Downsides of New New Media

Every rose has its thorn. This is true for everything including new new media. New new media opens up a whole new Pandora's box of crime that now takes place in cyberspace. Crimes like cyber-stalking, cyber-bullying, and even robbery and murder have been solicited through new new media. Most of us are familiar with the joke "oh, time to Facebook stalk you!" This is making a pun on the fact that you're going to go through someone's Facebook page and give a thorough read through. Though harmless in this scenario, cyber-stalking is when someone repeatedly follows the movements of someone online through the internet. This is very scary for many people because it makes them uncomfortable and fear for their own safety. Cyber-bullying is another big issue as well. We're all familiar with gossip queens and such, but when it takes to the internet, it turns into a whole new beast. A young Irish immigrant to Massachusetts committed suicide because of what some of the people in her school were writing online about her. She was constantly harassed over her short time dating a football player at her high school and she could never settle in or feel welcome. The bullying got so bad, she took her own life. One of the most famous new new media crimes however, was the craigslist killer Philip Markoff. He was a medical school student who met people by soliciting ads on craigslist.com and then proceeded to rob them. One final time he met a young lady on craigslist and robbed her and killed her. Markoff committed suicide after being indicted on murder and armed robbery charges. Even though the internet and new new media have incredible upsides, their downsides can be very ugly. The world is a dangerous place, and cyberspace is no exception.

Cyberbullying on LikeALittle

As I was reading about cyberbullying and cyberstalking in Paul Levinson's chapter "The Dark Side of New New Media," I reflected on bullying using of AIM when it was popular before MySpace and Facebook. However, there was one website that became popular this year that made me think about this topic. The infamous website is LikeALittle. For those of you who don't know, LikeALittle is a website dedicated to flirting with guys and girls specifically on Fordham's campus. Most people who comment or respond say the same thing, "Why don't you just tell them in person?" I'm not going to get into the flirtatious aspect of this site, but rather the dark side.

Though I do understand that it's all in fun, I have seen several posts that I would call inappropriate. One post said something along the lines of: blonde girl, i am waiting to attack you on Hoffman. The blonde girl was no one in particular, but it was saying that someone will be attacked when leaving Fordham's campus. On another note, students may get called out by name saying that someone in their class is watching them because they are beautiful/handsome. I am aware that some of these are people's friends and they are aware of the post, however, some of them are actually real. If you knew that one of your friends didn't post about you, but someone else did, then a part of you feels a little creeped out by it. Overall, I don't think this is a great site due to all of the cyberbullying that some people may get carried away with.

Podcasting

I feel that podcasting is a great form of new new media in which one can express themselves. It allows people to proclaim their ideas and individuality to others whether it be on their iPod or in the car. Obviously, the free-ness of it all is amazing. While I do not produce my own podcasts, I feel that this form of new new media is not too invasive into one’s private life. Other forms seem a bit creepy to me, allowing people to know where you are at all times, which gets too invasive for me personally. The whole idea of actually creating something shows that you have a talent and I think podcasting is great way to show your uniqueness and get yourself known to others for a good reason. The example Levinson uses is very interesting, when he creates a podcast rather quickly in the beginning of the chapter. He discusses a popular problem known as cyber bullying and I think it is a great way to get your opinions on a topic out there for others to hear and be able to react to.