Analyse the significance of the convergence of the smartphone with mass communication technology [30]
As time progresses, smartphones have consistently become more important in most aspects of peoples live, and have altered and adjusted the methods of how we spread, consume and receive information. Modes of mass communication, now conjoint with the smartphone, have led to a world where an unprecedented amount information is at the fingertips of a majority of people on the planet. There are many arguments for to what extent this has affected society as a whole, and this essay hopes to discuss how the smartphone has affected the events of our world through multiple ways including how it has allowed the instantaneous spread of messages across the world, which allow for people to come together and achieve common goals, how it has affected the specific forms of media that are consumed by newer generations, and how it has allowed for authorities to accurately determine and extract information from their citizens no matter where they are.
Ever since the dawn of smartphones and social media, the ability of people to come together and partake in activities that they all find important has been stratified tremendously. Through mere presses of buttons, people can rally at very specific times and dates to perform incredible conventions and meet ups. This is seen through social media apps like Twitter and messaging apps like WhatsApp, where groups of like-minded media consumers can view these announcements, and join in on the events that will happen. Although usually seen in positive light, events like this can also be used for harmful and dangerous gatherings that instead aim to spread violence. A prime example of which would be the riots that happened at the US Capitol Building, on January 6th 2021 after incumbent US President Donald Trump had encouraged his supporters to storm Congress due to the shared belief he had instilled into them that the election had been rigged and stolen. Trump had called his supporters to join him at a rally on the day through Twitter, specifically tweeting, "...Big Protest in D.C on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!". This led to over 140 thousand Americans gathering at Trump's rally, after which over 2 thousand protesters marched towards and stormed the capital building. The incidents of the storming of the capital building were heavily influenced by the usage of smartphones prior and during the riots where individuals came together to plan and control the events on the day. According to articles by the New York Times, right wing extremist groups such as "Proud Boys" and "Oath Keepers" utilized the social media apps Parler and 4Chan to extensively plan the raid into the capitol building. Furthermore, during the riots themselves, Trump had continued to post on his personal Twitter account about his thoughts on Mike Pence and how he was a "coward" for not stopping congress in the ratification of the election. This was then able to be instantaneously delivered and seen by the thousands of rioters who were inside of the white house, as their smartphones allowed them to do so incredibly easily. Afterwards, hundreds of rioters were on the hunt for Mike Pence, repeatedly chanting ""Hang Mike Pence!", which can be seen in various documentaries and videos published about the events of the January 6th Riots. The events that occurred in the capitol building can be largely attributed to the mobilization of large groups of like minded people through social platforms, which as a whole is supported by the ideas of Henry Jenkins' Theory of Fandom. Specifically, Jenkins mentions the concept of Viewer Activism, and how fans are usually powerless to enact change individually, but as a whole can come together in the aims of achieving a common goal, which in this case would be to keep Trump as president. This was done through the movements on social media like Trump's tweets and the Parler app, and enabled such a large rallying of supporters and believers of Trump. Although this is generally applied to events that happen in regards to media products, in this case, Trump's supporters can be said to be his fandom, and Trump in this case is the product they all adore. This builds directly upon how their shared common interest in Trump have led them to want to collectively do all they can to make sure their demands are reached.
Has led to social media platforms evolving to cater towards the needs of smartphone users (TikTok)
Allows for media corporations to extract data from all the activity that is performed on a smartphone, including searches conducted on search engines, activity on other social media sites, which all allow for companies to cater content towards specific audiences.
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