new media

new media; power to the people or a threat to stability?

new media has now sprung up as the world faces a huge advancement in technology. we now have e-mail, blogs, blackberries, instant messaging, digital cameras, the Internet, mobile phones, talk radio and 24-hour news.

naturally, these inventions have radically reshaped the way that we access our daily news. everything is now more fast paced and information is readily available anywhere on the globe.

that being said, it's clear that sometimes, this 'evolution' of new media has brought forth a worrying thought. as to whether it acts as a positive source of power to the people or does it desecrate political stability.

taking the example that we face right now, involving the military dispute of Iraq and United States. although previously, under Saddam Hussein, one might have his tongue cut out if found with possession of a satellite disc or having accessed the internet, now, everyone has access to the internet and also own a satellite disc.

human curiousity would also urge them to watch news to keep up with the instability that their country is facing. unfortunately, Al-Qaeda and other extremists groups have successfully infiltrated this forum, swaying the Muslims opinions and views of the West. hence, they fall prey to such influence and feel that the US are vile.

this shows how powerful media communications can be. extremists groups have understood that a well-crafted story could be as damaging as a military attack to political stability.

another lucid example would be the false allegations of the desecration of the Quran last year. (as a muslim, i understand the spelling to be as such and not Koran)

although it wasnt' true, the powerful data communication through print media, the Internet, e-mails and the like spread the news like wildfire. it had sparked nasty anti-american riots in afghanistan and pakistan, days before america sought the evidence and responding that the claims were untrue.

consequently, there are benefits that can be tapped on with the growing conglomeration of new media. the global phenomenon of blogs, which have not only risen in numbers, but also in prominence. technorati, an online blog search engine, tracks approximately seventy-five thousand new blogs each day.

mainstream press is now placed in a position whereby they respond to the news generated by bloggers. as a blogger myself, i have a personal blog (and not this anderson junior college general paper blog) and i see the great speed of communication of information.

at times, certain issues become so rampant in the blogging arena, that the print media react to the content raised in prominent blogs. for example, Wendy Cheng of xiangxue.blogspot.com had some harsh statements about the rape case involving a filipino girl and US marine lance danial smith. lime magazine quoted her in march this year.

if technological development and new media is that unheard of, why would lime magazine quote wendy cheng and not vice versa. it shows how mainstream media has got to diversify to keep up with changing times.

following prominent bloggers like Wendy Cheng, political consultant, news services and candidates are also tapping upon the influential power and the immediacy of blogs for outreach and opinion forming.

perhaps we should ponder on the issue as to why blogs are being utilised for such ambitious goals. i personally credit it to the fact that blogs enable free speech to be exercised.

unfortunately, there are many countries that have exercised censorship on blogs. blogs with outspoken and inflammatory content are either shut down or censored by authorities. this repression is being practised in even more countries. what started in 2003 saw only China, Vietnam and the Maldives imprisoning cyber-dissidents. now more countries practice that, claiming that it's a direct challenge to the sovereignty and stability in one country.

the act of repression in many countries is being questioned greatly. for example, i'm somewhat pulled by what an Iranian, now living in Canada had to say.

"censoring (specifically) blogs, the governments are depriving themselves of amazing sources of information about what their population thinking of them and what they're up to."

that is so true! if blogs are allowed to maintain it's flow of free opinions and expressions, irregardless of what the content is inflammatory and seeks to challenge the government, the bottom line is that, the government can take it as a form of constructive feedback to improve themselves. denying the situation of the country might really trigger off a devastating political strife that may prove tough to calm.

hence in all honesty, i feel that it's important for authorities to understand that innate potential of blogging and new media. they can either be in denial as to the potential of it and face dire consequences, or they can tap upon it for the benefit of the country.

i've also realised that i've gone beyond the three hundred word limit for this entry. well, we all were given voluminous amounts of information to tap on in the first place didnt we?