In class we have been discussing the impacts of media and social networks on real life, and recently there was an incident released to the news that directly relates to these impacts. A student at Rutgers' University committed suicide after a video of him having a sexual encounter with another male was released on the Internet, posted by his roommate. The situation began a few days prior when the roommate of the deceased, Tyler Clementi, tweeted on Twitter that he had just seen his roommate make-out with another male. He then claimed he secretly set up his web cam in the room to stream the video. Clementi even posted his suicide 'note' as a status via Facebook.
While I believe the increase in social networking and advances in media have helped society in a variety of ways, it has also had various devastating impacts as well. Some years ago, this would not have been able to occur. One would not have been able to stream a video, to have it available immediately available for viewing, especially by mass groups of people.
This situation also reminds me of the Megan Meier's MySpace suicide years ago. One of her piers created a fake identity online, pretending to be a boy that was interested in her who eventually used the artificial relationship to harass Megan. While the network's themselves did not 'murder' these people, they held a significant influence on the incidents.
Below are the links to article with more information about both cases.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39445225/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/?GT1=43001
http://www.meganmeierfoundation.org/
Rachel, Thank you for posting this, as it is an incredibly important issue presently facing our community. This incident really and tragically speaks to the power of online community to transfer into offline community. If only we could always embrace Rhiengold's "Love in action" (i.e. the story of Elly from the WELL).
ReplyDeleteThis is such a tragic event. It is a shame that someone was capable of posting something so private for the world to see. It shows that social networks can be somewhat dangerous at times if placed in the wrong hands. However, social networks can also save lives. Clementi posted his suicide note on Facebook. This was a call for help. If someone had seen it soon enough, they could have done something to save Clementi. I am sure there are other cases in which a similar situation has occured, and their life has been saved. It goes to show that social networks are today's generation's way of branching out to the public and communicating their voice.
ReplyDeleteThis upset me. I have a freidn that goes to Rutgers and she told me about everything and how many cameras and news crews were on her campus. This definitely shows the power of technology and how cyberbullying does have negative effects. Here we see technology being used to invade someones privacy and ultimately "out" them to a world where he or she hasn't truly exposed themselves to. I dissect this event into two parts because I feel that if the guy was videotaped having sex with a girl he wouldn't have committed suicide. Technology is everywhere, that is why I am extremely aware of what I am doing and what I say because people can be recording you, taking pictures of you without your knowledge. No one wants to be broadcast on youtube and various sites without knowing their newfound celebrity.
ReplyDeleteJust to follow up- http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/31/AR2010103102433.html
ReplyDeleteThis article by the Washington Post touches on the recent situation outcomes. The students who were deemed responsible for broadcasting the sexual encounter withdrew from the college and have both been charged with invasion of privacy and it is being debated whether or not they should be charged for committing a hate crime.