MCS-164: Recap

In one of the first classes, we learned the concept of digital labor and how everyone is involved in it. We were to pull out a certain topic from a bag and were to write a blog post specific for that topic. The topic I pulled out was “Internet Water Cables”. I have never heard of internet water cables and didn’t know it existed. These cables I learned are hooked up by regular workers who make way less than they deserve. These cables need to be very intricate as they can be easily damaged by rocks or even bit by sharks.

In the Nakamura reading, we learned the concept of “Glitch Racism”. An area of the Internet where people would often post racist, sexist, and homophobic comments to a particular person or a group. Nakamura claims that this happens because the Internet has “Tourette syndrome” where they would say things they don’t fully mean. They also feel comfortable because the fact that they can remain anonymous and be protected by the computer screen.

In Fuchs’s text, we read about the idea of the share economy. In the chapter, top companies like Airbnb and Uber were used as big examples. These companies rely on users to do the work for them while they receive commission. Fuchs explains many times in the chapter that these share economies were started with a positive purpose but became negative when capitalism took over. These companies continue to grow while workers are left almost with nothing.

This ties in with a documentary we viewed in class about Foxconn. Particularly, Chinese workers overseas are forced to work ridiculous hours while getting almost nothing in pay. These workers are exploited by the factories and companies with minimum pay and barely anytime to rest. Often times, workers would eat their lunch really fast in order to catch a quick nap.

Lastly, the concept of big data and cookies. The Internet is constantly monitoring and receiving our personal information. Whatever we search online, whatever we input online, whatever we like online is stored in a Internet database called the Big Data. Through cookies, these information are sold to third party providers which allows them to promote advertisement on whatever site you are on.