When Old School Propaganda Fails To Be As Effective

As brutal and corrupt as many governments can be nowadays, some are oblivious to the fact that the Web empowers the people beyond control. Dictators like Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Teodoro Obiang of Equatorial Guinea, and Hosny Mubarak of Egypt might like to think that they rule with an iron fist that is virtually impossible to dismantle. While that is certainly close to the truth, little do they know that their technological incompetence and their underestimation of the power of the web is a potentially serious threat.

Egypt, for example, has opened up the press freedom over the past decade, which has encouraged a number of independent newspapers to take the stage. That, along with the exponential technological advancements that the world as a whole has experienced, has left the government thinking that perhaps it has bitten off more than it can chew. In the 80s, the three main papers were all governmental, and any story shared between the three, regardless of it authenticity, become true to the masses. Not only that, but propaganda posters and cartoons were highly effective.

Now the times are-a-changing.

After the horrific sectarian clashes in the south of Egypt, the entire Egyptian blogosphere was talking. Twitter was on fire. Facebook was flooded. And the blogs discussing the issue were scattered all over. That is when Al Ahram, Egypt’s main government-run newspaper, decided to weather the storm. Besides the fact that their website, when it actually works, looks like cow manure reshaped to fit within a computer screen, their approach was older than the president himself:

The ridiculous propaganda cartoon by Al Ahram

The “illustration”, which seems to have been scribbled and slapped together by a six year-old with mental illness, depicts the happy Egyptians together celebrating peace and prosperity. A Muslim coming out of a minaret shouts out simultaneously with his Christian counterpart standing on a church tower, “our shared enemy is the devil.” If that’s not enough, the “doves” in between are carrying hearts back and forth to imply unconditional love exchanged by all the peoples. The worst part of it all is that it’s not a joke – Al Ahram genuinely thought they would indirectly fool the crowds into believing that the all is well at the land of the Pyramids.

20 years ago, the cartoon could’ve stood a chance. Now, it could only make matters worse. The main reason being that with access to unlimited and uncensored information between the different people across space and time, old school propaganda has become ineffective. People no longer fall for the idealizing images of brutal dictators, nor photographs of happy citizens enjoying life. Not only does it need to be far more sophisticated, it also needs to be significantly more convincing. After all, there’s a lot of competition, and the web is anyone’s to create and share.

Dictators with over a quarter of a century under their belt might feel safe, but few have hopped on the fast-track trail of the internet and are therefore are not in as much control as they would like to think. For that reason, along with education, health care and infrastructure, internet access should be one of the aspects in the developement of over-exploited nations. Since effective communication is key to any change, the web is absolutely crucial in connecting the people and giving them the power they need to gain equality and justice.

The web has been, and will always be, power to the people – nothing can take that away from it.

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FCC Inaugurates OpenInternet.gov

Even thought the topic of net neutrality is a sensitive one indeed, there are crowds of US citizens that are unaware of the serious threat plaguing their freedom of expression and communication. If you happen to be one of those who are not fully aware of the subject, check out this short documentary on net neutrality. And for that matter, here’s an explanation on internet censorship worldwide.

In a surprising, and some might even say suspicious, move the Federal Communications Commission has gone live with a website, OpenInternet.gov that has a video raising awareness of the subject:

The goal seems to be to prevent the internet from losing its neutrality, and to avoid the loss of one of the most basic rights for any human being. It also acts as a platform for US citizens from all corners of the globe to share their thoughts and comments -- ironically yet another example of how the Web facilitates direct communication across space and time.

The initial impression is in no doubt a positive one. The only concern would be the influence that lobbyists might have on government officials persuading them to allow large telecommunications corporations to gain full control, and strip away the American people from the only absolutely pure method of information exchange ever to have been invented by humankind. Regardless of how congress decides to handle the issue, raising awareness and providing a communication channel for the people is highly beneficial. The website is currently in its beta phase, but the FCC promises to expand on it gradually.

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Broadcast Yourself In HD

Last month, I posted a video about net neutrality that brought forward the serious threat facing our web. The battle is fierce at congress, with lobbyists pushing to virtually censor the internet and limit free access in support of the large corporations with dubious bank accounts, while the community of normal, everyday internet users are firm on their stance to defend what is every human being’s born right. Campaigns such as Save The Internet and We Are The Web have been successful in spreading awareness and fighting corruption. On a slightly more positive note, there has been further developments on various fronts allowing for home users to challenge cable and network television on the web.

When YouTube introduced the High Definition version of users’ videos through its website, it opened the way for millions of active members to provide users from all over the world with videos that they wanted to watch, in a much more pleasing quality. This meant that you were no longer sacrificing significant quality when you are viewing home videos. However, there was still very little competition with television channels and professional programming. The good news is that now, with YouTube, the HD quality just got better. At 850 x 480 px, the new HD quality videos are a real treat. Here’s a working example:

This is a video by the Improv Everywhere people, who are a New York-based group that go on the craziest missions throughout the city and beyond. It is a classic example of thinking outside the box, and taking the creativity to the next level. In simple words, it is a form of modern art, using the tools and services provided by our dear web.

The video is currently displayed in the traditional form. If you click on the actual screen to visit the YouTube page, you will see that it provides you with an HD option. Unlike the old days, clicking on that HD button will not slightly improve the quality, it will significantly up the resolution and size, consuming the width of the website. Go full screen, and you will completely forget that you are watching a low-budget video posted for free on the community-based YouTube. And that is precisely the beauty of the Internet.

YouTube’s new HD format means regular videos are viewed at semi-professional resolutions, closing in on the gap between the professional channels, and the people’s voice/images. Add on to that the advancements in the digital and video camera markets, and the falling prices, and you have just cooked up the perfect recipe that makes it a fair game. It has been evermore clear over the last couple of years that content provided by home users and everyday people has been claiming more and more interest and fame amongst the viewers world-wide.

Assuming that the net stays neutral, as it absolutely must, we are in for a ride, as the millions of channels of communication are allowing direct contact between internet users across space and time. With exquisite content, and now quality display, life only gets better for the lucky ones cruising on the information super highway.

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Documentary On Net Neutrality

An informative, thought-provoking video that explains how the internet boomed but is now under serious threat of censorship, on many levels;

This is the one right that cannot be taken from human beings. 60 percent of the content is produced by people, not corporations, and it has to remain that way. The beauty of the internet is in the freedom it provides for every person to send whatever message they want, in whichever direction.

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Internet Censorship Explained

An excellent video by Good Magazine explaining all of what is involved in censoring internet access.

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The Great Firewall of China

Seemingly not satisfied with censoring major websites like Facebook, YouTube and Wikipedia, the Chinese government has ordered all PCs sold in the country to have a pre-configured software installed that would block all websites with pornographic content or language. Starting Juy 1st, anyone purchasing a new PC will have his hands tied, thanks to “Green Dam Youth Escort”, the latest technology that the Chinese government has been working on for years. In fact, they have deployed a special “Internet Police” body of more than 30,000 officers to ensure fluidity and compliance with orders.

China's Internet censored

Very few people would be willing to make a big fuss about the censorship of adult content, for various reasons. Firstly, many conservative families would actually like to prevent their children from accessing disturbing content. Secondly, no one would be proud of defending pornography, that would say many things about you that you wouldn’t like people to think. Moreover, with so many problems and human rights’ violations throughout the People’s Republic of China and beyond, there are more important things to worry about (such as basic daily needs), and there have been too many failures (According to Amnesty International, China has the largest recorded number of imprisoned journalists and cyber-dissidents in the world), so you wouldn’t want to mess with the authorities.

However, this is not an issue of pornography, it’s much bigger than that. The fact that the Chinese government can track the sites visited by every single person, and the fact that they now have the ability to censor any website whatsoever, makes the only free method of communication ever to exist almost completely impotent. It is a clear attempt to isolate the Chinese population from accessing information from the rest of the planet, and this will inevitably lead to dire consequences. While many governments are not fully aware of the power that the people posses thanks to the Internet, the Chinese authorities have done their homework and are taking all of the necessary measures to ensure totalitarianism.

What many do not realize, however, is that the Chinese government would’ve never succeeded in censoring and filtering internet access if it wasn’t for the helping hands from some of the American corporations. Google, for one, is a prime example of a company that claims to follow a certain philosophy, but acts hypocritically. Thus, while Google.com is censored, Google.cn is publicly accessible throughout mainland China. That is because Google were kind enough to offer the service of providing the Chinese with a stripped-down, filtered version of the original search engine.

As stubborn as they may be, there is very little the Chinese government can do to maintain the inevtiable explansion of the web. Sooner or later, the leackage cracks will be to big to handle, and the power will be restored to the real owners: the people.

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