Re: [Air-L] Social Media and the UK Riots: ?Twitter Mobs?, ?Facebook Mobs?, ?Blackberry Mobs? and the Structural Violence of Neoliberalism (Christopher J. Richter)
Hello all, I worry that critical approaches might be a knee-jerk reaction to analyzing the impact of technology on the riots in the UK. While that might be warranted in situations more akin to the Arab Spring, where men and women took to the streets for the purpose of political demonstration, the riots in the UK are not in protest. It is not class warfare nor a plea for social justice. There is not an archaic caste system that needs toppled. It is looting and mob mentality. Thinking of this is important when looking at the role of social media and technology and the subsequent criticism of it. It's my opinion that many of the news outlets have focused on social media because it's still fairly recent that such open source technology has been used for macro-level social coordination. Compared to the chronology of social and political conflict, social media is in its neonatal period! It's the new toy... I haven't heard calls for Orwellian surveillance, but I'm also in the United States where such commentary might not make it into the headlines. I know with the 'flash mobs' here there have not been calls for the policing of social media and technology. I feel as though the media and policy makers have done well in identifying social media not as a catalyst or cause but rather a facilitator. Nevertheless, continually pinning the causes of social delinquency on structural oppression can be misguided. Unemployment has not caused nine and ten year olds to take to the streets - what jobs would they have had anyway? Sometimes it's entirely appropriate to call a duck a duck. Matthew Palmer ---------------------------------------------------- Matthew Palmer Lehigh University @TotallyRadGrad www.lehigh.edu/~mfp210/ ----------------------------------------------------
Hi Mattie, all I agree that too much should not be read into the actions of "defective and disqualified consumers" (Bauman, see http://www.social-europe.eu/2011/08/the-london-riots-on-consumerism-coming-h...) but for the sake of objective precision I wish to point out that: - "social media" is not "open source" - there is, in fact, an "archaic caste system" in the UK (whether it needs to be toppled or not depends on how one feels about it, I suppose) Not starting a flamefest, peace! cheers Mathieu On 08/11/11, Mattie Palmer <mfp210@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello all,
I worry that critical approaches might be a knee-jerk reaction to analyzing the impact of technology on the riots in the UK. While that might be warranted in situations more akin to the Arab Spring, where men and women took to the streets for the purpose of political demonstration, the riots in the UK are not in protest. It is not class warfare nor a plea for social justice. There is not an archaic caste system that needs toppled. It is looting and mob mentality.
Thinking of this is important when looking at the role of social media and technology and the subsequent criticism of it. It's my opinion that many of the news outlets have focused on social media because it's still fairly recent that such open source technology has been used for macro-level social coordination. Compared to the chronology of social and political conflict, social media is in its neonatal period! It's the new toy... I haven't heard calls for Orwellian surveillance, but I'm also in the United States where such commentary might not make it into the headlines. I know with the 'flash mobs' here there have not been calls for the policing of social media and technology. I feel as though the media and policy makers have done well in identifying social media not as a catalyst or cause but rather a facilitator.
Nevertheless, continually pinning the causes of social delinquency on structural oppression can be misguided. Unemployment has not caused nine and ten year olds to take to the streets - what jobs would they have had anyway? Sometimes it's entirely appropriate to call a duck a duck.
Matthew Palmer
---------------------------------------------------- Matthew Palmer Lehigh University
@TotallyRadGrad www.lehigh.edu/~mfp210/ ----------------------------------------------------
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-- **** Dr Mathieu O'Neil Adjunct Research Fellow Australian Demographic and Social Research Institute College of Arts and Social Science The Australian National University email: mathieu.oneil[at]anu.edu.au web: http://adsri.anu.edu.au/people/visitors/mathieu.php
Matthew, Christian (and all)- I am completely aligned with you around the misplaced attention on social technologies as the "cause" or even core facilitator to the violence across the UK. As conversations around the policing of technology build momentum in light of the UK, I couldn't help be frustrated by news here in NYC yesterday: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/08/10/2011-08-10_nypd_forms_new_social_media_unit_to_mine_facebook_and_<http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/08/10/2011-08-10_nypd_forms_new_social_media_unit_to_mine_facebook_and_twitter_for_mayhem.html> twitter_for_mayhem.html<http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/08/10/2011-08-10_nypd_forms_new_social_media_unit_to_mine_facebook_and_twitter_for_mayhem.html> I'm conflicted: In principle, I agree that preventive methods (whether it's health or education or crime, etc.) are worth investing in. On the other hand, is a police unit focused on "patrolling" the internet for indications of criminal activity really "worth" it? I'd like to see the projected ROI of that unit in a city like New York that could always use more feet on the street. Perhaps a morning ramble, but it's where my mind has gone on the subject. Cheers, Amy On Thu, Aug 11, 2011 at 8:57 AM, Mattie Palmer <mfp210@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello all,
I worry that critical approaches might be a knee-jerk reaction to analyzing the impact of technology on the riots in the UK. While that might be warranted in situations more akin to the Arab Spring, where men and women took to the streets for the purpose of political demonstration, the riots in the UK are not in protest. It is not class warfare nor a plea for social justice. There is not an archaic caste system that needs toppled. It is looting and mob mentality.
Thinking of this is important when looking at the role of social media and technology and the subsequent criticism of it. It's my opinion that many of the news outlets have focused on social media because it's still fairly recent that such open source technology has been used for macro-level social coordination. Compared to the chronology of social and political conflict, social media is in its neonatal period! It's the new toy... I haven't heard calls for Orwellian surveillance, but I'm also in the United States where such commentary might not make it into the headlines. I know with the 'flash mobs' here there have not been calls for the policing of social media and technology. I feel as though the media and policy makers have done well in identifying social media not as a catalyst or cause but rather a facilitator.
Nevertheless, continually pinning the causes of social delinquency on structural oppression can be misguided. Unemployment has not caused nine and ten year olds to take to the streets - what jobs would they have had anyway? Sometimes it's entirely appropriate to call a duck a duck.
Matthew Palmer
---------------------------------------------------- Matthew Palmer Lehigh University
@TotallyRadGrad www.lehigh.edu/~mfp210/ ----------------------------------------------------
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-- *Amy Sample Ward* http://amysampleward.org | @amyrsward http://socialbysocial.com | @socialbysocial *Membership Director * NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network http://nten.org | @NTENorg
Very interesting conversation, as most of this list. If you allow my modest opinion, coming from somebody who lives in a country that touched the bottom of the sea in 2001, this kind of things can´t be explained only as a matter of delinquency. I liked this article writen by Laurie Penny, in Opendemocracy.net: http://www.opendemocracy.net/ourkingdom/laurie-penny/panic-on-streets-of-lon... Greetings, Alejandro Tortolini Scitech journalist - Teacher Buenos Aires, Argentina 2011/8/11, Amy Sample Ward <amyrsward@gmail.com>:
Matthew, Christian (and all)-
I am completely aligned with you around the misplaced attention on social technologies as the "cause" or even core facilitator to the violence across the UK. As conversations around the policing of technology build momentum in light of the UK, I couldn't help be frustrated by news here in NYC yesterday:
http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/08/10/2011-08-10_nypd_forms_new_social_media_unit_to_mine_facebook_and_<http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/08/10/2011-08-10_nypd_forms_new_social_media_unit_to_mine_facebook_and_twitter_for_mayhem.html> twitter_for_mayhem.html<http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/08/10/2011-08-10_nypd_forms_new_social_media_unit_to_mine_facebook_and_twitter_for_mayhem.html>
I'm conflicted: In principle, I agree that preventive methods (whether it's health or education or crime, etc.) are worth investing in. On the other hand, is a police unit focused on "patrolling" the internet for indications of criminal activity really "worth" it? I'd like to see the projected ROI of that unit in a city like New York that could always use more feet on the street.
Perhaps a morning ramble, but it's where my mind has gone on the subject.
Cheers, Amy
On Thu, Aug 11, 2011 at 8:57 AM, Mattie Palmer <mfp210@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello all,
I worry that critical approaches might be a knee-jerk reaction to analyzing the impact of technology on the riots in the UK. While that might be warranted in situations more akin to the Arab Spring, where men and women took to the streets for the purpose of political demonstration, the riots in the UK are not in protest. It is not class warfare nor a plea for social justice. There is not an archaic caste system that needs toppled. It is looting and mob mentality.
Thinking of this is important when looking at the role of social media and technology and the subsequent criticism of it. It's my opinion that many of the news outlets have focused on social media because it's still fairly recent that such open source technology has been used for macro-level social coordination. Compared to the chronology of social and political conflict, social media is in its neonatal period! It's the new toy... I haven't heard calls for Orwellian surveillance, but I'm also in the United States where such commentary might not make it into the headlines. I know with the 'flash mobs' here there have not been calls for the policing of social media and technology. I feel as though the media and policy makers have done well in identifying social media not as a catalyst or cause but rather a facilitator.
Nevertheless, continually pinning the causes of social delinquency on structural oppression can be misguided. Unemployment has not caused nine and ten year olds to take to the streets - what jobs would they have had anyway? Sometimes it's entirely appropriate to call a duck a duck.
Matthew Palmer
---------------------------------------------------- Matthew Palmer Lehigh University
@TotallyRadGrad www.lehigh.edu/~mfp210/ ----------------------------------------------------
_______________________________________________ The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/
-- *Amy Sample Ward* http://amysampleward.org | @amyrsward http://socialbysocial.com | @socialbysocial
*Membership Director * NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network http://nten.org | @NTENorg _______________________________________________ The Air-L@listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org
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It is looting and mob mentality.
Mattie and others: I don't fundamentally disagree about what this has become, but to me this comes across as akin to saying that the riots in Los Angeles after the Rodney King verdict were merely looting and mob mentality. Can we not agree that there is a context which provides the kindling that eventually leads to the flames of looting mobs? Ten year olds (hopefully) are not concerned about acquiring jobs, but they are old enough to feel angry about structural inequality, even if they lack the experience, scope or vocabulary to understand it as such. I think it's perfectly okay to condemn this sort of destruction while still understanding that sometimes people are not going to wait to form protests, but rather just want to break stuff. This is kind of the definition of disenfranchisement (to whatever extent real or imagined). Again, this is not at all a defense of such actions--I just think that the aura of "mob" and "looting" (even if accurately used here) leads us down an even darker road.
participants (5)
-
Alejandro Tortolini -
Amy Sample Ward -
Kyle Kontour -
Mathieu ONeil -
Mattie Palmer