The Impact of Blogging Through The Eyes of a King

     Undoubtedly, social media and online blogging have been a paramount way for people to get their ideas and suggestions across, whether good, bad, or simply inane in all definitions of the word. It has always been fun for me to ponder what would happen if the greats of the pre-online world were exposed to such a powerful and still underrated form of communication. What would have changed if Alexander the Great had been able to blog about all the lands he conquered? What if those he had ruled over could blog back? What if the Declaration of Independence was sent through an online blog post? (Britain would only say nice things to them in the comments section if that were true.) Out of all the potential ideas of what the world's history would be like if such easy global communication was available, one of the more fascinating ideas to me would be if one of the greatest speakers in all of history was able to talk to more people than he ever was able to before.

    Martin Luther King Jr, a voice of civil rights and equality, took the world by storm with his famous "I Have A Dream" speech. Imagine how much faster he could've changed people for the better if such a groundbreaking declaration was posted online for everyone to see? How many more people across America or beyond would have been able to read it, hear it, and better themselves with the new perspective King gave them? This speech online would create a shockwave like no other IF he was even allowed to post it in the first place.

    Here's one of the main reasons why I wanted to talk about this, who's to say that if social media existed in a world filled with racists and oppressors, it wouldn't itself be the same? Nowadays, most of the "main" social media and blogging websites are run by the people on top. Corporations spend their days making algorithms that form profiles of the people who use them to tailor the best possible posts (and advertisements) their way. Since a system like this likely would be no different if it existed back in King's time, American media and blog sites would likely suppress the posts that Martin Luther King Jr would make, much like how the newspapers and other forms of communication were in actuality. That is why I believe that King would still say his famous "I Have A Dream" speech in person as opposed to blogging about it, and then once it took the world by storm, it'd simply be impossible to delete every single repost that people make about his groundbreaking words and ideas.

    While there is a lot more that could be inferred or implied about a world in King's time having access to such powerful social communicative tools, I believe that in the case of Martin Luther King Jr's most famous speech, it would go very similarly to how it did in actuality, just with far quicker and widespread reach. I personally believe that great minds like Martin Luther King Jr were restricted by the limited forms of media that were available during their lives, and with the power of blogging and social media sites, the wise words of these incredibly influential people would only be far more impactful than they already are. Just make sure to not read the comments on these posts because if we think that comments NOW are bad, imagine how toxic it would have been a hundred years ago. It only goes to show just how influential and groundbreaking social media posts and blogging are because if anyone could impact the world with their words, imagine how the King could if he was able to.

Social Media Explorations: What I Learned

 What I Learned About My Peer's Presentations: 

Whistleblowers

- Whistleblowers are when classified government information is brought to the public's attention by someone. This is very important for transparency.

- These brave individuals reveal unethical actions often risking their lives, jobs, and reputations when doing it.

- Even so, the efforts and risks of Whistleblowers improve public safety and increase integrity.

- There have been many examples of highlighting corruption through Whistleblowing, leading to it becoming fixed or changed for the better.

- Whistleblowing has evolved over time as well, becoming more and more online and globalized while keeping its roots in revealing unknown questionable and/or corrupt government information to the public.

- Martin Luther King JR. is a good example, speaking against the treatment of African Americans and facing the government's racism-fueled wrath.

- Another example would be Daniel Ellsberg, who released corrupt government Pentagon papers to the public, causing a public outcry and change for the better. His actions highlighted the importance of individual rights and inspired other whistleblowers to do the same thing.

- The importance of Whistleblowers in society led to the Whistleblower Protection Act along with many other laws and regulations that protect whistleblowers from retaliation from the government.

- Oftentimes, however, this isn't enough, and the risk that Whistleblowers take is still far too much for how important they are to society as a whole.

Looking Into Diffusion - Hoverboards

     Normally I would write about social media, motorized vehicles, cellphones, or something else that is not only prevalent today but an innovation that unlocked completely new avenues for society such as travel and communication across long distances. However, I found that something even more interesting to me was something that I was directly in the line of fire of, unfortunately quite literally, that being the hoverboard. The hoverboard drastically grew in popularity around 2015, ironically during the time that Back to the Future, a movie that featured a fictional floating hoverboard, listed as the time they went to when traveling forward through time. The name of the game with hoverboards was convenience. Unlike other forms of transportation such as bikes, scooters, and cars, hoverboards took the place of walking due to their slower speed, ease of use, and portability. I believe this, combined with Back to the Future, made the perfect opportunity for something that supposedly introduced the "convenience of the future." to the public at a relatively low (ish) cost. While my brothers enjoyed getting and using hoverboards, I preferred my bike, probably because I was scared to fall off of the hoverboard but also because bikes provide good exercise at a faster speed without charge. While bikes were certainly less portable and convenient to ride wherever the benefits to me of a bike overshadowed the benefits of a hoverboard. Well, that and the fact that hoverboards were known for overheating and exploding, likely being the main reason why they aren't nearly as popular or talked about as they were around 2015. Thankfully our hoverboards didn't catch fire or overheat when charged, but it did eventually break while my bike stayed intact and generally better for transportation in general. Of course, there are benefits to hoverboards and some people are better with one than any other, but personally, I believe there is a good reason why hoverboards are a thing of the past. Completely unrelated, but 2015 is almost a decade ago. I don't like to think about that.

Sources:

https://sphweb.bumc.bu.edu/otlt/mph-modules/sb/behavioralchangetheories/behavioralchangetheories4.html

https://cronkitenews.azpbs.org/2016/04/12/from-fad-to-flames-the-rise-and-fall-of-the-hoverboard-industry/#:~:text=In%20December%202015%2C%20every%20major,the%20devices%20anywhere%20on%20campus.

Read This Blog Before It Gets Silenced! It's About Anti-War

    If there is one thing that is similar in both the American Republican and Democratic parties it's the fact that both of those support war. To be honest, I never even really thought about anti-war in a way more than just: "not fighting," and honestly I blame the media for that. If you look at news sites people commonly use, there is practically no trace of ANY strong anti-war articles and viewpoints. This is yet another example of the topic I researched for my second presentation, GateKeeping and Agenda Setting. By limiting and intentionally filtering out anti-war media, news sites can shift the very perception of anti-war in the public due to their influence on what people think about it. That is why it was a surprise that the two sites listed in this prompt expressed such strong opinions on anti-war, ones that I have not seen anywhere else. The first site, for example, went a lot more into the harmful effects of war than other sites that I have seen, describing deaths and the support of the government towards the loss of life. Another topic covered heavily by both of these anti-war sites was the benefit of the government versus the benefit of the people when it comes to war. People don't really benefit too much here, meanwhile the government and the people in power only really seem to acquire the opposite. Regardless of whether I agree with these or not, the fact that such strong opinions are ONLY here when pro-war media is so prevalent in virtually all news sites and platforms. Because of the government's gain from it, it is clear that using gatekeeping and agenda-setting they make sure that other people only see it the way they do.

Sources:

https://www.communicationtheory.org/agenda-setting-theory/

https://www.theamericanconservative.com/

https://www.antiwar.com/

Gatekeeping & Agenda Setting

        Let's say you were one of only three hundred people to have access to a new cutting-edge multiplayer MMO RPG, the best game the world has ever seen. For a few years, you and two hundred and ninety-nine other players enjoyed the virtual world and all its groundbreaking features until access to this game was given to everyone else. Wouldn't you want to keep this stellar experience to yourself and a few other people you know would use it well? Wouldn't you want to control who could have it and limit it to only them? That is the fundamental concept of Gatekeeping, the act of controlling what and what not can be shown. This concept is usually used in the context of social media, such as wanting to block off full access to a specific makeup brand or favorite musical artist, but when it comes to the idea of control and limitation the truest and most prevalent example of Gatekeeping is with the news and media itself. 

          

        You may not realize it, as I surely didn't to the extent I know now, but the very foundation of news media itself is filtering. Filtering in this context means taking various stories/articles and choosing which one is "worthy" of publication. Which one is depressing, which one makes you smile, which one gets your heart racing, and most importantly, which one *says the right things*. While on the surface this seems to have no issue, as not a single media outlet could possibly cover every single piece of information out there, it isn't just using an educated system to decide which ones would be the most worthwhile for people to read, but instead in many cases a way to limit what is shown to only the specific news media's "agenda". Agenda is a word used a lot nowadays, usually defined as a narrative that someone wants people to know and care about, but this definition relating to the context of Gatekeeping has more complexities than previously realized. The Agenda of news media is often the only thing we have. For example, people who regularly use these sites which practice Gatekeeping as they have no other place to go, have no choice but to only read about the articles that say the "right things". 

        Being able to filter what articles and/or stories readers see is one of the most powerful examples of Agenda Setting, the concept of how communications media shape the problems that people worry about from Gatekeeping and filtration, as well as direct these eyes toward any issue they see fit with a specially made "priority system". Perception is the key word here, as Agenda Setting AND Gatekeeping in the context of news media is truly just the formation of perception in the eyes of their readers. From Gatekeeping which media is to be shown, it is easy for sites to create a narrative the public, as well as the government, will almost always find to be just as crucial of a problem as the news sites themselves. It's an issue that can very clearly lead to both corruption and/or false narratives that could have dangerous consequences if left unchecked. That is why it is important to broaden your reach to more than one or two sources of media and information, as you never know when the true extent of gatekeeping will show itself in you.

Evolution of Technology: What I Learned

What I Learned About My Peer's Presentations: 

Internet

The invention of the internet was ignited by a Russian satellite called Sputnik, which made the United States eager to catch up. 

J.C.R. Licklider made a network called the ARPANET Launch, which stands for Advanced Research Projects Agency (NET).

The internet allowed for a level of connection between people all over the globe that was nearly instant, likely being one of if not the most influential pieces of progress towards communication since the written language.

A con to the internet is the cybersecurity threats, one cut to the connecting wires in the ocean could spell doom to the world because of how important the internet is.

Our privacy can also be invaded, we could be cyber-bullied, and it can also serve as a distraction from other more important things.

Even so, there is no doubt that the internet is beyond necessary for a globalized society, and it all was founded on ARPANET.

The Effects of the Death of Privacy

     I knew that social media records and uses our information to target direct specified advertisements towards us before, but the extent of seemingly blatant breaches of privacy is alarming. Unfortunately, there isn't too much to do about it, and most of that involves just limiting the amount of opportunities these corporations have to use your data for their own gain. For me, the issues haven't really impacted me or my family. The worst thing about it is the creepiness of receiving advertisements similar to what you've been talking about. Because of this, I do believe that the government should add a little more moderation to the harmful practices that these corporations do as it is very likely that the worst of it is still hidden to this day. Thankfully, like I stated before, we can protect ourselves through VPNs, shutting down your phone when not in use, and avoiding technology with Wi-Fi whenever you're talking about private information you don't want known.