outside the Middle East - from those countries celebrating a peace oriented time such as Christmas Day and New Year's holidays and at the same time hearing and seeing headlines about a shooting in Arizona. Zuckerman says that more attention would be given to the Tunisian protests through media during slow news month. He then analyzes Iran's promoting the Green Movement to on online audience that followed the tweets and Facebook posts and compares it with Tunisia's support from the online community. According to Zimmerman, social media played a significant role in Tunisia despite government's having a tight control over on and off line media. Zimmerman writes that the Government prevented reporters from traveling to the protest hot spots and what I understood from the Zimmerman's words - the media reports were prohibited with titles like vandalism or terrorism. As an alternative, Tunisians had access to uncensored pictures from the Facebook and communicated the political protests to the rest of the world by using YouTube and Dailymotion. The article highlighted existence of online audience and usage of social networking applications throughout the Tunisian events; however to me as a reader the content did not support sufficiently its title 'The First Twitter Revolution'.
Josh van de Scheur

» Anonymous Uses Collaborative Document Sharing Tool for Social Survival - So... - 2 views

www.lockergnome.com/...aring-tool-for-social-survival

net308_OUA_2011 anonymous collaboration tools resources ouaNet308-2011

shared by Josh van de Scheur on 07 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Josh van de Scheur on 07 Apr 11
     
    This blog post looks at how the internet and online collaboration tools helped to guide political and social protests in Libya, Egypt and Tunisia earlier this year. It focuses on Anonymous' use of TypeWith.me when creating the 'Anonymous Revolution Survival Guide' for the people of Tunisia during this time. TypeWith.me is a "live, dynamic, document collaboration platform," that is "based on open source code"(Clay, K. 2011), and allows users to easily, quickly and anonymously collaborate on text documents. Combined with twitter.com, anonymous were able to collaborate and communicate effectively as a decentralized and global network in support of pro-democracy protesters. The author of this article acknowledges the importance and need for "simple, free, and publicly "anonymous" way(s) to share and collaborate on information" (Clay, K. 2011), especially for societies oppressed by strict regimes. It describes the influences that web tools and social networking services such as TypeWith.me and twitter.com are having on "social and political revolution", claiming it is "indicative of... the way these types of platforms will be used in the future" (Clay, K. 2011). Through this work we can see how online collaboration tools in general have "emerged as a popular communication mechanism in recent years" (Clay, K. 2011), allowing communities and groups to successfully work across different mediums and platforms to achieve social and political change. As Anonymous state, "all significant human activity is the result of human collaboration" (Anon, 2011), suggesting these tools are relevant to every system of social interaction and production - not only to sociopolitical networks and protesting against oppressive regimes. References Anonymous (2011) 'A Message from Anonymous' http://anonops.blogspot.com/2011/01/message-from-anonymous-01292011.html Clay, K. (2011). Anonymous Uses Collaborative Document Sharing Tool for Social Survival. Soc
sheila mclean

McIntyre, J (March 10, 2011) Only some revolutions will be televised - 2 views

blogs.independent.co.uk/...-revolutions-will-be-televised

ouaNet308-2011 collaboration twitter protest yemen egypt libya

shared by sheila mclean on 09 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • sheila mclean on 09 Apr 11
     
    The author of this article, Jody McIntyre, is a journalist and political activist. The article was published in Jody's regular blog for The Independent. This article is not a scholarly article, rather an opinion piece. The source (The Independent) is reliable. McIntyre has also written for The Guardian, the New Statesman, Electronic Intifada and Disability Now. By focusing on recent events south of Yemen, and in particular the 'million person march' in early March 2011, the article highlights how broadcast media is focusing on events in Libya, while ignoring political unrest in other areas. McIntyre relates how Al Jazeera, the Qatari-based news channel, tends to "choose" one uprising at a time to focus on and "leading the gaze of the public" (McIntyre, 2011). McIntyre asks whether "a revolution on the Egyptian model" would have succeeded without the media attention it received. New media sources, and the Internet in particular, have allowed the public "to follow these uprisings in a way that would never have been possible in the past." (McIntyre, 2011) Traditional broadcast media organisations, such as the BBC, "can no longer monopolise our opinions". By viewing Twitter feeds we are "seeing events as they happen, not as they are reported". (McIntyre, 2011) McIntyre highlights an important point - although the public are not "seeing" these events in the traditional sense (via television broadcast), they are "seeing" them unfold through collaborative social media. The public are not just "seeing" events unfold, they are also disseminating the news. McIntyre, J (March 10, 2011) Only some revolutions will be televised The Independent - Independent Blogs. Retrieved April 9, 2011 from http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2011/03/10/only-some-revolutions-will-be-televised/
  • Jocelyn Peucker on 14 Apr 11
     
    A very interesting comment and article Sheila and I agree that the author "...Jody McIntyre, is a journalist and political activist ... This article is not a scholarly article, rather an opinion piece" (McLean, 2011). Jody McIntyre has written a variety of articles on many different topics within the political activist discourse. However, has anything really changed? In 2005, I had hired out the movie Hotel Rwanda that was a new DVD release, without realising that it was "The true-life story of Paul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager who housed over a thousand Tutsi refugees during their struggle against the Hutu militia in Rwanda" (Hotel Rwanda, 2004). After watching the horrifying scenes, I then searched the Internet for further information. Whilst questioning myself "How did I miss this war in 1994?" A few years later, I was able to determine that it only briefly touched the traditional news broadcast reporting in a world wide scale. I mean who cared that "An estimated 1 million people were killed within a three month period in 1994" (GlobalSecurity, 2011)? I cared, and very strongly. Today, traditional news media is still missing many details of what is happening around the world. Events that do get reported seem, at times, to be glorified to entertain the consumers. Where traditional media fail to inform the public, the certainly is a broader world of informative available from many different sources and for many different reasons. This is where sites such as Avaaz and many others help spread the news about global issues where people-power now has the action over the traditional way of doing too little, too late, due to being uninformed. No one person controls the content published on the Internet. However, there are groups that control what is televised, when it is televised and where. References: GlobalSecurity. (2011). Rwanda Civil War. GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved from http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/w
  • anonymous on 16 Apr 11
     
    Jody McIntyre highlights the fact about the important role the Internet and Twitter have been playing in the mass information exchange during recent political protesting in Yemen and countries across Northern Africa. An information share and exchange through individual use of the Twitter and the Internet has been providing access to people's information instead to mass information filtered through major media like BBC, Al Jazeera and other. As Jody McIntyre states, the Twitter feeds are representing the events as they happen, not as they are reported. I fully agree with Jody McIntyre, there seems to be a domino effect surrounding the political movements in the Northern Africa. What started in Tunisia has been carried over to its neighborhood. The main difference is the protests are of different ratio and longevity reflecting a deep cultural and political constitution experienced by each particular country. 'Whilst the media continue to focus exclusively on events in Libya, the huge march in the south of Yemen was ignored', writes Jody McIntyre. It is known, the media works in an organized way, placing their correspondents in areas where information or reports are of 'hot topic'. When analyzing the Twitter media where the Twitter usage is based on its availability amongst people and not on strategic positioning of media outlets, it is obvious the Twitter is being a portable and convenient communication tool accessible by those who can afford it, and its affordance was possible in the Northern Africa where third world description is still in existence.
sheila mclean

Ackerman, S (February 4, 2011) Prayers, Protest, Police Brutality: Raw Videos From Egyp... - 2 views

www.wired.com/...cairo-protest-videos

collaboration ouaNet308-2011 NET308 protest Egypt Facebook Twitter

shared by sheila mclean on 09 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • sheila mclean on 09 Apr 11
     
    Spencer Ackerman is an American national security reporter and blogger. This article appeared in Wired magazine's national security blog, Danger Room. In this article, Ackerman describes how in late January, 2011, the Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, responded to hundreds of thousands of anti-government demonstrators protesting on the Egyptian streets by shutting off the internet and mobile phone access. The purpose of this was to keep the activists from organising further protests. This move did not work however, and the protesters didn't disperse. They did not have access to Facebook and Twitter, but instead took to the streets and protested in the traditional way. Al Jazeera, and other satellite news networks kept the public worldwide focused on the events. Mubarak then "began a brutal crackdown, with regime loyalists targeting dissidents and foreign journalists alike." (Ackerman, 2011) Despite the crackdown, says Ackerman, "the world still had viral-ready video footage of the truth of Egypt's precarious uprising", some of which can be viewed by clicking on the images in the article. A particular comment by a young female street protestor featured in one of the videos was interesting: "It's not about the internet," she said, "it's about the needs and demands of the Egyptian people". REFERENCE: Ackerman, S (February 4, 2011) Prayers, Protest, Police Brutality: Raw Videos From Egypt's Uprising Wired Retrieved 8th April, 2011 from http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/02/cairo-protest-videos/?pid=345
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  • Hans Dusink on 12 Apr 11
     
    This article by a senior Danger Room reporter Spencer Ackerman consists of a video interview with a very articulate young person talking about the situation in Egypt. The protest is about replacing the current regime with a democratically elected government. The interviewer asks about the effect of shutting down the Internet on the protests to which the reply was that there was no real effect on the protest, as people were not relying on the Internet. And then further added "It's not about the Internet it's about the needs and demands of the Egyptian people"(Ackerman, 2011). That particular question assumes that Internet communications played a part in mobilising large numbers of protestors, in a similar method to flash mobs in other parts of the world. But Issandr el-Amrani, a Cairo writer and activist told Danger Room that only a quarter of the Egyptian populace is online (Kravets, 2011). Suggesting that the protests grew by leaflets ad word of mouth. The Internet is not only a useful tool in organising large groups of people, it is also important in ensuring that news of a flash mob, or in this case a protest is distributed to as many people as possible. The flow of information is multi-directional. This article highlights that communications technology has important role to play in the mobilisation of large numbers of people and the dissemination of information, but also that not everyone has the same levels of Internet connectivity.
  • Hans Dusink on 12 Apr 11
     
    References: Ackerman, S. (2011). Prayers, Protest, Police Brutality: Raw Videos From Egypt's Uprising. Wired. Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/02/cairo-protest-videos/?pid=345 Kravets, D. (2011). What's Fueling Mideast Protests? It's More Than Twitter. Wired. Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/01/social-media-oppression/
  • anonymous on 16 Apr 11
     
    The spotlight on the Northern Africa has been reignited on 15 April 2011 by release of the letter signed by US, British and French leaders. US President Barack Obama, British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy have said in a joint letter that there can be no peace in Libya while Muammar Gaddafi stays in power. They want to put a stop to the terrible horrors at Gaddafi's hands. The joint letter holds out the prospect of reconstruction for Libya with the help of the "UN and its members" (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13090646). The 'domino effect' political situation in Northern Africa has been closely watched by the whole world. The Egypt attracted attention not just for its political protests but how the country's Internet and its services were shut down by its government during the protests. This demonstrates a level of power government can have over its people and communication. At the time of revolution the Egypt's dictator Hosni Mubarak messages and intentions were clear to grasp by anyone paying attention to politics: It is me 'Hosni Murabak' who controls the power in this country including the media; shutting down of the Internet and its services will put a stop to a fast communication platform for Egypt's people and connection with rest of the world; Egypt doesn't want any interferences from other countries, this is 'our revolution'; we will sort it out and I will stay in power as long as possible. According to Spencer Ackerman 'Suddenly, a protest movement that used Facebook pages and Twitter hashtags to coordinate and push its message out was back to the old-fashioned methods of street politicking'. However, according to other media coverage the Twitter was found as most powerful tool in network communication during the Egypt's Internet service government shut down. (e.g. Bergstrom, G. (2011). Egypt: The First Twitter
Tessa Gutierrez

Christakis, N. (2010). The Hidden Influence of Social Networks. - 3 views

www.ted.com/...luence_of_social_networks.html

OUANET308 Christakis TED Talks Social Networks Flash Mobs

shared by Tessa Gutierrez on 06 Apr 11 - Cached
  • Tessa Gutierrez on 06 Apr 11
     
    [Please Note: This comment is in two parts due to Diigo restrictions on length] Topic: Flash Mobs This TED Talk is important to the topic of flash mobs because it highlights the fact that modern issues of global significance such as obesity, crime, good health, and creativity, are affected by the social connections that we all have. The rise of Internet usage through avenues such as social networks in the form of Facebook and other similar sites has been acknowledged as a vital factor that is also used by flash mobs when organizing their activities. The main point that can be taken into account through this TED Talk, is that if subconscious concepts such as obesity can claim influences from social networking, it should also follow that other more positive concepts such as philanthropy, will also be influenced by connecting with social networks. These social networks have a resilience that survives the test of time so it is of utmost importance to understand what the contributing factors are that sustain them. One important factor that was discovered was the power of emotion. Emotional "stampedes" and "collective existences" can be formed through social networks. They appear in clusters that can be delineated, for example, by "happy patches" and patches with other emotional characteristics. [Continued in the comment below]
  • ...1 more comment...
  • Tessa Gutierrez on 11 Apr 11
     
    [Continuation of comment above] Studies have shown that our unique gene make-up strongly influences whether we will be outwardly social or on the fringe of society. These inherited traits also affect whether in a social setting such as an online network, we will be in the center of the cluster or skirting around its perimeter. Social networks have value due to their ability to encourage a unique structure of emotional and other ties between individuals and groups. Use of social media networks has been invaluable in organizing the activities of flash mobs. REFERENCES Christakis, N. (2010). The Hidden Influence of Social Networks. TED Talks. Filmed February 2010. Posted May 2010. Retrieved April 5, 2011 from: http://blog.ted.com/2010/05/10/the_hidden_infl/
  • Hans Dusink on 14 Apr 11
     
    Flash mobs utilise digital communications among social networks to mobilise a large group of people to appear in a set location. Many reading about flash mobs highlight the use of Internet communication but there have not been many references that refer to how the social network functions. Nicholas Christakis is a Harvard Professor of Medicine, Health Care Policy, and Sociology at Harvard University and he directs a diverse research group investigating social networks. "His work examines the biological, psychological, sociological, and mathematical rules that govern how we form these social networks, and the rules that govern how they shape our lives" (TED Conferences, 2010). Christakis gives three reason that people cluster but for flash mobs the most relevant is that people can share a common exposure to something (Christakis, 2010)and thus messages are spread to people of like mind, in turn pleading to a large crowd with everybody having a common purpose. Another important aspect to take from this is that networks are constantly changing in composition but the network still persists. Kaulingfreks and Warren would describe this as a rhizome that is "an ubiquitous connection between points in a structure but without a clear defined path…each node passing information to other nodes (2010, p. 221) . Christakis says " It is the ties between people that makes the whole greater than the sum of parts" (2010).For flash mobs and protest movements it is the power of the group that makes all the difference as has been demonstrated in political flash mobs and recent protests in Egypt, Iran and Tunisia. Christakis, N. (2010, February). The hidden influence of social networks TED Talks [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/talks/nicholas_christakis_the_hidden_influence_of_social_networks.html Kaulingfreks, R., & Warren, S. (2010). SWARM: Flash Mobs, mobile clubbing and the city. Culture and Organization, 16(3), 211 - 227. doi:10.1080/14759551.
  • Chris Johnson on 15 Apr 11
     
    After watching this video on networks I started to consider the relevance of the internet informing networks and would the networks form in another way if social media tools were not available. Flash Mobs was organised on the internet and use internet tools to collaborate there next event. Could the same thing be achieved without the internet? My guess is yes it can be achieved without the internet. If we take the Egyptian Revolution and the claims that Facebook and Twitter were responsible for the organisation of the revolution some argue that this was not the case. The main body of the argument is that there been revolutions well before the internet (Rosen, 2011). Supports this argument however still recognises the role that social networks had played in the revolution(Beaumont, 2011). Pickwell, 2011 argues that many crowd gathering s such as revolutions and protest do not utilise the internet or social media to gather crowds. Pickwell claims they under utilise the tools the internet offered them. Considering that social media has a communication roll to play, you may also need to consider other factors used in creating the network. Christakis, 2011 presentation on networks gives you a better understanding as to how networks operate and why the above arguments have some merits. Beaumont, P. (2011). The truth about Twitter, Facebook and the uprisings in the Arab world. Retrieved 15th April 2011, from http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/25/twitter-facebook-uprisings-arab-libya Christakis, N. (2010). The Hidden Influence of Social Networks. TED Talks. Filmed February 2010. Posted May 2010. Retrieved April 5, 2011 from: http://blog.ted.com/2010/05/10/the_hidden_infl/ Pickwell, J. (2011). Lecture on the anti-war movement and Internet Collaboration and Organisation, net 308 iLectures: Curtin Unversity, Rosen, J. (2011). The "Twitter Can't Topple Dictators" Article. Retrieved 15th April 2011, from http://pressthink.org/2011/02/the-twitter-
Amy B

Website helps to make dreams come true - 0 views

www.abc.net.au/...s3180494.htm

ouaNet308-2011 Collaboration net308 tools resources education online activism crowd-sourcing crowd-funding

shared by Amy B on 17 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Amy B on 17 Apr 11
     
    ABC LATELINE Michael Atkin Byline: "Australian website Pozible is helping to connect generous donors with needy projects, but there are concerns about how the website operates." The article introduces crowd-funding as an 'innovation of the internet age', bringing together donors and projects in need of funding, using an environmental group called Green Way Up as an example project, and a website called Pozible as an example of a crowd-funding resource. As an introduction to crowd-funding it presents Green Way Up as being both environmentally and socially conscious, as well as a good example of a crowd-funded project worth attention: Bob Miles and Chuck Anderson want to travel around the world on bio-fuel converted from recycled fats and oils obtained, in one case, from the waste of a chicken shop. However, Green Way Up may not have had such a start toward achieving this venture if not for Pozible; a crowd-funding resource whose Co-founder, Rich Chen, created the site 'because he was sick of hearing about exciting projects which failed to go ahead because they lacked money' (Atkin, 2011). Though it presents a hopeful opportunity to projects and financial benefactors alike, the article turns critical of the website's operations, suggesting Pozible may be 'violating the Corporations Act by raising money and offering rewards without issuing a prospectus' (Atkin, 2011).
  • Amy B on 17 Apr 11
     
    Jennifer McKay, Professor at the University of South Australia is also concerned that Pozible infringes upon consumer protection laws and security laws, but when asked by Lateline, the Australian Securities and Investment Commission said they were 'considering whether crowd-funding poses any regulatory concerns' (Atkin, 2011). Green Way Up is presented as an exception rather than a rule for projects seeking crowd-sourced funding; '[p]rojects only receive the money if they reach their funding target within 90 days and currently two-thirds fail' (Atkin, 2011). Built upon and relying heavily on trust, the article concludes there is potential risk for all involved. Atkin, M. (2011). Website helps to make dreams come true. Lateline. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2011/s3180494.htm.
  • Kellie Ramm on 28 Apr 11
     
    SETI@home and the various other projects that use BOINC rely on public contributions to achieve their computer processing goals. In a similar vein, the website Pozible.com.au also relies on public response to assist what would otherwise be unheard of projects. Pozible is a website that uses "crowd-funding" to get its donations. "Crowd-funding is an innovation of the internet age which links generous donors with needy projects" (ABC, 2011). In the example provided by this resource, the needy case is an environmental group called Green Way Up who want to fund an expedition to Norway using only bio-fuel. First shown on ABC's Lateline on the 1st April 2011, this interview discusses numerous aspects of Pozible. It talks through the set-up process, talks to a donator, and even questions the administration process from an ASIC/ACCC point of view. Not only does this website help otherwise unknown projects get up off the ground, it also helps connect them to "lounge-chair activists" looking to donate to causes they believe in. There are still a few problems with the donation process. Projects are required to generate 100% of their goal amount within 90 days to receive the money, meaning that currently only 1/3 of projects achieve this goal. There is also no formal follow-up process to ensure that the projects do what they have promised. On a positive note however, if a project fails to meet the requested total, no money changes hands. Donations work more on a pledge system, and even Pozible makes no profit from the projects, unless this total is met(Pozible.com, 2010). Projects like BOINC and Pozible are innovative ways of using current computer/internet usage to get public interest and participation in what could otherwise be undiscovered projects that could have positive implications in the future. ABC. (2011). Website Helps To Make Dreams Come True. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2011/s3180494.htm Pozible.com. (20
anonymous

Twitter as Medium and Message - 0 views

portal.acm.org/citation.cfm

ouaNet308-2011 collaboration NET308 Twitter

shared by anonymous on 11 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • anonymous on 11 Apr 11
     
    Savage, N. (2011). Twitter as Medium and Message. Communication of the ACM, 54(3), 18-20. Researchers say the Twitter data may help answer sociological questions that are otherwise difficult to approach. Their research documents the Twitter in means of social media that gives people opportunities for tracking what people are saying about everything. The Twitter opens access to tweets with range of incredible number of topics and subjects that people tweet about. For example a scientist at the Louisiana University used the Twitter for a simple search using a few influenza related keywords. This simple search enabled him to predict future influenza outbreaks. The Twitter's data assisted in another professional field called Air Twitter project at the Washington University in St Louis. The Twitter was engaged for additional provision of information or tweets about events like dust storms, fires, air quality and similar. A similar approach was explored by US Geological Survey (USGS). The Twitter was used for messages in means of a supplement to USGS network of seismographic monitors that alert the federal agencies about occurring earthquakes. Another good example is from psychology field where the Twitter was used for the sentiment analysis of tweets. Researchers used 'Affective Norms for English' tool used in psychology that rates the emotional value of words. The analysed tweets revealed data about particular group happiness levels. The real examples above reveal how data from the Twitter can assist in gaining valuable information either for the medicine, natural disasters or just about happiness levels. The Twitter has been recognised as extremely useful tool for gathering data that would be otherwise difficult to search. Twitter's fast and cost free access to information is very useful for the sociological purpose. Of course, there is always potential for spread of unfiltered information that can invite a possibility of abuse, incorrectness and other negati
  • Michael Nycyk on 15 Apr 11
     
    Paula, an excellent and timely article which shows how Twitter has become a collaborative tool for research and data collection purposes. A leading researcher in this area is academic Dr Steve Wheeler at the University of Plymouth in the UK. He quotes a teacher on Steve's blog who states that he uses Twitter 'is because his community - those he wishes to connect with - are best contacted using it' (Wheeler, 2011a). Indeed Steve argues that connections of both research information and data can be found simply by following academics in your field on Twitter. Although such communications can often be one-way but as your article states, the potential for both medium and message, i.e. this can be interpreted as data and research, as leads to what you want can be invaluable if protocols are followed (Wheeler, 2011b; Savage, 2011). For example, people do collaborate simple nights out with friends on Twitter, so therefore why is collaborating on a large project by using contacts on a professional an ideal? Sometimes it depends on Twitter's image as a social media nattering device (Wheeler, 2011b). I agree that Twitter has had an image problem to overcome. But your article does prove it is being used for research advancement. The dust storm data for example shows what is possible to collect and how getting data transcends time and physical borders. However, it is vital that etiquette be followed, perhaps even making Twitter networks private, and the information is check for credibility. These are the challenges Twitter users face; yet to have this collaboration tool is vital for broadening access to research data and findings. References Savage, N. Twitter as Medium and Message. Communication of the ACM, 54(3), 18-20. Wheeler, S. (2011a). Twitter: It's still about the connections. Learning with 'e's, Retrieved April 14, 2011, from http://steve-wheeler.blogspot.com/2011/04/twitter-its-still-about-connections.html Wheeler, S. (2011b). Twitter: Le triple
  • Kellie Ramm on 30 Apr 11
     
    As BOINC is being used to further research projects through public-resource computing, so too is Twitter, another form of online collaboration, now being used for research. "Researchers are finding they can measure public sentiment, follow political activity, even spot earthquakes and flu outbreaks, just by running the chatter through algorithms that search for particular words and pinpoint message origins" (Savage, 2011). Due to the real time nature of "tweets", researchers can get early warning signs of events like earthquakes by searching twitter for key words like "OMG earthquake" and other related words. Programs can also be written to exclude unrelated words, for instance when looking for flu outbreaks, comments like "Beiber Fever" can be instantly excluded. Although at this stage this form of research can not be 100% accurate it can give a picture of what is happening. Twitter can also give researchers a more subjective point of view. It can look at how the people are affected by an earthquake, instead of just giving statistics on building damage and repair costs. As with anything there can be some problems related to using twitter this way. The first is "sample bias". Information gained in this way relies on the users having a computer, internet access and a twitter account. Although in the western world percentages of this would be high, in poorer nations this usage would drop significantly. However this problem can be addressed. Researchers wanting "to glean insights from tweets can apply corrections to the sample, just as traditional pollsters do" (Savage, 2011). The other problem is that of spam, or users hoping to improve the chance of their tweet gaining high rating by re-tweeting on the same topic. For example in an American election a conservative group sent out "929 tweets in just over two hours" (Savage, 2011) with a link that attacked a representative. This can then affect the data bias. There are so ma
sheila mclean

Egypt's Facebook Revolution: Wael Ghonim Thanks The Social Network - 0 views

www.huffingtonpost.com/...tion-wael-ghonim_n_822078.html

collaboration ouaNet308-2011 net308 tools facebook online activism resources

shared by sheila mclean on 13 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • sheila mclean on 13 Apr 11
     
    This article, written by Huffington Post writer, Catharine Smith was published shortly after the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak stepped down from power. The article is a report on an interview between CNN's Wolf Blitzer and activist Wael Ghonim (who is also a marketing manager for Google). Video footage of the interview is also provided. Ghonim played a key role in organising the January 25 street protests by "reaching out to Egyptian youths on Facebook" (Smith, 2011). Ghonim was arrested and imprisoned for 12 days after the protest, and since his release "has become a symbol for the Egyptian movement" (Smith, 2011). Ghonim argues this idea however and has stated that he is not a hero, "I was writing on a keyboard on the Internet and I wasn't exposing my life to danger." (Ghonim, 2011). Ghonim would however, like to thank Mark Zuckerberg. In the CNN interview, Ghonim relates how he believes the "revolution started on Facebook" (Ghonim, 2011). The revolution, according to Ghonim, started in June 2010 when Egyptians started collaborating content. "We would post a video on Facebook that would be shared by 60,000 people on their walls within a few hours" (Ghonim, 2011). The revolution has been dubbed "Egypt's Facebook Revolution" by the media. It would be naive to say that the revolution was caused by social media, however there is no doubt that social media such as Facebook and Twitter has played a significant role in mobilizing and engaging citizens in Egypt's political protests. ___________________________________________________ Reference: Smith, C. (February 11, 2011) Egypt's Facebook Revolution: Wael Ghonim Thanks The Social Network Huffington Post. Retrieved March 8, 2011 from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/11/egypt-facebook-revolution-wael-ghonim_n_822078.html
Hans Dusink

T-Mobile and the Flash mob marketing phenonomen - 3 views

ethicalnag.org/...flash-mob

ouaNet308-2011 flashmobs marketing collaboration commercial

shared by Hans Dusink on 02 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Hans Dusink on 02 Apr 11
     
    The origin of flash mobs is credited to Bill Wasik who emailed friends in June 2003 to gather in the home furnishing department of Macy's in Manhattan. More than a 100 people began discussing whether to purchase a 'love rug' for their fictitious commune and then dispersed as quickly as it had formed (Hewitt, 2003). Flash mobs are defined in the Oxford dictionary as "a public gathering of complete strangers, organized via the Internet or mobile phone, who perform a pointless act and then disperse again" (Oxford University Press, 2011). Advertising agencies now utilise flash mobs to promote commercial products. This article discusses the Saatchi and Saatchi award winning T-Mobile advertisement "Life is for sharing" (posted to Youtube by jonjonbaker, 2009). Rather than focusing on how mobile phones and social media are used to organise a flash mob, the discussion here is about how this same media is used to create "viral traction - the ability to be widely forwarded to millions of viewers almost instantly" (Thomas, 2010). The advertisement itself shows bystanders utilising their mobile devices to share photos with their friends as well as ringing them to talk about the experience. As the title of the advertisement says "life is for sharing". Nick Burcher wrote in his blog Personal thoughts on the evolution of media and advertising that "advertisers are creating events to push user generated content coverage, a physical community made virtual. The event drives the Conversation, rather than the other way round as Wasik intended" (Burcher, 2009). Flash mobbing has become more than Wasik first imagined. On this case it has been utilised to raise brand awareness, but the same techniques can also be used to promote political opinions.
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  • Hans Dusink on 07 Apr 11
     
    Burcher, N. (2009, November 18). Flash mob evolution - even Microsoft stores are trying them now [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://www.nickburcher.com/2009/11/flash-mob-evolution-even-microsoft.html Hewitt, G.(2003). Flash Mobs - A New Social Phenomenon. Retrieved from http://www.rense.com/general39/flashnmob.htm jonjonbaker. (2009, January 16). T-Mobile Advert "Life For Sharing". Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=flash+mob&aq=0 Oxford University Press. (Ed.) (2011) Oxford Dictionary. Thomas, C. (2010, November 4). T-Mobile and the flash mob marketing phenomenonThe Ethical Nag: Marketing for the Easily Swayed [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://ethicalnag.org/2010/11/04/flash-mob/
  • Alan Beazley on 11 Apr 11
     
    Thanks you for sharing Hans, having reviewed the link and your response there appears to be many similarities between flash mobs and social-media facilitated, political protests. Much like the advertisers and marketers who drive flash mob, brand campaigns through new media, political demonstration organisers can also utilise the same tools to coordinate group activities activities and create spreadability of their cause - or as Thomas labels it 'traction' (Thomas, 2010). Examples in Thomas' article mention the flash mob video footage was uploaded to the popular video sharing site YouTube where it could be watched by potentially millions of web viewers. However, what the article fails to expand on is the stacking and interlinking of other social networking services (SNS) such as Twitter and Facebook. For instance, were other SNS used as a replacement of e-mail to recruit the flash mob participants? After the flash mob act was published on YouTube, what was the strategy to draw further attention to the video clip? Is the flash mob footage just one node in the brand campaigns overall web presence? The traction behind the 2011 Egypt revolution grew at exponential rates based on the stacking of social networking services and effective utilisation of network effects (Gustin, 2011). Demonstrators published events on Facebook, allowing organisers to gauge attendance. Invitations could also be issued and rapidly passed amongst social circles. The combination of footage being uploaded to YouTube and the millions of related conversations being published to Twitter clearly highlights the participatory culture of the web and its global reaching powers (Gustin, 2011). Gustin, S. (February 11, 2011). Social Media Sparked, Accelerated Egypt's Revolutionary Firez: EPICENTER. Retrieved April 7, from http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2011/02/egypts-revolutionary-fire/ Thomas, C. (2010, November 4). T-Mobile and the flash mob marketing phenomenonThe Ethical
  • Taraeta Nicholls on 18 Apr 11
     
    Hans this is a very interesting article and ties in with the article I found by McGreer (2010) who discussed the business response to FlashMobs. Whilst two different approaches were used the one constant was the use of professional film crew to use the footage for uploading. The question McGreer raises is when it no longer has the artistic element, which Wasnik defines an event as a FlashMob, are commercial applications really FlashPerformances? McGreer, B. (2010). Give Them something to talk about. US Banker. Retrieved from ProQuest Database.
  • Taraeta Nicholls on 18 Apr 11
     
    Hans this is a very interesting article and ties in with the article I found by McGreer (2010) who discussed the business response to FlashMobs. Whilst two different approaches were used the one constant was the use of professional film crew to use the footage for uploading. The question McGreer raises is when it no longer has the artistic element, which Wasnik defines an event as a FlashMob, are commercial applications really FlashPerformances? McGreer, B. (2010). Give Them something to talk about. US Banker. Retrieved from ProQuest Database.
Keith Law

Gabriella Coleman on Anonymous - 19 views

http://vimeo.com/19806469 This interview describes itself as:" a look at the visuals that have made the web collective Anonymous a brand with Gabriella Coleman of the Department of Media, Cu...

anonymous ouanet308-2011 coleman

started by Keith Law on 03 Apr 11 no follow-up yet
Hans Dusink

Reframing Public Space Through Digital Mobilization: Flash Mobs and the Futility(?) of ... - 1 views

isites.harvard.edu/...nar_Reframing-Public-Space.pdf

web308 flashmobs ouaNet308-2011 collaboration

shared by Hans Dusink on 11 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Hans Dusink on 12 Apr 11
     
    Virág Molnár is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the New School for Social Research in New York. Her interest is in the impact of mobile communications on urban culture. This article first puts flash mobs into an historical perspective by suggesting that its roots lie with the Italian Futurists of 1910 and further cultivated during the 20th century by avant-garde art groups such as Dadaists . More recently there have been the Youth International Party (Yippies) in the US. (Molnár, 2009) As Molnár points out the things that all these groups have in common with modern flash mobs is that there is no formal membership or hierarchy and they are able to utilise the media effectively. The difference lies in the use of new media such as blog, social networks and mobile phones (2009). Rheingold points out that these tools lower the threshold of participation as it no longer required participants to actually know each other (2003, p. xii). Molnár then identifies and describes 5 types of flash mob based either on their form of sociality or their function. They are: 'atomised' flash mobs, interactive flash mobs, performance flash mobs, political flash mobs and advertising flash mobs (2009). Flash mobs, although organised online are only able to be carried out by people in close proximity to one another or as Molnár describes it "able to make the leap from cyberspace to urban space" (2009). These events are generally recorded and posted to sites like YouTube in order to both popularise the event and to get feedback. "Online reporting has indeed largely been responsible for the rapid global diffusion of flash mobs," and "has been crucial in institutionalizing and legitimizing this new form of sociability"(Molnár, 2009).
  • ...2 more comments...
  • Tessa Gutierrez on 12 Apr 11
     
    [Please note: This comment is in two parts due to Diigo restrictions on length] Thanks for posting this article Hans. I found it extremely useful for my own understanding of Flash Mobs, which is also my chosen topic. Molnar gives both a comprehensive history from the very first Flash Mob organized in a New York department store by the senior editor of Harper's magazine Bill Wasik in June 2003, right up to the fact that the term "Flash Mob" was listed in the Oxford English Dictionary in 2004 due to the global popularity of this type of temporary event (Molnar, 2009). Detailing the rise of this popular fleeting entertainment, Molnar (2009) compares Flash mobs to other forms of expression that have occurred from the early 20th century, the surrealism of the inter-war period and even the 1960s and contemporary culture jammers, stating that these types of activities existed long before the Internet, mobile communication and social media forms such as Twitter and Facebook. In this respect, Molnar's ideas are similar to those of Kravets (2011) and his thoughts that despite the Internet being blocked by the Egyptian government, the people were still able to come together to organize political protests about the Mubarak regime through word-of-mouth and leaflet delivery. However the success of Flash Mobs would not be as significant without the Internet. The organizational and collaborative efforts required to coordinate large groups of people who generally do not know each other, would be a hard task to achieve without the assistance of Internet-related social media and mobile phones. Additionally, the popularity of Flash Mobs would not be as significant if not for the availability of global sites such as YouTube, which are able to replay videos for as long as their user allows them to be visible and shared. [Continued in next comment]
  • Tessa Gutierrez on 12 Apr 11
     
    [Continued from previous comment] In conclusion, as Molnar so aptly puts it, "the rapid global diffusion of flash mobs...has been crucial" for the rise, popularity and longevity of Flash Mobs as a new use of urban space, entertainment and publicity. If social media and the Internet were to suddenly cease, the occurrence of Flash Mobs would diminish drastically. Thank you so much for sharing this article Hans. It has been extremely useful for the topic of Flash Mobs. REFERENCES Kravets, D. (2011a). What's Fueling Mideast Protests? It's More Than Twitter. Published by Wired January 27, 2011. Retrieved April 12, 2011 from http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/01/social-media-oppression/ Molnar (2009). Reframing Public Space: Flash Mobs and the Futility of Contemporary Urban Youth Culture. Retrieved April 12, 2011 from: http://ebookbrowse.com/f/flash-mobs-pdf-virag
  • Hans Dusink on 12 Apr 11
     
    Continuation of original comment. As a blog post on Turtle Sociology wrote "The globalization of flash mobs underscores two vital notes: the viral-like nature of technology, and the universal desire to break free from social norms… all flash mobs seem to elicit joy in their bold, unprompted natures"(2010). References: Molnár, V. (2009). Reframing Public Space Through Digital Mobilization: Flash Mobs and the Futility(?) of Contemporary Urban Youth Culture. Retrieved from http://isites.harvard.edu/fs/docs/icb.topic497840.files/Molnar_Reframing-Public-Space.pdf Rheingold, H. (2003). Smart Mobs : The next socal revolution. New York: Basic Books. Retrieved from http://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=lX9QKNbO0nkC&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=smart+mobs+the+next+social+revolution&ots=wvkWcKOAIx&sig=00EWrYtEyAwqRmnYNth77Sclr8o#v=onepage&q=smart%20mobs&f=false Turtle Sociology. (2010, October 6). The Universal Phenomenon of Flash Mobs [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://turtlesoc.wordpress.com/2010/10/06/the-universal-phenomenon-of-flash-mobs/
  • Tessa Gutierrez on 14 Apr 11
     
    Thanks for continuing your comment Hans. That last quote really sums it up well. I quite like how you have highlighted the fact that flash mobs underscore the 'viral-like nature of technology' in addition to the joy flash mobs elicit as a result of their impromptu nature. All that is needed is a quick search through YouTube for 'flash mobs' to see the views of popular flash mob videos reach the millions, as well as to read how well they have been received globally. Thanks again, Tessa
Hans Dusink

SWARM: Flash mobs, mobile clubbing and the city - Culture and Organization - 5 views

www.informaworld.com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/...section

flash mobs swarm ouaNet308-2011 collaboration

shared by Hans Dusink on 06 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Hans Dusink on 07 Apr 11
     
    This article is based on the premise that cities are responsible for destroying social bonds and "rendering man isolated from, fearful of, hostile to, and manipulative of his fellow man" (Fischer as cited in Kaulingfreks & Warren, 2010). It is this view that drives planners to create artificial structures in an attempt to have citizens involve themselves in community affairs. The authors use the example of Rotterdam where a there is a program of community forming (http://www.opzoomermee.nl) to show this idea that something needs to be done to create a sense of community. (2010, p. 213). The authors then look at how the unmanaged process of flash mobs may offer an alternative to the formal organisation structures of organisation in the city environment. They draw on the work of Jean Luc Nancy and suggest that flash mobs challenge the "traditional understanding of community through technology enabled organising" (Kaulingfreks & Warren, 2010, p. 220). In fact through the use of the Internet, email and texting people are able to act together without giving up any of their individuality. In a magazine interview Bill Wasik, the instigator of flash mob said: The flash mob affords an opportunity for doing something and yet completely sidesteps the whole process of discussing how it is going to happen. It's just; 'Here's this opportunity, and if you agree with it, you can come in on it, and its going to be very quick' (Heaney, n.d) A flash mob becomes an ephemeral community; it is formed for a specific purpose and then disbands once that purpose has been fulfilled. It is a network structure rather than a traditional hierarchy and is based on a common interest.
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  • Hans Dusink on 14 Apr 11
     
    References: Heaney, F. (n.d). The Short Life of Flash Mobs. Stay Free! Retrieved from http://www.stayfreemagazine.org/archives/24/flash-mobs-history.html Kaulingfreks, R., & Warren, S. (2010). SWARM: Flash Mobs, mobile clubbing and the city. Culture and Organization, 16(3), 211 - 227. doi:10.1080/14759551.2010.503498
  • Jocelyn Peucker on 14 Apr 11
     
    Professor Ruud Kaulingfreks, University of Leicester, School of Management (Kaulingfreks, n.d.) and Professor Samantha Warren, University of Essex - Essex Business School (Warren, n.d.) have written this paper titled, SWARM: Flash mobs, mobile clubbing and the city (Kaulingfreks and Warren, 2010). Both professors have written a number of articles on topics involving organisation and culture. As written above by Hans Dusink, "They draw on the work of Jean Luc Nancy and suggest that flash mobs challenge the "traditional understanding of community through technology enabled organising" (Kaulingfreks & Warren, 2010, p. 220). In fact through the use of the Internet, email and texting people are able to act together without giving up any of their individuality" (Dusink, 2011). By understanding this, it can also be related to the petitioners that act through the Avaaz organisation. To sign up to the Avaaz community, only a name, an email, a country and postcode is required information. The name could be any name or even a nickname. Individual's identities are hidden from each other. Even though you can see the count of actions taken, it is impossible to know who did exactly what action. Concurrently, a hard-copy signed petition is not that much different. Which individual can verify every signature on a page and who is going to read through and check every written address one-by-one to ensure actual authenticity? Both Avaaz and flash mobs use digital interaction to let their members know what is happening and the location; however, Avaaz continues to exist after action is taken, moving onto new causes and plights whereas the basis of flash mobs is to 'flash' congregate then dissipate after their action. References: Avaaz.org. (2011).The World in Action. Retrieved from http://www.avaaz.org/en Dusink, H. (2011). SWARM: Flash mobs, mobile clubbing and the city - Culture and Organizati
  • Taraeta Nicholls on 18 Apr 11
     
    This article was interesting as it also considered the impact of music in FlashMobs. Salmond (2010) in their article, "The Power of Momentary Communities" discusses how rave parties have similarities to FlashMob events through the creation of an instant community. Just as Salmond (2010) uses the rave party example Kaulingfreks & Warren (2010) have explored mobile clubbing, with individuals dancing to their music of choice. It should be noted that the lack of amplification, due to those listing to their individual songs may do so in a "silent disco" manner would allow such a gathering. Salmond (2010) raises the legality of events, at night time, with 100 or more people listening to amplified music. Mobile clubbing is supported by Salmond (2010) as more FlashMob as there is an artistic component which is key according to Wasnik. The comment of Jocelyn Peuker (2011) who introduces the Avaaz.org (2011) community highlights that there is a crossover between the SmartMob and the FlashMob. Avaaz facilitates with anonymity but could be considered a more SmartMob type of activity as those signing a petition are doing so in an asynchronous manner. With those signing the petition in with a desire for an outcome to be achieved, moving further away from the art aspect. Salmond (2010) argues that it is structure and organisation would allow one to consider Avaaz to be more SmartMob than FlashMob. As in many aspects of technology the exact line and distinction is hard to be drawn but notwithstanding this Avaaz is a facility service that would benefit both FlashMob and SmartMob events, whilst maintaining anonymity.
anonymous

Digital Dialogue? Australian Politicians' use of the Social Network Tool Twitter - 2 views

www.informaworld.com/...a929814947~db=all~jumptype=rss

ouaNet308-2011 collaboration NET308 Twitter

shared by anonymous on 11 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • anonymous on 11 Apr 11
     
    Grant, W. J., Moon, B., & Busby Grant, J. (2010). Digital Dialogue? Australian Politicians' use of the Social Network Tool Twitter. Australia Journal of Political Science, 45(4), 579-604. Using the social network tool Twitter by Australian politicians has proven to be a common practice in Australian political arena. The analysis mentioned in the article, suggests that the politicians use the Twitter for political engagement and gaining of more political benefit. For politicians the Twitter is simply a good way of connecting with public. 'Engaging with community online is a great for me, as Premier, to get feedback on the decisions and actions of my government… Twitter in particular is a frank and spontaneous way for people to share views and thoughts - it's not filtered or tempered by second thoughts, it's raw and immediate, and its 24/7.' One of the authors' questions as part of their conducted analysis was 'Does Twitter offer us better ways to collectively shape our world, or is it instead a fragmentary, dangerous and disempowering distraction?' The obtained results were received from 152 Australian politicians and 477 random Australian Twitters. Data analysis suggested that Australian politicians are clearly engaging with Twitter and their broadcast tweeting is of higher number that of Australians in general. Collected data also suggested a pattern of tweeting that Australians in general follow politicians more than politicians follow them. The data analysis conclusion was the tweeting is used by Australian politicians for influencing the communities and for the benefit they may gain through the tweeting. The Twitter provides a tool for listening to the communities by the politicians and is a definitively a good access point to valuable feedbacks. Twitter's rapid connection between politicians and communities is one of the greatest benefits using the Twitter. The Twitter is providing a venue for Australian politicians, citizens and media to connect and sh
  • ...1 more comment...
  • alio S on 18 Apr 11
     
    [Part 1] Digital Dialogue? Australian Politicians' use of the Social Network Tool Twitter This article, published in the Australian Journal of Political Science, reports the results of a study undertaken in 2010 that quantitatively analysed how Twitter is used by Australian politicians. The main aim of the study was to analyse the online engagement between politicians and the Australian public. While Twitter use in Australia is relatively small, Australian politicians, like many of their global counterparts have begun to embrace social media tools that offer them new ways to connect, influence and engage with their constituents. The study found that Twitter users are more likely than users of Facebook to make their profiles and posts public, in fact 79% of the users sampled had public "tweets". Amongst the sample chosen for the study 145 out of the 152 Australian politicians on Twitter had public accounts. A study conducted by Jim Macnamara in 2007, found that Australian politicians are generally "quite resistant to conversational social media", that their websites generally use the broadcast model and that their blogs usually have comments turned off. Even with Twitter, it seems that a large proportion of Tweets from politicians are broadcasting information rather than engaging in political discourse. Twitter, like other social networking tools, bypasses "the heavily mediated connections offered by traditional media" (p. 579) and provides the potential for communication beyond the traditional broadcasting of information, including a forum for minor political parties.
  • alio S on 18 Apr 11
     
    [Part 2] The report found that apart from tweets to broadcast information, there is a reasonably high level of 'retweeting' performed by politicians, retweeting is a micro-political act of endorsement. It also suggested that the number of people a politician follows loosely translates as the level to which that politician listens to the public. Politicians replying to tweets from non-politicians, however were found to be quite a low percentage of posts, suggesting that to date Twitter has not particularly facilitated an open political dialogue. References: Grant, W. J., Moon, B., and Busby Grant, J. (2010). Digital Dialogue? Australian Politicians' use of the Social Network Tool Twitter. Australia Journal of Political Science, 45(4), 579-604. DOI: 10.1080/10361146.2010.517176
  • anonymous on 02 May 11
     
    Twitter as used by politicians stands at a crossroads. Held in scorn by many politicians, it is often derided as a trivial communications platform with a distinct lack of professionalism. This is well exampled by Julia Gillard's attack on Twitter fan Joe Hockey for daring to consult his 'tweets' for policy opinion. ""He can't govern the nation by tweet," (Courier Mail 2009). Akin to this is the British House of Commons ban on tweeter for apparently as the Deputy Speaker puts it "letting the outside world know what is going on (in parliament)". (Financial Post 2011) In contrast, is enthusiastic tweeting by politicians such as Federal member Joe Hockey and NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell. O'Farrrell in particular uses Twitter for daily political discourse with his constituents. Often offering further insight into policy matters or recent actions in media. With over 6000 Tweets (NSW MP Tweets 2011) O'Farrell has set a precedent for high-profile Australian politicians using Twitter as an effective medium. With Hockey being accused by Gillard over crossing the line between consulting and collaboration using Twitter, the evolving use of the service remains of great interest to the political world. References Julia Gillard hits Joe Hockey's Twitter usage (2009) Courier Mail. Accessed http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/national/julia-gillard-hits-joe-hockeys-twitter-usage/story-e6freooo-1225804950598 Twitter banned in British Parliament (2011) Financial Post. Accessed http://business.financialpost.com/2011/01/19/twitter-banned-in-british-parliament/ NSW MP Tweets (2011) Statistics about Barry O'Farrell on Twitter. Accessed http://nsw.mptweets.com.au/barry-ofarrell/
alio S

Networked Protests in the UK: How Old and New Tactics are Being Used to Fight Rising Tu... - 2 views

www.movements.org/...-new-tactics-are-being-used-to

net308 protests collaboration ouaNet308-2011 tools online activism resources

shared by alio S on 15 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • concerns about the future of education are being voiced both online and offline, using a mix of traditional protest tactics and digital activism to get their message heard. 
  • students have turned to social media outlets to share concerns and coordinate actions
  • DIY radicalism has its own news channels, on Facebook pages and Twitter accounts and blogs,
  • alio S on 15 Apr 11
     
    [Part 1] This article brings together a number of links to UK student protest sites. Reading this and related articles it becomes clear that the students protesting about the UK government's fee cut policy are willing to use any tools at their disposal. Their primary aim has been to collaborate with, and inform supporters of offline physical protests; predominantly marches and occupations. The article itself is posted on the movements.org website, a non profit organisation whose stated mission is to identify, connect and support grassroots digital activists from around the world. The support offered by movement.org goes beyond the mere publication of articles and offers advice to individuals and groups on how to choose and best use digital tools. It is interesting to see the number of freely available digital tools that student protesters have used to disseminate information: Facebook, Twitter, websites, blogs, Google maps, YoutTube, open calendars and Flickr are all part of the student protesters' arsenal. Fast adoption of new technologies seems to be one of the strengths of the UK students' movement. Recently, for instance, student protesters in London used the new "Sukey" application, a conglomeration of tools like google maps, twitter and SMS, to avoid clashes with police (Kingley 2011). Google Maps too have been a useful tool and have been utilised to show the locations of upcoming protests, the map posted at http://www.feesprotest.com/ gives a good indication of the nationwide spread of student dissatisfaction, while at the same time hyperlinking to fairly detailed information for each locality and directing viewers to facebook protest pages for up to date information and interaction.
  • alio S on 15 Apr 11
     
    [Part 2] References: 30th November Here We Come. (2010). Retrieved from: http://www.feesprotest.com/ Cullum, B. (2010). NETWORKED PROTESTS IN THE UK: hOW OLD AND NEW TACTICS ARE BEING USED TO FIGHT RISING TUITION FEES. Retrieved from: http://www.movements.org/blog/entry/networked-protests-in-the-uk-how-old-and-new-tactics-are-being-used-to/ Kingsley, P. (2011). Inside the anti-kettling HQ. Retrieved from:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/feb/02/inside-anti-kettling-hq?INTCMP=SRCH
Michael Nycyk

Google Docs are a Free Online Educational Tool - 0 views

www.suite101.com/...nline-educational-tool-a105900

collaboration ouaNet308-2011 308 508 Curtin Net education Google Docs

shared by Michael Nycyk on 15 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • Michael Nycyk on 15 Apr 11
     
    This is a comprehensive blog entry introduction to the potential of Google Docs as a collaborative tool for students. These potential uses are also valuable in work places or other group work. The value of this resource is the well-written way Wetzel articulates the advantages of Google Docs for collaborative practice. His argument is that such a system, aside from being free, is valuable to go beyond the e-mail sharing culture to a full real-time collaborative environment. Wetzel then proceeds to give examples of the potential for the application of Google Docs in education contexts and classrooms. To summarise, he argues three main points in using Google Docs for collaboration:  The ability for Google Docs to provide instant feedback to students on their work  To conserve expenses on school projects such as printing costs  Encouraging the working together of students on a projects in a systematic and orderly manner The tone of the article is clearly very much in favour of using Google Docs for collaborative practice in educational settings. However, though this may not be an issue in educational contexts, there are disadvantages using Google Docs that are not reported. Two bloggers highlight those weaknesses which may be of concern when trying to use more features in Google Docs that are not there but are part of the Microsoft Office Suite:  The speed of internet connection is vital; if it is slow the collaborator may not be able to keep up with others' postings (Bukisa, 2011)  Most of the time you cannot work offline with Google Docs, you must be online to create and update documents (Creative Marketing Solutions, n.d.) However, the article does put a compelling list of features that make Google Docs a good system to use for educational collaboration.
  • Michael Nycyk on 15 Apr 11
     
    References Bukisa. (2011). Google Docs review. Retrieved April 13, 2011, from http://www.bukisa.com/articles/480255_google-docs-review Creative Marketing Solutions. (n.d.). How to use Google Docs. Retrieved April 13, 2011, from http://knolt.com/creative-marketing-solutions/2010/10/20/heading-2/ Wetzel, D. R. (2009). Google Docs are a free online educational tool: Web-based productivity software for teacher or student collaboration. Suite101.com. Retrieved April 2, 2011, from http://www.suite101.com/content/google-docs-are-a-free-online-educational-tool-a105900
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