Berkman Buzz: September 9, 2011
A look at the past week's online Berkman conversations
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What's being discussed...take your pick or browse below.
* Andres Monroy-Hernandez explores narco censorship and Twitteroristas in Mexico's drug wars
* John Palfrey tangles with hard questions for #iLaw2011's Freedom of Information and Arab Spring sessions
* Dan Gillmor proposes a new, digital format for presidential debates
* The Citizen Media Law Project reviews the constitutionality of Twitter 'cyberstalking'
* Benjamin Mako Hill defends negativity in the free software movement
* Weekly Global Voices: "Bangladesh: The Facebook Status Controversy"
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The full buzz.
"Social media has taken the role of the mainstream media and that comes with its own challenges. Social media (i.e., Twitter) has fluid reputation mechanisms, which is positive in the Mexican context because it helps protect people's pseudonymity in light of the real danger faced by journalists. On the other hand, these flexible reputation mechanisms are problematic for assessing the reliability of information, especially if people do not have the time or media literacy to process information in a critical way."
From Andres Monroy-Hernandez's post for ReadWriteWeb, "Shouting Fire in a Crowded Hashtag: Narco Censorship & 'Twitteroristas' in Mexico's Drug Wars"
"I’ve been preparing for two sessions on Day 1: 'Freedom of Expression and Online Liberty' and then a case study on the Arab Spring (which will feature, among others, our colleague Nagla Rizk of the American University in Cairo). I’ve been thinking about some of the hard questions that I’m hoping we’ll take up during those sessions."
From John Palfrey's blog post, "Hard Questions for #iLaw2011?s Freedom of Information/Arab Spring Sessions"
"On Wednesday night, the Republican candidates for president will meet on stage at the Ronald Reagan Library in California for a ritual that makes democracy look idiotic. In front of a television audience that would be much better-off watching almost anything else, the candidates will "debate" each other. I put that word in quotes for the simple reason that this exercise is anything but an actual debate. It is a joint appearance designed to revolve around slogans, soundbites and spin, and which demonstrates the sheer contempt in which American political parties and their media collaborators hold the public. In the age of the internet and distributed communications, we could do so much better."
From Dan Gillmor's post for The Guardian, "The presidential primary debate 2.0"
"If you thought a spat between Buddhists couldn't devolve into a federal cyberstalking case of dubious constitutionality, consider the following."
From Justin Silverman's blog post for the Citizen Media Law Project, "Zen and the Constitutionality of Twitter 'Cyberstalking'"
"We have made important strides toward eliminating injustices like child labor and slavery because activists waged decidedly negative campaigns against them and convinced others to join in opposition. In doing so, activists declared the status quo unconscionable and created an ethical responsibility to find alternatives and to redefine what was "realistic." While I will not suggest that the movement for software freedom is comparable in ethical weight to these other causes, I know that the free software mission is similar in kind."
From Benjamin Mako Hill's blog post, "In Defense of Negativity"
"Bangladeshi Facebook users frequently express their opinions, anger, rights, likes and dislikes and some of them are filled with emotions. Once someone posted this status in a Facebook wall which became viral: 'I may be poor, but I have a Status'. Now this slogan also has a separate Facebook page."
From Bijoy's post for Global Voices, "Bangladesh: The Facebook Status Controversy"
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Compiled by Rebekah Heacock.
The Berkman Buzz is selected weekly from the posts of Berkman Center people and projects and sometimes from the Center's wider network.
Suggestions and feedback about the Buzz are always welcome and can be emailed to buzz@cyber.harvard.edu.