PIRACY; IT'S A CRIME?

In Hamelink’s reading this week, he discusses the ten internet commandments. Of them, thou shalt not use a computer to steal (2006, 122) is the most interesting topic up for discussion due to people’s lax views.

There are many different forms of stealing however piracy is the most common. According to the Australian Federal Police “Around 2.8 million Australians download music illegally via file sharing networks every year. Of these, three quarters claim to download every month” (2011).

This practice costs the entertainment industries excessive amounts of money and it hurts the artists that we obviously like (enough to download their work anyway). Yet we still partake in it regularly.

We’ve all seen the advertisement above whilst watching movies and most probably laughed at its ridiculous comparisons. However the points it makes are valid if not presented in an awful manner.  Unfortunately these go straight over our heads due to what Hamelink describes as moral distance (2006, 117).

Basically we participate in illegal, unethical activities like piracy, or cyber bullying as Rosie discusses, because we consider ourselves to be far away from the act or retribution. This is an unfortunate part of the new media world and will need to be monitored in order to maintain a level of moral modicum in the future.

REFERENCES:

Australian Federal Police. 2011. “Technology Enabled Crime.” Accessed March 20, 2011. http://www.afp.gov.au/policing/e-crime.aspx 

Double, Rosie. 2011. “Sticks and stones may break your bones... but online taunts will haunt you,” Rosie’s New Media Reflections. March 27. Accessed March 28. http://rosiesnewmediareflections.blogspot.com/

Hamelink, C. 2006. “The Ethics of the Internet: Can we cope with Lies and Deceit on the Net?” Ideologies of the Internet 115-130.

“Piracy It’s a Crime.” Youtube video, posted December 4, 2007. Accessed March 18, 2011. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmZm8vNHBSU 

SORRY; TOO BUSY BEING ENTERTAINED.

Apologies if this blog post seems disjointed but I’m currently flicking back and forth between my favourite forms of new media amusement. Where I once would have been able to concentrate on one thing at a time, new media convergence (Leong, 2011) has changed my entire lifestyle. Instead of working simply on an assignment, I’m currently engaged in music, video, socialising, reading and observing, all through my computer.

New technologies have given me the ability to access all my favourite entertainment formats in new ways, all at the same time, turning me into an extraordinary multi-tasker.

For example, I once would have listened to music on the radio only, and although I still do this occasionally, I’m presently downloading the latest music that I’ve found in triple j hitlists, and through recommendations on Facebook, and in the ‘most bought’ section in the iTunes store. Once these are downloaded I’ll probably read up on the artists on Wikipedia, check out the film clips on Youtube and post it on my Tumblr.

And that’s just one of the activities I’m currently partaking in. So again, apologies but quite frankly we have noone but new media to blame for my inability to concentrate

REFERENCES:

Leong, Susan. "KCB201 New Media: the Internet, Yourself and Beyond - Week Three Lecture Notes." Accessed March 19, 2011. http://blackboard.qut.edu.au 

The perils of a Glass Bedroom.

What is the point of maintaining an online presence? Why do we while away our hours recording every minute detail of our lives instead of living them? Why do we establish and carry on friendships online instead of in person? Originally, using the internet for a social stage seemed so convenient but could the world’s favourite pastime be secretly ruining our lives?

As discussed in “All the Wide World Web's a Stage” (Pearson 2009) and further discussed in Dr Leong’s lecture (2011), people’s use of online socialising can often be described as a glass bedroom. That is to say, people open up and reveal details (be it in photo, word or movie form) about themselves that previously would have been considered far too private. I believe that the internet’s format allows glass bedrooms to happen all too frequently, that users are naïve in thinking they are protected and that these two elements can combine to ruin lives.

For example, when applying for a job, and even once you have it, it’s commonplace for employers to scour the internet looking for any trace of your life; and photos from weekends past aren’t going to lend you any favours. Friendships can also be ruined via overactive online socialising. You may have thought your blog whining about your friend’s new boyfriend was a secret between you and the internet, but word of mouth combined with Google are an unbeatable combination. On top of that, being in charge of your own online empire can turn even the nicest of people into a big-headed narcissistic beast, keen to capture every detail of their life sure that their audience can’t survive without it.

Every online networker should therefore think about the bigger picture every time they visit their glass bedroom, because as Pearson says so clearly;  “this disruption of a clear split between…private and public, has ramifications for network formation and interpersonal relationships...” (Pearson, 2009).

REFERENCES:

Leong, Susan. "KCB201 New Media: the Internet, Yourself and Beyond - Week Two Lecture Notes." Accessed March 13, 2011. http://blackboard.qut.edu.au 

Pearson, Erika. 2009. "All the World Wide Web's a stage: the Performance of Identity in Online Social Networks" in First Monday, Volume 14, Number 3. Accessed March 10, 2011. http://blackboard.qut.edu.au/webapps/blackboard/content/contentWrapper.jsp?content_id=_3612480_1&displayName=Week+2+Readings&course_id=_74007_1&navItem=content&href=http%3A%2F%2Ffirstmonday.org%2Fhtbin%2Fcgiwrap%2Fbin%2Fojs%2Findex.php%2Ffm%2Farticle%2Fview%2F2162%2F2127.