Is Social Media a Crime Fighting Tool?

Traditionally, evidence such as DNA, fingerprints and eyewitness accounts are what helps convicts defendants in criminal cases, but in this case their tool is social media. Who would have imagined that social media can help solve a case?

Three teenage boys were arrested Thursday and are faced with charges of sexual battery. The incident happened at an unsupervised house party in Saratoga, California, in September. Almost a year later, the three teenage boys were arrested.

It’s amazing how evidence can go viral! Similar to another case, where two football players were convicted of raping a girl who had too much to drink and images posted to social media sites. What is this world coming to?

In this case, Audrie Pott had too much to drink as well and eventually passed out.  The three teenage boys took advantage of her and took photos of the attack. They shared them at school, via text and social media networks. After learning that her photos were posted online, 15 year old Audrie posted on Facebook,

“They took pictures of me.

My life is ruined.

This is the worst day ever”.  

 

After this accouchement she hung herself.  

The case shocked many in Silicon Valley, where many of the tech giants, including Facebook are located. It underscored the immoral use of technology by young people in bullying others. Digital technologies can expand the harm that people suffer greatly.

The photos were taken of the assault as it was taking place. They spread like wildfire online. It was obvious who the culprits were by the username that uploaded the photos. 

On the Friday after her death, September 14, all the students at Saratoga High wore teal, Audrie's favorite color



It’s clear that Facebook and Twitter are added to the list of crime fighting tools. Social media has helped police agencies solve cases big and small.

Everyone in the high school knew who was responsible due to the leakage of photos from the assault. Although the images that were posted online were disturbing and upsetting they were useful throughout the investigation. All in all, the pictures assisted in bringing the young men to justice.

Social networking addiction is creating what can ultimately be a vast crime fighting network, by connecting people (witnesses) to the locations, dates, times, and photos that are instrumental in solving crimes.



Social media is helpful during law enforcement investigations

 

We have small clues about our lives all over the internet like fingerprints. In this California case, both the photos and Facebook post served as evidence to help capture Audrie’s offenders.

How To Do A Technology Detox

Are you on technological overload, and it’s time to do something about it? When you spend more time talking on the phone than you do sleeping, you know it’s time to do a technology detox. Here’s how to ease yourself away from your computer or phone and back into reality:
 

1. First step is to avoid "tech turds". Don’t just dump your smart phone on the table at a restaurant or at home. Keep it in your pocket or purse unless it’s critical to have it out. If you do have it out please inform your companion you will only check it in an emergency. It’s out of respect to do so. 
   
   
2. Second, live your life in the real world. You don’t need to constantly post a status update or tweet or blog about something in your life. Anything you post or tweet, make sure it’s something you’d be willing to say to anyone in face. 
   
   
3. Thirdly, ask yourself if you really need the gadget. There are tons of cool stuff in the technological world and some may even improve your family life, but don’t feel pressured to use every new toy that comes out.
   
   
4. Fourth, sleep device-free. Move your chargers out of the bedroom to another room or to the other side of the room. They need a break from you too.
   
   
5. Fifth step is to decide between people or technology. Work towards choosing to spend time with your family freinds over being plugged in your devices. Yes, there are times that it may be difficult to choose between your smart phone or laptop and paying attention to your child or loved one or friend. Do your best to use your device more on your own time rather during the time you share with loved ones.
   
   
6. Sixth step, structure your e-day. Arrange a time that you will dedicate checking your e-mails, reading texts and following-up. When you’re ready to un-plug in the evening, do it without reservation and focus on the here and now.
   
   
7. Seventh step is to make plans and set goals. Chances are that you will really need something to keep pushing you towards technology independence. Just as dieting, you need to plan and keep in mind the smart criteria  for goal setting: specific, measureable, accurate, realistic, and timely. 
   
   
8. Eighth step, draw up a game plan. Ask yourself how will you spend time that has been freed from shutting out technology? Explore other activities that won’t require you to be plugged in. Look into other hobbies that don’t revolve around technology. It’s important to establish healthy habits.
   
   
9. Lastly, believe in the power of choice. Don’t feel robbed from your freedom. It’s hard to resist change but it’s about embracing it.

 

 

Technology has overwhelmed our daily lives to the point of constant distraction. Many of us no longer focus on single tasks or face-to-face conversation without wanting to reach out to the virtual world. We are constantly plugged in! This plan will help you regain control and focus on your life!

Tip: Once you completed the digital detox, return to the detox phase at least once a month to once a week. You can do this as a family too. Use that day as a touchstone to remember what life can be like without technology.

National Day of Un-plugging!

Do you have multiple technology devices? Do you take your phone out of your pocket every 5 minutes? Do you find it hard to get through a conversation without posting a tweet or post? Is your computer always on?

While researching technology Sabbath and ways to detox from social media, I came across this fascinating website: National Day of Un-plugging. It’s an interesting campaign that encourages people like us to not miss out on important moments of our lives by having our noses buried in iPhones and iPads. It’s a movement that protects you from Facebook and Twitter for a day.

The National Day of Unplugging is a 24 hour period- running from sunset to sunset and starts the first Friday in March. When you join the movement you sign the unplug pledge and start living a different life. You will have the opportunity to finally connect with people in your community, and have an uninterrupted meal or actually pick up a book.

The following is an image of me pledging to unplug to reconnect with family and friends:

The project is an outgrowth of the Sabbath Manifesto, an adaptation of carving out one day a week to unwind, unplug, relax, reflect, get outdoors, and connect with loved ones. The meaning behind this is to simply take a break. Call a timeout. Find some balance. Recharge.

Do you want to join the movement? So, SAVE THE DATE to un-plug from March 7th -8th, 2014. It should be a liberating experience! Maybe after getting through one day you might want to incorporate un-plugging once a week in your daily routine. You never know,  just give it a try!

10 Ways to Utilize Social Media

Have any of you thought on how to really use social media? Most of us just use it to use it. Or we primarily make accounts to keep in contact with friends and family. We’re constantly plugged-in, because we want to always be in the know of things and be the first ones to get the scoop. But there’s more to social media. It can be about relating meaningfully to other people.

          Here’s a list of 10 tips to use social media mindfully:

1. Know your intentions: Think before you post! Ask yourself if you’re posting to be seen or validated by your fellow followers or friends? Is it constructive or is it negative?


2. Be your authentic self: Social media are a way of personal branding. You have your image and reputation to maintain. You should want to post comments and tweets that are related to you. They should communicate the person you are.


3.  Before you tweet or post, always ask: Is it true? Is it kind?: Sometimes we get too caught up in emotions and forget to filter our thoughts. We must be considerate when making posts. You must not forget that potential employers may read your profiles. You want to make a positive impression oppose to a negative one.


4.  Offer posts of kindness: Use social media to extend a helping hand to those in need, without expecting anything in return. You may create a connection that will help you later down the road. A simple tweet might consist of, “Is there anything I can do to help you?”


5.  Experience now, share later: It’s common to take a picture and upload instantly to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. It defeats the purpose of living in the moment. You shouldn’t want to share everything in real time with your audiences. Enjoy the moment and share later. That’s the beauty of technology today. Photos or videos can be stored and uploaded later.


6.  Be active: I know some of you may have your e-mails and social media accounts linked to your phone, so it's set to give you alerts. You may feel the urge to answer immediately but you have the choice to indulge in that conversation later. You may want to enjoy your free time to truly appreciate it.


7. Respond with your full attention: When your friends or followers share links, it’s good to fully read it and respond. You may not be able to respond to everyone but at least respond to those thoughtfully.


8.  Use mobile social media sparingly: I know many of you may be plugged in at times but it’s up to us to decide how much time we truly dedicate to social media. I know as college students we tend to check into your social media several times a day. You may miss what’s happening online but you won’t miss what’s in front of you (good company).


9.  Let go: It may come off as rude when if you ignore a tweet or post but we need to ensure we have downtime. It’s important to just let go sometimes and relax. Rather than catching up on updates you may want to catch up with an old friend and have lunch.


10.  Last but not least, enjoy it: The above are ways to get the most of social media. Follow your own instincts and have fun with it.

As mentioned, the above tips are just a few ways to utilize social media to its advantage. However, you can feel free to do as you feel. Just remember that it’s okay to be disconnected from technology. Just don’t lose the focus of living in the moment. Don’t get too caught up in uploading every time something happens. Also, remember to respond thoughtfully. You want to establish and maintain relationships you build online.

Social Activism

Social media serve an important role in campaigns whether it’s presidential elections or a gay right movement. Social media can really increase the awareness of the campaign by marketing it to a wide network. The posts, blogs, tweets, likes, or shares will engage audiences and get them involved in the campaign. As I previously mentioned in my earlier blog , Social Media Trends in Presidential Elections, social platforms such as Facebook and Twitter are primary avenues for online campaigning. They have a goal to reach out to millions of users of all demographics. Social campaigns creates a marketplace that encourages consumer engagement. Online buzz makes your campaign more valuable. Social media platforms allows brands and companies to engage in new opportunities but also to create awesome campaigns. Social media tracks how people are enjoying and participating in a campaign. It allows participants to provide feedback which makes it interactive.

 

 

You may ask, “Do viral campaigns on social media make adifference?”. As you may know there has been much deliberation for same-sex marriages. Religious and Republican communities have much to say about this very controversial topic. But, I know you have seen the red equal signs this past week. Whether it was on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. The Human Rights Campaign icon was originally blue and yellow but they altered it to red to represent LOVE. According to the blog the image for marriage equality has been searched more than 1 million times on Google and has been shared more than 100,000 times from its initial Facebook posting on Monday. I think it’s amazing how powerful social media can be. As millions of people from all over shared the new altered logo throughout the World-Wide-Web, I strongly felt that the campaign was successful due to social media. It was impactful.  

 

Did you participate in this viral campaign in support of marriage equality?

Where Social Media Will Take Us

Remember everything I spoke about in my previous post about the power of Facebook, Twitter, and other social media platforms to help develop modern businesses. It’s evident that Facebook creates opportunities for companies. Social media sites continue to increase sales for companies and widen their networks of connections.  The fact that Facebook hit 1 billion users means businesses have more potential users to appeal to. Customers appreciate how easily accessible information can be found online. The benefits of sharing information online are that it’s quick and easy. This generation wants everything at the tip of their fingers. Social networks are becoming a new kind of virtual currency for companies and corporations. You may ask yourself how much social media will evolve over the years? Companies are behind the eight ball when it comes to adapting to the newest technologies and change. Social media provides companies with power and allows them the opportunity to become market leaders and influencers.

Companies should know the following about social media:

1. They know what their consumers are interested in. They know what you’re interested in buying, selling, and seeing. With a simple "like" on Facebook or "follow" on Twitter companies know what their consumers are looking into.


2. Companies know before they know. They do their best to know things before their consumers know. Companies want to know what the customers thinking of. They are sites like Chango with information about what their prospects and consumers are looking at. This benefits the company because it will lure the potential consumer into their services or products.


3. It’s not who you are it’s what you know! The power of networking will benefit you in the long run because the contacts you gain may help you book an interview or meeting with a potential employer. To measure your online influence, visit Klout and login with your social media accounts. The site will generate a score that measures your influence among the media platforms you are active in. It also has a this cool feature, “pulse”, in which you can keep up to date with the world’s top influencers and see where they stand among the rest.

Here you can see how influential Justin Bieber is compared to our President on social media

These many changes continue to shape how companies and well known corporations such as CBS, NBC, and etc., conduct their business. We live in a social media driven world, embracing change is optional but then again so is survival.

Revisited Wiki Post

In my previous post in regards to my Wikipedia edit, I explained how mind boggled I was. It was so easy to edit information on the World Wide Web. It’s fascinating as this site is very “creditable” because many people use it as a source. As I mentioned in my previous post, Wikipedia is used by professors and students to retrieve “valuable” information for their research.

Being that my topic is revolved around the addictions to social media, I looked into theories related to excessive need to be plugged in. “Uses and gratifications theory” , is an approach to understanding why and how people actively seek out specific media to satisfy needs. I wanted to analyze this theory and see how true it holds to my recent research and observations of Generation Y first hand.

The section that I felt needed revising was “New Media Examples of UGT”. I felt this section needed to provide users with real life experiences. I added the personal touch that would relate to the users instantly.

BUT, as I recently visited the page they changed my revision to:

New Media Examples of UGTThe application of New Media to the Uses and Gratifications Theory has been positive.^[20] The introduction of the Internet, social media and technological advances has provided another outlet for people to use and seek gratification through those sources. Based on the models developed by Katz, Blumler, Gurevitch and Lasswell, individuals can choose to seek out media in one outlet, all falling within the proscribed categories of need. The only difference now, is that the audience does not have to go to multiple media outlets to fulfill each of their needs. The Internet has created a digital library, allowing individuals to have access to all content from various mass medium outlets.”

Not only does technology provide an outlet for people who seek the need to fulfill that satisfaction but it also impacted our lives and how we communicate. I feel as though the examples provided aren’t sufficient enough.