Alternative Forms of Resistance/Expression

A.How have you personally used social media to resist or express a position that was in contrast to the mainstream norm, locally and globally?

-Ya know, I really don’t tend to use social media to express my position on things. I mean I am more of a person who would express it out loud. For example right now a lot of people hate on Obama and I am standing up for him. It may not be what the majority of the people think but I honestly think that anyone in his position would be struggling and I support him. Other things that I have done by using social media would be something as simple as me expressing on my Facebook status that I did not like a movie that is really liked by everyone. I have pretty strong opinions, but like I said, I don’t really express them using social media.

B. What does it mean to deviate from and/or resist the norm, and how is it typically done?


Well I always say that norms are basically unwritten rules that evolve in every culture.  Each culture has different norms and cultures can be something as big a country and as small are your group of friends.  Typically people who travel to different countries will deviate from the norm just because they don’t necessarily even know the norms.  Other times it might be because they are trying to make a statement and will deviate from the norm to make their point.  I mainly feel like people deviate from/and or resist the norm when they are trying to gain attention and make a statement.


C.How does social media and other online communication tools facilitate the negative or positive deviation from the norm?

Give examples of all (e.g., websites, organizations, etc.).

-There is a website for almost anything these days. You can find something for both positive and negative deviation from the norm.  In my deviant behavior class we had to find a website that was negatively deviant from the norm and I actually found a website that was pro anorexia. It was extremely disturbing and I couldn’t believe that there was actually a website for this. In class the next day people explained how they had found pro petafile websites and just the most bizarre things. One specific website we talked about in class was TheDirty.com; the website that posts pictures unknowingly of people and mean comments are written.  As you know I was on this website and it is extremely demeaning. It definitely goes against the norm for others posting pictures without permission (well, and a lot more). But even PerezHilton’s website goes against the norm because all he does is bash on people and make things up. 

CARE

A.How have you personally used social media to care for yourself and/or others, your own community, your own government, etc.?

B. What does it mean to "care" and how is it done at the local and global level?

C.How does social media and other online communication tools facilitate caring behavior?

Give examples of all (e.g., websites, organizations, etc.).

This is an interesting question to me because I think that people “care” WAY more than they will ever say.  When I use social media (I only use Facebook, Twitter, and Blogger) I really do care about what I am putting up on those pages.  Sure we all say how we really don’t care but hello yes we do.  I care about what all my profile pictures look like, I care that if I see a gross picture of me tagged that I make sure to untag myself.  It is so disgusting and I hate that I am like that but hey I know I am not the only one.  Facebook has become a way for us to so called “stalk” people.  I have caught myself looking at others pictures for over an hour…just critiquing the pictures…how does he look in this one...”oh ew gross” “oh dang he looks good here” etc.  We ALL do it. It is hard to describe how much I really do care because there are so many different instances.  I know that I would care about finding a nasty picture of my friend because I am embarrassed for her but then at the same time that is just me.  I care A LOT, probably more than the average person, who would not even think twice about a gross picture of a friend.  But, I can definitely say that if there is an inappropriate picture of me that I find then that is when I care the most and I usually will call that someone and have them take that picture off.

Caring at the local level is completely different.  Half the time people do not really care.  SIDE NOTE: I am going to try and not go off on a tangent here because this is a topic that I get really upset about…I do not understand why at a local level most people stop caring.  If it isn’t about them or someone they know then it’s like their heart just shrunk to the size of the Grinch (yes there are exceptions but just as a general whole). For example, on my blog I have seen people write some mean things and I just do not understand.  There is a difference between critiquing and being mean. Online communication is the worst, think about Youtube…the things people write on others’ videos is ridiculous! I mean I just do not think people really care.  They think, “oh no one is going to know it was me so why does it matter.” Well buddy if you had made a video how would you feel if someone wrote that, because then it becomes personal again and relates back to the post above and how much that person is going to care about what they did and it is going to hurt because we CARE SO DANG MUCH ABOUT WHAT OTHER PEOPLE THINK! Half of why we are all insecure is because of what other people have done or said.  If we would all just CARE a little more I honestly think the way of life would be so much happier.  It takes that one comment that you remember for the rest of your life and that will impact you forever.  Think about this in reverse…when somebody does CARE and makes that effort to say or do something that shows that they do care IT MEANS THE WORLD.  (I honestly do not know if this is the girl talking in me but it is just how I feel).  In the end…I think people overlook this, they care so much about their Facebook page and their twitters and what not and do not think enough about what they’re doing to others’ Facebook or twitters or Youtubes etc.

(All three of the questions kind of ran into on big blog ^^ )

Rights

A.    How have you personally used social media to exercise your own rights and/or defend the rights of others, locally and globally?

-I have never personally used social media to exercise my own rights.  But I have sometimes used social media to defend the rights of others.  The other day when we were discussing the Westboro Church I made a point to post in on my Facebook to create awareness to the public about this issue. I was not posting this to defend their rights but to create discussion about our rights in general.

B.     What does it mean to exercise your rights, both at home and abroad, and how is it typically done?

To exercise your rights means to utilize your rights. For example, we have the freedom of speech.  In some cases, such as the Westboro Church, we take advantage of these rights.  We have different rights in so many different areas.  It can be as big as what your rights are in another country, to what your rights are when you go down the street into a bad neighborhood.  If I were to go to a third world country where women were not accepted then my rights would be downgraded from what I am used to.  I would probably not even be able to use any rights because there would be no rights to be utilized for woman.  If I were going into a bad neighborhood where I was a minority and was instigating a problem with race and using my freedom of speech this would not be a good idea.  In saying this I feel as though even though we have rights, sometimes we feel like we do not have these rights at the same time; it all depends on where we are and what the situation is as to what is seen as appropriate or not.

C.    How does social media and other online communication tools facilitate the exercising of rights?

Social media and other communication tools are exactly this.  This is all they do.  They use all the rights that are possible; the main one being freedom of speech.  You can find EVERYTHING within the social media/other communication tools. Whether it is appropriate or not; it is out there. I was doing a project for my Deviant Behavior class last semester and it was on pro anorexia and at first I did not think I was going to find any information on it.  Little did I know that the media would provide me with more information than I needed on how to be anorexic.  The next day in class everybody discussed what their topics were and it was very disturbing.  One of the girls even found online communication in dealing with men and children sex. This was a turning point for me.  It made me realize how much stuff is really out there. The social media and other online communication tools seem to almost have taken advantage of exercising their rights.

A.How have you personally used social media to engage in current events, at home and abroad?

-I do not usually use social media to engage in current events. This is really sad because I do not use and technology to keep up with current events.  I know I talked about this in my previous post but it is really sad to see how much I am clueless about.  I think that I am most aware of current events just through talking with friends and being in the classroom (and the occasional day when someone has something actually informative on their Facebook). But, if I am to use some source to catch up on current events, it would definitely be through social media. When I am at home in Arizona with my parents I find myself hardly ever using web based and mobile technologies. I think that it is mainly because I have them to update me on what is going on in the world and they have the news on TV a lot more than I do when I back here in Portland. Plus they get mad at me when I am not spending "family time" so that may also be why too.

C.How does social media and other online communication tools facilitate engagement in current events?

- Social media and other online communication tools facilitate engagement in current events in a much more convenient way. If you are trying to catch up on current events while watching TV then it is always on the TV's time and not yours.  By using websites such as ESPN, CNN, New York Times, etc. you can engage in all current events whenever you want. You can watch shows when you want, look up the scores of sports instead of waiting for them to show up on ESPN; it just makes its much easier for everyone. Something else that I have noticed as well is the fact that many times the news will show more of what is entertaining rather than news that should be reported.  Therefore, by going online you can look at what you want to see and not just what is entertaining to the audience.

Watchdogs

A. A) How have you personally used social media to monitor yourself/others, your own community, your own government, and/or other governments (e.g., Egypt, Iran)?

-I use the social media to monitor a lot of what goes on in my family.  They all live in Canada and it is rare that I ever get to see them or speak to them so having a Facebook is a great way for us to stay in touch and to create a community online as a family.  As far as how much I focus on ideas relating to the global level, I do not use the social media.  If I am to use social media at a global level, I would read little articles here and there that are sent to me, otherwise I do not really engage in this. As sad as this is to say, I am extremely bad at keeping up with anything that is going on in our government, let alone other governments.  But, I do know that I would personally rather use the social media as a way of receiving this type of news.  This is just something that I do not dedicate my time to although it was a new year’s resolution of mine; that did not work.

B.B) What is watchdog behavior and how is it done at the local and global level?

- Watchdog behavior at the local level is much different than watchdog behavior at a global level.  At the local level people see watchdogs as an alarm. People believe that having a dog that can alert the house can be an effective way of staying safe as well.  At this level, the dog does not take on too much responsibility where as at the global level, these watchdogs become more of not just an alarm but rather an effective way for the government to find drugs, find people, etc.  These watchdogs take on a much larger role and become responsible for much more than just alarming a household when there is an intruder.

C) How does social media and other online communication tools facilitate watchdog behavior?      

 -I can honestly say that I have not personally seen anything online in regards to watchdog behavior. In fact, what was just mentioned about watchdogs in class this morning is one of the first times I have ever heard of the topic in a while.  But, I found it interesting that when I went to Google and searched “social media and watchdog behavior” that the first thing that popped up was: Social Media=Society’s Watchdog.  I know that this is going in a completely different direction but the idea behind this was very appealing to me.  We have watchdogs in our houses in order to feel safe.  But, do we really think that the social media is our watchdog?  I do not know how I feel about this yet

Community Building Online

A.What is community building and how is it done at the local and global level? 

      -Community building is when a group of people develop relationships in order to enhance or create/build a community.  At the local level this would be something as small as a neighborhood.  The community building here can possibly start from the board who are in charge or keeping the neighborhood on track with their wants/needs.  Although the community building in a neighborhood may seem easy, there are still problems that arise. For example, every person is different, therefore is up to the type of people who are living in that neighborhood; if it is a young neighborhood the community is going to be different then if it is a neighborhood of young kids, teens, and elders. The same thing occurs when you are dealing with community building at a global level.  If we go from one end of the spectrum to the other, a global community could be something as big as our world government. When community building is done at a global level there are a lot more stakes at hand.  It is no longer a small group of people being affected; it is now a rather large group of people to say the least. The world government and the community they are trying to build is one of the most difficult tasks that our world faces.  There will never be a time in which the world will be at an agreement about everything and unfortunately makes it harder to build a community (where as a small neighborhood can find a way of coming to an agreement)

B.How does social media and other online communication tools facilitate community building?

      -Social media is a big contribution when it comes to building a community.  Much of the online communication that we see is a community.  Last week we learned specifically how much youtube was seen as a community.  Even though it might not have been seen as a community to me; it was definitely seen a place of sanctuary to many. Facebook is the most popular online communication right now and it has done an amazing job at building a community.  Facebook, along with many others, have found a way for people to connect and reconnect with people who, like my mom says, has not seen since elementary school.

C.  How have you personally used social media to build community?

    -I have not specifically created something myself but I know that I use Facebook all the time and am a part of that community.  There are times when I go home over Christmas break and send out a mass email to my whole soccer team and we create a community online by mass emailing everyone in order to stay in touch.  So, for the time being, we do use social media in order to create a little community.

Autonomy, Mastery, & Purpose

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6XAPnuFjJc

I found this video very interesting not only because I thought they presented it well but because it kept my attention.  If someone were to tell me that I was going to be lectured on autonomy, mastery, and purpose I would not be excited, but I did find that this was more than just informing.  I was not familiar with the idea behinds these concepts but I was astonished when I was presented with the findings.