User:Tash/grad testplay2

Introduction

Collective Reading: on contemporary social media culture

• On state and self-censorship

• "While facilitating freedom of expression, social media also encourages users to practice their freedom to hate, where individuals exercise their right to voice their opinions while actively silencing others."
  Source: Lim, M. (2017) ‘Freedom to hate: social media, algorithmic enclaves, and the rise of tribal nationalism in Indonesia.’ Critical Asian Studies, 49(3): 411-427.

• Making Silences on Social Media: Graduation Thesis

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  Profile: 'Account closing service'. Bio: 'Admin is a Muslim sister / Facebook, Instagram, Twitter / Payment after.'

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  'Images and video of ourselves will haunt us in the afterlife'

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  'Not ready to cover your aurat? Don't worry, there's still space in hell'

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  A happy customer

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  'My sister, don't upload your photo'

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  'A strong Muslimah is: Not one that can lift a gallon, but one that can take a good photo of herself and not upload it'

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  'Thank God, there are no photos of my wife on social media'

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  Blurred women's faces on a popular Muslim account

• "A significant feature of virtual interactions involve online deviance and trolling; these include behaviors that range from mild mischief, to offensive language, to hacking and trolling, and to the expression of complex social problems, such as by revolutionaries and freedom fighters. (...)
  
  However, online trolling, in general, and the role of gender in perceiving, motivating, defining, enabling, or reacting to trolling, in particular, need to be better understood. Female trolls and deviants have not been well studied because they are a minority of online deviants and traditionally excluded from online deviant subcultures. However, an emerging body of cyberfeminism research document the developing trend of women deviants employing the Internet to accomplish ideological goals." Source: Sanfilippo, M. & Fichman, P. (2015) The Bad Boys and Girls of Cyberspace: How Gender and Context Impact Perception of and Reaction to Trolling. Social Science Computer Review 2015, Vol. 33(2) 163-180.

• Between April and September 2018, Facebook removed 1.5 billion fake accounts from the platform. Source: https://thenextweb.com/facebook/2018/11/16/facebook-removed-1-5-billion-fake-accounts-between-april-and-september/

Collective reading: Ladymouth bot

• An Anti-Social-Media Art Project by Sarah Ciston : https://adanewmedia.org/2019/02/issue15-ciston/

The Game

Live Action Instagram RPG

Knowing that social media functions by amplifying some voices while suppressing others, this interactive game will ask you to rethink your own relation to the medium. Like the practices of 'counterspeech' or 'contra-internet', it suggests new ways to talk back to social media spaces which have become especially hostile towards women. Through the performance and labour of roleplay, you are invited to critically explore this setting, and vicariously engage with its mechanisms and 'players'.

Unlike Gamification, which is the application of game-design elements to non-game contexts, this project relies on the already-existing gaming mechanisms in social media culture. As such, it is not the creation of a new game – but simply an invitation to play differently.

What you need

• At least 3 groups of 2 players
• At least 1 laptop and phone per group, with instagram installed
• Internet connection
• Gameplay cards

Rules

• Always begin & end the game together
• Always play in teams of 2 or more
• Stay in character until further instruction
• Always screenshot your engagements in order of play
• Always tag / mention the game's main profile in your posts & comments, this way we can document your actions @raksasi1
• First rule of improv? Always say yes!
• After the game, decide together whether to kill / donate the profile

How to play

1. As a group, discuss own contexts and starting points. On sheets of A4 paper, write down what makes you uncomfortable online. Display these.
   
2. Divide into teams of 2. Then, each group create fake identities and profiles on Instagram. I will have emails prepared beforehand that you can use to open new social media accounts.

• QUESTION: how important are given roles here? or chosen roles?
  

1. One team starts by picking up one card from the first action deck. Every team then gets 5 minutes to perform the actions on the card, as many times as they want, and using whatever channels they decide.
   
2. Gardening cards can be played once during every round.
   
3. Document the engagement you receive. More attention = more points.
   
4. There are three levels of action decks: beginner, intermediate, advanced. The actions get more and more difficult. Play 3 rounds per level.
   
5. The team with the most points after 9 rounds, wins.
   

Steps

1. Open Instagram, and select: Add Account > Sign Up with email
   
   
2. Set a username and password that cannot be traced back to you. Do not connect any of your personal accounts or contacts to the profile.
   
   
3. Decide if you want a public or private profile. Turn off 'Hide offensive comments' in Settings > Privacy & Security > Comment Controls
   
   
4. Set up your profile (what is your profile pic? who do you follow? what is in your bio? whose voice are you representing?).
   
   
5. Once everyone is ready, we exchange handles, and all profiles follow the primary game profile. @raksasi1
   
   
6. Before we play the first round, each team is given a set of "Gardening cards". These may be employed only once per round.
   – Gardening card 1: Call allies to a conversation
   – Gardening card 2: Call 1 ally to a conversation
   – Gardening card 3: Delete post
   – Gardening card 4: Skip action
   
   
7. Picking up a card from the deck, all teams then have 5 minutes to complete the actions:
   – Pick up action card
   – Perform the action
   – Make screenshots
   – Save post to own archive
   Always tag @raksasi1 in your comments and posts!
   
   
8. At the end of 5 rounds, do one round of evaluation and discussion.
   
   
9. Picking up cards, each team then completes another 5 actions
   
   
10. Final round of evaluation, count points and decide on fate of accounts
    
    

Point System

• For every follower at end of game: 1 point
• For every like on comments or posts: 2 points
• For every flagged comment or post: 4 points
• For every DM received: 3 points
• For every reply to a comment or post: 2 points