Dancing to technology's tune...whether you like it or not



link

Throughout my brief blogging stint I've tried to refrain from talking about topics which would put me in the ''common pot'', because let's face it, for the passed 6 weeks it's either been about Sanral and the whole e-tolling debacle or about some form of corruption in politics. I've tried to be very exclusive about my topics and the stories I researched and blogged about. However this streak of mine may be put to jeopardy today through the topic I'm about to raise, I'd like to believe there's always a new and fresh angle to a story depending on the brains in front of the computer screen.

I've decided to look at this whole viral video incident in which a 17 year old girl was raped. The reason I've decided to raise this topic is mainly for two reasons, the first being that most of my blogs stretch out to more of an international platform so with this blog I decide to bring it on a more local front and focus on events which are taking place on our own soil. The second reason is because the incident itself is a perfect example of just how powerful technology has become in our country and how huge of an effect it can have when used irrespective of whether it's for the wrong or right reasons.

The story states that four boys were accused of raping a 17 year old mentally ill girl in South Africa, Soweto and shot a video of the occurrence with a cellphone which eventually went viral and would come to spread on the internet on the 18th of April. The accused were arrested on the 17th of April, by which time the video was all over the country. As painful and raw as the story is I decided not to look at it from the angle of the individuals who were involved but from the view of the technology which was used and the impact it had. What really caught my attention about this event is the way in which it spread and the exposure it recieved, to say it spread like WILDFIRE would be an understatement. Hard news is somethimg we're almost immune to in South Africa yet this particular story just had a particular vibe about it which slapped you by the ear and forced you to listen. This my friends is the power of technology in the 21st century!!! I look back 20 years ago and companies would have had to sell their souls to get the kind of exposure this story got at that same speed. Even in todays times, no matter how good a company's communications and marketing team is they'd have to do somethimg pretty special and daring to get people talking like this. We're living in a age where almost all age groups are familairising themselves (if not already familiarised) with social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Media is being served on a platfrom where one can read a particular article and share his/her views with other individuals around the country at super-sonic speed.

So there you have it, whatever form technology may come in whether it be viral videos or social networks, it should be taken as a serious force to be reckoned with when it comes to tools which help one to communicate with the general public. Just the pure influence it has on how people percieve information in the media places it head and shoulders above any other platform in current existence