Social Media: The Colonization of Our ‘Digital Labour’?

Social media sites appeared to provide the public with an egalitarian space in which free communication and the sharing of information could be conducted separate from state or corporate rule. When social media platforms were first emerging they were discussed as being potential ‘tools’ for fostering political and social participation, which could provide us with new forms of individual and collective empowerment. Ultimately, they were seen as possessing the capacity to strengthen our weakening public sphere. However, despite their democratizing potential social media sites have been effectively monopolized by large capitalist corporations. The question is; have these corporations and their profit-driven agendas ruined the democratic potential of social media?

Well, for some critiques the answer is yes. For Sebastian Sevignani, not only has social media become undemocratic, but also they have become spaces of corporate exploitation. Sevignani points out the “prosumer” dynamic of social media sites, where users both passively consume content, but also actively produce and share it. While using a social media site, users are producing large amounts of valuable data and information, which is typically being packaged and sold to advertisers. It may feel as though  the site belongs to the public, but really its ownership is the hands of large corporations. For Sevignani, this can be seen as an exploitative process, as these corporations’ profits margins are able to grow from the work of their unpaid users. This is why he argues that social media sites have been colonized, and their users are being exploited for their 'digital labour’.

Overall, I think it is important to turn a critical eye towards social media as they play such a crucial role in our current tech economy. However, Sevignani arguments are quite cynical and the idea of social media sites as democratic spaces is still open to much debate. For example, think of the Arab Spring movement, which was primarily executed and organized via Twitter (a corporate social media site). What are you guy’s thoughts?


References:

Sevignani, S. (2013). Facebook vs. Diaspora: A Critical Study. (G. Lovink, & M. Rasch,

Eds.) Unlike Us Reader: Social Media Monopolies and Their Alternatives , 323-327.