Social media as source of raw material

People always ask me about social media. They ask about how it became so strong? How can a person stand up against huge corporations and governments via social media? What is the magic?

The magic is not social media itself. It is not the technology behind it. It is not the idea of liking something. The magic is all about “raw” data and scattered networks. Social media is strong because it presents us with raw data, before governments and corporations can contaminate it. The information that is produced out of given data can be manipulated very easily, and if governments are the only source of data then the information that comes out of it will most probably be subjective.

However, social media gives us raw data via citizens who actually saw what is happening. That’s why governments are so afraid of it. They don’t have the time to twist everything before disseminating their own version of the truth.

That’s why I feel like I am in a psychological warfare everyday. Below is a description of disinformation. These are exactly what is happening now in Turkey, and social media is left as the only reliable source.

Disinformation is intentionally false or inaccurate information that is spread deliberately. For this reason, it is synonymous with and sometimes called black propaganda. It is an act of deception and the making of false statements to convince someone of untruth. Disinformation should not be confused with misinformation, or information that is unintentionally false.

Unlike traditional propaganda techniques designed to engage emotional support, disinformation is designed to manipulate the audience at the rational level by either discrediting conflicting information or supporting false conclusions. A common disinformation tactic is to mix some truth and observation with false conclusions and lies, or to reveal part of the truth while presenting it as the whole (a limited hangout).

Another technique of concealing facts, or censorship, is also used if the group can affect such control. When channels of information cannot be completely closed, they can be rendered useless by filling them with disinformation, effectively lowering their signal-to-noise ratio and discrediting the opposition by association with many easily disproved false claims.

I believe that you felt you know that especially the last paragraph is all about Turkey. This is very unfortunate. I believe that the government doesn’t need these methods. They do good things with good intentions. When they try to regulate data itself they raise more suspicions. It is time that the government realizes that with the reality of social media they cannot bend the truth further.