Reddit: A Strange Digital Artifact
How is a nation created? How about a community? Define a
community. Define a friendship. Can these be created online with a digital
media artifact? It seems so. There is a web site that seems to do just that.
Reddit is a social media website that has created quite the stir. It has been
known in the political world as a united community willing to create a change
in politics. This is the first time a digital artifact has created quite a
difference in the political sphere. The simulated world that Reddit created for
itself is rather intriguing. Reddit is by far one of the strangest digital
media artifacts that have been created.
Reddit is basically a social media website with a twist.
The website is basically a list of articles, stories, and pictures that people
link on the website have found interesting. Users can “upvote” or “downvote”
posts depending on if they like the post or not. The posts with the most
“upvotes will end up at the top of the list, while the ones with the least
amount of “downvotes” will end up at the bottom of the list. One can also
browse the list by certain subjects. Reddit is like a large community. The top
list is like a nation. It is one’s first impression of the whole website. It is
also where the general rules for the entire website are enforced. The main
moderators, presidents if you will, moderate this part of the website. There
are then subreddits, which are like states. These “states” are all about
different subjects. The subreddits all have
their own special rules and their own moderators, governors if you so please.
This is why reddit is a strange digital artifact. (Giltmen)
Reddit has always been a place where word about a topic
can be spread very fast. An example of how Reddit has been able to do this is
when the president did an AMA. AMA is short for ask me anything. In this kind
of post someone starts a thread in which the users of Reddit can post a comment
to the thread asking any question they please; in turn the person that started
the thread (OC or original creator) answers the question. President Obama
answered any question that was asked him. He quickly spread the word about what
he plans to do if he was re-elected as well as what is currently going on in
the political world. Coverage for this event was quite large. It was talked
about in several large media sources and many smaller media sources. (Guarini)
Now Reddit has taken an even bigger awareness program.
The users are currently supporting an internet bus to travel across Middle
America. During this time the bus will be helping advocate the importance of
the freedom of the internet. This was inspired by the SOPA blackout that
happened about a year ago. In this instance Reddit did not allow anyone to use
their website, because it would have been shut down if the SOPA bill passed
through congress. This made quite the impact. SOPA was immediately thrown out
and Reddit had succeeded in keeping their website open. (Patterson)
This type of media is not only effecting politics, but
also how people communicate. The absolute anonymous messages on Reddit make
people believe that they can say anything. The idea that no one will ever find
out who you are makes people believe it is okay to say anything. The same thing
happens in the subreddits as well. The content is not very important in this
situation, but how these people communicate. The content will change from
message to message and from comment to comment, but the way the users are
communicating. The anonymous messages and comments lead to the user being able
to tell the truth, all of the truth. Nothing is held back when there is no risk
of people figuring out who you are. This anonymity shapes Reddit into a
controversial community filled with new ideas. There is no fear of personal
ridicule or attacks outside the community. One can also delete their comment or
message. This means that the ridicule will slowly go away. When there is no
concern for what one says, then why hold back? (McLuhan)
This nation in the internet is a type of simulation. The
community creates friendships that exist in a virtual reality and a sense of
unity. The idea of simulation is very much a debated topic. Is simulation a
real world thing or is a virtual world a false world. The existence of a nation
in the internet is quite strange. Can people unite to form a union as strong as
a nation without ever meeting each other? It seems like it is possible that
this simulated place has created quite that.
Reddit has a strong sense of unity amongst its users. Not very many of
the users know each other in person though. Ideas are created, and sometimes
even implemented between people who have not met and have no plans of meeting.
This could be a problem. Can you be friends with someone without even knowing
what their face looks like? It seems like no. How can you truly know someone
unless you know how their voice sounds like? (Baudrillard)
The idea of a one
simulated nation under the internet is rather complicated. There are so many
questions, like is it possible? How are the users united? What impact will it
have? It will take time to find out the answers to these questions. The digital
artifact has survived for quite some time with its own laws and policies.
Reddit has even won its own personal war against SOPA. It has already been seen that Reddit can have
an impact on the political sphere of the world. It will take time to see if
this strange digital artifact will be able to hold its own throughout the
years.
Work
Cited
Baudrillard, Jean.
"Jean Baudrillard - SIMULACRA AND SIMULATIONS - 1998." The European
Graduate School - Media and Communication - Graduate & Postgraduate Studies
Program. The European Graduate School, n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2012.
<http://www.egs.edu/faculty/jean-baudrillard/articles/simulacra-and-simulations/>.
Guarini, Drew.
"Reddit AMA: Obama Talks Small Business." Breaking News and
Opinion on The Huffington Post. The Huffington Post, 30 Aug. 2012. Web. 23
Sept. 2012.
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/30/during-reddit-ama-obama-t_n_1843105.html?utm_hp_ref=elections-2012>.
McLuhan, Marshall,
Quentin Fiore, and Jerome Agel. The medium is the massage: an inventory of
effects. Corte Madera, CA: Gingko Press, 2001. Print.
Patterson, Sean.
"Reddit Launches Bus Tour to “Promote the Open Internet†|
WebProNews." WebProNews - Breaking News in Tech, Search, Social, &
Business. WebProNews, 11 Sept. 2012. Web. 23 Sept. 2012.
<http://www.webpronews.com/reddit-launches-bus-tour-to-promote-the-open-internet-2012-09>.
"reddit:
the front page of the internet." reddit: the front page of the internet.
N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2012. <http://www.reddit.com>.
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