Invisible Currency (Week #13)

We’ve come to the final week of MACT’s Using/Managing Communication Networks course #COMM506 (holy cow – time has flown by)! Myself and my classmates have spent a lot of time this semester growing our online social networks and examining the theories and benefits behind communication networks. I feel that there is great merit to building and sustaining social networks, however I haven’t examined the other side of the coin in any of my blog posts. Therefore, in this last post I thought it would be a good idea to voice my thoughts on how social networking may not be all it’s cracked up to be.

The first article from this week’s readings is entitled The Limits of Communication by Jodi Dean for Guernica Magazine. This article resonated deeply with me, specifically the author’s discussion of the how we pay for the social networking services we all use: our time. The idea that our time and attention are finite is an important reminder for all of us.

 

“The myriad entertainments and diversions available online, or as apps for smartphones, are not free. We don’t usually pay money directly to Gmail, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. These don’t cost money. They cost time. It takes time to post and write and time to read and respond. We pay with attention and the cost is focus.” – Jodi Dean, Guernica Magazine, par. 6

 

The idea that we don’t (directly) pay for social networking services, but instead we (indirectly) pay with our time is always in the back of my mind. As much as I love connecting via platforms like Twitter and Instagram, I sometimes question whether or not the time and focus I spend on these platforms is worth it.

Therefore, there is more to the issue than simply striking the right balance between time spent on social networks versus time spent on other tasks. It is also important to remind ourselves WHY we’re spending time on these networks. Is it to have access to information from both traditional and non-traditional media sources? Yes. Is it to share and connect with like-minded people? Absolutely. Is it learn about new and innovative ideas and technologies? Positively.

When we understand WHY it’s important to connect online (and these motivations will be different for each individual), it becomes easier to proactively plan the HOW, WHEN, WHAT, WHO and WHERE we spend our time social networking. As long as the energy, attention and focus expended is done so with intention, our time online will be time well spent.

Thanks Kate Milberry for teaching this semester!

Dean, J. (2012, Oct 1). The limits of communication. Guernica Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.guernicamag.com/features/the-limits-of-communication/

 

 

Exploring Kadushin’s Ten Master Ideas of Social Networks (Part 2 of 2)

Continuing from where I left off last week, below are the final five ideas (of Kadushin’s Ten Master Ideas of Social Networks) and how I have experienced each one over the past semester.

6. Position – This term refers to the degree (number of nominations received by a person in a social unit), as well as betweenness (the extent to which a person acts as a gateway between different networks). LinkedIn has allowed my students to access the expertise of professionals in the graphic communications industry who I am connected with because of the nature of my role as Internship Coordinator. LinkedIn has also allowed my students to connect with professionals outside of Ontario because of my growing network in Alberta, broadening geographical reach for my students. This is a really exciting part of my job that I enjoy – acting as the go-between to connect students with professionals who are a great fit for one another.

Bridging the gap between students and industry via LinkedIn connections.

7. Organizational Authority – Formal hierarchical structures exist most commonly in organizational or business networks (CEO > Departmental Managers > Line Employees). Informal hierarchical structures are more commonly experienced in online networks. For me, this is exemplified on LinkedIn, whereby thought leaders emerge based on discussions within Groups. I belong to a few industry-specific Groups and those who contribute often with thoughtful responses gain authority and thought-leadership among their colleagues.

Here’s an example of a LinkedIn Group I belong to in the graphic communications industry.

 

8. Small World – “It’s a small world after all!” The idea that the world is a small place and we’re all connected to one another by only a few steps is pretty amazing. The Oracle of Bacon is a fantastic example of how the small world theory works in the circle of acting (it’s definitely worth a look if you haven’t seen it!). Facebook best exemplifies the small world theory for me as I have a number of friends living on different continents around the world, who are connected to individuals I know in Toronto (Mutual Friends). It’s amazing to discover that someone you met on a trip is a cousin of a friend’s friend in your hometown!

My friend Eden lives in Singapore and we have lots of mutual connections!

 

9. Diffusion – This concept is “at the heart” of social networks because the very nature of these networks ensure that they flow between one another. Examples of areas of diffusion include ideas, opinions, and friendship. Twitter is where this happens on a frequent basis, especially when it comes to the free flow of ideas and opinions between MACT classmates!

Class ideas and opinions flowing on Twitter – searchable through the #COMM506 hashtag.

10. Social Capital – This is the final concept that looks at the overall consequences (typically positive) of social networks. A large breadth and depth of social connections means that someone has greater social capital then an individual with fewer connections. As I continue to reach out and connect, my professional networks are becoming richer and denser every day. I recently wrote about joining Klout to better understand my social capital. In the last month, my Klout score has increased 9 points to 51 from 42, primarily because I connected more social networks to the site above and beyond my Twitter account.

My Klout score is now 51!

Thank you, Charles Kadushin, for neatly summarizing your work into the Ten Master Ideas of Social Networks! Your work has helped me better understand the networking theory and how it relates to my own networks.

 

 

Kadushin, C. (2011). Understanding social networks : Theories, concepts, and findings / Charles Kadushin. New York : Oxford University Press.

 

 

Big Brother Canada: Is “Lawful Access” Legislation Making 1984 a Reality?

George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty Four is one of my favourite works of fiction. What leaves me feeling uneasy, however, it is that many of the themes of surveillance explored in the book are a reality today. On-going civilian surveillance by the Canadian government is a matter of (domestic) national security and something that all citizens should be made aware of.

With regards to what’s concerning for Canadians, “Lawful Access” legislation aims to expand the online surveillance of all Canadians through means such as surveillance capabilities built into communication hardware and increased police power to access private information.

Ian Kerr, Canada Research Chair in Law, Ethics and Technology at the University of Ottawa describes why surveillance in the age of the Internet, paired with legislation like “Lawful Access, is a reality: “It seems to me that what we have now for the first time is the possibility that that systematic observation can be ubiquitous and can be 24/7. That’s the difference with a networked society” (The New Transparency, 2012).

It’s as if more our world and the world described in the story are moving closer to one another, primarily due to our networked society and hotly-debated proposed legislation. Here are three ways that the surveillance themes in 1984 may be more fact than fiction.

 

1. The Party’s Approach to Surveillance

In 1984, society was watched closely for instances of thought-crime, but the government did so in such a way that it was secret or positioned to benefit society. This is not unlike the “lawful access” policy enacted in Canada because much of the surveillance is happening in secrecy.

I have nothing to hide, so like many others, I used to think “who cares about surveillance, I’ve got nothing to hide”. But as many experts have pointed out, the concept of “nothing to hide” doesn’t matter. It’s the fact that secret cyber surveillance has become a normal state of existence within democratic government that’s concerning. Big Brother is watching.

“Winston realizes that for seven years the Thought Police have watched his every act, word, and thought with far more subtlety than he would ever have imagined. They even replaced the whitish speck of dust on the corner of his diary so that he would not think it had been disturbed. They have soundtracks and photographs of absolutely everything he has done.” (Book Rags, 2014, par 24).

Many experts in Canadian privacy laws emphasize the need for accountability and reporting, primarily due to the fact that “lawful access” does away with judicial oversight (and much of the surveilling is happening in secrecy). As Surveillance Studies Centre Director at Queen’s University, David Lyon, eerily states, “Facebook is such a gift to homeland security” (The New Transparency, 2012). This is a scary thought in a democratic society, especially so close to home.

 

2. Surveillance Hardware

Telescreens (two-way surveillance devices) are used in 1984 to keep tabs on all happenings within society. The telescreens of modern society are our mobile devices – portable telescreens that we rarely turn off and which send constant feedback about and tracking of our whereabouts, who we’re speaking with and what we’re speaking about. Based on “Lawful Access” legislation, installation of surveillance equipment will be required by Internet Service Providers within their network to enable police access (The New Transparency, 2012). Based on information disclosed by whistleblower, Edward Snowden, we know that organizations like the NSA are “ingesting by default” when it comes domestic surveillance. The most efficient, cheapest and most valuable way to surveil is to collect it all and store it so that it may be used at a later time (The Guardian, 2013). The Internet enables information to be collected with such ease, and the common user has very little knowledge that this is happening, never mind how to protect themselves from it.

 

3. Increased Power in the Hands of the Police

Perhaps the most concerning aspect of “Lawful Access” is not the collection of data, but who can access the information and how easily they can access it. This legislation enables new police powers and grants law enforcement agencies warrantless access to Canadians’ personal data gathered by Internet Service Providers and rewarding police for asking for forgiveness instead of permission. “Reasonable suspicion” is enough to grant access and expert David Fewer calls this sliding scale idea “the spidey-sense standard” (The New Transparency, 2012). This sounds a lot like 1984, whereby “the Thought Police track down and eliminate the few proles who seem capable of becoming dangerous to the Party” (Book Rags, 2014, par 9). I don’t know about you, but this doesn’t sit well with me.

In closing, the Internet is the connector, the collector and in many ways, the catalyst, for surveilling the general public. However, in the midst of surveillance, spying and secrecy, there is no concrete evidence to say that this approach works. As members of society, we have to be dilligent to increase our awareness of hardware and software used to monitor our everyday thoughts and actions, as well as take a stand against “democratic governments” who wish to invade the privacy of all Canadians. Find out more at www.unlawfulaccess.net.

 

 

References

The New Transparency. (2012). (Un)lawful access: Canadian experts on the state of cybersurveillance. Video retrieved from http://unlawfulaccess.net/

The Guardian. (2013). NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden: ‘I don’t want to live in a society that does these sorts of things’. Video retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0hLjuVyIIrs

Book Rags. (2014). 1984 notes of the surveillance themes. Retrieved from http://www.bookrags.com/notes/1984/top4.html