CS2006 Individual Curation: Cyber-Bullying (Christianne)
The Cyberstalker; Stalking in reality and online.
This photo clearly depicts a man “stalker” at the background and is reflected on the screen of the laptop; which can be translated as stalker both in real life and online. It can be easily understood because of the way the image is created.
One visual cue used is the color, which is quite monotonous. The lady wears a white shirt as opposed to the “stalker” wearing black. These colours may be associated with “good and bad” or “innocence and malice”.
There is also depth in the photo as there is a space between the lady in front, who is positioned apart from the “stalker” at the back. This highlights the distance between them; although seemingly has a space, the reflection of the “stalker” proves that it is near. It is relative to stalkers who are able to reach to their victims regardless of space and time, via online.
This photo was from a Southern California blog on stalking. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, in 2007, 65,000 stalking victims were surveyed. 85% experienced stalking via email and 35 % of these stalkers used instant messaging. In some cases, cyberstalking involves multiple online applications to target their victims.
In our group project, we hope to project an image that shows both the perspectives of the stalker and the victim in real life and online, which is similar to this image; showing the interposition of the victim and the anonymity that masks the stalker. It is a form of cyberbullying.
Image Source: http://www.southerncaliforniadefenseblog.com/category/stalking
Cyberstalking: Control-alt-delete can’t solve it!
This image was shared to the campus community of the University of Illinois at Chicago. As the image suggests, Cyberstalking is an issue that cannot be solved by “control-alt-delete”, which simply means in computer applications to forcibly terminate a task. However a cyberstalking incident has consequences to the victim, which cannot be easily forgotten.
I think that this is an effective and persuasive campaign, as it reaches to its audience based on a context; students who are very well apt to computer use and online networking sites will easily understand this image. They probably know “control-alt-delete” based on habitual usage. It is informative with a hotline provided.
The composition of the photo shows an interposition of the victim in the front which is coloured and juxtaposed to the dark background, to highlight the victim’s expression; showing the negative effects of cyberstalking, but not in an exaggerated way.
The camera angle also shows the eye level of both the victim and the stalker. The stalker is blurred like how cyberstalkers can be protected by their anonymity online, but his eyes are clear and looking directly at the victim, demonstrating that he can look at her with convenience via online.
The blue rectangular box known as a computer window pop-up can be a form of notification or warning, which may represent that cyberstalking is an indeed alarming issue.
For the final group project, we hope to demonstrate the effect of cyberstalking without making it exaggerated. There are different forms of stalking online; harassment, threat or bullying.
Image Source:
http://www.uic.edu/depts/owa/cyberstalking.html
