Social Media And Social Justice

Social media is any form of technology that allows people to create and share information or participate in conversation. Forms of social media technology include twitter, facebook, television, blogs, forms of journalism, etc. These forms of technology cause events like the arab spring, the democratic uprising in the arab world, and panama papers, the largest leak of information in all of history. Social media also assist in the uncovering of criminals and those who we deem immoral, like members of the KKK or neo-nazis. Social media is one of the leading factor for the information technology revolution. It has become clear that these technological advancements have driven social media and justice into a direct relationship. Inhuman actions …show more content…
Opinions are thrown into a pool of conversation where at the end a common idea is formulated by the majority like, racism and sexism are not allowed. Those ideas can even transform into memes which Bill Wasik goes in depth about. Memes are slivers of culture transferred between multiple people, allowing the community to express their opinions with little to no effort while retaining its powerful message. This can be observed in the rise of social justice conversation on forums and its power over countries and universities. If someone in power is found to not follow the thoughts of the majority, that are seen as moral codes, social outcry can occur and the swift justice of forced resignation can transpire. This effect was seen during the arab spring and panama papers, with the forced resignation of leaders, like Iceland’s prime minister Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson. Bill Wasik gives an excellent explanation to why this occurs, “herd behavior, what economist call a ‘bandwagon effect’: the instinctive tendency of the human animal to rely on the action of others in choosing its own course of action. We get interested in the things we see others getting interested in”, and justice is always a huge topic.(522) The bandwagon effect causes stories like the panama papers to become global …show more content…
Justice is dependent on information and social media is the largest distributor of information in existence. Twitter and others alike are now for many people their main source for current events and information. Any leaks of information, like those on Wikileaks, will instantly find their way to Twitter. Forcing people with power to have no room for secrets. In the past even presidents could do what the public deem immoral in secrecy, but now anything will come to the attention of the public. Public figures are forced into the spotlight, obligating them to make just action to not provoke outrage. Patrick Murphy describes the relationship between media and justice “human rights and social justice discourses has typically coalesced around topics of peace and conflict, governance, transparency, and accountability... media have therefore been at the center”, social media is the ultimate checks and balances for the world.(101) Social media gives the power of information to the public creating a just global democracy. There is nothing more terrifying for a human than being outcasted and now social media can do that to those seen fit to receive such treatment, that is social justice in the eyes of the majority. Information is what caused this revolution in thought, and through conversation the public