Online Graphics Can Change Conversations About Racism in Aotearoa

Racism is endemic in many online spaces, promoted by the structures of social networking sites (SNS), and few initiatives have attempted to counter everyday racism online. This article describes how tauiwi groups collaboratively developed anti-racist graphics, which unpredictably became memes that stimulated online and offline conversations about anti-racism and decolonisation. I outline the difficulties in developing such graphics, suggest where to post them, and argue that the strategies used to develop anti-racist graphics could be useful in combatting other social inequities. The article draws on a larger PhD study in which I interviewed online news editors, analysed racism on SNS, developed and posted anti-racist graphics on two Facebook genres, and analysed the results. It envisions a future where online users commonly see witty images that challenge structural inequities

Facebook: How Likes and Followers Affect Users Perception and Leadership

The online social network, Facebook, creates a problem in which likes , and followers give a user the appearance of leadership. The accumulation of likes in the online social network environment, such as Facebook, might offer non-legitimate leader status, similar to campaign donations contributing to the appeal of a political candidate. This appearance of Facebook popularity through likes possibly skews the other members\u27 perspective regarding a user\u27s leadership competence. The user often looks official, popular, and influential through the advent of likes and followers. Any opinions of a user with accumulated likes could be taken with greater weight than a user with significantly fewer likes and followers. The objective of this study finds if the accumulation of likes and followers on Facebook leads to perceived user leadership status. The data includes a Facebook user questionnaire survey and subsequent data analysis. This qualitative study may provide a useful expansion of our traditional definition of leadership. The expansion could enhance academic and leadership studies courses with a greater understanding of online social capital

¿Qué hay de nuevo en las noticias falsas? Alfabetizaciones digitales críticas en la era de las noticias falsas, la posverdad y el cebo de clics

The 2016 Facebook fake news scandal has highlighted the difficulty in determining the credibility and reliability of news. As a result, there have been calls for individuals to adopt a more informed and critical stance toward the sources of their news. This paper considers what might be involved in cultivating critical digital literacies in an era of post-truth, fake news and clickbait. Using the platform as the framework for study, the paper examines how the architecture, algorithms and network effects of the platform have changed the way news is created and disseminated, and how audiences are positioned to engage with it. This theoretical critique provides insight into the technical, political and social issues surrounding how individuals engage with online news.El escándalo de noticias falsas de Facebook de 2016 puso de relieve la dificultad para determinar la credibilidad y la confiabilidad de las noticias. Como resultado, se instó a individuos a que adoptaran una posición más informada y crítica frente de la fuente de sus noticias. El presente trabajo considera qué podría estar relacionado con el cultivo de alfabetizaciones digitales críticas en la era de la posverdad, las noticias falsas y el cebo de clics. A través de la utilización de la plataforma como marco para el estudio, el trabajo examina cómo la arquitectura, los algoritmos y los efectos de red de la plataforma han cambiado la manera en que las noticias se crean y se diseminan, y cómo las audiencias se posicionan frente a ellas. La presente crítica teórica arroja luz sobre los aspectos técnicos, políticos y sociales alrededor de la manera en que los individuos se involucran con las noticias en línea

Sosiaalisen median tutkija ja houkuttelevat numerot

Metriikat ovat oleellinen osa sosiaalisen median kulttuuria ja sieltä ladattavia tutkimusaineistoja. Ne ovat ihmistoiminnan digitaalisia jälkiä, jotka kuvaavat yksittäisen käyttäjän tai käyttäjäjoukkojen toimintaa digitaalisissa palveluissa ja samalla tuottavat mitattavan representaation sosiaalisesta toiminnasta. Kuten kaikkea numeerista tietoa, myös sosiaalisen median metriikoita määrittää objektiivisuuden aura. Niiden käyttö on performatiivista eli todellisuutta tuottavaa ja edistää yhteismitattavuuden logiikkaa. Metriikat ovat kuitenkin sosioteknisessä prosessissa syntynyttä kulttuurista varantoa, joka tuotetaan jossakin kontekstissa, ja jota muovataan ja tulkitaan sen elinkaaren ajan. Tämä katsaus pohtii sosiaalisen median metriikoiden merkitystä ja käyttöä tieteellisessä analyysissä, ja kannustaa tutkijoita suhtautumaan numeroihin sosioteknisinä konstruktioina; suhtautumalla niihin kriittisellä otteella ja pyrkimällä ymmärtämään sitä sosioteknistä kontekstia, jossa ne ovat syntyneet

Tackling food marketing to children in a digital world: trans-disciplinary perspectives. Children’s rights, evidence of impact, methodological challenges, regulatory options and policy implications for the WHO European Region

There is unequivocal evidence that childhood obesity is influenced by marketing of foods and non-alcoholic beverages high in saturated fat, salt and/or free sugars (HFSS), and a core recommendation of the WHO Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity is to reduce children’s exposure to all such marketing. As a result, WHO has called on Member States to introduce restrictions on marketing of HFSS foods to children, covering all media, including digital, and to close any regulatory loopholes. This publication provides up-to-date information on the marketing of foods and non-alcoholic beverages to children and the changes that have occurred in recent years, focusing in particular on the major shift to digital marketing. It examines trends in media use among children, marketing methods in the new digital media landscape and children’s engagement with such marketing. It also considers the impact on children and their ability to counter marketing as well as the implications for children’s rights and digital privacy. Finally the report discusses the policy implications and some of the recent policy action by WHO European Member States

The Effects of Digitally Delivered Nudges in a Corporate Wellness Program

We investigate how two digitally delivered nudges, namely light social support (nonverbal cues such as kudos or likes) and motivational messaging, affect employees’ self-reported physical activity in an online, corporate wellness program. Within this unique field setting, using data from several years, we found evidence that both types of nudges provide benefits beyond the effect of cash incentives. However, the effects vary by individual, depending on whether the employee is actively engaging in physical activity, and by time, depending on how long the employee has been in the wellness program. We found light social support to be less effective over time, while motivational messages were found to be more effective with the duration in the program and generally more effective for physically inactive users. Our findings have implications for the design of wellness systems, suggesting different approaches depending on an employee’s current activity level and tenure in the progra

Privacy, Sharing, and Trust: The Facebook Study

Using sharing on Facebook as a case study, this Article presents empirical evidence suggesting that trust is a significant factor in individuals’ willingness to share personal information on online social networks. I then make two arguments, one that explains why Facebook is designed the way it is and one that calls for legal protection against unfair manipulation of users. I argue that Facebook is built on trust: the trust that exists between friends and the trust that exists between users and the platform. In particular, I describe how Facebook designs its platform and interface to leverage the trust we have in our friends to nudge us to share. Sometimes, that helps create a dynamic social environment: knowing what our friends are doing helps us determine when it is safe to interact. Other times, Facebook leverages trust to manipulate us into sharing information with advertisers. This should give us pause. Because Facebook uses trust-based design, users may be confused about the privacy effects of their behavior. Federal and state consumer and privacy protection regulators should step in