Web 2.0

            

 (image source: http://pseudoplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/media.jpg)

     Rab’s two part lecture about propaganda was honestly very interesting, and made me take a deeper look at how we are controlled by the media. Part two of the lecture was about how the internet took the role in creating a portal for information without the influence of corporations. The videos about “The Battle for Seattle” were shocking. Rab mentioned a technique for confronting protests called kettling, a crowd control technique used during a demonstration where protesters are confined in small areas by the police. Protesters were kettled in Seattle, and were sprayed with chemicals even though they did not threaten or attack anyone. One of the videos that Rab showed us mentioned that the police do not do have any problem with small demonstrations, but as soon as they grow bigger, they confront it by using violence.

              It is ironic that if the general public committed acts of violence the police would be able to arrest them, but when the police commit an act of violence without any justified reason, there is no one to punish them. This is obviously unfair. Who would stop the police? As society becomes more civilized, the rights of violence are taken away from the general public and at the same time given to the central powers. This is good if society is orderly, but has some problems when the parts of the government are corrupt.

              A few months ago as I was looking through the internet, I found an interesting video that stated that the Sandy Hook killings were lies made up by the Obama administration to shore up support for the federal assault weapons ban. Another spontaneous discovery was found online after 9/11 when conspiracy theories were going viral. Information like this is spread thanks to Web 2.0, where users can create media without corporate influence. Rab pointed out that it is possible for anyone to become an authority online by presenting high quality information. I agree with him although I think that it is not as easy as it sounds, as expert knowledge is needed in order to become an authority. As the internet community grows more and more, hopefully the media will become more pressured to report higher quality news.