Over the past few decades our generation has witnessed a communication revolution no generation has ever witnessed before. The Internet was fully commercialized in the U.S. by mid-1990s and instant communication including the World Wide Web, email, and instant messaging have all played part of an enormous impact on media, commerce, and politics during that time and up until now. U.S. scholar and activist Robert McChesney has spent the past twenty years studying and documenting the effects of this Internet revolution and its relationship with capitalism and democracy. In his 2013 work “Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism is Turning the Internet Against Democracy,” McChesney addresses the relationship between the economic power and the digital world exposing how democracy is undermined by corporate capitalism’s control of the communications industry.
In general, McChesney’s book is an
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I agree with McChesney on this because, the way our economy works has allowed few large Corporations to have full control over the Internet while earning huge profits. In return they provide their consumers with less service and less information that should be essential in a democratic society. McChesney explains how the internet went from being non-commercial to its current commercially profitable source for few major companies. I have always had the conception that Facebook’s main goal is to “connect the world” via its large social media reach, but I did not really think of why Facebook is the number one social media website or why it is able to be that powerful. It is because Facebook and other large companies like Google use sophisticated methods to collect personal data from every search or like or comment and then sell it to advertisers resulting in enormous profits. This raises the issue of privacy in the digital
Using the informal tone he enhances his argument by providing several thought-provoking statements that allow the reader to see the logic in the article, “Social media is designed for the information shared on it to be searched, and shared- and mined for profit… When considering what to share via social media, don 't think business vs. personal. Think public vs. private. And if something is truly private, do not share it on social media out of a misplaced faith in the expectation of privacy” (134). The reader should agree with Edmond that when posting or being a part of the social media bandwagon, you’re life and decisions will be up for display. Moreover, the business vs. personal and public vs. private point is accurate and logical, because evidently if you post something on any social media outlet you should expect that anyone and everyone can see it, regardless of your privacy settings. Edmond highlights that Facebook along with other social networking sites change their privacy settings whenever they please without
“The standards of what we want to keep private and what we make public are constantly evolving. Over the course of Western history, we’ve developed a desire for more privacy, quite possibly as a status symbol…”(Singer) Technological change leads to new abuses, creating new challenges to security, but society adapts to those challenges. To meet the innate need for privacy, we learn what to reveal and where, and how to keep secret what we don't want to disclose. “Whether Facebook and similar sites are reflecting a change in social norms about privacy or are actually driving that change, that half a billion people are now on Facebook suggests that people believe the benefits of connecting with others, sharing information, networking, self-promoting, flirting, and bragging outweigh breaches of privacy that accompany such behaviours,”(Singer) This is obvious by the continuous and unceasing use of social media platforms, but what needs to be considered is that this information is being provided willingly. “More difficult questions arise when the loss of privacy is not in any sense a choice.”(Singer) When the choice to be anonymous it taken away through social media, the person loses the ability to keep their personal information
However, books and newspapers are not our sole source of the written word. Online blogs, articles, and newsletters now exist. Television and books have merged into one: the Internet. Revolutions, riots, and rebellions don’t just happen in our living rooms now, they happen on the go with us. On the subway, when we’re waiting in line at Subway, at our friend’s house as he talks about how he’s “way into subs.”
In conclusion, Carr and Gladwell’s essays have proven that the internet positive effects are outweighed by its negative effects. Carr has found he is unable to finish a full text anymore or concentrate. He thinks that the internet has taken our natural intelligence and turned it into artificial intelligence. Gladwell discusses how nowadays, social activism doesn’t have the same risk or impact as former revolutions such as the Civil Rights Movement. The internet is mostly based on weak ties based among people who do not truly know each other and would not risk their lives for their
Howard, P. N., & Hussain, M. M. (2011). The role of digital media. Journal of Democracy, 22(3), 35-
Facebook : Every single day we read the news ,and think that Facebook might be antiprivacy. It is also observed that people often think that social networking sites offer complicated privacy settings. The CEO...
This is another issue because the customers did not know what companies have their information and who they are selling it to. Furthermore, Facebook was able to access personal information such as locations and phone numbers of family members and even their doctors. On the Facebook brand it will have an impact because it would cause people to deactivate their account as well as leave negative reviews because of what they did. In addition, it will cause people to no longer trust Facebook or given them their personal information. This situation would not cause me to delete my Facebook account. This is because Facebook is not the only application doing this. Twitter as well as Google are doing similar things in terms of tracking location and keep track of your history and private information. If I were to delete Facebook for the privacy issues, I would have to do the same for my many other accounts and in this present time that it simply impossible when you want to keep up with current events. In addition, when we signed the terms and conditions we sign away our rights to privacy. In this current time, no one has a right to privacy anymore, therefore the deactivation of my Facebook account will not make a difference to all the other information that is already
As this critical juncture begins to take place, there has been much debate between scholars as to whether we should be enthusiastic or wary of these new changes. In Digital Disconnect and in his lectures, McChesney observes both views in an attempt to advance the discussion. On one side, the celebrants are embracing the Internet as a medium that will change society for the better. In Digital Disconnect, McChesney says, “In sum, the celebrants reaffirm one of the most important original arguments from the 1990s, that the Internet will be a force for democracy and good worldwide, ending monopolies of information and centralized control over communication” (McChesney 8). In my opinion, this celebrant view should only be regarded as a best-case scenario because of the unexpected obstacles for society that can...
Social media companies have complete control a their users information and can do what they want with it. Now if those companies went spreading the information, no one would use their sites but they can make changes to privacy setting that make it easier for anyone to view information of other users. For example, Facebook has privacy settings so your information is not out for public viewing, but a while back they changed the default privacy setting to make all your information viewable to the public unless you changed it. There was an uproar and everyone felt they were trying to be sneaky about it because they did not give any notice when they did it, but Facebook claimed they were not trying to do anything fallacious. Social media companies have to be careful when doing anything with privacy settings because people get extremely defensive regarding their information. There is also a level of comfort that comes with age. The older generations have no trust when it comes to putting their information online. Most feel as if they are being tricked in some way. But the generation kids are growing up in now, all their trust is put in the internet. Kids and young adults will put all their information online because that is how the world functions. In today’s world, if you are not putting all your information online and using your phone and laptop to get everything done, you are inefficient. And this
As case and point, “the impact of the Internet is far greater than any other communicative tool in the history of mass communications” (Elliot, 2008, para. 1). With an expansive, yet extremely convenient means to electronically join people through business, relationships, education and more, Sociology assumes the ...
The 21st century has brought a lot of modern ideas, innovations, and technology. One of these is social media. The invention of Facebook has completely changed the way we communicate with one another. Instant messaging, photo sharing, and joining online groups have created a way for families and friends to connect. Some argue that Facebook is the greatest invention however, while it is seemingly harmless, Facebook has created an invasion of privacy. The accessibility of Facebook and its widespread use has created privacy problems for users, teens, and interviewees by allowing easy control to viewers.
In Betty White’s opening monologue to Saturday Night Live, she said, “I didn’t know what Facebook was, and now that I do know what it is, I have to say, it sounds like a huge waste of time. I would never say the people on it are losers, but that’s only because I’m polite.” Originally intended for the use of students at Harvard University in 2004, Facebook grew exponentially to be an online phenomenon in the years following. In 2006, it became accessible to anyone and everyone with internet connection. Aside from the advantages that give the site its popularity, creating a profile comes with a number of significant disadvantages inherit to online social networks. What do more than 500 million active users use their Facebook for? Communicating with long distance friends and spreading awareness of causes are common responses. Unfortunately, Facebook has it flaws, from limiting the privacy of relationships to creating a form of almost unmanageable bullying, making one reconsider their involvement and think, “do I really want my Facebook account?”
... led to a diversification of the people who create and maintain them. This can be anyone. Putting personal information into the hands of a stranger is risky outside of the Internet, but even more so online. The ease and speed of the mobility of information means no information is safe on Facebook. Anyone who can see it can copy, save, or redistribute the information at will. A broad and deep aggregate source of information makes search and retrieval of anything posted on Facebook quick and easy. If somebody wants information about you they know how and where to look. Finally, this information can be passed along and analyzed in order to draw conclusions about you and your lifestyle. These can be stereotypical and false. Facebook and other social media sites, and more broadly information technology in general has greatly impacted our lives and our right to privacy.
Social Media sites such as Facebook, today have made precautions regarding privacy on the web. These settings to help keep the users privacy in check. Even though they settings on sites have gotten more intense, can theses protection possibly cause more problems? According to “Mark Zuckerberg’s Theory of privacy” the website was created with the intention to create “a more open and connected world.” There are advantages to having a more connected word there are also some draw backs. Even though social media has created faster and more advanced way to get the word out, and be aware of the new world around its users, it has also created a world with little privacy. This is because more and more people willing to share their information online, in today’s world that revolves around technology.
Surveying the Digital Future: How the PC and Internet are changing the world. (1999, June). Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Center for Communication Policy.