Blog | 11/18

What kind of social media site or digital platform are you creating.

I would want to create a social media site that is strictly for a specific college, in this case CSUF, in which everyone can discuss and gather any help and extra unknown information from others. This site will allow users to post any questions about either building locations, professor recommendations, or even help with homework problems.  I want this to be a space where all students have a similar idea of anything going on in the platform, since they all will be attending the same college

What will you measure?

This site will measure the student’s name, age (which will be optional), major, graduation year, school email address, and phone number (optional as well). These factors will assist in gathering relevant information listed at top of each student’s page, with the less similar posts and ideas being more in the middle or the bottom. Students will also have the option to list any classes they have taken or are currently enrolled in; this will give other students in those same classes the opportunity to ask questions about the course they are having trouble in.

How will you weight these factors?

One’s major and their name will be the most important factors that will be measured so that others will be able to recognize any classmates they may have and be able to explore those who have similar majors as them. The algorithm will be solemnly based on these two factors as the age and other factors do not have much relevancy to the content people are searching for. For example, the school email address is required just so we can make sure only CSUF students are joining the site and not someone trolling and giving out any wrong information.

What factors will not be measured?

The factors that will not be measured are the students’ ethnicity as this is irrelevant information to any users. This site will be a safe space to just help others and receive any answers or tips on certain subjects or professors, so the race of the students will not be necessary.

How will the model learn or adapt to new information?

This model will adapt to new information by allowing users to give any tips on what can be done to improve any small bugs that are present. This app will also change in time, adapting to what is important and popular at the moment. Overall, any concerns will always be answered, and things will be constantly improved over time.

What biases will be built into the model? How will this change the algorithm’s outcome?

This social media site will not allow any negativity to occur, that way all users feel comfortable to ask any questions they may have. The site will have moderators present 24/7 reviewing any posts or comments that are made and deleting the negative ones before anyone else can see them. If anyone gets caught posting rude or negative stuff, they will be flagged and closely monitored, and potentially be kicked if their negative attitudes and comments continue. Since users must have a CSUF email to join, once they are kicked there is not really a way of getting back in, hopefully making users aware of any consequences.

How will the model live out the (un)ethical practices we have discussed?

This model will live out the unethical practices we have discussed through keeping all information private that the users provide the site with. All terms and conditions will be laid out and easy to read so that users actually acknowledge them, laying out the most important ones in bold. Users will also have the option to permanently delete their account when they no longer want to be part of the platform, this will also delete any posts or comments they have added, entirely wiping their profile from the site.

Blog post #10 | 11/11

Are you cautious on what you put out on the internet?

I have an account with almost every social media platform but am not one to post regularly. I think this comes from just being one who keeps to themselves and is not too into sharing what goes on in my life. I honestly use these social media platforms a lot, but more just to see what others are up to and observe what they are posting and sharing about their own lives. Although, when I do post I am pretty cautious of what is put onto the internet, this most likely comes from being stalked via the internet, so I am very paranoid. If I was to never experience this, I might have been one to post all the time and not take into consideration of the places or locations I am sharing with others, but I definitely double check before I post anything now.

Do you think two-factor identification is a good idea?

When I first set up two-factor identification for school I thought it was the most annoying thing ever and hated it. Now when I think about it, I feel like it was a good idea to implement since our school portals contain so much information about us. I would definitely set this up on other platforms to feel more safe and secure so that there is a lesser chance of someone hacking my accounts. I think other platforms should implement two-factor identification so that people can feel safe when creating accounts and not have to worry about being hacked. Overall, this could help with the security among social media so the platforms can run smoothly.

What type of surveillance are you aware of that is used on social media?

When using social media, I am aware that what is posted can be used against you. These social media platforms technically own the stuff you post on your accounts. This is stated in the terms and conditions that most of us just automatically accept due to the length of them. It is kind of alarming that this happens, which only makes me more cautious of anything I put out onto the internet. There are posts that can get flagged if they go against certain guidelines or if they seem to contain any suspicious activity. This can be helpful to some as it can potentially stop anyone from doing harmful acts, but at the same time it seems like any small joke could become flagged. If someone says a joke and it gets flagged, it can become a way larger deal than it originally was.

Have you ever encountered a time where security measures on social media weren’t enough?

When using social media, one expects to feel secure when making your accounts. I unfortunately went through a time when someone hacked into not only my social media accounts, but into my friend’s and family’s accounts. This was related to the time I was cyber stalked, it made anywhere on the internet feel like an unsafe place. This person was able to get into my accounts using the “forgot my password” feature, and it seemed like it was done effortlessly. It was pretty alarming that at the time these social media accounts did not have the proper security measures in place to help with this problem. Now that this has occurred, I make sure to constantly change my passwords and never have them same, due to paranoia. This is why I believe that extra security provided through the two-factor identification is very helpful.

References

FemTechNet. (n.d.). Locking down your digital identity. Retrieved November 11, 2021, from https://femtechnet.org/csov/.

Parenti, C. (2004). The Soft Cage: Surveillance in America from slavery to the War on Terror. Basic Books.

Power, M. (2010, March 11). How your twitter account could land you in jail. Mother Jones. Retrieved November 11, 2021, from https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2010/03/police-twitter-riots-social-media-activists/.

Blog Post #9 | 11/4

Can an activist be mistaken as a slacktivist?

I do believe that there can often be situations in which an activist is seen as a slacktivist. This can occur if one is displaying activism and it is not a description of how society would define an activist. For example, if one is partaking in a political movement and is not “doing enough” in society’s eyes then they would most likely be considered a slacktivist. Although, in their eyes, they are doing everything they can in their power to help the movement, whether it be spreading the word or signing petitions. This can all just depend on one’s description of the term activist, and the comparison to how they show their support for any political movements they have been involved in.

What role does the internet play in activism?

When it comes to activism, the internet is a very important place to bring awareness. The internet contains many different platforms that can be beneficial to any type of movement. These platforms can be used to spread awareness by posting about different topics or creating petitions to try and bring change. Using the internet for these actions can help provide others with information about topics that they never heard about. Overall, the internet plays a huge role in activism as it can be used as the basis for sharing information among others.

Which form of online activism have you encountered before and what does it consist of?

I have encountered the form of online activism that is known as awareness/ advocacy. This form of online activism is apparent when public awareness is gathered through the use of information relevant to the specific movement or cause. In this type of online activism, the internet is used to uncover new sources to help a cause. This usage consists of using relevant web sites or even partaking in email distribution lists. Also, the information that is found among the internet can be used for organizations or mobilization purposes, leading to more advocacies being done.  

In what ways can hashtags be beneficial and detrimental?

Hashtags are very popular now a days as they tend to boost someone’s appearance on different social media platforms. They can be used to bring awareness to a movement so that the public becomes informed on what is happening. Hashtags can be very powerful as they can often take over some platforms and tend to flood people’s feeds. However, some may use hashtags for their own benefit which tends to be detrimental to the actual cause. People on social media sometimes use trending hashtags to vamp up their views, this takes some of the eyes away from the actual cause and onto this person’s post. When plenty of people do this, it can lead to the posts involving the actual cause no longer being seen when the hashtag is clicked on, resulting in less awareness being spread.

References

Fuchs, C. (2018). Communication Power in the Arab Spring and Occupy Movement. In Social Media: A critical introduction (pp. 83–88). Essay, SAGE.

Lee, L. (2017). Black twitter: A response to bias in mainstream media. Social Sciences, 6(1), 26. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci6010026

Vegh, S. (2013). Classifying Forms of Online Activity. In Cyberactivism: Online activism in theory and Practice. Essay, Routledge.

Blog Post #8 | 10/28

Have you ever been cyber harassed, and how did you approach the problem?

Yes, I have been cyber harassed, and it made me very aware of everything around me. I was being continuously stalked online and it led to the harasser gaining information about me that no one knew about. This type of behavior had me in a very paranoid state all the time, which impacted the way I lived my life. The way I approached this was by filing a police report and I brought in all the evidence I had on this person, proving they were harassing me over the internet. Unfortunately, the police did nothing about this problem and ignored my concern. With these types of situations, it is sad that there is no one to help you feel safe. I had to wait out the problem until it decided to die down, although I wish there was someone to help while it was actually occurring.

What is the difference between trolling and cyber harassment?

Trolling is when someone says or does stuff to someone over the internet just to amuse themselves. These actions are done to get other people mad and annoyed, while the troller is just enjoying themselves thinking it is funny. A troller tends to commit these actions to anyone they encounter over the internet that they decide to pick on, it is often random people. On the other hand, cyber harassment is more on a personal level, and the harasser is doing negative actions towards a specific person. Cyber harassment is when one is harassed over the internet and this can definitely impact their safety. This type of interaction is focused on one person instead of having random online interactions like in trolling.

What are some creative ways to combat trolls and trolling? What role do witnesses play?

Some creative ways to combat trolling is to not feed into what the trolls are saying. If one shows that they are getting annoyed and bothered by the troll’s actions, then they will continue to be a bother. If the troll senses that what they are doing is getting noticed, then they will continue until they are ready to stop. Another way to combat trolling is to report or block the accounts so that they can longer bother you or anyone else. If multiple people also block and report the account, then it might get brought to the attention of the platform and their account may hopefully be revoked. If the platform gets enough notifications about a troll account they may be able to block their account and even try to stop them from making any back up accounts due to their actions. 

What are some problems that can arise due to cyber bullying, cyber harassment, and trolling?

When a person undergoes cyber bullying, cyber harassment, and trolling it can impact their lives very negatively. This type of treatment can lead to a person not feeling comfortable with themselves or anyone around them. These situations can make a person feel like their lives are open to the public and they have no sense of security or safety. It can impact a person’s mental health very heavily and lead to negative thoughts building up due to having no privacy. It can impact a person’s entire life if these actions get out of control, making them drift away from their friends and family if they do not feel like themselves.

References

Bergstrom, K. (2011). “Don’t feed the troll”: Shutting down debate about community expectations on Reddit.com. First Monday. 

Citron, D. K. (2014). Introduction. Hate Crimes in Cyberspace, 1–32. 

Phillips, W. (2015). Defining terms: The origins and evolution of subcultural trolling. This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, 55–87. 

Silman, A. (2016). A Timeline of Leslie Jones's Horrific Online Abuse. The Cut. Retrieved October 27, 2021, https://www.thecut.com/2016/08/a-timeline-of-leslie-joness-horrific-online-abuse.html.

Blog Post #7 | 10/14

Has the internet’s definition of beauty ever impacted your self-esteem?

The internet is a very toxic place for women as it has an unrealistic set of standards. These standards consist of having a nice body in order to be positively seen and acknowledged. These standards have definitely made me feel different about myself as I do not fit the internet’s definition of beauty. This definition of beauty is constantly changing, going from thin bodies to now thick bodies with small waists. This not only has a huge impact on myself, but on plenty of media users around the world. For example, on my Instagram and Tiktok I am seeing plenty of women now getting BBLs in order to fit these beauty standards. These standards often tend to lower my confidence, but I know they are unrealistic, so I try to not let it get to me.

What are “digital beauties” and does this term have an impact on you?

Digital beauties are descriptions of the female body that make up the apex of any current digital aesthetics (O’Riordan, 2006). Some of these descriptions of the female body consist of “babes,” “chicks,” and “nudes” (O’Riordan, 2006). The digital beauties are related back to dated aesthetic links, such as anime, cartoons, and gothic/cyberpunk styles. These links tend to have oversexualized female body images, making this term “digital beauties” another term relating to unrealistic standards. This term has a similar impact on me like the internet’s definition of beauty. Both of these ideas tend to set types of standards that are unreachable for plenty of women. Although, now there are some spaces on the internet tend to be safe spaces that do not include these types of unrealistic standards, making all women feel comfortable.

Have you ever received any unwanted attention based on any of your screennames?

When it comes to choosing my screennames, I never think too deep into what I end up with. But, after reading Daniel’s chapter, I was surprised to see how much thought people put into these names. Some people display these names to portray themselves as someone they are not, or to truly describe themselves. In my situation, one of my screennames was based on my favorite color and displayed that I was female. Due to my screenname displaying my gender, I would get plenty of unwanted attention from males trying to get me to converse with them. This would sometimes get out of hand, to the point where I did not want to play anymore and was considering changing my screenname altogether. This made me realize the huge impact that screennames have on a person and the way they are treated.

What differences are present between our bodies and cyborgs?

According to Haraway, “Our bodies, ourselves; bodies are maps of power and identity.” This describes how our bodies are important and help in defining the power we hold. Also, our bodies are the basis for portraying our identity and how we display ourselves for others to see. On the other hand, cyborgs are not comparable to our bodies, as they do not hold any of the innocence human bodies do. Humans have the opportunity to be responsible for these cyborgs/machines, while cyborgs have no large amounts dominance over us. Even though there is plenty of talk of the future and how the use of cyborgs will be largely incorporated, our bodies still hold dominance over them, resulting in little threat being present. 

References

Daniels, J. (2009). Gender, White Supremacy, and the Internet. Cyber Racism: White Supremacy Online and the New Attack on Civil Rights. Rowman & Littlefield

Haraway, D. (1991). A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century.

O’Riordan, K. (2006). Gender, Technology, and Visual Cyberculture. Critical Cyberculture Studies. New York University Press.

Blog Post #6 | 10/7

With technology being more advanced, does it impact the amount of white supremacy that is displayed in the media?

Now that technology is well advanced, plenty of people have access to it. Before, when there was not much advancement, a white supremacist’s thoughts were not as widely spread. For example, these thoughts could have been easily brought down and not been inserted into a certain newspaper of some kind. Now a days, these thoughts do not have to go through anyone to be displayed, the writer can say anything they like without being given any consequences. This can lead to white supremacy being displayed all throughout the media, and with children being so young on the internet, they do not fully comprehend what is right and wrong about certain topics. This can lead to negative thoughts being believed by children, resulting in more of this negative information being spread.

What is tokenism and how is it used to benefit businesses?

Tokenism is when a small amount of people are used from a group that is underrepresented just to show that a certain group or business displays equality. This practice is used widely by plenty of different businesses. Businesses will gather POC and use them so that people think they are great to their employees or great to work with. They will use this for commercials or even as the main image that represents what their business is about. These businesses think that if they show POC then they will gain recognition for being inclusive, when in reality they are doing it all for show. This is very unfortunate as plenty of these businesses are not about equality, whether it’s towards a certain race or towards women. Tokenism is a way for them to give the appearance that they’re inclusive and overall great, but they still display inequalities behind closed doors.

What is interpellation and how can positive and negative interpellation be displayed?

Interpellation is when a person or a group of people can be assumed to be a certain identity. This can be displayed positively when a person fits the description of something, for example a graduate can be seen as an alumnus of the school. This type of interpellation is positive as it does not display an unnecessary thoughts about the person and only goes off of what is true. These assumptions can be made by others, and also by oneself. On the other hand, negative interpellation is shown when a person is given an identity based off of unequal thoughts. An example of this can be a person who decides to turn around when a police officer yells “Hey you!” (Hunsinger & Senft, 2015). This example displays the unnecessary thought that a certain person is to be called on by police more due to their race.

How can identity tourism be used negatively for someone’s advantage?

Identity tourism occurs when a person takes on a certain persona that does not match who they really are in person. People take advantage of the internet and use it to be someone they are not. For example, white males try to pass as females or even as someone of a different race (Hunsinger & Senft, 2015). In the real world, some of these people that choose a different persona on the internet, have thoughts that downgrade genders and races. But they ironically choose the gender and races that they talk down as long as it does not display who they really are. These choices are used for their own benefit, some even use female personas to engage in online sex scenarios (Hunsinger & Senft, 2015).  Identity tourism can be used for negative interactions online, harming different races and women. 

References

Benjamin, R. (2020). Race after technology abolitionist tools for the New Jim Code. Social Forces.

Daniels, J. (2009). Cyber racism: White supremacy online and the new attack on Civil Rights. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Hunsinger, J., & Senft, T. (2015). The Social Media Handbook. Routledge.

Blog Post #5 | 9/30

Is race seen differently online than it is in the real word?

When it comes to race and cyberspace, it is not seen much differently. In the online community, race matters just as much as it does in real life. This could be due to people bringing what they know and how they see things, into the cyber space community (Kolko et al., 2000). When discussions about race arise in the real world, it helps shape people’s thoughts and helps prepare them for the actions they plan to take on. These thoughts that are made in the real world, are then brought to their online personas, which ultimately takes on the same values and experiences (Kolko et al., 2000). This leads to race being seen the same in the two different settings, due to the influences that are experienced in both.

Have you ever encountered a gaming community that displayed unequal treatment regarding gender?

When I was in middle school, I was really into playing Call of Duty games with my friends. My username at the time mentioned that I was a girl player, which would give me unwanted attention. When I would join a lobby, the male players would always try to degrade my playing skills by saying sexist things. They would say these things to try and make me leave the game so that they could have only guys in their lobby. Not only were these players being rude, but they would also be inappropriate. It would be the same guys that were degrading me with sexist talk, that would be messaging me trying to get me to talk to them. The stereotypes that are present among gaming communities, led to the negative behavior and the experiences that I had to encounter.

Can race be a reason as to why some people feel uncomfortable playing certain games?

The conversations that go on within the gaming community can be toxic and can even display racism and sexism. In the lobbies of some games, people take on racist thoughts as back talk when they become angry. These racist thoughts may lead to some people feeling uncomfortable and not feeling welcome in that type of environment. Also, some games that require the players to move around and walk-through neighborhoods to find prizes, can lead to players not feeling safe. For example, Fickle discusses Pokémon GO and how it has led to some players going to certain extends to gather new Pokémon. This has led to the players becoming unsafe in some neighborhoods due to the stereotypes that are present in the world. This resulted in some people feeling uncomfortable when playing Pokémon GO, as they felt unsafe walking around certain places.

How is voice activated racism displayed within video games?

When it comes to video games, the stereotypic race and gender is a white male. This stereotype is what leads to racism among the people who play video games. Voice activated racism started when games began using the feature of people using microphones so that they could talk to one another and strategize their next move. If a person hears a voice that does not fit the stereotype, they start to say racist slurs to stop them from playing the game with them. This type of racism occurs in all types of games, as long as they use mics. These people display this racism as they are behind a TV screen and assume no one will ever know how they act in the video game community. Not only that, but plenty of people within the community just use these racist slurs without any thought and it unfortunately has been seen as “normal” to them.

References

Fickle, T. (2019). The race card: From gaming technologies to model minorities. New York University Press.

Kolko, B. E., Nakamura, L., & Rodman, G. B. (2000). Race in cyberspace. Routledge.

Ow, J, A. (2003). The Revenge of the Yellowfaced Cyborg Terminator: The Rape of Digital Geishas and the Colonization of Cyber-Coolies in 3D Realms’ Shadow Warrior. New York, Routledge. Print.

TEDxUIllinois. (2011, October 11). 5 types of Online Racism and Why you Should Care | Dr. Lisa Nakamura [Video]. YouTube.

Blog Post #4

Does the algorithm control the choices for redlining certain groups?

The algorithms present when it comes to data within banking systems and real estate do have some type of input on these decisions. Although, it is all up to the people inducing these algorithms to ultimately result in inaccurate choices. For example, studies or surveys used to help with algorithmic data could be done to specifically target Black or Latino people, which leads to them being disadvantaged in plenty of situations. Some of those who make these types of decisions tend to incorporate and promote racism and sexism (Noble, 2018). This ultimately leads to redlining being a practice that is targeting Black and Latino people, even if they do not show any types of financial risk.

How does one’s name have an impact on how they are seen?

A person’s name is a big piece of who they are, and it can be impact their everyday lives. Due to the racial inequalities that still occur today, names are inspected if they don’t fit certain standards. A person’s name could influence the treatment they are given in different scenarios, like in airports or when applying for jobs (Benjamin, 2019). Those who have a “plain” name are actually the set norms for how names are measured in society (Benjamin, 2019). Having a name that meets the norms can lead to one having less problems in different situations. Some of these names can lead to one being unmarked by race, decreasing the racial thoughts that are normally brought upon others.

In what ways does intersectionality display social injustice within society?

Intersectionality is the concept that the social categories are connected and often overlap. The social categories, race, class, and gender, have been known to overlap in certain situations, leading to a system of discrimination and disadvantage to different groups. In times when this concept is displayed, the race and gender of a person could both be targeted, resulting in the social injustice. This type of double discrimination could be present even if race and gender inequalities are both acknowledged. For example, jobs may be hiring women and people of color, but it becomes a problem if they are not hiring people of color that are women (Crenshaw, 2016). This type of scenario is when intersectionality is seen, leading to social injustices.

How can technology today be compared to the digital reproduction in the past?

When technology was slowly making its way into black communities, it greatly benefited them in several ways. It all started with the Black Press, in which they shared relevant information going on and wanted to gain attention on important things happening at the time (Everett, 2002). This type of usage relates to how technology today can also be used for the greater good. When things go on in the community, we use the internet to spread awareness and gain ways to help solve the problem. This platform is used in similar ways to the upcoming digital reproduction that was used in the past.

References

Everett, A. (2002). The Revolution Will Be Digitized. Duke University Press.

Benjamin, R. (2019). Race After Technology.

Noble, S. (2018). Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism.

NAIS. (2018, June 22). Kimberlé Crenshaw: What is Intersectionality? [Video] YouTube.

TED. (2016, December 7). The Urgency of Intersectionality | Kimberlé Crenshaw [Video]. YouTube.

Blog Post #3

What are the things that can be done to go beyond the idea of identity tourism?

Identity tourism is done when someone changes their identity on an online platform. (Daniels, 2009). These identity changes are usually taken from people of another gender or race (Daniels, 2009). People undergo these types of changes when they are not comfortable with how they portray themselves and want to be seen as who they really are. Although, there are other ways that could assist in these changes instead of immediately turning to identity tourism. One could use the internet like a resource in finding others that are going through similar feelings and situations and gather intel and share ideas. They could find online spaces where they feel the most comfortable and where their feelings and identifies are supported (Daniels, 2009).

What differences are present among the everyday lives of minorities regarding surveillance?

Minorities are often flagged for things that occur in everyone’s lives, not just theirs. These things consist of verification of their insurance companies just due to their race (Eubanks, 2019). This is even apparent within schools; minority households are often chosen for verification with FAFSA related material with no appropriate reasoning. When it comes to the neighborhood, they are extremely watched, with digital security being all around just picking up on their every move. There always tends to be way more police patrolling as well, due to the stereotypes that are present among society. This type of extreme surveillance is unnecessary, with embedded devices also being present among minority social media interactions (Eubank, 2019).

Should technology, like facial recognition, specifically be used to make arrests?

Facial recognition definitely should not hold all the power when it comes to making arrests. Technology is constantly changing, with new improvements occurring every day, meaning things like facial recognition are not always accurate. The use of this specific technology could be used as an aid in investigations but should never be the leading point. Facial recognition can result in false accusations due to the technology not being all the way there to always identify a person accurately. There have been three people to be falsely arrested based on the facial recognition match not being accurate (Hill, 2020). All three of these falsely arrested people have been black men, which just shows how the technology is not made to support people of color.

Do algorithms produce unbiased outcomes?

Algorithms do not produce unbiased outcomes, instead the outcomes are definitely racially biased. Algorithms are often used in predicaments when people of color do not have the proper access to certain resources, which would obviously give them a disadvantage. An example of this is through the algorithm on who needs more health care. With people of color not having the same access to health care like whites, they are already disadvantaged in this scenario (Brown, 2020). Since more whites are using health care, they will automatically be seen more in the algorithm, resulting in that race being deemed as the ones to need more healthcare. There are also algorithms used to specifically target people of color. These algorithms tend to focus on stereotypical things like gun violence and crime consisting of people of color.

References

Brown, N. (2020). Race and Technology. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8uiAjigKy8  

Daniels, J. (2009). Rethinking Cyberfeminism(s): Race, gender, and embodiment. Women's Studies Quarterly, 37(1-2), 101–124.

Eubanks, V. (2019). In Automating Inequality: How high-tech tools profile, police, and punish the poor.

Hill, K. 2020. Another arrest, and jail time, due to a bad facial recognition match. The New York Times.

Blog Post #2

Does the media have an influence on what the public believes?

Nowadays, there are plenty of different news outlets that are shown at every time of each day. Due to the high volume of news channels being aired, they tend to give out information that is either false or heavily biased. These biased news reporting have a great influence on society and what they believe is to be true or false. News reporters even have the capability to only show the news they want the public to see and disregard the other pieces of the story (Gonzalez & Torres, 2013). Within the public, people may only be able to access the news at certain times, leaving them to only watch a specific channel. This specific news channel could be spitting out biased reportings that are not entirely true, leaving these people with misconceptions on certain topics. The impact that these news outlets have on the public can change their whole view on topics based on false information reported.  

What type of weight does social media hold within the lives of society?

Social media is a huge deal today, with almost every person having some type of connection to it. Different types of social media have different influences on people, depending on the site itself. There are social media sites available that will make people feel comfortable, and others that can lower one’s confidence. These social media platforms are meant to bring communities together and take part in communication (Fuchs, 2014). Although this may be true, it does not necessarily take place in a positive way. Using social media can lead to a person feeling completely left out, whether it’s because they don’t have the designer things that are flashed among people’s posts or because they don’t have a sports car. These types of platforms that are supposed to encourage positive communication, can carry a heavy negative weight on how some people within society portray themselves.

Does social media play a role in society’s successes?

Social media has a huge influence on people’s lives, whether it be their social lives with friends, or professional lives dealing with work. When it comes to social media and one’s social live, it can act as a positive platform to communicate with friends and family. It can also lead to positive opportunities for one’s professional life, resulting in collaborations and overall success. Although, some people who hold more power over social media definitely have more access to opportunities to lead them to more success in life. An example of this is how actors from news outlets have more power than a small political blogger (Fuchs, 2014). Having this greater power from social media can give them an advantage to greater things, meaning social media helps them succeed.

Is there equality among those who output information on social media?

Social media provides a platform to those who wish to share information about certain topics. Although, the information within social media can cause bias against races, resulting in their opinions not being heard. Social media provides plenty of people with opportunities for jobs consisting of writing, but people of color unfortunately do not have equal access to them (Gonzalez & Torres, 2013). The stereotypes present among these platforms aid in the bias opinions held by people in society. There is not equality among social media, and this is due to the false and bias reportings that are given by the media, specifically news channels. These new channels tend to focus more on personal opinions, rather than giving out factual statements of things occurring within society.  

References

Fuchs, C. (2014). Social Media: A critical introduction. Sage Publications.

Gonzalez, J., & Torres, J. (2013). News for all the People: The epic story of race and the American media.

Blog Post #1

I time when technology did not live up to its promises was just this past Monday on the first day of Fall semester classes. I have one class on campus and the rest online, so I need to do my classes requiring zoom some place on campus since my in person class starts shorty after. I had finally found a spot in the shade so that I could attend class in a cool area and avoid having an annoying glare on my computer screen, which makes it very hard to see. I was ready to join my 11:30 AM class through zoom when suddenly zoom logged me out and did not let me log back in. I tried to log into my zoom account plenty of times, but was given a message to contact my IT administrator. I had to quickly email my professor, who I have not even got the chance to meet yet, that I was currently not in his class due to technical issues, not because I didn't want to be! I had to call the IT department on campus to try and help me log into my zoom account and they were quite helpful, although there was a miscommunication at first as they thought I was unable to log into my CSUF portal, not my zoom account. I was so excited that I was finally able to join class, but of course something else had to go wrong and now the internet connection was unstable. Every time my professor would talk it would glitch out and I couldn’t even hear a whole sentence without the audio and video breaking up. I unfortunately missed all the student introductions and some discussions, but made sure to go over things on my own. For my next class, I made sure to double check that my zoom stayed logged in and to find a better spot with better internet connection! The rest of my day went smoothly, although it did start off pretty rocky.