BlackTerrel
05-20-2010, 02:04 PM
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/Culture-Wars-vs-Censorship-Whats-a-Social-Network-to-Do-70038.html?wlc=1274385542
Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter have made the world smaller, allowing people located on different continents to connect and communicate as if they were next-door neighbors. At times, however, the conversations taking place on these new technology platforms can offend some of their users' old-world sensibilities, creating consequences that not even the visionaries who created these sites ever imagined.
The latest social media uproar surfaced Wednesday, when protesters took to the streets in Pakistan decrying a contest soliciting caricatures of the prophet Mohammed initiated by a Facebook user. The demonstrations caused Pakistan's Lahore High Court to order the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority to block access to Facebook from Internet users throughout the country. On Thursday, the PTA expanded the ban to include YouTube...
...The offending contest was launched in April by Molly Norris, a Seattle-based cartoonist, in reaction to the decision by the Comedy Central network to edit a portion of its "South Park" television program that was to have depicted the prophet Mohammed in a bear costume...
...Responding to public reactions to content that some groups deem offensive is still a new issue for social media sites, which after all are still relatively young enterprises, said Muhammed Saleem, a Chicago-based social media consultant.
However, the sites will have to start developing policies to deal with this issue, he said, because it is coming up with increasing frequency.
"Facebook has been somewhat inconsistent in the way it handles these issues," Muhammed told TechNewsWorld. "For instance, they have let pages that deny the Holocaust stay up, but took down a page supporting women's rights to breastfeed."
Despite their brief speckled history in handling controversial content, Muhammed believes social media sites, including Facebook, ultimately will come down on the side of free speech.
A couple points:
1. How awesome is your life in Pakistan that your biggest concern is a Facebook fan page? You are literally taking time out of your life to march down the street in your home country (where probably everyone agrees with you) to protest this page. You must have no real problems.
2. I love that the social media consultant they quoted for this article on the Mohammed controversy is named Muhammed.
"Muhammed (no relation to the guy who started the controversy) believes social media sites, including Facebook, ultimately will come down on the side of free speech."
Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter have made the world smaller, allowing people located on different continents to connect and communicate as if they were next-door neighbors. At times, however, the conversations taking place on these new technology platforms can offend some of their users' old-world sensibilities, creating consequences that not even the visionaries who created these sites ever imagined.
The latest social media uproar surfaced Wednesday, when protesters took to the streets in Pakistan decrying a contest soliciting caricatures of the prophet Mohammed initiated by a Facebook user. The demonstrations caused Pakistan's Lahore High Court to order the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority to block access to Facebook from Internet users throughout the country. On Thursday, the PTA expanded the ban to include YouTube...
...The offending contest was launched in April by Molly Norris, a Seattle-based cartoonist, in reaction to the decision by the Comedy Central network to edit a portion of its "South Park" television program that was to have depicted the prophet Mohammed in a bear costume...
...Responding to public reactions to content that some groups deem offensive is still a new issue for social media sites, which after all are still relatively young enterprises, said Muhammed Saleem, a Chicago-based social media consultant.
However, the sites will have to start developing policies to deal with this issue, he said, because it is coming up with increasing frequency.
"Facebook has been somewhat inconsistent in the way it handles these issues," Muhammed told TechNewsWorld. "For instance, they have let pages that deny the Holocaust stay up, but took down a page supporting women's rights to breastfeed."
Despite their brief speckled history in handling controversial content, Muhammed believes social media sites, including Facebook, ultimately will come down on the side of free speech.
A couple points:
1. How awesome is your life in Pakistan that your biggest concern is a Facebook fan page? You are literally taking time out of your life to march down the street in your home country (where probably everyone agrees with you) to protest this page. You must have no real problems.
2. I love that the social media consultant they quoted for this article on the Mohammed controversy is named Muhammed.
"Muhammed (no relation to the guy who started the controversy) believes social media sites, including Facebook, ultimately will come down on the side of free speech."