Number of Posts: 6
Posts 1 - 6
The Rise and Fall of Yik Yak, the Anonymous Messaging App
Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 27.5.2017
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | childhood, cyberbullying, law, privacy, social media, threat, youth
Summary | The anonymous messaging app Yik Yak became very popular in colleges and schools because it lets people broadcast anonymously to other users near them. The activity on the app has however started to become thretening with college students and children bullying each other and people making bomb threats that have led to multiple evacuations. A feminist group from University of Mary Washington have filed complaint to the University to block Yik Yak on campus because it has been used to harrass and threaten members.
Image Description | An illustration with a face and a smartphone and an image of the creators of Yik Yak.
Image Tags | male(s), smartphone
Teaching Bronx Students the Language of Computers
Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 22.2.2016
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | computer programming, digitized education, diversity, game, school, youth
Summary | The Bronx is offering their local students computer programming classes - many more than average schools. The students in the Bronx are learning to code so that they can create the technology of the future rather than just consume it. A group of students presented an app they created to investors in Manhattan: it lets users post videos showing police brutality and makes an interactive map of where the incidents happened. Users can also play a game on the app in which they have to avoid ficticious police gun shots.
Image Description | Three male students of color holding a presentation.
Image Tags | male(s)
Social Insecurity? internet Turns Boomers Into Twits
Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 5.5.2017
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | emojis, Facebook, misunderstanding, research/study, youth
Summary | Elders are coming to Facebook and it's not pretty. Most young people find their older relatives' activities on Facebook cringey because they appear to regress back into their younger selves which is somehow undignified for the elderly. They also sometimes use wrong emojis because they tend to be too small for them to properly see. Young people are moving on to other platforms.
Image Description | Images of Cher, Donald Trump, and Larry King as well as some of their Tweets.
Image Tags | female(s), male(s), Twitter
Dumbing Down the Phone for Children
Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 12.12.2015
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | childhood, smartphone, threat, youth
Summary | Parents all face the problem of their children wishing for smartphones for christmas at some point. Often, parents feel that point arrives too early. There are some possibilities to ease children into new media use, by getting a "dumbphone" for instance which has no internet access. Even smartphones have settings for parental control where curfews can be set when the child/teenager is supposed to sleep and not be able to use the smartphone or to block social media or in-app purchases. It is irresponsible to give young children/teenagers full use of a smartphone but one should give them access to the digital sphere in steps, just as one does not start teaching a child how to cook by handing it all the sharp knives.
Image Description | Photograph of a family in front of christmas tree gathered around a smartphone.
Image Tags | female(s), male(s), smartphone
Stop Your 'Dying,' It's Killing Me
Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 29.11.2015
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | texting, youth
Summary | Digital writing culture, be it texting or posting on social media, has developed a widespread obsession with grotesque exaggerations. An example would be the fading popularity of LOL while statements such as “I’m literally dying” have become commonplace to express hilarity. Other staples for expressing strong feelings towards something in texting are “feels”, “YAAASS”, or “I can’t even” among many others. Although hyperbole has a long history as a stylistic device, contemporary online culture seems to have reached new levels.
Image Description | Illustration of a skeleton sitting in a coffin and taking a selfie.
Image Tags | male(s), selfie
A Full Stop for Periods? Okay. Fine.
Newspaper | The New York Times
Date | 10.6.2016
Language | English
Country | U.S.
Topic Tags | punctuation, texting, youth
Summary | Linguist David Crystal describes how the period of full stop punctuation mark is no longer used routinely in instant messaging. Because messages are usually short single-sentence fragments, full stops are not necessary for a good understanding of text messages. Not only are full stops routinely omitted, they also have become a marker for discontent or insincerity which was even empirically confirmed in a study. Further, the repetition of punctuation marks is also more commonplace than adhering to formal (school) writing standards in text messaging. Abbreviations like “lol” which were very popular among youths in previous years have become outdated because adults have now started using them.
Image Description | Portrait of linguist David Crystal.
Image Tags | male(s)
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