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The (dis) appeal of Darfur

Several years before this very class started, I had watched a documentary film entitled “The Devil Came on Horseback”. I remember to this day that the documentary had actually left me more confused about the conflict in Darfur than I had been prior to watching. It had left me with a very unsettling feeling that I had somehow missed something important, yet I could not understand why that “something” kept escaping me.

At the time I watched this film(2007), the genocide was in its early stages, and seldom was understood by the outside world. I too, had very little idea of not only what I was watching, but as to why it was happening. The distant ramifications of what I was watching at the time went unnoticed for several years.

The documentary was filmed and narrated by a former US Marine, who was sent to the African Union as an international observer. His job was to watch and record and to document human rights violations, but to not enforce or intervene. In this role he was restricted by the Sudanese and African Union governments from travelling to many areas during the genocide. With these restrictions and no enforcement powers many events would go unobserved, undocumented and unreported. Much of the film had very little to show for the actual genocide. He obtained very few pictures during his time in Darfur and was restricted from observing areas that had been attacked by pro government rebels. Even in his vague description, of men on horseback attacking villages, he did not seem to fully grasp the nuances of highly localized events in the Sudan that preceded the fighting.

The reason I could not grasp the concept at that time, and why it has taken so long to raise awareness of the conflict are the very same reasons pointed out and discussed as being unnarratable. My lingering questions of the film were not a shortcoming of the documentary, but a result of the inability of the subject to effectively be transmitted and identified with by others around the world.

Many independent factors conspired to make this narrative disappealing. The conflict in Darfur happened in some of the most remote regions of the world, where travel is done on horseback and by foot and where information poverty runs deep. There are no computers or internet let alone electricity. The “proximity and nearness” that Galtung and Ruge identify as being newsworthy[1], place this conflict very far down on the news agenda. Another factor is that the Genocide happened largely without pictures and documentation. Without seeing the faces of and identifying with the people of Darfur it was even harder to find a narrative that was highly transmissible and circulist in nature. Without crucial images or daily news headlines of reporters or eyewitnesses bringing first hand accounts to our attention, the world was not drawn to Darfur because we could not identify. There was very little authenticity or verification from any authors because governments kept reporters out for many years to under report the genocide (This is in stark contrast to today’s images of the toppling of Governments in other parts of North Africa). A final causality added to the laundry list of factors is the very nature and concept of genocide. Genocide is an issue in which Robyn Warhol describes as “antinarratable” because it transgresses social convention and is genocide is generally taboo.[2]

Without access to twitter or iReports from computers and cellphones, the world slept while Darfur burned, and we either did not know, or simply did not care because we failed to identify with the people of Darfur. We failed to understand the nature of their conflict. We failed to understand them as a people. We failed to believe in the rumors and stories because we saw no evidence. We failed them because they are not part of our information and media system. They were cut off and isolated from the effects of globalization. We need to do much more to prevent this from happening again.

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[1] Galtung, Johan/Ruge, Mari Holmboe: The Structure of Foreign News. The Presentation of the Congo, Cuba, and Cyprus Crises in Four Norwegian Newspapers. Journal of Peace Research, vol. 2 (1965) p. 68

[2] Robyn R. Warhol: Neonarrative; or, How to Render the Unnarratable in realist Fiction and Contemporary Film. In: Phelan, James/Rabinowitz: Peter J.: A Companion to Narrative Theory. Oxford: Blackwell, 2005.

What is the Irresistible Appeal of the Ordinary?

Hollywood writers and directors have some very uncanny abilities to turn dreary and dull tales and turn them into a narratable (and veritable) gold mine. Take for instance the seemingly dull and seemingly innocuous task of computer programming as depicted in the movie “The Social Network”.[1] In what has been viewed as a rather bland and monotonous field, computer code programming and cyber networking has been elevated in this movie to a gyrating mixture of sexual desire, intrigue, deception, and greed. All of the requisite plot elements of a successful suspense and drama movie are readily apparent and used quite liberally (to the writers success). There is abundant alcohol use fueling sexual desire and bad decisions. Also, there is the effective, and again very liberal, use of narrative device for dramatic purposes. The writers use a first person narration technique coupled with a very non linear timeline that jumps forwards and backwards in time through the use of analepsis and prolepsis, as if the writers studied narrative theorist Gerard Gennette narrative structures to over perfection[2], to elevate this type of subject beyond the mundane and ordinary world of computer programming. Missing are the sterile fluorescent lights of academic and office spaces, gone are the unsexy bright white computer screens that populate offices and classrooms in real life. Writers have replaced many of the open and common spaces of life and work with much more satisfying and condensed spaces. Instead of where these activities may normally occur, writers have condensed these spaces into a sense of smallness and exclusivity, thereby successfully milking all of the appeal that a behind closed doors approach brings. In the absence of reality, writers have replaced normal surroundings with darkened rooms, narrow spaces and corridors. Dark moody lighting has been added throughout the set, as well as dimly lit computer screens, all of which brings forth a darker more seductive dramatic ambiance. The usual quietness that accompanies academic and traditional work has been replaced with pulsating deep-bass added music, which introduces a sense of urgency and frenzy to the otherwise quiet world of programming.

The writers and director of the “Social Network” should be commended for their ability to turn what in many instances would be viewed as an otherwise unnaratable subject and instead turned it into a very narratable film for many audiences. This movie is a very well crafted and narrated tale. I however, could not get past my suspension of disbelief for the very same reason that this movie was simultaneously effective. It was the overly dramatic and liberal use of narrative devices and plot cues of Hollywood that I could not see past. In most every scene that was depicted, I was constantly thinking to myself how it would be in actuality, because of how seductive and unreal each and every scene appeared. I am sure that the talented writers and director of “The Social Network” can and will be able to turn the next mundane and ordinary task into next summer’s big and overly dramatic blockbuster. I enjoyed the movie, but could not make the leap from watching just a movie, into witnessing actual events that the writers may have been trying to transmit to me.

[1] The Social Network (2010). Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures.

[2] GENETTE, G., Narrative Discourse: An Essay in Method, trans. Jane Lewin, Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1980.

The Social Network Review: Facebook, an avatar of the internet and its dramatic creation. (May be a repost, not sure if first post sent.)

Massive, global, instant, facebook represents key features of the internet. Every status posted is sent all across the globe to every friend of the user or members of a group and social networks are directly controlled by actions on facebook. In the business world people can lose jobs via facebook. A single indecent picture or hateful status can be enough for a boss to fire an employee. Socially, people can start or destroy their relationships with their friends, family and romantic interests: a suspicious comment on another person’s wall can lead to cheating suspicious, commenting behind someone’s back, or messaging someone new can all lead to dramatic changes in someone’s life.

In the movie “The Social Network” [1] the creation of facebook and a short biography of those involved is illustrated. Just like how a single status on facebook can change a person’s future, single actions completely changed the future of facebook. This is something the film did very well. It showed the human side of the creators of facebook and showed the little events that determined its future. For example, Zuckleberg’s breakup with his girlfriend shown in the beginning of the movie led to his dramatic introduction to the cyber elite of his school as well as to the audience. From that moment it was known to everyone that Zuckleberg’s defining characteristic was being bold. Somehow it made sense that facebook, one of the easiest ways to start drama today, would have a large amount of drama surrounding its creation.

The only thing lacking in the movie was coherency. The movie jumped back and forth between the creation of facebook, and the lawsuits against Zuckleberg. When first viewing the movie it isn’t apparent what is going on until half way through. The beginning then becomes simply confusing and information is lost in this chaos as people are less able to focus on the minute interesting events because they must focus on understanding what is happening. Maybe this was some kind of analogy to facebook, like how we must navigate different people’s walls, and go back and forth between many pages to understand what’s happening, or simply a way to keep people interested in the somewhat long movie. Upon second viewing this isn’t an issue but many people may not watch this movie twice and could miss subtle issues like how Eduardo’s betrayal could have been because of his joining into the final club, Phoenix.

Overall the movie was wonderful. It showed how the history of facebook, an intense social instrument in today’s society, has a deservingly intense history. The human side of it all was also demonstrated well showing that behind this behemoth of a website, lies a small group of regular, although gifted and fortunate people. Although confusing during the first viewing, this movie is worth watching for anyone, even if they don’t even know what facebook is, just to see how ambition can become reality.

[1] The Social Network. Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures, 2010. Film.

Alluring In All Forms

Watching the portrayal of the development of Facebook was an interesting experience. As someone who would normally not be interested in viewing a movie about the cyber, the director, David Fincher, surely did amp up the appeal for a wider audience.

Though apparently the story behind the motion picture was falsified, it is easy to see why this was done. With more dramatizations, David Fincher was able to entice more viewers. It is evident to see this also with the cast, including Justin Timberlake. With the addition of a high profile celebrity, many more people were interested in hearing the tale of Facebook. It is very important for a viewer to understand that the story was simply a story, and not a biography of Mark Zuckerberg to fully appreciate the film.

While re-telling the development of Facebook, Fincher was simultaneously telling the tale of modern society. With more and more dependency on the cyber, our generation uses Facebook for many reasons. Some of these reasons can include finding long lost friends, reconnecting with co-workers, or even seeing if a crush is currently in a relationship. The addiction and exclusivity lead the massive growth in numbers, and even today more and more people are creating Facebook pages.

Unlike any other medium, websites on the cyber are always evolving. Every day, a person can update their status, upload a picture, or write on a friend’s wall. There is no closure, unlike a finishing a magazine or watching a movie. This is what makes Facebook different.

The exclusivity is not only alluring, but the constant need to check with other friends are doing can be addicting. I believe that this movie portrayed the appeal well, not only with Mark Zuckerberg’s desire for money, but the desire to reach as many people as possible. Even after viewing the movie, I know I went onto my Facebook to update my status about how much I enjoyed the film. The fact that Mark Zuckerberg created not only a website, but an enterprise at such a young age is inspiring.

The Social Network. Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures, 2010. Film

Burned Alive

Souad is a real character of the scandalous and touching book «Burnt Alive» which got a huge popularity around the Europe during couple days after being published. The young woman wasn't scared to show to the world the real picture of Palestine society, their attitude to the women. Nowadays, it's very easy to share life events with media-social network such as Facebook, twitter, TV shows and etc. One of the bright examples is Souad, even though she was illiterate and could speak only Arabic language; she told to the whole world about tough and risky life of females in Palestine. Burnt Alive is upsetting story, but it is also a call of attention.

Souad is a young girl, who has no rights and respect at home because of her gender. She thinks that if she gets marry her status will change. That's true; it might change in other countries such as Europe or the United States, but not in Palestine. So, this seventeen years old girl was finally deceived with her neighbor who promised to marry her. He forced her to get into sexual relationship, and she had to get into this relationship. She thought that this relationship could rescue her from family who was trying to rid of her. Souad was lucky because she and her baby survived after being burnt by her family members. Also, after rehab and couple years she married and gave birth of twins and her life totally changed. Even she published book about her life with a title «Burnt Alive».

If American or any European woman rights compared to Palestine's, there would be exact opposite of rights. Unfortunately, Palestinian women have neither rights, nor respect, but it doesn't mean that people should close their eyes and do whatever they want. The book «Burnt Alive» teaches us to appraise our each day, our parents, and our society. Also, author advise us to be polite, not hard-hearted; and help to our society to open new organizations, which help people with this kind of problems. Justice must prevail, and media directs to it!

Souad. Burned Alive. Print.

Souad. Burned Alive. EBook Downloads - Get EBooks - EBookMall. Web. 17 May 2011. .

The Social Network - Our Generation

With the debut of the Social Network[1] movie, it is now clear what our generation will be remembered for. People originally referred to us as the net generation or generation Z - people born into the 1990s or 2000s. There have been movies before that define
generations. There was Rebel without a cause in the 50s, Dazed and Confused in the 70s, and the Breakfast Club in the 80s.

However, since the premiere of the Social Network and ultimately the creation of facebook, we have now truly started a new
generation - the social networking era. Overall, I enjoyed the Social Network for many reasons. It portrayed the way in which our generation is changing with the use of the internet. With facebook, millions of people around the world are able to be connected instantly. Countless photos, messages, and information on someone's facebook are able to be viewed by anyone they choose - for free.

The fact that the movie was not accurate to the true events that happened to Mark Zuckerberg is something I personally find to be more than acceptable. Making a movie is an art, not a job or homework assignment. It is the director's right to portray who he or she wants in the film, and thus, is is the viewer's right to criticize or react accordingly. Dustin Moskovitz, co founder of facebook, explains this portray: "A lot of exciting things happened in 2004, but mostly we just worked a lot and stressed out about things; the version in the trailer seems a lot more exciting, so I'm just going to choose to remember that we drank ourselves silly and had a lot of sex with coeds [2]". He explains that the creation of facebook in 2004 was just a normal invention at the time, but people today want it to be dramatized. The Social Network movie does just that. They excelled at providing entertainment as well as historical insight about our generation.

[1] The Social Network. Dir. David Fincher. Perf. Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Brenda Song, Armie Hammer, Max Minghella, Rashida Jones, Rooney Mara. Columbia Pictures, 2010. DVD.
[2] Moskovitz, Dustin (July 16, 2010). "What does Dustin Moskovitz think of the Facebook movie?". Quora. Retrieved July 16, 2010.

The un-Social Network isn't working

There is not doubt in anyone's mind that Facebook is revolutionary. The one thing people always tell themselves when discussing Facebook is, "Why didn't I come up with it?". It's a simple concept- social networking. A pure and single online identity that represents you as a person- what you like, your favorite music, who you're dating, and what you've been doing with your life. It was an easy way for college students to connect to each other and stay current with their communities.

Since then, Facebook's creator Mark Zuckerberg has realized the enormous profit capability of the advertising money that could be made from Facebook's huge population of users. Facebook has shifted from being all about the user, to exploiting the user completely. Our status updates, which were once used to communicate emotions, are now targets for stringent ad campaigns by companies targeting specific individuals. For example, a status of "I'm so hungry" would trigger ads for Dominos Pizza, while a "I'm so sad" could trigger an advertisement for depression medication, or local pschychiatrists.

Facebook has one very important thing to keep it going - the main incentive - it's completely free. At least that is what the user thinks. What most people don't realize is that holding all our personal data, pictures, and status updates, especially for 500 million people all around the world, is not cheap. It costs millions of dollars to operate servers and pay people. Because the cost has to be paid for, and the people will most likely not pay, advertising becomes the main source of income. The advertisers target- the users of Facebook. In essence, Mark Zuckerburg has realized that he is in possession of the largest and most in-depth archive of a large population's ideas, thoughts, pictures, videos, and comment- an advertising dream!

How Collaborative is Social?

The film The Social Network is a Hollywood production that dramatizes the story of the founding of Facebook by Mark Zuckerberg and the subsequent arguments over the legal rights to it. It has a very strong focus on the creative process and also highlights how, unlike in other mediums, the internet is constantly evolving. Once a book is published, there is a finite end to the creative process for that particular work. However, with an endeavor like Facebook, it becomes clear that there is no such ending or “final result.”

This can be seen clearly in the portrayal of the original purpose of Facebook. Before it was even started, the main idea of it was comparing girls to farm animals. When it first went online, it became a ranking system of which girls were more attractive. For those familiar with what Facebook is today, it may be hard to imagine this leap from a ranking system to a major social network. As the movie shows, however, these major changes are often influenced by sources outside of the original creator, in this case the Winklevoss twins. This leads to an examination of the concept of intellectual property, formerly an issue that was more simple to define and identify. Again, using the book example, if someone copied your words and cited the work as their own, the evidence was in hard print. Within the realm of the cyber, it is more difficult because one personally originally publishes the content, but then updates and changes it constantly. In a way, the last step in the print industry is the first step in the cyber realm.

Because many changes occur in public view over a long period of time, there is inevitably outside contribution, especially when it is a collaborative effort. The question then becomes, Who is the creator? Who is the true owner of the intellectual property? Can only one person claim responsibility for the whole work? What degree of contribution is required for recognition? The Social Network raises these questions in detail, but clearly shows that they have yet to be answered fully as the complexity of the cyber creative process continues to refuse simple explanation.

Critique: YouTube’s Art Parallel – deviantART

In many cases, the most astounding discoveries of individual and collaborated talent are stumbled upon through the cyber by the general public. From here, the interconnectivity of the virtual databases allows for the discovery of these talents by more and more people, daily, on a global scale. In the case of YouTube, aspiring vocalists, musicians, comedians, dancers and athletes display their videos in an effort to get their name out, to be exposed. In parallel, deviantART allows for the display of original art as well as provide entertainment and inspiration for viewers and other artists, as well. It is ultimately, “the largest online social network for artists and art enthusiasts,”[1] with a continuously growing number of members. The website, formatted in a quasi-gallery style, provides an immense catalog of categories spanning from Digital Art, Photography and Animation to Artisan Crafts, Scraps and Doodles. Sure, in a general sense it is easy to quickly scroll and file through the submissions; however, with attention to detail and a certain appreciation, an artist’s progress can be well mapped – an added specificity which can influence the audience on a more psychological level. In a way, deviantART refrains from degrading the quality of art’s aura as the increase in talent only fuels other inspiring works, continuously building on its ever changing foundations.

In addition to an individual’s viewing pleasure, deviantART provides the artist with the option of selling their original work for profit; an ideal way to distribute their work in a more tangible form. Though this, artists can build relations with the online community outside the cyber. Similar to many social networks, the website allows for in-text personality building though the available “deviant” information on individual member profiles, the sharing of activities to other social networks, and the ability to comment and have subscribers. Even though deviantART is considered a social network, the intentions for its availability seem to remain well intact – sharing creativity in endless forms of art mediums bounded by individual inspiration.

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[1] DeviantART: Where ART Meets Application! 07 Aug. 2000. Web. 16 May 2011. .

The Social Network and the Internet

The legal trials that plagued the beginnings of Facebook were depicted in The Social Network [1]. The movie depicted the internet in various ways. Firstly, it depicted the internet as a world for the main character Mark Zuckerburg to vent his frustrations. After he was dumped by Erica Albright, he felt torn and betrayed. His only medium to avenge being embarrassed was blogging over the internet. To him, his blogging site was his world in which nothing could go wrong, a world where he could never be embarrassed.

The internet was then viewed as a distraction. Mark had begun to write the code to launch FaceSmash, in an effort to take his mind off of Erica. FaceSmash was also his most prized work at the time, having crashed the Harvard servers. Later he began to distract himself even more with the programming of TheFacebook.

Mark created Facebook because he believed that a successful social networking site involved people that other people actually knew. Invitations and friend requests made TheFacebook selective, like a club. Here, he creates the link that connects internet social networking with real life social networking. The key ingredient was first the exclusiveness. Later the key ingredient became the realism of Facebook, with the addition of the Relationship Status, etc. The connection, realism, and exclusiveness are what make Facebook “cool”.

Moreover, much of Facebook's success lies in its ability to allow its users to update their "Status", which in effect allows them the opportunity to publish news. According to journalists Tony Harcup and Deirdre O'Neill, some important news values include "prominence, proximity, timeliness, and human interest", among others [2]. Facebook tends to especially accentuate the news values of proximity by connecting "friends" over the internet, and timeliness by sending users updated statuses from their "friends". These news values that come with each publish help users create their own news that is worthy of being read by their own friends and network. Another factor, accessibility, is unquestionable as users can access these updates with a click of a mouse.

Lastly, the internet is portrayed as being a part of history. Erica Albright acknowledges that the internet is “written in pen, not in pencil”, to state that anything written on the internet is permanent, and cannot be simply erased. Consequently, the effects that the internet has on real life that result from this cannot easily be forgiven.

[1] The Social Network (2010). Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures.

[2] Harcup, T., O'Neill, D. (2001) What is News? Galtung and Ruge Revisited. Journalism Studies, Volume 2, Number 2, pp 266

Catfish

Catfish is a film that explores the deception that takes place in the social world of facebook. Nev is a filmmaker who meets Meghan on facebook. They both initially learn a lot about each other from reading the bios and information sections of their facebook profiles. They learn they have a lot in common. Nev learns that Meghans younger sister paints and she begins to send him her artwork. From there the entire family becomes involved in Nevs life. He becomes from with Megans friends and family on facebook, at one point calling them the “Facebook Family” and they begin to text and call each other on a regular basis. Soon Nev wants to physically be with Meghan so he decides to surprise her with a visit. This is when the twist in the movie happens. Without going into too much detail we find out that in fact the entire facebook identity of Meghan and 12 of her mutual friends are all false. The mother of Meghan (who is a real person) has created an entire cyber life for herself, her child and random people she had met/created.

The crazy thing about this movie is the mother. She had crated entire profiles for people she had created in her head. Some of the profiles she created were from people she knew in her hometown. Everyone had profiles, pictures, videos, they undated statuses and had mutual friends with one another. As the audience meets all the facebook people that Nev comes into contact with, they begin to feel comfortable and safe with what facebook if telling them. The audience is at ease with the interaction that goes on between Nev and the “facebook family”. In reality though we find out it is all a deception. It is scary to think about what people can do with facebook. If entire identities can be fabricated in the cyber then how are we to know what is truth. Overall I think that the movie Catfish was very effective in showing the deception and fabrication that can happen in social networks.

How "The Social Network" portrays social networking.

"The Social Network" depicts the way in which people not only interact through the cyber, but socially. It showed facebook to be the newest and most ideal way of socializing in this fast-paced technologically advancing era. The film itself did an accurate portrayal of the extent to which college students (and later on, people) connect their lives to the cyber, look for more opportunities, in regards to relationships of different kinds, friendships, various forms of entertainment, job and economic opportunities. It serves as a medium to live our own lives through, or to just accomplish the simple tasks one goes about doing outside of the internet, without any true interaction.

Mark Zuckerberg's character says in the film:

“People want to go online and check out their friends, so why not build a website that offers that? Friends, pictures, profiles, whatever you can visit, browse around, maybe it's someone you just met at a party...I'm not talking about a dating site, I'm talking about taking the entire social experience of college and putting it online.” (The Social Network)

The social network made it clear that users of facebook exhibit themselves however they want to, even if what they’re selling [themselves] isn’t the same in “real-life”. Today that experience which he spoke of in the film, and possibly in reality years ago, has become the entire social experience of life, not just college.

Though exclusivity is what Facebook originally offered, it isn’t as desired as it was once was, and now the entire cyber-world is realizing that by digitalizing yourself a whole new world of people, and networks are available to you, and you to them: it allowed it’s users to create their own social reality. Facebook, as the ultimate social network, was created in order to connect the disconnected to a perpetual cyber-social life that has the possibility to extend into the real thing.

The differing perspectives within the film: the Winklevoss’, Eduardo Saverin’s, Napster creator Sean Parker’s, and Mark Zuckerberg’s, allowed the film to have a balanced viewpoint of the story behind the creation of Facebook, and what social networking entails. The Social Network showed the accessibility that comes a long with social networking, and both the positive and negative exposure that can come with it. Overall, the narrative behind the creation of Facebook, the social network that surpassed all others, can be described as “...international, transhistorical, transcultural: it is simply there, like life itself.” Social networking, as shown in The Social Network (in Facebook), is always changing and upgrading in order to make communication for the masses easier to access, more entertaining, and it’s own ways a cyber-replica of our lives.

Hardt, Hanno. Myths for the Masses: an Essay on Mass Communication. Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub., 2004. Print.

The Social Network. Dir. David Fincher. Perf. Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Brenda Song, Armie Hammer, Max Minghella, Rashida Jones, Rooney Mara. Columbia Pictures, 2010. DVD.

The Social Network

The Social Network (1) is the story behind the creation of the social networking website Facebook. The movie tells a story about what is the supposed true story behind the creation of the website. The movie has changed many people's opinion of Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of facebook.
The movie gives off the alure as the true story of facebook, however no one knows the true story except the people who were involved. Even the people involved have conflicting stories. The problem with retelling stories and trying to claim they are true is the truth is hard to find. The movie clearly took the side of Eduardo Saverin and the Winklevoss twins. No one knows if Mark Zuckerberg really did mislead the Winklevoss tiwns, if he really intended to screw Saverin out of his share of the company. There are only a few facts available, the rest is still up in the air.
The problem with people taking stories which are this heavily debated as the truth is no one is sure what is true. You now have the whole audience who think Zuckerberg is a dispicable person who used disception to cheat three aspiring college students out of a company and who cheated his best friend out of a share of the company which he funded. The story may in fact be 100% true, it could also be 100% false. We should take The Social Network for exactly what it is, a conflicted story which visualizes what is one of many possibilities of what could have happened during the creation of Facebook.

1) The Social Network. Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures, 2010. Film

The Network of Socialites, Businessmen, and Frenemies

David Fincher’s newest drama, “The Social Network” is yes, a chronicle of how the well-received social networking website, Facebook was created, however, that’s not all the film comprises of. It is also a tale that brings to light the rift that was created between two once-best friends, CEO Mark Zuckerbeg played by Jesse Eisenberg, and CFO Eduardo Saverin played by Andrew Garfield. How does such a tragedy occur? As the film’s tagline states, “you don’t get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies.” The plot is well executed, in view of very specific details including one of my favorites, where the audience is in a sense ‘looking over’ Zuckerberg's and the other computer programers’ shoulders as they create the html codes for the website.

So, you’re probably thinking that this film is strictly technological with no comedic attributes. Wrong! How does one get through a federal lawsuit in which their best friend is suing them for hundreds of millions of dollars? Witty comments, and sarcastic remarks are frequently made by Zuckerberg, not only to cope with the ordeal, but also because that’s a part of his persona. Though not every aspect of this film is accurately portrayed, the audience is allowed to witness the beginnings of Thefacebook, and everything in between, to what is now Facebook, the website that has changed the world, literally.

Monar: Japanese ASCII Art

The Internet has changes all the aspect of contemporary life as long as the one has access. Art, which tend to be classified as high culture, is no exception. ASCII is the abbreviation for “American Standard Code for Information Interchange”.[1] ASCII Art (AA) refers to the works of art on the Internet, whose “medium” is the combination of text and signs on the screen. For example, widely used emoticons such as :) and :( are regarded as ASCII Art. Monar is a work of art made by shift_JIS, which is one of the fonts for Japanese.[2] Monar is generally found on the Japanese free and anonymous bulletin board forum called Channel 2 (pronounced as ‘ni-channel’). Channel 2 is referred as a “synonym for the chaos” in the Japanese cyber space, and it does create the chaotic mode of the production, distribution and consumption of the Monar, a work of art. [3]  
Moner has been made and created by numbers of anonymous “AA artists”; the shape of Monar changes as time goes.[4] The production of Monar is thus “no longer an end point but a simple moment in an infinite chain of contribution”.[5] This is same as how information works, because this quote can describe, for example, how anonymous people contribute for the making of Wikipedia.

Monar is on the free and “weightless” distribution mode of the Internet. [6] Boundary between sender and receiver of the information on the Internet has been blurred. This applies to Monar as well, since Monar can be regarded as information due to its “medium”.

The Monar is consumed as a communication tool for the users of Channel 2, just like information. The name, or more accurate to say, the title of the artwork, comes from Japanese “Omaemona”, which means, “You are the same/you too”. [7] This is because Monar is often used in the context that a user criticizes other users by saying “you are the same (as those who you criticize).” [8] Monar thus can be discussed parallel to the way information is consumed online.

Therefore, Monar can be defined as  an “informationalized” work of art, since Monar follows the way  information is produced, distributed and consumed on the Internet. The Monar offers the different kind of sensual experience from the conventional art such as painting and sculpture, because for the Monar’s case, art becomes information, and viewers become users. The Internet thus creates the new notion of art as something viewers can actually use.

[1] “ASCII.” Oxfird Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. 7^th ed. Oxford University Press 2005. Digital Dictionary.


[2] “モナー(Monar).” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 1 May 2011. Web. 10 May 2011. <http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%A2%E3%83%8A%E3% 83%BC>

[3] Kaigo, Muneo, and Isao Watanabe. "Ethos in Chaos? Reaction to Video Files Depicting Socially Harmful Images in the Channel 2 Japanese Internet Forum." Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication 12. (2007): 1248-1268. Web. 15 May 2011.

[4] “モナー(Monar).” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 1 May 2011. Web. 10 May 2011. <http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%A2%E3%83%8A%E3% 83%BC>

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[5] [6]Bourriaud, Nicolas. Postproduction, Culture as Screenplay: How Art Reprograms the World. New York: Lukas & Steinberg, 2002, Print.

 [7][8] “モナー(Monar).” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 1 May 2011. Web. 10 May 2011. <http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%A2%E3%83%8A%E3% 83%BC>

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How they got people to watch The Social Network.

As mentioned by Grigorly Malyutin in a previous blog post, the Social Network is not a true documentary[1]. “Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, stated that ‘They [the film's creators] just can't wrap their head around the idea that someone might build something because they like building things.’”[1] [2]. The film was inspired by a fictional novel entitled The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal[3]. The title of the novel certainly shows the books intentions. The Books first line says “The Accidental Billionaires is a dramatic, narrative account based on dozens of interviews, hundreds of sources, and thousands of pages of documents, including records from several court proceedings.”[3]. However, it is not a true story, it is loosely based on events that have been documented. They dramatize the aspects of the story that will seem sexy to the mainstream. The girl that supposedly inspired it all, does not exist, but sex sells, and everyone can related to being dumped. This generation especially understands the mistakes we make on the Internet when we are angry and heartbroken. The things we angrily post on the Internet about our ex can come back to haunt us. How the relationship status came about was dramatized in the movie, because this is something else that intrigues everyone about Facebook. If there is a relationship status change in my newsfeed, it is always a big deal. Who got together, what couple broke up, and who is available all feeds into our fascination with relationships. I actually picked up the book The Accidental Billionares at the airport, which says something about its content. It is meant to be a quick read that keeps you riveted all the way through, and it forgoes the truth to do so. The film follows a similar vein adding a lot of material that didn’t really happen just to get viewers to buy tickets. This is less a film about the development of a phenomena that has taken over our generation, than a tale of sex and money, which are usually indicators of a box office hit.

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[1] Malyutin, Grigorly. "The Biggest Mistake." Globalmedianarratives. Blogspot, 5/15/2011. Web. 15 May 2011. .

[2] Child, Ben. Mark Zuckerberg rejects his portrayal in The Social Network. Guardian.co.uk. Published October 20, 2010.

[3] Allen, Nick. "'The Accidental BIllionares' vs "The Social Network." TSR BLog. The Score Card Review, 10/1/2010. Web. 15 May 2011. .

The Social Network and How it Reflects Upon Us

As a whole, “The Social Network” does an amazing job telling the story of the development of Facebook. By unraveling the story from the perspective of the law suits, director David Fincher makes the audience feel as if they were a fly on the wall during this closed-door litigation process. This presents an audience with a unique view as to what really happened in the creation of Facebook and the struggles of Mark Zuckerberg and his best friend (and CFO) Eduardo Saverin to get to where they are today.

While I found the movie to be extremely well done, the one message that needs to be taken away from this movie is its reflection on cyber culture. In the creation of Facebook, Zuckerberg was able to use (or “steal”) the ideas of the Winkelvoss twins and Divya Narendra to create a new social networking outlet that is superior to existing social networking trends such as MySpace or even LiveJournal. What separated Facebook is “exclusivity” [1]. This allowed college students to share their college experience amongst their peers on the internet in addition to the basic networking capabilities it provided; creating what can be considered the largest existing internet phenomena to date.

Facebook gives its users the chance to make the internet their own by tailoring it to their actual lives. The same can be said for YouTube, which gives users access to a world of videos that are accessible in the simple click of a mouse. This even extends to free music sharing programs such as Napster and later incarnations such as LimeWire. What draws people to these popular websites and programs is the sense of freedom they provide through the internet by means such as social interaction and access to a seemingly endless archive of personal interests.

So what is next? The wild success of many websites certainly has piqued the interest of a new wave of internet entrepreneurs. What used to seem like a simple web page can now be valued at significant sums of cash. As seen in “The Social Network”, companies are taking internet advertising and investments to new heights [2]. With so much new attention being given towards the internet as a business venture, it is easy to assume that there are very few unique ideas out there that can really take off.

With this in mind, it is also important to realize that the internet has proved itself to be a rapidly evolving entity. Facebook, YouTube, and music sharing were not necessarily novel ideas at the time. It is the ability to take such basic ideas to the next level and the ability of such developments to increase the personalized involvement of the user that makes the internet an ever-expanding frontier.

[1] The Social Network. Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures, 2010. Film.
[2] The Social Network. Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures, 2010. Film.

Communication or Advertisement?

The film, “The Social Network”, really got the ball rolling on what ‘Facebook’ really is. It’s been an empty cloud of sorts that kind of just chills above us, but after watching this film, you start to get a sense of the space it was created in, what the site does, and possibly what its suppose to do. Of course, everyone has their own translation, and that is quite possibly why it is so popular; people use it for different reasons.

To understand Facebook, the film took a basic ‘rewind’ outlook on how it was created by recreating the beginning interactions and goals before the site was created. This feeling of having a social network that did not exist brings people back to how it felt without one. Of course, now we are so use to it, but this gives viewers the chance to really analyze it as a “thing” and not necessarily as a “society” in which many believe they cannot live without.

Some believe that its intention was for communication, but the film brings up much stronger points, one of an ‘advertisement’ aspect. It is not communication between individuals as if one was talking to another, but communication as if one is screaming across a crowd of people to another. Every word is seen no matter whom it is to; it is a completely open social network. Users of Facebook realize this and make every word, photo, etc. count, for it will be seen by a mass amount of users. This becomes an individual’s ‘ad’ just like a product/item ad. And what do we know about ads? They rarely tell the truth.



Now this is where I tell you to add me on facebook to hear more..





Just kidding ;)

The Social Network: Up close and too Personal

“The Social Network”[1] portrays very well the way that the cyber can have an effect on the society. It openly shows its audience the way that society wants more and more information about others. This is especially seen when Mark Zuckerberg adds the “In a relationship” option onto facebook. He notes that it gives people the option to know if they can approach another person who they are attracted to.

This film also portrays the harsh reality of the access in the cyber. When Mark uploads the blog post about his ex girlfriend, everyone has the access to see it. Also when he uploads pictures of the girls for men to rate it. All of that information directly challenges the privacy of these women. It is interesting to see that only women were hurt or had their privacy invaded by these cyber web pages.

This film portrayed just how revolutionary Facebook has become. It is an addicting resource to every ones life. Although it has options to have more privacy, it is not forgotten that Facebook is a tool used through the cyber and can be accessed by anyone who knows how to use it correctly. This is evident when we look at Mark Zuckerberg... He was able to create a website that today is used in the majority of the world. This film gives access, just like the website gives access, to the way that it was created,the reasons for its creation, and the effects of this creation.

[1] The Social Network. Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures, 2010. Film.

The biggest mistake that a viewer can make is thinking that The Social Network [1] is a factual documentary. This is inaccurate and NOT true. During a speech in Stanford University, Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, stated that "They [the film's creators] just can't wrap their head around the idea that someone might build something because they like building things." [2] He also stated that "like every single shirt and fleece they had in that movie is actually a shirt or fleece that I own." The movie is exaggerated and made to appeal to the audience- made to satisfy the desire of the typical moviegoer.

Besides the movie not depicting the truth, the movie is incredible. Jesse Eisenberg's acting is able to take you through the rollercoaster of a movie. Being the protagonist, he leads the movie's every twist and turn. Starting from the beginning of the movie, the audience gets to know "Mark Zuckerberg." His nerdy, slick, and sometimes arrogant personality is portrayed very well.

In fact, the beginning of the movie has him creating a website that gets thousands of hits in the first hours of launch. Facemash, as it was called, crashed the network of Harvard University due to the traffic it received. This innovative genius fuels the audience's interest in the type of character he is.

A good part of the movie's story is told by the trials in which Zuckerberg is sued by some of his fellow undergraduates. This allows the movie to have a coherent and steady flow that has the viewer guessing what will happen next in the hectic life of the Facebook founder.

There isn't a set amount of words that can describe how well the movie is done. Everything from the setting of the movie to the acting is terrific.

Overall rating: 9.5/10

[1] The Social Network. Directed by David Fincher. Columbia Pictures, 2010. DVD.
[2] Child, Ben. Mark Zuckerberg rejects his portrayal in The Social Network. Guardian.co.uk. Published October 20, 2010. http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/oct/20/mark-zuckerberg-the-social-network. Accessed May 12, 2011.