A Study of New Media: A Political Economy Study on Commodification of Privacy and Freedom of

Expression within Search Engine and Social Media in the Internet

Adi Wibowo Octavianto

Social Media Users are increasing

Socialbakers.com

For capitalist point of view this is a potential

market

Political economy perspective on this phenomena

political economy as the study of the social relations, particularly the power relations, that mutually constitute the production,

distribution, and consumption of resources

(Mosco, 1996; p.25)Resources: Media products such as news papers, magazine, television

programs etc

This paper discusses the power relations that occur between the online service

capitalist and the service users

Political economy analysis can be performed through three entry points or process;

commodification (contents, users, labors)

spatialization,

and structuration

Commodification

The process of commodification describes the way capitalism carries out its objective of accumulating capital or realizing value through the transformation of use values

into exchange values (Mosco, 1996 ;p.140)

Entry point use: Commodification of audience

Previous relevant study:

Mattelart (1991): Marketing Firms become the provider of valuable information about consumers,

Smythe (1971): The primary product of mass media is the audience, audience is a media labor

The Process of Commodification

Search engine and social media are not free

To convince people the providers must offer benefits/use value

The needs of social media and search engine have create and maintain

Creating the needs

The needs is natural and wanted: the need to get information as fast and comprehensive as possible, the need to connect, collaborate and share in the social context. Necessity in network society

certain values have to implant in people mind through symbols and associate that symbols and value with positive response. Eg: googling, twiting, facebooking, democratic, freedom of expression

Consumers have to participate in consumption. Not just using but also promote to others

(based on patterson model, 2003)

Privacy

Popular descriptions are such expression such as privacy is the individual right to determine whether and to what extent one is willing to expose oneself to others and privacy is the right to be left alone.

In legal theory, privacy is a particular right of freedom

Freedom from intrusion into areas of one’s own life that one has not explicitly or implicity opened to others (Holmes in Djik 2006)

Information privacy: related to individual control to keep personal data, including to information and decisions based on those data. Informational privacy is the right to selective disclosure of personal data (Djik, 2006)

Commodification of privacy and freedom of expression

Voluntary Panopticon surveillance participation by users to keep honest data filling. Google creedo: don’t be evil

Privacy as new currency to get access

Capital power persuade that privacy in digital world is no longer relevant issue to concern (Facebook)

Normatively users can control their own personal data. Online services should have users explisit permission to use or sell the data

In reality some service providers share the privacy data to the third party without users’ consent (Dybward, 2010)

Capitalist strategy to preserve control

Network society is a must

Communication technology is the way to create the more democratic and freedom society

Honest personal data are important to deliver personal and customize services. Although in reality that kind of data are economic and political assets

Hegemonic process in commodification

Hegemony is process of constituting the common sense (Gramsci)

Hegemoni dapat digunakan untuk menjelaskan mengapa exploitasi privasi individu yang dipertukarkan dengan kebebasan untuk menggunakan layanan online dapat diterima oleh masyarakat kapitalis. Nilai tukar yang terkait dengan nilai guna menjadi salah satu konsep utama kapitalisme. Prinsip neoclasiccal ekonomi misalnya menyatakan bahwa dengan pengorbanan sekecil-kecilnya harus didapat keuntungan sebesar-besarnya.

Kita menyerahkan kontrol terhadap privasi kita untuk dipertukarkan dengan hak untuk menggunakan layanan yang menjanjikan kebebasan untuk berekspresi dan mencari informasi di dunia maya.