How often do you use social media or for what purpose do you use social media?
These question might sound erratic in today’s scenario but understanding the relativity of the question is yet another part of its research and analysis.
The human society has evolved with the cooperation and network of various evolution process where socialization has played an eminent role. When we talk about socialization then today’s role of social media and internet cannot be ignored. It has radically changed human behavior of who we are highlighting the user perception and preferences easing the socialization process in practice of creating an individual digital identity.
Internet is the network of networks whereas the user behavior is something that keeps changing as per time and need. We have seen the human socialization process evolve from language to culture and now has adopted the internet. To be very specific internet has revolutionized the way we look and feel at others where social media plays a crucial role in the overall cognitive process.
We humans love socializing especially with in the surrounding and communities. It is something that our evolution has pertinently focused and practiced. The normal ways of socialization in today’s world of Internet has adopted various means of social media networks like Facebook, twitter, blogs, google plus, Instagram, pin interest and many more. To be specific these social networking site not only help us to be who we are but at the same time helps us to live our online identity.
But things are changing and with this change social media is also changing, resulting in various concept of revenue generation, popularity and marketing purpose. According to people and objective social media also has variation of its use and objective.
The understating and perception of people and their level of use depends upon how they use technology and how it affects them. Especially in developed nation technology is governed by proper rules and regulations, there is a higher level of knowledge of rights and use of technology but if you compare it with the developing nation the percent of people who use technology understanding their rights is very low. They are marginalized in every aspect of their rights from quality of standard to the very objective of their understanding and knowledge. The gap hugely differentiate a vacuum of creating digital divide where externalities manipulates in creating better opportunities for negative aspects.
For example for a normal user a social media is a way of expression where you share your life and moments but from an advertiser’s point of views, you are a lucrative client with customized attention.
As a normal person you may share your details online without any restriction but for a hacker it’s an opportunity to create his own fraud with your details managing a possible scenario of online identity theft.
We all have our social media networks and have been using and sharing our information in social media. With or without concern we fail to realize the importance of privacy and forget that internet is an open space. Its network of networks where things can be wrongly. It is not just our responsibility in pointing out problems but it is our responsibility take necessary precaution too.
Another example is recently, Mark Zuckerberg thanked faceboook advertisers and said “There are now more than two million active advertisers on Facebook, and we have just two words to say to each one of you: thank you. Our mission is to make the world more open and connected, and an important part of that is helping people connect with businesses. Today, we want to express our thanks to you and all of our advertising partners — 2 million strong and growing every day. We’re going to keep working to serve you better, so you can continue creating jobs and opportunities in your community, and moving the entire world forward.
Social media not only has good aspect but it has various aspect of growing threats of pornography, cyber terrorism and so on. Internet is not just about its use but there is a relative question of how we all make use of it and how we put it in-front of our children and coming generation.
Internet itself is a not bad but in the wrong hands with wrong intention things can go really go bad.
Nydailynews quoted, “Sunderland, a 19-year-old former student at Oregon State University, had been cited by state police after a video of her stripping in the school’s library went viral. She was slapped with a citation from state police on Jan. 27. She faces a fine of up to $6,250 and up to one year in jail.”In yet another interesting case Kendra Sunderland a university student was arrested for using social media in a wrongly. Recently she was charged after recording herself stripping video in a university library that was made viral on various social media networks.
In-fact the social media and the cyber space has become part of our society where it directly affects us but practicing and using technology we have completely forgotten the harsh aspect of technology and how vulnerable we are ?
CBS news quoted, “World governments are turning up the heat on social media companies like Twitter over terrorism, as ISIS continues to recruit new fighters online with their sophisticated digital propaganda operations. They believe the sites can take a bolder stand against ISIS and other groups online. Margaret Brennan reports from the State Department where an international summit tried to tackle violent extremism.”
Likewise over the last year, however, Twitter has suspended a large number of IS accounts. It has suspended nearly 800 suspected accounts since last autumn, but this “may be the tip of the iceberg,” as almost 18,000 accounts “related” to the Islamic State were suspended over the same time period, according to JM Berger, a fellow at the Brookings Institution who tracks Islamists on social media.
The Guardian reported nearly $18m will be spent on shutting down websites and monitoring social media for terrorist propaganda, the attorney general, George Brandis, has announced. We are monitoring social media for the purpose of identifying, and where appropriate, taking down terrorist propaganda just as we monitor social media for the purpose for identifying and taking down paedophilia,” Brandis said. “We must move beyond the notion that some people still have that the internet and social media are a lawless space. They are not.
Blogger has also issued a notice on its website that from March 23, 2015, Blogger will be monitoring publicly share images and video that are sexually explicit or show graphic nudity on Blogger. In a brief notice they have mentioned that in case of Nudity if the content offers a substantial public benefit, for example in artistic, educational, documentary, or scientific contexts, it may considered looking at its objective and use.
Internet is changing and with this change Social media is also changing, to adapt we need to bridge the gaps in between the difference in technology and move forwards with a standardized version of internet.
It is not just our right to voice free and open internet for all but it is our responsibility to make internet safe for all. For this we need to work and spread the message about the use and various core value of internet.
To make internet safe we need to work on the core value of understanding and use of internet.
Though various government are planning to censor and monitor the social media as part of their strategy but I think this problem needs a radical solution. We need to overcome the problem by creating awareness not censorship.
Shreedeep Rayamajhi
