A Social world of Facebook in and out of KU

As we human beings are the only social beings, the way we live and behave in our society defines us and our identity. Social processes and traditional understandings have been defining our life from the very beginning. Society is an emblem of sharing and multiplicity among a group of people that could belong to a community of multi ethnicity and multi culture. But, with the advancement in science, technology and relevant communication behavior, we have come a long way, where we socialize with the entire world even through a confined room- thanks to the ever escalating obsession and use of social networking sites. Or we can say, more than an obsession, it has become a necessity, which unlike our traditional societies, has started to revamp the meaning of socialization and our social identity. Our real-world identities can be multifaceted and contextually fragmented - we behave one way at work, and another when drinking with friends. Yet social-networking websites collapse “relationship types and contexts into the ubiquitous ‘Friend’” (Boyd, 2007, p.134). Thus one’s online social network friends, regardless of context (e.g. work, family, and school) all receive, by default, the same information. This online flattening of offline relationships has progressed without adequate means to negotiate this experience. For example how to present one facet of personality, or persona, to one's friends vs. one's workplace colleagues.

The Facebook phenomenon in a developing country like Nepal is indeed an interesting subject to study and find out about the people who are knowingly or unknowingly negotiating with their identity through social networking sites like Facebook. Facebook has met with some controversy over the past few years. It has been blocked intermittently in several countries including Syria and Iran. It has also been banned at many places of work to increase productivity. Privacy has also been an issue, and it has been compromised several times. It is also facing several lawsuits from a number of Zuckerberg's (the creator of Facebook) former classmates, who claim that Facebook had stolen their source code and other intellectual property. But this has not stopped people from using it. Even our political leaders have started to keep themselves up to date with people through Facebook and they are in the verge of transforming their identity as technologically and informatively advanced. The Facebook account of finance minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has been authenticated after the minister asked the person impersonating him to manage the account for him. But impersonating people on online services isn’t unique to Facebook- Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Steve Ballmer, John Howard And Barack Obama have all had their identity used by others only to create their fake and unauthorized accounts but when we came to know about God’s Facebook page wandering round the internet, and when tried to look at his profile, it had all sorts of statuses like “God is high like a kite....” or “God is bored lol”. When you search for Facebook account of George Bush, the outgoing American president, around 500 account profiles scroll up on your screen. Now, it is almost impossible to go through all the accounts only to find out if there’s any authentic one. The other thing of significance is that Facebook is creating “an identity that can cross applications.” And even world brands use virtual worlds to prototype, advertise and sell goods. That significance is one of the reasons that technologists have been so enthusiastic about the young platform.

The use of Facebook among Kathmandu University students too is extremely high. There are many students who created identity through Facebook. Some of them are Aakar Undefined and Vapidity; Aakar Undefined earned his popularity in his real life through his virtual identity. There were many people inside university who knew him in the Facebook but not in real life, many students know who Aakar Undefined is but very few, only the closest know his full name and know him in person. On the other hand Vapidity has used an English word for his identity on virtual world which can be used by any other person but inside the university it seems that he has owned the word and vapidity is not merely a word but a person’s identity in the virtual world. Even university clubs are formed through Facebook having all the executive members of the club regular users of Facebook. The clubs like Club’07 are some instances of this fact. The clubs use feeds, walls and their own profile space so well that the members had to put less effort for the dissemination of information to organize any programs. The clubs even send invitation to the programs in Facebook to the friends in their circle. The feeds in the Facebook are actually replacing the real life notice boards and to know any activities of the club, students do not have to reach for notice boards but just log on to their Facebook account and the notice board comes to their screen. These clubs are also the examples of virtual clubs that exist in reality. The use of Facebook is not only fun, or passing time, sharing photographs but the use of notes in the Facebook are for sharing any literary hobby or posting any thoughts or even facts. That is not it; the further utilization is made through comments as people comment in one’s note and then replied again by some other people. It is like a discussion forum and the use of notes has made impact on real activities and relationships. Thus the virtual space is attracting many members because of these facilities and the foremost fact that people are interested in Facebook is because virtual self is only possible only when there are other virtual characters.

Today one cannot imagine being social without these social networking sites, especially in the time of global migration. These sites matter to us more than being social in real; like parties, get-togethers, and even reunions or any social event for it doesn’t guarantee bringing up all your friends as these sites do. And they even bring together friends from different poles of the world. That is why it is not surprising to see the young generation gluing to their PCs and Laptops in a small corner rather than going out for social events. Would it be surprising to predict that the new generation will stop coming out of their abodes and just remain attached to the computer for it would mean more to them than a social life?

co-written with Sumati Maharjan

Works cited:
 Wikipedia
 www.Questia.com/Identity_Psychology, Boyd, D. (2007). None of this is real: Identity and participation in Friendster. New York: Social Science Research Council.
 Golick, J. (2008). Deleted from Facebook. Story2Oh.com.
 Oneill, N.(2007). Facebook’s Identity Problem.
o Jeremiah (2007). Web Strategy Predictions: Facebook, Identity, Social networks.
 Paul Squires (2007). Facebook and identity

Being an internal tourist

It was very interesting visit to Changu Narayan with the details of the temple by the priest himself but as the description finished and we roamed around the temple premises we saw different homemade materials on sale. We were very happy to see the Nepali products having such a good market for international tourists. We also thought of checking out the products, as we were also the internal tourist there. But as we inquired about the materials and price, the response was very frustrating. They were very reluctant to give us any information; moreover, they even ordered us not to touch them. A seller even gave the rude comments that we were just wasting their time and they only give information to the people who actually buy them. We returned back disheartened.

The internal tourism industry involves a very wide range of commercial and public enterprises and brings economic and social benefits to society. It creates employment for many different categories of workers and offers job opportunities for women. The very important part of internal tourism is internal tourism consumption. The basic concept measuring tourism activity and refers to total consumption of or on behalf of visitors and could, consequently be termed as "visitor demand". And it was evident that the shopkeepers in Changu Narayan were not aware of this fact.

Democracy and Journalism

Democracy is a form of government in which state-power is held by the majority of citizens within a country or a state. In political theory, democracy describes a small number of related forms of government and also a political philosophy. Even though there is no universally accepted definition of 'democracy', there are two principles that any definition of democracy includes. The first principle is that all members of the society have equal access to power and the second that all members enjoy universally recognized freedoms and liberties. Journalism is the production of news reports and editorials through media such as newspapers, magazines, radio, television and the Internet. Journalists, be they writers, editors, photographers, broadcast presenters or producers, serve as the main purveyors of information and opinion in contemporary society.

In the 1920s, as modern journalism was just taking form, Walter Lippmann understood that journalism's role at the time was to act as a mediator or translator between the public and policy making elites. The journalist became the middleman. When elites spoke, journalists listened and recorded the information, distilled it, and passed it on to the public for their consumption. His reasoning behind this was that the public was not in a position to deconstruct the growing and complex flurry of information present in modern society, and so an intermediary was needed to filter news for the masses. Lippman put it this way: The public is not smart enough to understand complicated, political issues. Furthermore, the public was too consumed with their daily lives to care about complex public policy. Therefore the public needed someone to interpret the decisions or concerns of the elite to make the information plain and simple. That was the role of journalists. However, American philosopher John Dewey, on the other hand, believed the public was not only capable of understanding the issues created or responded to by the elite; it was in the public forum that decisions should be made after discussion and debate. When issues were thoroughly vetted, then the best ideas would bubble to the surface. Dewey believed journalists should do more than simply pass on information. He believed they should weigh the consequences of the policies being enacted. Over time, his idea has been implemented in various degrees, and is more commonly known as "community journalism."

Thus, one of the remarkable phenomena during the latter part of the twentieth century has been the emergence of media power, the impact of which has been all pervasive, transcending national frontiers. It is seen that independent media plays a major role in ensuring proper functioning of a democracy by mustering public opinion against corrupt practices that comes with power and authority cannot be disputed either. In a democratic state people vote for all kind of reasons, as is their right, and not always on the basis of rational thought or careful deliberation. But from the normative perspective the democratic ideal is one of informed choice to which the outputs of political journalism are key contributors. Journalists provide the key information on which citizens become able to judge between competing candidates and parties.

Media’s place in democracy is complex and varied. But in the last instance, it is up to those working in the media who can do a lot to shape the particular contribution of their medium. That indeed is part of the responsibility and calling of being a journalist. Actually, journalism is the voice of the voiceless people. Though mass media have a dual responsibility- to their owners and advertisers, and to the public; both of them are very important; but the priority should be given to the public. Journalist play the vital role of “watchdog” over the government looking out for instances of malfunction and corruption. The public would have far less control over the affairs of the government without the probing questions of investigative reporters. Democracy of journalism means freedom of press which gives right to publish without prior restraint and freedom from despotic control by the government. So when public are given diversified information, they take their own decisions. In a way, we can say, media is not the power house itself but it enjoys the power through the public support. So media indirectly control the government.

Only elections don’t make the state democratic. Liberated media is fundamentally crucial in genuine democratic societies because it practices the theory of including the public in governmental affairs, and commemorates the democratic idea that reality can only be relative and truth and facts are to be deemed authentic by individuals, not administrators.Without freedom in journalism, journalism will not be able to achieve its objective. And without free journalism democracy is incomplete.

Selling Music

Music has immense influence throughout the world. Music evokes many feeling, surfaces old memories, and creates new ones all while satisfying a sense of human emotion. It also provides a sense of knowledge with the ability to help identify a culture, as well as educate countries about other cultures. Our sounds, our noises, whether comforting or disturbing, are, as forms of response, substantially different to the forms. It can be a tool for many things: relaxation, stimulation and communication. Or it can also be a tool for resistance: against parents, against police against power. Questions of tradition, identity, and propriety and of the control over properties real and creative are, even for the least political among us, inescapable and urgent as the way in which we answer these questions can determine how our music is placed in the world, how it is consumed, valued, disposed. Through the topics like the loss of a nation’s cultural identity, the terror of westernization, and the reign of cultural imperialism we explore the possibilities or the existence of hybridization of cultures and values, and what some feel is the exploitation of their heritage. Music being the highly profitable, capitalist enterprise control and regulate the music. They sell culture and heritage.
The seven large multinational corporations, with their nation of origin and reported 1990 sales, are: Sony (Japan, $3 billion), Time/Warner (U.S., $2.9 billion), Polygram (Netherlands/Germany, $2.6 billion), Bertelsmann Media Group (Germany, $2 billion), Thorn/EMI (U.K., $1.88 billion), MCA (U.S., $1 billion), and Virgin (U.K., $500 million), total 1990 sales $13.88 billion (1993, pp. 141-143). With number such as these it is nearly impossible to deny the fact that these companies do not have a great affect on the influence of music and media that they distribute. Conglomerates not only run the market for music, but determine which music is to be distributed and to where, therefore pushing an idea or culture onto a nation. Artists such as Britney Spears, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill and Michael Jackson set out on world wide tours to spread their music throughout the world. These artists have realized the caliber and sheer numbers they can produce by not just focusing on one area. As site by Farley (2001) artist sometimes do not conquer a civilization completely, but help to create a hybrid form that has been formed using aspects of a person’s own culture and incorporating foreign attributes. For example, within Jamaica, there is a form of music known as “ragga”, which is a rap-influenced form of reggae. This is a perfect example how music can have somewhat of a positive affect. However, there are negative affects which come with such an influence. Along with the influence of the lyrics from rap came a lot more than Jamaica bargained for. They find that with local ragga star “Elephant Man’s” lyrics such as “Badman nah run from police inna shootout/ Whole crew a government see dem pon di lookout….” they have incorporated violence and hate. At recent concerts their have been fights, injuries, gunfire and death. So as positive as it seemed to incorporate foreign aspects into their music, it turned out to be a horrid influence. Artists also have had a key role in promoting “world music”. World music is defines as music that was written by artists from a foreign country in a native tongue. Nowadays nearly every music retailer – from the old fashioned bricks-and-mortar kind, through the online CD vendors, to the completely virtual iTunes Music Store – has a major section called “World Music” or “International.” U.S. based artists such as Paul Simon, Peter Gabriel and David Byrne are seeking to improve relations between U.S. and world music artists. One of the major fears associated with the globalization of music is the creation of a global monoculture. Monoculture is destroying local tradition, knowledge, skill, artisans and values. Specifically artisans have been affected through the fact that the product that they have tried to market has been outdated and overrun by the pop star garbage that has taken over the world and destroyed cultures. One of the main causes for the affects that music has had globally is the open-mindedness of the people that have accepted it. For example in 1959, Richie Valens hit the top of the charts with his song “La Bamba”. After this large hit, it was forty years before the world accepted another Latin rocker – Santana. With Santana’s worldwide success sparked room for artists such as Wyclef Jean. Wyclef formed a new hybrid formed of Haitian Creole and English. Even U.S. based Christina Aguilera recorded an entire CD entirely in Spanish. Within transitions to create a global market, these artists have found not only how to make money and survive in a capitalistic world, but how to satisfy more than one cultural group.

Ambush journalism

Ambush is the act or instance of lying concealed so as to attack by surprise. Journalism is the occupation of reporting, writing, editing, photographing, or broadcasting news. Ambush journalism refers to aggressive tactics practiced by journalists to suddenly confront with questions people who otherwise do not wish to speak to a journalist. Ambush Journalism is commonly seen in American public affairs and tabloid programs. The practice has particularly been applied by television journalists, conducting investigations. The practice has been sharply criticized by journalists and others as being highly unethical and sensational but it appears to be continuing in the future.

Some journalists use this technique to obtain the latest and hottest news. The outcome can sometimes be damaging or viewed as unethical. Other journalists refuse to use this technique because they feel that it violates the basic journalistic standards of balance and fairness. However others defend it as the only way to attempt to provide those subjects to it an opportunity to comment for a report. Journalists sometimes use the element of Ambush Journalism as a surprise technique to get the real story or news and raw emotions. This can sometimes be good because the persons true emotions are not hidden, as mentioned before, but usually the person being interviewed or ambushed does not have time to prepare and tends to have not well-reasoned answers.

It has been a serious issue whether Ambush Journalism is ethical or not. This is a very hard question to answer because each case is different. Also who decides what is ethical? That judgment is left in the hands of both journalist and the public. The public on the other hand wants to know everyone's private business so much that they sometimes do not care how it might affect the person or persons that the news is about. However if they were to be the subject of Ambush Journalism themselves they would most likely not like it at all.

One good example of Ambush Journalism was carried out by Tehelka.com in 2001 which had begun it's publication in 2000 as a news website. a reporter Mathew Samuel posed as a representative of the fictitious large arms supplier of a company named "West End" and successfully had a major expose on corruption in defense procurements. "Operation West End" as it is popularly known made then minister in charge of Defense, George Fernandes of Samata Party resignfrom his post although he was reinstated later. Tehelka.com was also forced to close down temprorarily. in their 2004 book, "international Communication: A Media Literacy Approach", Art Silverbatt and Nikolai Zlobin described Tehelka as a "muckraking site".

An Indian movie, “Breaking News” released in 2007, directed by Vishal Inamdar also tries to show the aspects of Ambush journalism with general details on its pros and cons successfully covering the issues of ethics, sensationalizing in media and the thin line between Ambush Journalism and Yellow Journalism.

A Memorable Trip to Bhaktapur

The memorable trip to bhaktapur began with the traditional "Dhau baji" (curd and beated rice) and the multinational Coca-cola. we entered the Bhaktapur Durbar Square with Tejeshowr Sir and got enchanted with the beauty of the arts and the description by Tejeshowr Sir. The Nyatapola Temple was our final destination.

Eating Dhau baji to kick start the trip

The statue of Siddhi Narsingha Malla

Narsingha:Half man and half lion

Bhagawati: the Goddess of Power

Nyatapola in Tamadhi Square

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When in pain

Take my senses, burn my belief
Shed my skin, to your relief

Break me into pieces, make me fall
Steal my sunshine, take it all

Kill my soul, I won’t mourn
I don’t want my life, I need none