Week Three: Power and Authority on the Net

When power was discussed in week two’s lecture, students defined it as manipulation, influence and sometimes conflict where one person comes out on top of another. In any case, power is very much involved with other people. This is shown especially in social networking, a “necessity” to this generation’s lifestyle.

Power is shown in Facebook in how many “friends,” “likes” or “shares” a person gets. In Twitter it’s how many re-tweets or followers. The social networking site that I will be focusing on however, is not one of these well-known sites. It is a blogging website called tumblr.

Power is obvious in the form of the “tumblr famous.” These are the people who have gained thousands of followers who “like” and “reblog” images, text, videos and links.

These people use their “fame” to influence other users. This is not always in a bad way. I have seen many people ask (anonymously or otherwise) for advice on things ranging from confused sexuality to accidentally killing the pet fish.

Also in week two the Panopticon was discussed. Tumblr also exercised this as everything can be seen by anyone. Whilst there is a chance that your risky emotional post won’t be noticed by anyone, it’s out there to see. The great thing about this particular social network is that you have a username rather than your real name and no personal details (unless of course you put them in your description).

I have seen networks created as people from around the world team up for promotions. Up to approximately ten users will promote each other to gain followers. That way a person can gain the followers of the other, and so on. This connects people from opposite sides of the globe.

In D. Wood’s reading, The Multiple Truths of the Mappable World, it is explained that a map can only be judged as good or bad according to its purpose (Wood, 2006). That is the same with social networking. The purpose of tumblr is the sharing of expression without being held back by the fear of judgement as no one really knows who you are. If it were to be judged on how well people had complete conversations, it would rate poorly. Yes people can communicate on this site, but that is not its purpose.

As Einstein said, you cannot (or rather should not) judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree.

References:

Image: Taken from HERE

Wood, D. (2006). Seeing Through Maps: The Multiple Truths Of The Mappable World.