A decision by the grand jury in Ferguson, Missouri, is due at any time. The shooting on August 9 of Michael Brown in Ferguson, an unarmed black teenager, by a white police officer triggers many reactions across the country. Not surprisingly, individuals continue to react differently and hold strong stances on the events that are being broadcasted throughout the country.
While completing the readings for this week, I quickly recognized the role that indirect reciprocity has played, particularly within the last few days as a decision grows closer. Molm, Collett, and Schaefer (2007) define indirect reciprocity as the act in which the beneficiary of an act returns the favor not to the giver, but to another member of the social network. Earlier this week, as I was searching for updates online from trusted organizations such as Dream Defenders and the Urban League of Portland, I discovered a new resource being shared with the community.
Ferguson national response network has provided a list of planned responses around the country to the Darren Wilson grand jury announcement. The list which is being shared actively on SNS, such as Facebook, Twitter and even Tumbler provides the community with the location, time, and place to organize and rally the day following the verdict. This aided in providing support to Baker and Dutton (2006) position, that when individuals work together, information is shared more quickly which provides the resources to meet the needs of individuals and the community.
Strategically Communicating 
What an age we live in! I felt that the articles in this week’s readings were dated (2006, 2007, 2009), but what they say still rings true. The simplicity and efficiency of social media and its spreadability is outrageous. It was a true mark of brilliance to call something that is shared at a high volume on the internet as “viral.”
Your post touches my heart in many ways because social media is the new social movement for civil rights. People online constantly look for a voice to listen to that they can trust. The posts of your alternative update sources for news on Ferguson is a prime example of that. Many citizens, including myself, do not trust getting their information from mainstream sources like CNN or MSNBC. Luckily, the internet is a domain for people to post their voices and reporting specific to what the author feels is what the people need to know.
I have another tragic event that I am following through alterative news sources. There was a massacre of 43 college students in Ayotzinapa, Guerrero, Mexico last month. They were a group of students who were protesting social issues concerning the government in October. The students went missing and were later discovered dead. There have been links of the Mexican government and drug cartels working together in the massacre. Aristegui Noticias has been one of the websites that I have been using to get daily stories on developments in the investigation.
By: eldrickbone on November 20, 2014
at 8:29 pm