This Tuesday, I will be making a presentation about the use of Twitter throughout the Iranian Election Protests and the value of Twitter as a tactic to sustain contentious activity. You are welcome to check out my Presentation and come to the Mobile Applications and Social Media Conference (http://mobsoc.org/) on January 26, 2009 at 7:30 PM [...]
From the category archives:
Papers
Mead’s theory of symbolic interaction is based off the assumption that the social structure is developed at both the individual level and societal level. Symbolic interactionism is a theoretical orientation focusing on how society is a product of shared communication and understanding among self-conscious individuals engaged in cooperative undertakings. Symbolic interactionism looks at the meaning [...]
Weber believed that the understanding of ideal types makes it possible to predict social action at a specific time and place. Generalization and the use of concepts contribute toward causal explanations of phenomenon (Weber 1968:20). Weber formulated ideal types drawing off the theory of Gresham’s Law. Gresham’s Law provides a rational interpretation of social action [...]
Throughout his work, Weber was committed to liberalism. Weber believed that liberalization is a path to truth (Weber 1958:120). Liberalization is obtaining truth by becoming free of the values imposed by society. In order to obtain truth, one must be value-free. Values differ from place and time (Kalberg 2005:245). Values also have the power to [...]
There has been increasing research on Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the social movement field (Earl & Kimport 2008; Earl 2006; Earl & Schussman 2003; Garrett 2006; McCaughey & Ayers 2003; Van De Donk, Wim, Loader, Nixon, & Rucht 2004). ICTs can refer to cell phones, email, weblogs (blogs), and various internet services. Each [...]
I’ve known quite a few “emo” kids, but in reality, I believe they characterize more post-emotional traits. “Emo” kids usually listen to music that talks about how life comes at you and you have no ability to stop it. Personally, I find it a bit too much like a child whining. Postemotionalism is a type [...]
Chuck Palahniuk’s Fight Club describes a Nietzsche influenced reaction to modern materialist culture. In Fight Club, the narrator Joe is trapped by consumerism and all the flaws of materialism and capitalism. While fighting internally with modern day consumption, Joe manages to create a super human personality, Tyler Durden. Tyler recognizes the flaws of society and [...]
Since 1922, Egypt has been struggling with freedom. Hamed Oweis’ painting, Fellah, represents the constant feeling of being contained within certain parameters in Egypt ranging from pre-revolutionary Egypt, Nasser’s socialism, and Qutb’s Islamism. Although each stage tried to free the individual, each failed in a different way. Pre-revolutionary Egypt tried to liberate Egyptians by finding [...]
