Traditional Media vs. Cyber Media

Citizen journalism is an emerging form of media that is expanding its influence on society. Although newspapers, news channels, and other traditional forms of media are very important to society, citizen journalism brings to the table things that traditional media can't.

Citizen journalism has both advantages and disadvantages. This form of journalism allows authenticity in its truest form. Years ago, even if a video was taken by a bystander who witnessed any kind of event, they could not have easily shared that with others. They could have merely shared that video with local peers and maybe sent the video in physical form. However, due to the rise of social media and social networks, it is so easy to share ANY piece of information, whether it be a picture, video, or audio clip. Furthermore, because the journalist was actually there, they share the information with sincerity and passion. Moreover, many of these journalists usually focus on relevant and significant issues.

Despite the fact that citizen journalism is both advantageous and growing in influence, it does not come without its drawbacks (like almost anything else). One of the biggest issues is that unlike large media giants (news channels and news papers), the bias of the journalism can be easily swayed. Even if News Channel X is biased on a certain topic, it is very apparent and it is a unified motion to take that stance. However, when it comes to citizen journalists, their opinion can be fueled strongly by their own reservations as well as those of others.

Personally, I do not think traditional media sources such as news papers and live news casts are on their way out anytime soon. Even though social media is getting easier and easier to share and access, due to the digital divide and growing information gap, there are always going to be people who either don't know how to access the emerging media sources or simply don't have the ability to.

Citizen Journalism versus Traditional Media

Jay Rosen, a professor of journalism at NYU defines citizen journalism as, “When the people formerly known as the audience employ the press tools they have in their possession to inform one another” (1). With technology today anyone can moonlight as a journalist if they have the Internet. The doctor, the teacher, the parent, that was getting ready in their New York City apartment on September 11, 2001 instantly became a citizen journalist once they took video of the towers on their cell phone that morning. The bloggers and the tweeters out there in cyberspace are citizen journalists, discussing pressing and not-so-pressing issues for the world to read (2).

Citizen journalism is great because anyone can report their perspective on an issue and discuss it with others all over the world. Also, unlike traditional media, the audience is not being told what issues are important (known as agenda-setting) (3); with citizen journalism the audience is doing the research themselves and picking and choosing what topics they want to read on, what they think is important, and what interests them. The downside of citizen journalism is that the reports can be quite biased. Citizens are reporting on what they are interested in, so they are going to put their own spin and perspective on it. Not that this is much different from traditional media; no matter how hard a news channel or newspaper tries to convince the world they are unbiased, everyone knows this is not true. Another con to citizen journalism is that users must be careful when visiting websites; anyone can make up a story or fake video and try to convince the world that it is as true and people will believe them.

Since social networks are so common on a daily basis around much of the world news travels much faster. Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, blogs, and forums allow users to talk about anything they want with anyone they want. In November of 2008 when gunmen fired constant shots in Mumbai and seized the city’s landmarks people did not turn on their televisions or their radios, they turned on their computers to learn about the massacre. The social network sites were flooded with firsthand accounts from Mumbai and provided the world with some of the first photos of the tragic situation. Photographs that were posted on Flickr an hour and a half after the attacks were viewed at least 110,000 times about three days later.(4)

In situations like the Mumbai massacre, the tsunami, Neda, and Septembr 11th, citizen journalism through social networks is very helpful and productive. However, not everything discussed on the Internet is as valuable. For example, news that celebrities Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt divorcing was all over the Internet and blogs where people were reporting how upset they were…is that really what is important? But, I have to admit I do enjoy a little celebrity gossip every now and then and even though not everything discussed on the social networks are news worthy, that’s what the Internet, moreover social networks are for, aren’t they? A place to share your thoughts and ideas with others, no matter the caliber of the idea.

I could not imagine life without traditional media. I like to get away from the computer screen and read the newspaper, listen to the radio, or watch television. In a world without traditional media I know a great deal of people would be at a loss, those who do not possess the skills to retrieve the news from a computer or who do not have a computer/Internet (hello, digital divide). Citizen journalism is great, it gives people a great outlet to share their stories and news, but the traditional media has to stay in order to keep everyone happy.

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(1) Rosen, Jay. "A Most Useful Definition of Citizen Journalism." PressThink. 14 July 2008. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .

(2) "Citizen Journalism - What Is It ?" YouTube. 23 Aug. 2006. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .


(3) "Agenda Setting Theory." University of Twente. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .

(4) Dolnick, Sam. "Bloggers Provide Raw View Of Mumbai Massacre." The Huffington Post. 1 Dec. 2008. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .

Citizen journalism and traditional media

Citizen journalism is the most real and raw form of journalism. Citizen journalism entails an average person being caught in a real world event. Their emersion is often caught by a camera or cell phone and the footage makes its way to news sources or to the internet. These stories are uncut and narrated on the fly with true emotion and responses of pure impulse. The pleasures of citizen journalism is the fact that it is so unscripted and impulsive. The capturing of a moment is through the eyes of someone caught up in that instance in time. Citizen journalism is the personal narrative of the journalist. It offers an event through their eyes. Unfortunately, citizen journalism is often too raw, too unedited, too real. Videos of violence and death are often very graphic and disturbing. Additionally, citizen journalists are not equipped with the best equipment. Footage is often shaky, blurry, or is lost as the person moves for their own safety. Citizen journalism, even with its downfalls, is still becoming one of the most important primary sources for the reporting of an event. After the shooting at the Civic Association in Binghamton, pictures and videos of Front Street and of police activity around the building flooded news sources and appeared live on television in order to report the story. Citizen journalists were the first to capture the event and in turn were the first to release footage to the media.

I dont believe that we will see a day without “traditional” media. That being said, if it were to happen it would be a great loss. Newspapers, live news reporting, and online media reports are of great importance to society. Without them we lose the immiediacy of important information. The media offers national reporting with instant updating and mass appeal. Although citizen journalists are making their way into the reporting structure of the media, they still lack the ability to mass report events with the speed of the media. A world without this would be an information dark age. We would be lost without a media system to follow for reporting and news.

Traditional Media and/or/vs Cyber Media

Being a journalist is generally seen as an exciting job filled with adventure, travel, and adrenaline. A journalist’s job is to be able to drop whatever they are doing to follow a news story. Following journalism are many pleasures but and also pains. Many times they travel across the globe to dangerous places like war zones and extreme weather conditions to cover footage. Ever since the war in Iraq started, more and more reporters have been captured by the countries and sometimes interrogate them to try and get information. In 2009 two American reporters were held captive in North Korea and stated that they were “terrified for [their] lives” [1]. Although journalists/reporters get to travel to exotic places and see interesting events, even history in the making, it can be a very dangerous job with more pains than pleasures that can affect their psychological being.

Citizen journalists are a certain type of journalist that are regular civilians. It is described as individuals playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, and analyzing news events via phone cameras; when members of the public engage in journalism [2]. These journalists then post their footage or pictures on the internet, passing the news along. Like professional journalists, citizen journalists put themselves in danger when they are near a media event. The citizens that filmed the tsunamis may not have realized at the moment they were filming, but they were in great danger. Citizen journalism would not be possible without the new media and technology that society has today. Social networks and blogs are the main places that citizen journalists post their footage or photos when witnessing an event.

[1] “Citizen Journalism." SourceWatch. 5 Oct. 2010. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .

[2] Sutton, Larry. "Love Ones 'terrified' for Captured Journalists." TODAYshow.com. 1 June 2009. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .

Citizen journalism vs traditional media

The term citizen journalism refers to a wide range of activities in which everyday people contribute information or commentary about news event. The recent development in technology has helped the growth of citizen journalism, including the creation of the internet and camera phones, for example. Citizen journalism epitomizes the belief that the experiences of people personally involved with an issue present a different—and often more complete—picture of events than can be derived from the perspective of an outsider. The list of citizen journalism sites is long and includes sites limited to nonprofessional reporting, such as NowPublic and CyberJournalist, and divisions of traditional media companies that feature citizen journalism, such as CNN’s I-Reporter.[1] On the other hand, citizen journalism can be biased or opinionated, as opposed to professional journalism which is supposed to take a neutral standpoint.

An example of an event which was well suited for citizen journalism was when the pilot of a failing aircraft landed his plane on the Hudson River. People around the scene immediately began filming the incident with their cellphones or cameras, and posted their footage on the internet.[2]

It would be a great loss for society if traditional media disappeared. Television news broadcasts are generally the most trusted and most accurate, in comparison to citizen journalism. Personally, I prefer tuning into a news station on TV to keep updated on current events, rather than reading news blogs on the internet. However, I do realize the importance of citizen journalism.

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[1] "7 Things You Should Know about Citizen Journalism." Educause.edu. Nov. 2007. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .

[2] Reichbach, Matthew. "Social Media, Citizen Journalism Trumps Traditional Media—on the Plane Crashes Beat." The New Mexico Independent. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .

A Tale of Two Mediums

In a world slowly being dominated by cyber media, what is left for the lowly traditional media to do? Instances such as the protests of elections in Iran leading to the death of a civilian named Neda, and that countries response to the event, are modern examples of how cyber media and citizen journalism are evolving into a highly effective, even preferred source of media today [1].

The case of Neda is just one of many involving citizen journalism in contemporary media. On the side of the pros, this method of journalism essentially unified a nation and opened the eyes of many. However, the cons involved must not be forgotten. A slew of individuals had to watch this young woman die and video tape the event to the best of their ability to inform the public. Not every citizen wants to be a journalist because not everyone can handle the responsibility that comes with it. There’s also the fact that, with citizen journalism, anyone can upload videos to the Internet trying to convince viewers of something that could be completely falsified.

This idea goes along with social networks as well. Social networks can unify communities and aid a number of useful tasks. On the other hand, social networks can lead to negative results such as cyber bullying and identity theft. However, seeing social networks are still in existence, the assumption is that the pros outweigh the cons.

Both citizen journalism and social networking are acting as tools in a global society that is stepping away from traditional media and engulfing itself within the media of the cyber. It is hard to imagine a world where one can turn on the television and find no sight of a news network in the traditional sense. But if things stay the same course as they are presently, this future will surely follow.

[1] For Neda. Dir. Anthony Thomas. HBO, 2010. Documentary.

Traditional Vs. Cyber Media

Citizen Journalism is a phenomenon of the 21^st century that allows people to participate in the act of journalism, simply with the use of the internet. People can publicize anything they want, whenever they want, and don’t have to follow any rules. In the case of the death of Neda Aghasoltani, people in Iran were able to transmit videos from their cell phones to a cyber source that made its way around the globe, making her murder a world-wide phenomenon (Thomas). Citizen journalists, in this case, held the key to causing uproar against the unfair Iranian election, as well as informing the world about the injustice in Iran. However, citizen journalism can cause some controversy. According to Mark Glaser, a reporter for PBS, “Many professional journalists believe that only a trained journalist can understand the rigors and ethics involved in reporting the news” (Glaser). Although a small pain, having citizen journalism allows people with camera phones and blogs have a true, recognized opinion, a privilege once only known to reporters and media sources.

Walter Lippman writes in his work, Public Opinion, that there is an, “Enormous discretion as to what facts and impressions shall be reported” (198) when the “Publicity man,” the “censor and propagandist” controls the news. This control forces people to have opinions which are swayed by the media. Nowadays, however, social networking has allowed for citizen journalists, to write blogs and join Facebook groups which highlight their own opinions, allowing others to be enlightened by their ideas.

In cases like the cell phone videos of Neda, we see a productive global narrative. Citizen journalists took pictures of life-changing events, and were then able to disperse them throughout the world. Not only were videos and pictures taken, but social advocacy Facebook groups devoted toward events like Neda’s death, helped to publicize news stories through the citizens. According to Mike Westling, “Facebook combines the best of features and local bulletin-boards, newspapers, and town hall meetings and places them in one location that is available at any time and practically any location” (Westling, 4). Because of this, Facebook’s journalism abilities have much potential. However, there are more than a few unproductive uses of social networking. While Facebook “poking” and Tweeting statuses like, “Taking a shower” are fun, they have no relevance in the grand scheme of things. Because of the vast “social” aspect of social networking, finding important information can be like finding a needle in a haystack.

Right now, we are definitely in a transition period of traditional media becoming more and more “cyber.” Although citizen journalism helps to spread the word quickly, easily, and from person to person, there is also a lot of digging required to get quality information. A world without traditional media, for me, is unimaginable because of this. Although I use the internet to find news, I do so through traditional sources. To me, there is a separating line between social networking and news media that right now, I can not imagine being crossed.

1. For Neda. Dir. Anthony Thomas. HBO, 2010. Documentary.

2. Glaser, Mark. "Your Guide to Citizen Journalism." PBS Online 27 Sept. 2006. Web. 20 Jan. 2011. .

3. Lippman, Walter. Public Opinion. [S.l.]: Nu Vision Publications, LLC, 2007. Print.

4. Westling, Mike. "Expanding the Public Sphere: The Impact of Facebook on Political Communication." UW-Madison (May 2007). Web. 19 Jan. 2011.

Traditional Media vs. Cyber Media

What are the pleasures and pains of citizen journalism? I'm not sure whether this is from the point of view of the narrator or narratee [1]. I assume since we are talking about the prod-user [2], it's both. For the person writing or shooting video it would be exciting to be in the middle of a news worthy story and be able to send that on immediately to virtually, the world. The pain in that would come if you happened to be in the middle of a tragedy, natural disaster or dangerous situation. What do you capture? Personal suffering? Death, blood, violence? Where do you draw the line? I'm sure professional journalists have to deal with this every day but what rules are there for the citizen journalist? Are there any? [3]

For the person accessing "non professional" journalism there may be a vicarious pleasure in viewing or reading an event that hasn't hit the news yet and hasn't been filtered by traditional mass media regulations. But how do you know if it's true? Traditional news has to verify its sources and is supposed to remain fairly neutral. Is it possible for a citizen journalist to do this? When you tell a story, don't you usually put your own spin on it? How much of a story you tell can you prove?

We've blogged here before about "news worthy" media events. I agree that the rules and specifications seem rather vague as to what constitutes a true media event [4]. I don't believe celebrity malfunctions fit into the same category as national elections and human suffering. Perhaps someone should tell Stewart M. Hoover [4].

Personally, I can't imagine a world without traditional media. I love my IPod and Kindle but you can't design for a digital album and I can't fathom reading my Communication Arts on a little 5 x 7" screen or on my laptop. What would I watch during breakfast if not the Today Show? Through these last few years I've seen the death of some of my favorite magazines, I truly hope that's not a continuing trend. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, around since the Civil War times, shut down the printing presses and went completely online. [5] New media has some wonderful features and I embrace them fully but there's something to be said for tradition, don't give it up entirely.

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[1] Abbot, H. Porter. The Cambridge Introduction to Narrative. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2002. p14.

[2] Bruns, Axel: Blogs, Wikipedia, Second Life, and Beyond: From Production to Produsage. New York: Lang 2008. See also his online platform http://produsage.org/, 15.

[3] Tomasky, Michael: Guardian.co.uk. Citizen-journalism's rulebook. London. Tuesday, April 15, 2008. http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/apr/15/citizenjournalismsrulebook

[4] Hoover, Stewart M. “Conclusion: The media events debate: moving to the next stage”. Couldry, Nick (ed.): Media Events in a Global Age. p289. (2009) Print.

[5] Pryne, Eric: The Seattle Times. The last deadline: Seattle's Oldest newspaper goes to press for the final time. Seattle. December 16, 2009. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008871618_seattlepi17.html

How Do Social Networks "Work"?

The success of the social network site can be attributed to the fact that they appeal to two of the most basic human desires: the desire for attention, and the desire to poke out nose in everyone else's business. We all want to feel like other people care what we're doing, where we've been; at the end of the day we really haven't got past the hospital nursery where we all once tried to cry the loudest, vying for attention. Even more so than that, we all love knowing more than we have to about other people. It's the only explanation for why we care who a golfer we've never met sleeps with.

The basic structure of any web based social network is simple. They're a means of bringing people together; an interactive social experience. They make contact with friends, family, or people you've never met but feel like talking to anyway quicker and easier. Of course, although the social network-er has the ability to connect with millions, they typically keep in contact with a small fraction of they people they "friend" or "follow", as most inevitably find there aren't enough hours in a day to keep up with everyone[1].

Of the hundreds of social networking sites that exist around the world, Facebook is easily the largest, being the second most frequented website, behind only Google[2]. It has become the standard by which any other social networking site is judged. Therefore delving into the reasons why Facebook is successful is revealing for why social networking sites in general are successful.

Facebook is creepy. If someone said 10 years ago that people would go on to display your hometown, current location, school, work, family and hundreds of photos of themselves to anyone with a computer, they'd sound like a nut-job who's taking the whole Patriot Act scare thing to seriously, and that such an Orwellian concept was ridiculous. Sometimes Facebook's patrons attempt to "rise up" against the arbitrary changes the site makes, usually making it more open and allowing for less privacy, but these never amount to much. No one's ever actually going to delete their Facebook account, much in the same almost no one actually moves to Canada when Bush wins an election. It's almost laughable thinking about the "News Feed" controversy a few years ago, where millions of people protested the news feed's creation, yet nothing happened and the news feed is second nature today[3]. Facebook continues to push the envelope of how much people willing to share with the world, and it's no coincidence that the more the site's administrators do so, the more successful the website becomes. Never content to rest on their laurels when sharing it's patron's personal information, Facebook recently introduced the ability to see all the interactions two of your "friends" have ever had on the website ever[4].

Social networking sites, for the most part, are free. They're also a gold mine, Facebook having made Mark Zuckerberg the youngest billionaire on the planet [5]. They can do this because of advertising. Social networking sites are no-brainers for advertisers. They bring together people with common interests, and display an individuals interests publicly [1].

More than just exploiting your personal information of advertising dough, social networking sites can be dangerous in that they can easily get you in trouble. There have been a few noteworthy cases of this happening. Most happen in places where civil liberties were already pretty suppressed, such as China. However even in the US, things people post to Facebook and other social networking sites are causing them grief. Take the example of the Student Assembly rep who was relieved of her seat after pictures of her consuming alcohol under the legal age were posted on Facebook, or the teen who was arrested for graffiti after his moniker was traced to his MySpace [6].

So how do social networks "work"? Besides the logistical explanation of photo albums and statuses and friends and pokes, they work (as in they're successful) because they appeal to people on a level which little else in the world can. They make people think others care about their personal lives, and let people snoop through the personal lives of others. So even though they're shameless capitalist advertisement tools, and can get you in plenty of trouble, they're still frequented and popular, and probably will be until the next big technological innovation comes along.

[1] Huberman, Bernardo A./Romero, Daniel M./Wu, Fang. "Social Networks That Matter: Twitter Under the Microscope." 2008. Web. January 19th, 2011. p.2

[2] Alexa Top 500 Sites. Alexa : The Web Information Company. January 1st, 2011. <http://www.alexa.com/topsites>. January 19th, 2011. Web.

[3] Westlake, E.J. "Facebook: Friend Me If You Facebook. Generation Y and Performative Surveillance." Web. January 19th, 2011. p.22

[4] Van Grove, Jennifer. Facebook Now Tries to Tell the Story Between Two Friends. Mashable. October 28th, 2010. <http://mashable.com/2010/10/28/facebook-friendship-pages/>. January 19th, 2011.

[5] O'Malley-Greenburg, Zach. In Pictures: Youngest Billionaires: Mark Zuckerberg. Forbes. March 5th, 2008. <http://www.forbes.com/2008/03/05/richest-people-billionaires-billionaires08-cx_lk_0305billie_land.html>. January 19th, 2011.

[6] Snyder, Carpenter, and Slauson (2007). Myspace.com: A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5. p.7

What are social networking sites and and how do they "work"?

“Facebooking”, “Friending”,“Twitting”, “Followers” and “Followees” are some of the nouns and verbs that have evolved out of the social networking site revolution and successfully wormed their way into generation Y’s lingua franca. Not to be left behind, the baby boomers and the generation X-ers have also embraced this revolution but with a bit more caution in their online performance of self, unlike the younger generation Y[1]. In his book, Friend Me if You Facebook, Westlake notes that the internet is a stage of performing oneself[2] and I think social networking sites are just another avenue to do so.According to a study done by the University of Dayton, only 8 percent of Facebook users surveyed reported exaggerating the amount of drinking or drug use in their profiles, the vastmajority of users do not exaggerate or highlight so-called deviant behavior[3]. Social networking sites offer the same template for everyone, but it’s the performance of oneself that varies from user to user. The generic template of these sites facilitates the user’s performance of self through pictures, status updates, comments and even the number of followers or friends.

Social networking sites also provide a forum for doing business, sharing information, keeping in touch with friends, ‘meeting’ new people and selling ideas. Synder, et al(2007) defines a social networking site(SNS) as “an Internet site based upon a traditional social network. One can join a SNS and meet friends of friends analogous to going to a friend’s house for a dinner party”[4]. All social network sites have legally binding terms of use which the users often enforce, along with the administration[5] but there are way too many examples of how loosely binding these contracts are. Myspace’s terms of use for example infer that using the information gained on MySpace.com in a negative manner (hiring decisions, grade decisions, promotion criteria) is a violation of the social contract one enters into when viewing the information contained on MySpace.com[6] but people have been arrested and denied entry into countries like Canada and China[7] because of information obtained from their Myspace pages. Despite the shared enforcement of the terms of use by both the users and the administration of social networking sites, users looking to protect their professional image are now more aware of third parties that could potentially use the information on these sites against them. Woe unto that 3.8 GPA student that forgot to untag herself in the “wasted wednesday” album her friend posted on facebook the day before a major job interview.

Social networking sites are definitely increasing the overlap between personal and professional life[8]. While the employee’s private life is legally off bounds on a job application, these ethical boundaries don’t apply to the cyberspace. Although most social networking sites are built around the ideas of “global connectivity”[9], “real-life social connections”[10] and keeping the people in a given network connected, the use of a given social networking site is largely contingent on the targeted audience of the user’s performance of self. Perhaps the increasing awareness of the surveillance through social networking sites will result in a more generic online performance as more people try to portray a certain image.

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Untagging refers to the action a facebook user may take to prevent an image they may or may not appear in, or a text(note) they may or may not have authored, from showing under their facebook profile.

[1] Westlake E.J.(2008): Facebook: Friend Me if You Facebook. Generation Y and Perfomative surveillance. Page 31

[2] Westlake E.J.(2008): Facebook: Friend Me if You Facebook. Generation Y and Perfomative surveillance. Page 38

[3] Westlake E.J.(2008): Facebook: Friend Me if You Facebook. Generation Y and Perfomative surveillance. Page 32.

[4] Snyder, Carpenter, and Slauson (2007). MySpace.com – A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5 (2). Page5

[5] Snyder, Carpenter, and Slauson (2007). MySpace.com – A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5 (2). Page8

[6] Snyder, Carpenter, and Slauson (2007). MySpace.com – A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5 (2).Page 9

[7] Snyder, Carpenter, and Slauson (2007). MySpace.com – A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5 (2).Page 9.

[8] Snyder, Carpenter, and Slauson (2007). MySpace.com – A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5 (2). page 6.

This page has good diagrams that illustrate the overlap of personal and professional life. Some of my academic advisors and mentors are my friends on facebook too.

[9] Westlake E.J.(2008): Facebook: Friend Me if You Facebook. Generation Y and Perfomative surveillance. Page 25.

This is in reference to Myspace and its popularity among upcoming musicians and artists promoting their talent.

[10] Westlake E.J.(2008): Facebook: Friend Me if You Facebook. Generation Y and Perfomative surveillance. page 25

This is in reference to the concept behind facebook as outlined by its founder, Mark Zuckerberg.

What is social networking?

“The Internet is the world’s largest social network”. [1] This statement clearly defines society in which we live today. With the creation of the internet, social interactions are no longer within its traditional venues such as communication within one’s community, work, home and school. The internet has created new societies in cyber-space for people to interact and communicate. Cyber-society created based upon niche interests.

In the study, MySpace.com – A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory, the authors mentions the Social Contract Theory (SCT). What Snyder, Carpenter and Slauson is trying to convey is that, in order to achieve a harmonious community in cyber-space, there must be roles set forth to be obeyed by one’s participation. These rules and regulations are called the Social Contract Theory. The Social Contract Theory is “the view that persons’ moral and/or political obligations are dependence upon a contract or agreement between them to form society” [2] The SCT can be traced back to the Socrates between 469 – 399 B.C. The SCT application allows humans to rise above the “State of Nature” in which all are equal and no power is needed to force proper behaviors. Rousseau argues that the State of Nature “as one where man can exist in as peaceful manner, nature supplying all that is necessary to sustain a small population.” [3]

Putting personal information online can be very risky and dangerous. The information we post can be used and will be used against us. Many examples has shown, since the start of popular social networks such as MySpace and Facebook, that posting personal information can have deadly consequences to yourself and the people around you. Not only could it ruin your reputation but your future too. Just by browsing these networks one can see how many people are posting pictures and messages regarding underage drinking, drug use and inappropriate sexual behavior. Relating this back to the Social Contract Theory, the social contract that has been encountered while using these sites clearly asserts that “users should be seeking friends and should do no harm with the information.” [1]

Well all I can say is that if only the world was perfect.

[1] Snyder, Johnny, Don Carpenter, and Gayla Jo Slauson. “MySpace.com – A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory”. Department of Business CIS Mesa State College, 2 Jan. 2007. Web. 18 Jan. 2011. .

[2] Friend, C .Social Contract Theory. Retrieved March 12, 2006 from: .

[3] Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. The Social Contract;. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1968. Print.

What is social networking?

Social networking is a way a grouping people together to communicate. Westlake describes Facebook as "reflecting the local 'on ground' life of it's users...Facebook develops technologies that facilitate the spread of information, allowing people to share information online the same way they do in the real world." Westlake brings up a good point in exploring how online social networks, such as Facebook, change they way in which people communicate and relate to each other. Even the "stalk" is now playing a role in social networking. Especially on Facebook, it is very easy to see into other people's business and just by logging on, the newsfeed updates people on such information.

Social networking is most commonly used for people all around different parts of the world or even around America to communicate and connect with a place away from its own. Now, as Westlake describes, social networking is taking a turn as technology is improving. It is changing constantly in ways that were never imagined.

Westlake, E.J. "Friend Me If You Facebook". The Drama Review.52:4, (2008). p. 23. Internet.

Citizen Journalism and Global Narrative

While citizen journalism offers a perspective to the media that holds a sense of trueness and clarity, its effects are varied. It was extremely innovative as well as beneficial for the workings of Google Earth and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum to put truly advanced technology to be used in a rather alternative method. Google Earth was able to utilize its satellite technology to provide information without any distortion. The findings discovered that “more than 3,300 Darfur villages as damaged or completely destroyed, twice the number that were confirmed when Crisis in Darfur launched in 2007.” [1] The satellite images provide a source that simply cannot be disputed. By using “before and after satellite images” it allows “the exact year or a year range when they (villages) were destroyed.” [1] In the video titled “The City of Lost Girls – Mexico”, it provides a chilling look into the abduction, rape and murdering of women in a particular part of Mexico. A reporter travels to the city in Mexico and provides viewers with videos trying to detail the horrific acts. [2] Citizen journalism provides, in many cases, an untold or more in depth story concerning a particular issue. It provides the world with truths that may have previously been unknown but also enlists a pain in learning of the horrors that are provided.

Social networks allow for perspectives from all individuals, all over the world. Anyone can post their thoughts on a particular event and can share their opinions publically. While a global narrative provides fact-based deliverance of the news, the social network dynamic takes this reporting and then provides its own interpretation. Twitter is an excellent example of how this system operates. When individuals “tweet” their thoughts on a particular issue, they can share their post followed by a link to which they are referencing. “Traditional Media” is the basis for the expanding and various other forms of media that is utilized each day. While traditional media itself continues to change, it still remains to be the basis for news reporting.

[1] Mapping Initiatives: Crisis In Darfur. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. 2009. http://www.ushmm.org/maps/projects/darfur/. 20 January, 2011. Internet.

[2] The City of Lost Girls - Mexico. Journeyman Pictures. 14 April, 2008. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgfALPVnAew. 20 January, 2011. Internet.

Social Networking- The ever growing industry

The term social networking wasn’t a well known term about ten years ago. That may have been because one of the top social networking sites wasn’t around ten years ago, and that top social networking site would be Facebook. Facebook was created in the year 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg. Social networking could be defined as a group of people joining a group/community that get together online to share ideas, thoughts, pictures, personal information and much more. Social networking online is very convenient to many people because it is quick and simple. People can get out information to hundreds of people in just a minute. This could be a possible reason why social networking has become such a fad throughout the world. Westlake states in Friend me if You Facebook that “Predominantly Generation Y Facebook community uses Facebook to define the boundaries of normative behavior through unique performances of an online self” (Westlake P23). Facebook does offer a unique set of applications or tools. People can get in touch with anyone around the world, which wasn’t very possible until social networks came along.

Facebook and Twitter are the most well known and most used social networking sites. Though they are very different in the dynamics and layout they still connect people from all around the world. That is the main focus when talking about social networks, the fact that these networks were created to act as a community for people, where they can connect from people halfway across the world or even someone sitting in the next room. People can select whether they are looking for friendship or a dating relationship or even just networking. “Facebook develops technologies that facilitate the spread of information through social networks allowing people to share information online the same way they do in the real world”( Westlake P25). This statement really encompasses what Facebook is about. It is about sharing information amongst people and creating bonds like people would in the real world, when they are face to face.

With Twitter, there is a bit of a different network there. It isn’t as complex as Facebook. Twitter has status updates and you can post pictures but Facebook advertizes more of your profile than Twitter. Twitter is more about telling people where you are and what you are doing, or just random thoughts of the day. Huberman, Romero, and Wu state that “The overall idea of social networks is that they imply that one connects with all members within their “network” (Huberman, Romero, and Wu P2). Though this contradicts with what Twitter actually entails because people are trying to connect with celebrities, who aren’t in their network but most people follow celebrities anyways.

Another difference between Facebook and Twitter would be the friends aspect of them. Huberman, Romero, and Wu state that “we find that Twitter users have a very small number of friends compared to the number of followers and followees they declare. This implies the existence of two different networks: a very dense one made up of followers and followees, and a sparser and simpler network of actual friends” (Huberman, Romero, and Wu P.6). Twitter offers followers and Facebook has friends, it is quiet a difference. Although, it is possible that you could friend request people you don’t know on Facebook but the chances are unlikely, whereas Twitter you follow people that you don’t know at all, like celebrities. Facebook is more personal than Twitter, they both offer social forums and have been successful in the way they both operate. Though this isn’t a post on comparing the two, it is showing the different social networks available to people. These are the two top networks in the social networking industry. Overall, social networking is becoming more popular because people feel the need to constantly be using technology or sharing with people what they are doing. People enjoy going updating their statuses or their profiles, and they are constantly looking for new people to meet and create friendships with. That is why the social networking industry is becoming so large and so successful.


(1) Westlake, E.J. "Facebook: Friend Me If You Facebook. Generation Y and Performative Surveillance." Web. 19 Jan. 2011.

(2) Huberman, Bernardo A., Daniel M. Romero, and Fang Wu. "Social Networks That Matter: Twitter under the Microscope." Web. 19 Jan. 2011

How do social networks "work"?

Technically, social networks are nothing but a series of 0's and 1's on a server farm, probably located in Southern California; but to most, social networks are places created by individuals, sharing what they want, when they want, with who they want. Often times, social networks help friends or family stay in contact and updated on each others lives. Other times, social networks provide an easy way for anyone to meet, stalk or even harass.

People thrive for attention and approval, while maintaining curiosity of others lives. The social networking site, Facebook, allows members to view everything their friends post. This may include where that person is, what they are doing, pictures of last nights drunken escapades,or even who they are doing. In effect, Facebook seems to be a weird spin-off version or enabler of the Slambook. The Slambook was intended to be for questions, answers, and opinions but instead resulted in students writing hateful insults towards one another (Westlake 24-25).

For those looking for approval and rewards, FourSquare may be their social networking poison. Who doesn't want their friends to know what their exact location is? The newer social networking updates seem to be making it easier and easier for stalking, and potentially making it seem normal. An answer given to a survey done by E.J. Westlake included an answer of, "Facebook is the ultimate stalking tool. If I forget someone's name. . . I can look it up. I've used Facebook to get screen names, phone numbers. . . and even to see if a friend was still dating her boyfriend (33)." Though many social networking sites are used for innocent reasons such as those, the networks also act a a liaison between sexual predators/stalkers and innocent potential victims.
It was found on one social networking site, that users who were not even logged in may be looking at other users profiles and information. This posed a potential problem as future employers could now see the users drunken escapades from the night before or view the half naked photos 'accidentally' posted by an ex-boyfriend (Snyder 6-7).


Due to the way social networks "work", they depend on users and the user feedback. If the users do not approve of something, such as the Facebook news feed or privacy of Twitter, those in charge work to change the sites. While Myspace has fallen into the past, Facebook and Twitter are still going strong. These networks now allow users to control the privacy of just about every aspect of the account. This control allowed the user to change the way their information on the social network is viewed, even allowing the user to appear invisible to others until an okay is given.

For those looking to meet new people, stalk new people or interact with others in society, social networking has been a great success. For others looking to maintain contact with friends and family, but also stay protected from those they do not know, there is a way. Social networking has become dangerous in the past, so it has now been altered to meet everyone's needs.



Huberman, Bernardo A., Daniel M. Romero, and Fang Wu. "Social Networks That Matter: Twitter under the Microscope." 2008. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.

Snyder, Johnny/Carpenter, Donald/Slauson, Gayla Jo: MySpace.com. A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5 (2), 2007. p 5-7. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.


Westlake, E.J. "Facebook: Friend Me If You Facebook. Generation Y and Performative Surveillance." p 22-35. 2008. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.

What is Social Networking?

Social networks involve people from all parts of the world. As Facebook has expanded since its original creation, the 500 million active users (Facebook statistics) use the social network source for numerous reasons. Members join groups, poke others, and of course, connect with their friends (Westlake, 28). Huberman, Romero, and Wu explain that the overall idea of social networks is that they imply that one connects with all members within their “network.” However, the irony of this is that one actually interacts with few of the listed people within that network (Huberman, Romero, Wu, 2). E.J. Westlake, author of “Friend me if you Facebook,” explains that social networks cause us to reveal ourselves more than we may feel comfortable to. Westlake says that, “The predominately generation Y Facebook community uses Facebook to define the boundaries of normative behavior through unique performances of an online self” (23). This refers to Michel Foucault’s interpretation of the panoptic model, where people begin to self-regulate themselves because they believe they are being watched. Westlake says that, “The Panopticon is all the more effective not because individuals are surveyed and reported to an authority, but because individuals are punished by others” (36). Social networking, especially Facebook, thrives off of self-regulation and yearning to be socially accepted by one’s Facebook friends.

Since the Westlake’s article was published in 2008, he mentioned that people would ask others, “Do you Facebook?” on college campuses, to see if they could “friend” them. However, nowadays, people already assume that everyone has a Facebook, and if they don’t, it’s a rarity. Social networking means that people can interact in the cyber world in a way that people 10 years ago couldn’t even imagine. Between "Tweeting," "Facebook friending," and "MySpace stalking," social networking makes people closer than ever.

Huberman, Bernardo A., Daniel M. Romero, and Fang Wu. "Social Networks That Matter: Twitter under the Microscope." Web. 19 Jan. 2011. .

"Statistics | Facebook." Welcome to Facebook. Web. 19 Jan. 2011. .

Westlake, E.J. "Facebook: Friend Me If You Facebook. Generation Y and Performative Surveillance." Web. 19 Jan. 2011. .

How Do Social Networks "work"

Love them or hate them, online social networks are one of the most popular ways in which people interact, and one of the most powerful networking tools available today. In their paper "Social Networks That Matter: Twitter Under The Microscope", Bernardo A. Huberman, Daniel M. Romero, and Fang Wu state that a social network is a network "of all the people with whom one shares a social relationship (Huberman, Romero and Wu, Page 2). Taking into account that having a social relationship with someone doesn't necessarily mean constant interaction with them, this is a very accurate, but still very basic idea of what social networks have become.

Facebook is arguably the largest and best known social network in the world today, and has remained so due to its constant innovation and ability to connect people to other people both within their specific community and the world in general. Going beyond the basic communication available with blogs, Facebook added features like "messaging, poking and News Feed" (Westlake, Page 26) to provide a larger array of methods with which people can interact with each other. This innovation provides a way of keeping existing users satisfied while at the same time bringing in new and younger users, thus keeping the network ever growing.

With so many people interacting in so many ways all the time, social networks of today have become more than a simple forum where people can exchange thoughts, evolving into an actual community. Like all physical communities, online social networks require "a set of rules or a social contract" so that order can be maintained (Snyder, Carpenter and Slauson, Page 4). With so many people committed to coexisting peacefully, social networks are able to achieve a certain degree of sustainability, as it is the users themselves who stop the community from descending into chaos and anarchy.

As the defining medium of the 21st century, social networks help people reconnect with old friends, stay connected to current ones, and most of all, interact with billions of people, all without leaving the comfort of their own homes. The innovation of the social networking sites themselves, combined with online codes of conduct and a seemingly endless supply of new users allows sites like Facebook, Myspace and Twitter to constantly evolve and remain current.




Huberman, B. A., Romero, D. M., & Wu, F. (2008, December 5). Social networks that matter: Twitter under the microscope. Social Computing Laboratory, 1-9. Retrieved from http://www.hpl.hp.com/ research/scl/papers/twitter/twitter.pdf

Snyder, J., Carpenter, D., & Slauson, G. J. (2007, January 2). MySpace.com - A social networking site and social contract theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5(2), 1-11. Retrieved from http://isedj.org/5/2/

Westlake, E. J. (2008, Winter). Friend me if you Facebook. The Drama Review, 52(4), 21-40.

How do social networks "work"?

The term “social network” is used in today’s world to describe web sites like Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter. Yet, social networks have been around for thousands of years and can be dated back all the way to Socrates. In current times, web sites like those listed above are ways for people to have social interaction without ever leaving their couch. By joining just one of these sites, a person can stay updated on hundreds of peoples’ lives. For example, if a person is on Facebook, all they have to do is go onto the homepage to see what all of their friends have been doing since the last time they checked. Due to the fact that the current generation is all about getting everything and getting it fast, from fast food to the fastest internet provider, it makes sense that they would have a way to find out how all they’re friends and family are doing with one simple click of a button. This is much different than past generations, but this is most likely because of the advancing technology. “Generation Y people have a desire to connect, to join social networks, and to strengthen social bonds in ways that seem foreign to the more individualistic Boomer and X-er generations” (Westlake 31).
But all in all, social networking works because so many people are interested in these online sites. The fact that everyone has to have a Facebook or Twitter account to be cool is what makes these sites work. Twitter alone “consisted of a total of 309,740 users, who on average posted 255 posts, had 85 followers, and followed 80 other users” (Huberman, Romero, and Wu 3). Yet, Twitter is not the only site that attracts thousands of users. “While the past few months seem to be leveling off for MySpace.com, at its peak in February 2006, almost one in twenty-five Internet users went to MySpace.com” (Snyder, Carpenter, and Slauson 5). These statistics show that many people are on Twitter, which reinforces the idea that social network sites work because people want them to work. If they weren’t popular, they would have fewer users which wouldn’t let them work as well which would make them even more unpopular. The idea of a social networking site is a big circle, whether or not the site works. If it does work, it will continue working and if it doesn’t work, it won’t continue working.

Westlake, E.J. "Friend Me If You Facebook". The Drama Review. 52:4, (2008). p. 21-31. Internet.

Huberman, Bernardo A. Social Networks That Matter: Twitter Under the Microscope. Social Computing Lab, HP Laboratories. (2008). p. 1-8. Internet.

Snyder, Johnny/Carpenter, Donald/Slauson, Gayla Jo: MySpace.com. A Social Networking Site and Social Contract Theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5 (2), 2007. p. 5. Internet.

How do social networks "work"?

A social network is a mechanism for interacting with people (Huberman, 2008. P. 2). Huberman explains that today, with the internet, these social networks have become even more prevalent. Huberman explains that the standard definition of a social network includes the idea that the network is composed of all the people one shares a relationship with. In the age of Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, and the modern social networks, however, this is not necessarily true. Huberman goes on to state that very few people actually interact with a great percentage of their network. Huberman cites a study that showed that Facebook users often have many friends but only message or interact with a select few of the large pool. Likewise, people often keep many phone numbers in their cell phone, however few of these stored numbers are often contacted. In order to define a social network, Huberman studied the social network of Twitter to see how relevant a list of friends is to members of a network. His study concluded that although one may have many declared followers and followees, these people have few “friends” who they direct posts towards (Huberman, 2008. P. 6). In turn Huberman proposed that there are truly two networks, one made up of many followers and followees and much smaller and simpler one made up of actual friends.

In explaining how social networks “work”, Snyder applies the social contract theory to explain how a society or network is built upon defining rules in order to govern itself (Snyder, 2007. P. 4). He explains that the moral obligations of a person create an agreement upon how act in a society, or in this case within a social network. The rules created by this define the users, the method in which the network is used, and the consequences for violating these rules (Snyder, 2007. P. 1).

Westlake explains that social networks act as a bridge to connect isolated users. Additionally, in the case of Facebook, these connections via the internet enhance face to face communication (Westlake, 2008. P. 31). Users look to strengthen social bonds through the social networks.


Huberman, B. A., Romero, D. M., & Wu, F. (2008, December 5). Social networks that matter: Twitter under the microscope. Social Computing Laboratory, 1-9. Retrieved from http://www.hpl.hp.com/ research/scl/papers/twitter/twitter.pdf

Snyder, J., Carpenter, D., & Slauson, G. J. (2007, January 2). MySpace.com - A social networking site and social contract theory. Information Systems Education Journal, 5(2), 1-11. Retrieved from http://isedj.org/5/2/

Westlake, E. J. (2008, Winter). Friend me if you Facebook. The Drama Review, 52(4), 21-40.