Final post: Ethnicity and Cultural Translations to the Web

In this unit, we're examining ways in which race, ethnicity, and class play out online, especially in social networks like Facebook and MySpace. In other words, we're looking at ways "real life" is reflected - or transformed - in online social networks, and how the web may not be such a democratizing force after all.

So, for this final blog post, I'm going to leave you to generate the question to answer. What question(s) do this week's readings raise in your mind? How would you answer those questions? Can you point to examples you've encountered online in your own social networks?

Fourth blog post: On crowdsourcing and collaboration

To be sure, the web has introduced unprecedented ways to bring people together in collaborative forms.

Based on this week's readings, what do you think are the advantages and drawbacks of online collaboration and crowdsourcing? Do you agree with Howard Rheingold's assessment that cooperation and open source initiatives are ultimately about self-interest? Or Nicholas Carr's claim that we overly celebrate the amateur, instead of trusting the professional, online? Is crowdsourcing enabling new forms of knowledge or art or innovation to emerge, or is it just another tool for collaboration, as humans have always done?

You can, in particular, consider the recent events in Egypt - what role has collaboration through social media played in fueling the protests (or news reporting) there?

Respond to any or all of the above questions in this week's post. And remember - the best posts will reference specific examples in the readings, include an image, and include a title. Due Wednesday, February 9th.