Impact of the online movement
The virtual world continuously changes the landscape of society today. It has made the world more borderless were messages can be disseminated to people from across the globe in a span of seconds. Most of the time, social networks such as Facebook, Youtube, Twitter and many other online sites are used for leisure and communicating, but the power of these social networks goes beyond simply connecting people. Social networks are also used to promulgate advocacies and campaigns because of their ability to tap wider audiences.
In some countries, social networks are used as a medium to gain support from the public. For instance in the Philippines, a country that is currently facing an organized and wide corruption case known as The Pork Barrel Scam. Social media was influential in both organization and success of The Million People March, which serves as the publics’ protest against the organized swindling of the people’s money. According to the website I scoop, online communities results to social collaboration. Similar to how people brought to the community to discuss problems and attempt to find a resolution, online communities work on the same paradigm.
Online protests are also a common trend in online communities. For instance, groups may ask users to like or share certain photos and statements as proof of their participation to the groups’ cause and stand. Online petition because of its virtual format makes it assessable to the general public. However, because of the lack of regularities in online petitions, they can also be used as scams.
Because of the continuous development in technology, social media has opened many windows of opportunity for online communities to grow and accumulate power. Power in terms of their scope and power in terms of the number of people following their advocacies. Online communities have the ability to reach wider demographics compared to the traditional method of spreading news and information. It allows people to act and react faster and come up with more innovative form of protests. Online networks are not always about protest; it can also be used to generate donations to victims of natural disaster. For instance, when an earthquake and tsunami hit the islands of Japan, online communities were one of the first groups to ask for aid. Many people created posters and statuses pertaining to relief efforts that aim to collect needed support for the badly devastated areas in Japan.
Online communities result to collective actions directed towards their unified goal. With the immense possibilities opened by the continuous spread of social networking sites, online communities influence continue to grow. Their contribution in shaping society has also expanded, for example, politicians now use the online networks as part of their campaign strategies. During the election period in many countries, the faces and platforms of people running for office is seen and heard not only in traditional media but also in the new media. The rationale to this is because online networking sites usually allows groups to post and operate for free, but it has the ability to generate a wider following from the public.
Many news reports can attest to the growing power and influence of online communities to society because of its ability to gather both information and followers in a faster manner.
References:
Online Communities and social Communities: a primer. http://www.i-scoop.eu/online-communities-social-communities-primer/ 11 May 2014
BBC News, (2007) Road Petition breaks a million http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6349027.stm 11 May 2014
