The second 'life'

The second life, a world of money, sex, gambling and retail- it’s no different to the real world, but then is that what were looking for? What is the real world anymore? It seems what was once a parallel of real and ‘unreal’ is slowly overlapping. It wont be long before were lost in a paradigm shift and unsure of where we belong.

In the beginning I thought the attraction was one of self consciousness; someone’s ability to morph themselves into an alias that replicated a person they wished they were. They take the form of an avatar and create friendships and have sex via this virtual world, to compensate for their lack of, within the real world. Yet after some very INTERETSING research I found there is a whole other side to this world, that sees advertising boom, companies marketing and even a currency that can be converted into US dollars (ABC net, 2012).

Businesses use the site to not only promote their products but also sell. American apparel have stores where people can buy shoes for their avatars, Canadian mobile teller Telus sell mobiles. This is done so for market research, trend spotting and to generate feedback, before a product is released worldwide (Spicoli 2006). As Rheingold discusses; businesses can benefit from sharing services and ideas in a virtual world, and the second life provides this outlet. Finally I am beginning to see some productivity to ‘the second life’, rather than just a space for people to hide behind an avatar identity.

Through pure amazement that the ‘second life’ even existed I decided to create my own sim for a mini-experiment. As any keen Gen-Y-ian would do, I delved myself even further into the social media world:

 

Meet my avatar, Tara31 (note: i do not have blue eyes, or blonde hair, but I thought she looked prettier that way)

In the beginning I found it bizarre, as I was even able to navigate my avatar around using the keyboard. The further I progressed through the introductory pages the more the avatar was beginning to feel apart of me- I didn’t like it.

Then another avatar approached me and I had my first conversation; it was brief, they complimented me on my hair and we went our separate ways- I was flattered.

A few days passed and I idled my way through the second life, having conversations and visiting stores (window shopping of course). But there was one aspect of this ‘life’ that intrigued me- sex! It was beyond me that it was possible, yet it was so prevalent via the site and I found myself (my avatar) being asked for sex daily (I did not partake)! According to research in the month of December avatars had sex 680,000 times a day (Clevvergames 2012) CRAZY!

As my week on the second life came to an end, I found myself attached to my avatar, and I could also see how this site could take over and consume a person- I destroyed my avatar right away.  Theorist Baudrillard emphasizes this type of hyperreality can disconnect us from real emotions and It scared me how you could create your ideal world in cyberspace, and that people were dabbling financially within it. By the end of the week I was emotionally attached, yet to what? And to whom? This hyperreality engulfed me and I found myself distancing myself from the world around me. As a society we are already so caught up in social media such as Facebook and Twitter, but this was beyond anything I had ever experienced, and if I want to live my own life, it is better that I steer clear of the ‘second’.

Clevvergames (2012) The Sims have more Sex then You. [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlBkhZgaGNU [Accessed: 28 January 2013].

ABC net: Four Corners (2012) You Only Live Twice. [video online] Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/special_eds/20070319/default_full.htm [Accessed: 28 January 2013].

Spicoli, S. (2006) Introduction to the Second Life (Historical View). [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b72CvvMuD6Q [Accessed: 28 January 2013].

HERO/ TERRORIST- sense the irony

“Hero to untold millions, public enemy #1 to the most powerful government in the world.” (ABC 2011) this is describing a man named Julian Assange. I like this Assange character, I may have only met him today (figuratively, of course) but he had me interested from the get-go, despite his creepy demeanor.

He is the leader of the organisation/ website Wikileaks, whose aim is to expose government scandals and share information to the public (Wikileaks 2010). He is described as a whistleblower, activist, terrorist and hacktivist but what about inspirational, courageous, hero or just plain crazy. Lets look at this more in depth:

• ·      A whistleblower: an informant who exposes wrongdoing within an organization in the hope of stopping it.
• ·      An Activist: advocating or engaged in activism
• ·      A Terrorist: a person who uses terrorism in the pursuit of political aims
• ·      A Hacktivist: the use of computers and computer networks as a means of protest to promote political ends.

This is how I see it; he goes about his work by exposing wrongdoing (whistle-blowing), acting out against government enterprises in hope of making a change (activist), and he does all of this through the use of computer and computer networks, as a means to protest (hacktivist/ terrorist). Yet is it strange that I still find myself in awe of him. I think, as the ‘little guy’, I cannot help but feel that this courageous man is doing his bit for community and ensuring as a public, we are AWARE!

Digital activism is at the heart of Wikileaks, Assange and his team utilize technology outlets to share information to widespread audiences and a fast rate. Pertinently speaking, Assange would be a threat to the government with or without social media platforms. There would be numerous networks or radio stations ready to PAY money for the information Assange holds. While one may speculate that Wikileaks is reducing government corruption through the activist website, who’s to say the government are not just becoming more careful where they ‘leave’ their information?

Although this was not the case after a recent government scandal; Wikileaks came into the spot light after the ‘whistle-blower’ organisation posted 391, 832 classified Iraq war documents on its website (Greenberg 2010). With these, came the video of the ‘collateral murder’, where you watch US soldiers gun down unarmed Iroquoian men and a truck holding two children (ABC 2011). This video caused great worry for government bodies and the public was demanding answers. This is Assange’s goal exactly; expose and bring power to the people.

If information such as this continues to be exposed due to this website and people continue to support Wikileaks, the government should be worried. Wikileaks relies on the power of the people; if it falls another company WILL begin. Forbes magazine states in relation to Wikileaks future,  “corruption institutes may come and go and may stop an individual, but they cannot stop us all” (Greenberg, 2010).

HERE, HERE!

ABC.net.au (2011) The Forgotten Man. [video online] Available at: http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/special_eds/20110214/leaks/default.htm [Accessed: 21 January 2013].

Greenberg, A. (2010) The Future of Wikileaks. Forbes, [online] 22 November. Available at: http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/1122/focus-andy-greenberg-wikileaks-classified-social-remix.html [Accessed: 21 January 2013].

News.com.au (2012) Julian Assange. [image online] Available at: http://www.news.com.au/technology/julian-assange-fate-could-be-revealed-on-twitter/story-e6frfro0-1226263858599 [Accessed: 21 January 2013].

Wikileaks.org (2010) About. [online] Available at: http://wikileaks.org/About.html [Accessed: 23 Jan 2013].

Politicians and Social Media

POLITICIANS HAVE LOST THEIR WAY: Naïve no more!

The world of politics is a foreign place to me. The way I see it, I like how things are going in my life, so the government must be doing a good job. Yes, this is naïve, a little controversial, and also quite sad or even self-centered. But the rule of politics is, that each individual has a say; and I say… (Stare blankly at computer)

As I stare I ask myself my self over and over “what do I say?” I was stumped. But that was nothing a little research couldn’t inspire.

I begin looking at Obama, his accomplishment in reaching a far wider and younger demographic during his campaign was commendable. Through social media tools and meme’s such as ‘Obama girl’ (obamagirl, 2013) his campaign skyrocketed into a victorious success. The further I researched the more prevalent I saw social media becoming an active part of campaigning for politicians with  “54% of adults used the internet for political purposes in the last cycle”(pewinternet.org, 2011).

But more interestingly I could not help but notice the pattern of politicians attempting to entertain their audiences. Between all the promises and future aspirations, politicians were increasingly attempting to win their audiences through humor and entertainment. They began personalizing and proliferating themselves, rather than traditionally giving speeches and making appearances, these politicians were creating connections and providing entertainment. An example is Julia Gillard, on an interview on the Kyle and Jackie O show on 2dayfm (NewsOnABC, 2010). Gillard discuses her campaign “See the real Julia Gillard”, that attempts to portray a lady of the people, incorporating humor and a casual essence to her being. Her technique is to entertain her audience and illustrate herself as an everyday citizen, in turn attracting a younger audience and downplaying her hegemonic power that some may find intimidating. Even Kevin Rudd who lost to Gillard, has an active Facebook page that he continues to proliferate himself on. His latest status said, “Feel like some Boxing Day shopping? A Ruddy Future T-shirt will satisfy your craving” (Facebook) I cannot help but laugh at his enthusiasm, I’m sure his made a big profit from those T-shirts! (If you want to see more follow this link, they come in many sizes and colours):

https://kruddtshirt.myshopify.com/

On a serious now; it is examples like these that illustrate the shifting attitudes of politicians toward their image to the public. Through all the entertainment though, have politicians lost their credibility? While some say ‘yes’ others say ‘who cares’ but figures show there has been a rise in political interest since the utilization of social media (Huckfeldt & Sprague 1995). Citizens now have the ability to connect personally with politicians giving them the opportunity to share their opinions and support their causes. Watch the video below for a further insight:

This video touches upon Rheingolds theory of a virtual community, and how citizens can amalgamate together to voice their opinions and be heard by like-minded people. It discusses the benefits of withholding a strong public image by sharing ideas and connecting with audiences.

As technology progresses, politicians will continue to objectify themselves to becoming this comical, yet professional, casual, yet serious, everyday citizen, yet king of the people. So finally here is my opinion, politicians are loosing their credibility, while they are successfully reaching wider audiences they continue to blind sight the community from the ‘real’ government by painting a picture of your average Joe with all the credentials to run a country. While I commend them on their efforts and enthusiasm, at the end of the day I want someone who is knowledgeable and trust-worthy, not some red head that likes the Bulldogs and taking her dogs for walks in the mornings

…Just saying

Facebook (n.d.) Kevin Rudd and Labor. [online] Available at: http://www.facebook.com/KevinRuddMP [Accessed: 14 Jan 2013].

Huckfeldt, R. and Sprague, J. (1995) Citizens, Politics and Social Communications. [e-book] New York: Cambridge University Press. p.81-95. Available through: Google Scholar http://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=xdAB_0-c0ZcC&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=politicians+and+social+media&ots=uOqUzEwZR4&sig=nXVXvPnLjz3VD4J_b1_P7EhrQPs#v=onepage&q=politicians%20and%20social%20media&f=false [Accessed: 14 Jan 2013].

NewsonABC (2010) New Julia meets Kyle and Jackie O. [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E99e4IOwIXo [Accessed: 12 January 2013].

Obamagirl.com (2013) Obama Girl. [online] Available at: http://obamagirl.com/ [Accessed: 14 Jan 2013].

Pewinternet.org (2011) The Internet and Campaign 2010 | Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project. [online] Available at: http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2011/The-Internet-and-Campaign-2010.aspx [Accessed: 14 Jan 2013].

Tvochannel (2010) SOCIAL MEDIA: Politics 2.0 - The Power of the Citizen. [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vrczoLm7Es [Accessed: 14 Jan 2013].