The Ways the Internet Has to Expand Contemporary Mediated Public Life - Essay Example

The ways the Internet has Expand Contemporary Mediated Public Life and its Consequences Introduction The concept of the “public sphere” was developed by Hebermas, and it refers to a theatre-like setting in the modern community, where the members of society engage in politics through the exchange of information (talk) (Emden and Midgley, 2013). Over the publicly mediated space, the members of the society discuss a variety of things – especially shared affairs and experiences – offering the modern society an institution-like platform where discussion is used as the driving force for change in the society (Lynch, Mitchell and Strhan, 2012). This particular platform is distinct from the state, because it plays the role of fostering the creation, exchange and communication of discussions, which can in some cases, be critical and attacking to the state and its authority (Washbourne, 2010, p. 122). Due to the distinctive nature of the sphere, it is believed that a new public outlook is needed, to secure the critical role of this new arena, and to help with the institutionalization of democracy (Emden and Midgley, 2013). The supporters of the new field of discourse maintain that the internet is a means that can be used for the expansion of citizen discourse in improving the rationality of public opinion; the arena allows citizens to participate in the politics of their societies. However, the internet is viewed in a more critical manner, as compared to the internet, as it is considered a platform for radical democracy, which can help marginalized groups. The internet is considered particularly important to the groups that are marginalised in mainstream public sphere, as a platform that allows them the opportunity to start forums, connect with one another, and challenge the practices and the meanings propagated by mainstream groups (Emden and Midgley, 2013). Through this paper, the author will explore the relationship between contemporary politics and social media, through the critical analysis of theories, concepts, and ideas, shading more light using theoretical models. Basis of discourse, discussion of concepts, theories and ideas Before the emergence of the innovative media, the traditional mass media platforms used for broadcasting and press communication were considered sufficient and beneficial to the society, helping it to guarantee the administration of democratic politics (Emden and Midgley, 2013). Traditional media platforms were also considered sufficient enough to communicate and sustain public opinion across the public sphere. Their sufficiency was evident from the fact that traditional media could transmit information to politicians and citizens, and it allowed the space for criticising of governments by the members of society. The main difference between traditional media and the new-age media is that the flow of information was predominantly unidirectional (vertical) in nature, and the increased commercialization of the media led to the neglect of democratic communication between political leaders and citizens. There was also little or no discourse between the members of society and organizations and institutions across the mass media platform. On the other hand, the emergence of the new media has allowed the society to break away from the vertical communication of the past, and also the top down politics that characterised society. The top down outlook of politics limited the space for political negotiation, which led to the lack of public opinion in political discourse (Emden and Midgley, 2013). The emergence of the new media (internet and social media platforms) enables common people to engage and discuss issues with political leaders, over current an emerging issues. The ongoing exchange between the two sides has offered the public, the platform needed to debate for, and push for the consideration of public opinion and pubic interests. The expansive nature of the internet, in relation to the exchange of ideas and information has enhanced civil society, political participation, and democracy, which have increased the rise of social movements. During the modern era, communication between hundreds or thousands of people, despite the fact that the mass media has been known to ignore the subjects being protested about or contested. From the case of the Arab world, the larger percentages of opinion givers are male, mainly because women are traditionally not expected to engage in political affairs. Despite the limitation identified, the internet allows the women from the Arab world, the opportunity of expressing their opinions more flexibly and freely. For example, some Face book and blogging activists challenge political affairs over the internet, but do not speak openly in the real world. The parallel existence of online and offline public spheres allows more people to air views and to disseminate the ideas that influence the leadership and the politics of the society. The horizontally placed communication has fostered the health of social movements, which favours the processes of social change. More importantly, social media allows the activists from all over the world to exchange views and ideas, exchange information on best practices, coordinate activities and champion for support for their courses (Washbourne, 2010). The globally mediated, planned and coordinated activity of social movements across the globe was evident in 2011, by the revolutions talking place in the Arab world, starting with Spain, Israel and then Greece. Following the lead of the various movements, the Occupy Wall Street social movement started in September, and by the end of the year, the protests had become global (Waldman, 2011). The causes underlying the different national protests were similar in nature, including unemployment, dissatisfaction over political corruption, the redundancy of the respective financial sectors, corporate greed and the pressure for change of political systems. The recent events increased the relevance of the “deliberative democratic public sphere theory”, as a model for explaining the activities of the internet, particularly in response to the commentary and the research related to democracy (Waldman, 2011). During the organization of the different protests, exchanging ideas about the actions to be taken and in communicating the messages, the planners and the followers used social media platforms and tools. This use and the effectiveness of the outcomes show that social media tools continue to play a pivotal role to the social movements pushing for global democracy. The planners and the followers of such movements are pushing the respective political systems to consider the interests of all and to represent the interests of the society as a whole, and not those of economic elites. It is important to take into account that social networking frameworks cannot create real democracy or overthrow tyrannical regimes as social change tools, irrespective of the fact that they offer the environment that favours the activities of social movements. In the recent past, the world has witnessed the internet aiding ordinary citizens to change the political systems that governed them for years or decades. The major events that have played an instrumental role in evidencing the role of the internet include the presidential campaigns of 2008, and the revolutions taking place around the Arab world. During the wide array of events, the organizers relied on online tools to disseminate information, champion for support, mobilize citizens and raise money in an enormous fashion (Leighninger, 2011). The discourse related to role played by the internet in political mobilization was highly polarised, during the time when President Obama used the “Twitter rebellion” of 2009, at Iran. In Britain, the rise of the students’ movements led to an increase in the online campaign that played an instrumental role in mobilizing citizens for protests on city streets (Emden and Midgley, 2013). Together with these changes, there was a shift in the role played by networks, in the spheres covering the discussions related to the organization of politics (Jones, 2011). Social media enables for the rapid transmission of information, in mobilizing social opposition. In fostering the role played by the internet in social opposition, the social media offers an established source of information for mobilizing and educating the members of the public, particularly in the cases where the target groups are progressive opinion-leaders, trade unionists, professionals, activists and militants (Emden and Midgley, 2013). The internet offers an alternative to the mass media and the propaganda controlled by the capitalistic society, as the channel to offer information to activists, who are critical to public action in society. For example, the social media has been instrumental in mobilizing and publicising unprompted protests, where case studies include “indigados” group in Spain, as well as the US case of “Occupy Wall Street” protestors. In different cases, including the mass strikes that took place in Greece, Portugal and Italy among other places, the internet played a secondary role to that played by trade unions (Petras, 2011). The expansion of contemporary mediated public life and its consequences After the Arab spring burst witnessed in Egypt and Tunisia in 2011, different scholars have explored the ways in which social media and the internet contribute to the removal of authoritarian regimes and in political change in general. From the studies done about the centrality of the role of the media in the processes of social change, it was noted that the news coverage of the events concentrated a lot on the social media-related themes, including “Face book revolution” and “Twitter revolution”. The increased reference made about social media has made the society to assume that the complex series of events and systems is related to the social media platforms. The impacts of the shift in the outlook of members of society include that, the connectivity of infrastructure has been disregarded, and that has led the society to overlook the role played by other platforms, including satellite TV, other internet platforms and mobile telephony and messaging (Waldman, 2011). For example, over the past decade, societies that were deprived of information exchange have increasingly become information centres, due to the role played by the channels of communication mentioned, and not social media as the only platform (Tufekci and Wilson, 2012). Some of the media platforms that were instrumental in communicating the events of the Arab revolution included Aljazeera, among others. The recent events have also allowed social media and the internet to play an increasingly central role in the empowerment of not only individuals, but also countries as a whole. For example, the internet and social media has increased the connectivity of deprived countries to the outside world, by shaping the role it plays according to the needs of their people. The role played by the internet was central in the nation-wide developments made in countries like Egypt, which has been subject to the censorship of social exchange. For example, Egypt was actively censoring the use of social media, banning the use of mobile phones at police stations, the incarceration of activists and was considering a closure of using the internet (Ali, 2011). In correcting the wide array of social ills, the internet and social media was central to the resolution of political activism in Egypt; online activism was central to the organization of the demonstrations that led to the removal of Mubarak as president (Lim, 2012, p. 2-4). The events leading to the removal of Mubarak from power could be traced to the online activism that was marked by the Kefaya movement in 2004, followed by the oppositional activism presented by Egyptian blogosphere. The emergence of the new communication platform transformed the public circles of the Arab world, by increasing the participation of individuals in politics and also through empowering the collective action of the general public (Tufecki and Wilson, 2012). The expanded nature of mediated public life has given birth to the problem of privacy and also the anonymity of the people communicating messages and information. Unlike traditional media, where reports and information tendered about political or social affairs can be traced to the owner, this is not possible in the current mediated society. This situation has a wide array of effects, some positive and others negative, including that it offers members of society, the opportunity to communicate sensitive issues, which they would not communicate, in the case that their identity was known (Waldman, 2011). This anonymity of internet gives rise to questions related to the credibility of the information communicated and exchanged over social media, and that has limited the effectiveness of social media and internet facilitated public campaigns. From another angle, spreading malicious information about people, groups and the government has become increasingly possible, and this is presenting a threat to different social institutions. For example, the once secure information about government affairs is likely to infiltrate into social circles and worse enough, to people who can use it for negative reasons. This shows that, despite the advantages drawn from the expanded scope of public life, the consequences may be adverse, and likely to offset the advantages drawn from the change. Conclusion The concept of the “public sphere’ was conceived by Herbemas, and is used to refer to the platform that makes it possible for community members to communicate different social and political issues informally, but with the potential of influencing the formal side of activities. The supporters of the new field, which is offered by social media, maintain that the internet and social media has been helpful in expanding the discourse that exists between members of societies and leaders, and among other groups. Before the emergence of the new media platforms, people relied on traditional media, which offered top to bottom and one way media communication. The problems with the traditional model included that it did not allow ordinary people to engage leaders and other groups. The effects and the influence of the new media were evident from the various Arab revolution cases, and also recent events in America, among other societies. Some of the events that evidenced the power of the media include the Occupy Wall Street social movement and the ousting of president Mubarak of Egypt from power. The impacts of the expanded public life include that ordinary citizens have triggered major political changes, less powerful countries and its people were empowered, and there was the problem of privacy and the credibility of information. Reference List Ali, A.H., 2011. The Power of Social Media in Developing Nations: New Tools for Closing the Global Digital Divide and Beyond. Harvard Human Rights Journal, 24 (1), pp. 185 - 219. Beas, D., 2011. How Spains 15-M movement is redefining politics. Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/oct/15/spain-15-mmovement-activism [Accessed on 15 May 2014]. Emden, C. and Midgley, D. Eds., 2013. Beyond Habermas: Democracy, Knowledge, and the Public Sphere. New York: Berghahn Books. Jones, J., 2011. Social Media and Social Movements. International Socialism, 130. Available at: http://www.isj.org.uk/index.php4 [Accessed on 15 May 2014]. Leighninger, M., 2011. How Should Citizens and Public Managers Use Online Tools to Improve Democracy? [Online] National Civic Review, pp.20-29. Lim, M., 2012. Clicks, Cabs, and Coffee Houses: Social Media and Oppositional Movements in Egypt, 2004–2011. Journal of Communication, pp. 1-18. Lynch, G., Mitchell, J. and Strhan, A. Eds., 2012. Religion, Media and Culture: A Reader. New York: Rutledge. Petras, J., 2011. Social Opposition in the Age of Internet: Desktop “Militants” and Public Intellectuals. [Online] Invited paper to be read at the “Symposium on Re-Publicness” Sponsored by the Chamber of Electrical Engineers, Ankara-Turkey, December 9-10, 2011. Available at: http://petras.lahaine.org/?p=1880 [Accessed on 15 May 2014]. 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