JN 229 Entry #5: “New media and internet activism: from the ‘Battle of Seattle’ to blogging”

    According to Richard Kahn and Douglas Kellner, "since the 1990s, there have been growing discussions of internet activism and how new media have been used effectively by a variety of political movements" (Kahn and Kellner 87). Activists turned to using the internet to broadcast opinions and get word out: "Activists began employing the internet to foster affiliations and stage events against the excesses of neo-liberalism and transitional corporate capitalism" (Kahn and Kellner 87).

    Kahn and Kellner considered that the internet as a global structure is creating a base for "an unparalleled worldwide anti-war/pro-peace and social justice movement during a time of terrorism, war, and intense political struggle" (Kahn and Kellner 88). The internet is a space where people can access any and all information that is recorded/documented on it. This can have a huge positive or negative impact. Until we know more about it, I think it is hard to decipher what sort of impact the internet has on activism.

 

    Blogging: Virtually Democratic

The new internet eco-system has erupted around blogging. First, I would like to question where the word blog came from. What exactly does it mean? According to dictionary.com, a blog is a "website containing the writer's or group of writers' own experiences, observations, opinions etc, and often having images and links to other websites" (dictionary.com). The word blog is a play on web log. Bloggers today have "demonstrated themselves as technoactivists favouring not only democratic self-expression and networking, but also global media critique and journalistic socio-political intervention" (Kahn and Kellner 91). Bloggers state their mind in numerous posts in hopes that others will take the time to read and analyse what they are saying.

    Blogs are successful because they are easy to create and maintain. Even people who are not good with technology find blogging to be simple and fun. Bloggers have the ability to express their opinions to the masses. I personally like blogging. Even if I'm just writing a bunch of nonsense, it's fun to get things out there and know that other people can read it. Whether you're an internet activist or just a blogger for fun, I think having the ability to blog is a good thing.