Week 5: Ethics and Law in New Media

October 11-17

Topic 9: The Hacker Ethic in a Networked World

Browse The Jargon File. Write a small blog entry about a term/definition which was the most intriguing for you. Write a short analysis about the hacker ethic found in today's world (is it there or not, how much of it, etc).

It comes with no surprise, because this is what The File is all about, but the definition of hacker is what I found important to further explicate here. Contrary to the mainstream media use of hacker (someone who uses programming skills to gain illegal access to a computer network or file, or a programmer who breaks into computer systems in order to steal or change or destroy information as a form of cyber-terrorism – TheFreeDictionary), the term hacker originally and authentically means someone who is proficient at using or programming a computer, who enjoys exploring the details of programmable systems and how to stretch their capabilities, as opposed to most users, who prefer to learn only the minimum necessary. They program enthusiastically (even obsessively) or simply enjoy programming rather than just theorizing about programming. The correct term for the malicious hacker described above is cracker. True hackers subscribe to a code of ethics, known as hacker ethic, and look down upon crackers. However, the code empowers "ethical" cracking. It may be one of the highest forms of hackerly courtesy to (a) break into a system, and then (b) explain to the sysop, preferably by email from a superuser account, exactly how it was done and how the hole can be plugged.

Almost all hackers are actively willing to share technical tricks, software, and (where possible) computing resources with other hackers. Huge cooperative networks such as Usenet, FidoNet and the Internet itself can function without central control because of this trait; they both rely on and reinforce a sense of community that may be hackerdom's most valuable intangible asset. True hacker ethic is essential in today's networked society to promote freedom of word and thought and resist censorship. As we learnt in previous lectures, if we pass a law that regulates information production too strictly, then we will have not only too little consumption of information today, but also too little production of new information for tomorrow (Yochai Benkler). Hacker money ethic says that hackers tend to view money as a means to something more valuable, not as a value per se. Many central things of today's infrastructure would have been impossible without it. The same applies to the future, the spread of technology can best continue with the best practice of hacker ethic. Though the values of hacker ethic have changed or evolved in time (as described in Himanen's book "The Hacker Ethic"), the code still exists and determines the hacker culture. Stephen Wozniak or "Woz" (famous for being the "other Steve" of Apple), Timothy Berners-Lee (credited with inventing the World Wide Web) and Linus Torvalds (best known for having initiated the development of the FOSS Linux kernel) are some excellent examples of ethical hackers (or white hats) in today's world.

I also enjoyed browsing the infamous Crunchly cartoons woven into The Jargon Lexicon. Some examples: an early space-cadet keyboard and a really serious case of drop-outs :)



Things hackers detest and avoid

All the works of Microsoft. Smurfs, Ewoks, and other forms of offensive cuteness. Bureaucracies. Stupid people. Easy listening music. Television (with occasional exceptions for cartoons, movies, and good SF like Star Trek classic or Babylon 5). Business suits. Dishonesty. Incompetence. Boredom. COBOL. BASIC. Character-based menu interfaces.

Topic 10: Different People, Digital World

Choose a minority group and describe how they can make use of Internet to reduce alienation and prejudice.

In the early days of the Internet, it was men that dominated the online landscape. Now women are driving a solid majority of Internet usage, being, however, still a minority group in the IT industry. Siobhan Chapman, nicknamed MicroChick, writes on Computerworld UK how women are shaping the web. Women, who make up less than half of the global online population, spend more time online and their behaviour varies wildly from men, especially when it comes to the social web.

Women engage in a host of social activities on the web, such as photo-sharing, gaming, video viewing and instant messaging. According to comScore recent global report on women's online usage, women spend 30% more time on social networking sites than men. They are more likely to use the Internet to stay in touch with friends, and spend an average of 16.3% of their online time per month on social networks. Women are also the primary drivers of online and group buying. "There is perhaps a misconception that women prefer to do more of their shopping in-store while men prefer the instant gratification of online shopping, but in fact that's simply not the case," concedes comScore analyst Andrew Lipsman. Furthermore, health sites show some of the largest overall differences in reach between female and male, with a nearly 6-point gap between global women and men.

Chapman admits the report struck a chord for her. "When my boyfriend goes online, he spends his time looking at football fixtures and the news. I'm more likely to look at fashion and cooking blogs, and fashion social networking sites like Lookbook.nu. The whole social aspect of the web is very attractive to me." There were some findings that raised her eyebrow though. The traditional view is that men are more likely to use the Internet for online titillation. However, comScore reveals online gambling and adult content websites are no longer the exclusive territory of men.

Talking about alienation and prejudice, how can women find help on the Internet? Minorities find ways to live their cultures online, they use it to discuss these cultures, to critique them and to pass their knowledge along to diaspora members hundreds of miles away. For example, The Pink Chaddi Campaign started to raise awareness of and protest the public sexual harassment of women in India. The site gained international press, and received messages of support from people of Indian origin, especially women, around the world. Minorities also use the Internet to find love. BharatMatrimony is one of the world's most successful matrimony portals (recognised as the Best Matrimony Website 2007 by PC WORLD), where Diaspora Indians and Indian nationals find husbands and wives practising the same culture. It is unashamed in its promotion of sharing a culture as a factor in a happy and successful marriage, something many of its users firmly believe. Sepiamutiny is another site, where mostly second-generation Indian Americans discuss their diverse cultural experiences, but also where Indian Diaspora members from across the world visit.

Social networking brings a whole new angle to this cultural dominance online as sites like Facebook offer users the tools to build 'mini-sites' on whatever cultural grouping they choose, reflecting their view of the world. "Lauded as a tool for social mobilisation, the web now offers affluent minorities space to air their views on their own terms, in their own voices. And in doing so is shattering stereotypes – the lascivious Latina is replaced with the intellectual Hispanic American, the demure Indian woman with an outspoken feminist, who has a penchant for channeling Steve Biko," writes Aneshree Naidoo on Memeburn, a website with a particular interest in technology trends in emerging markets.

Related news

Topics we've discussed. A news related to minority groups, cyberbullying and a network of support.

Facebook Forms "Network of Support" to Combat Anti-LGBT Cyberbullying

By Ben Parr (Mashable) – Oct 20, 2010

In order to combat anti-LGBT bullying, Facebook has announced that it is teaming up with MTV, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and others to form a "Network of Support" for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender teens.

The initiative is a follow-up to last week's partnership between Facebook and GLAAD, but goes several steps further by providing LGBT teens and their parents with information, resources and support to combat cyberbullying. The goal is for this "Network of Support" to help address issues the LGBT community faces in the online world. Read more »