When thinking about the impact that unrestricted web publishing
has on the dissemination of information, I immediately think of social
networking. Social media gives people from all different ages and backgrounds
full access to post whatever they want whenever they want. Even though many
social network sites have their restrictions, these usually don’t take effect
until the damage has been done. For example, Instagram may delete an account
for posting inappropriate pictures. Even though the account was eventually
deleted, the pictures were still posted, seen, and passed on to others. What if
something was posted that wasn’t true? What are the consequences then? Since
social media is so fast-paced, false information catches on like wildfire and just
spreads. While reading The New York Times,
I came across an article
called, “After Prank by Dutch Girl on Twitter, Real Trouble.” The article is about
a 14 year old Dutch girl who impersonated a Middle Eastern terrorist via
Twitter this past Sunday. She sent a threat as a joke to American Airlines and
quickly learned that this has serious repercussions.
Evaluating Source
Credibility
The article was written by Dan Bilefsky. I clicked on his
name and was able to see his other articles. He had 668 articles on the website
and also writes for The International Herald Tribune. I looked it up and it was founded in France around 1887. Bilefsky writes many international stories and
seems to be an expert in this area. This made me feel confident that Bilefsky
was credible and an experienced writer since The New York Times, a very established print and online newspaper,
trusted him to write so many stories.
The next source is Twitter. Anytime I read an
article about something that happened on Facebook or Twitter, I always go and
check it out. Bilefsky (2014) stated that the girl’s Twitter account is under the
name Sarah and that her Twitter handle is @QueenDemetriax_. I immediately looked
this up and sure enough there were hundreds of tweets, retweets, and mentions regarding
the situation with this name. However, the account is no longer up and American
Airlines deleted their tweet stating that they sent her information to the FBI
as a response to the threat.
In the article, Bilefsky (2014) stated that Sarah was
supposed to be arrested by the Rotterdam Police. However, it does
not state where Rotterdam is located. This is very confusing because the article says
Paris in the beginning. I am not big on geography and had to use Google in
order to find out that Rotterdam is a city in the Netherlands. To confirm the
arrest, I did a little research and was able to find the Rotterdam Police
Twitter account where they tweeted
below.
Dutch girl (14) from Rotterdam arrested after American Airlines threat. Investigation continues. #Rotterdam #Police #Force @americanair
— Politie Rotterdam eo (@Politie_Rdam) April 14, 2014
Bilefsky (2014) stated, “Tinet de Jonge, a spokeswoman for
the department, said by phone that the girl had been released Monday but
remained a suspect, pending an investigation” (para. 6). This leads me to
believe that Bilefsky was able to speak with her by phone to get more
information or that he saw this information somewhere else. Sources from
government organizations or businesses are typically good because they are
experts in their field. However, I visited the Rotterdam Police website,
translated it, and found a list
of their spokespersons for media and de Jonge was not listed. Many other
articles also quoted her as a spokeswoman for the department. I am unsure as to
why she is not listed on the website.
The article also used Mark Miller, a spokesman from American
Airlines and Sarah’s father as secondary sources. A family member as a source is not as effective in this situation because their
statements can be biased since they do not want to see their loved ones in
trouble.
Bilefsky writes in an objective tone and doesn't state his
opinion on the matter. All the links in the article
work and back up what he claims. The article also states that an Esther de Jong
contributed to the story from Amsterdam. There are no links or information regarding
her other than this, so there is no way for a reader to tell how much she contributed and if de Jong is a
credible source or not.
Impact of Sarah’s
Unrestricted Publishing
This article is the perfect example of the impact that
unrestricted web publishing can have on the masses. This story went viral and quickly
became a global issue. Many people are still dealing with the pain from 9/11
and now this incident happened right at the April 15 anniversary of the Boston
Marathon bombing. This caused a huge upset not only with Americans, but many people
around the world. Several tweets surfaced about racism and terrorism.
Teens see social media
as a casual landscape where they have the freedom to say and post whatever is on
their mind. Many teens do not realize the consequences of their actions and it’s
our duty as parents and adults to teach adolescents about the restrictions
regarding their online use. As of today at 4:30 p.m., Bilefsky's article had about 94 comments. Many people like Rachael Harralson from California
stood up for Sarah saying, “It was appropriate for American Airlines to take
this seriously - until they understood the situation. To now continue treat it
as a real threat and prosecute this girl is wrong.” Others were harsher,
saying she was stupid, greedy, and enjoyed attention. Regardless of the
intention, no one online should just assume something is true or false without doing the proper research and
investigation. Unfortunately, the article stated that the impact continues as the airline began to receive several copycat threats following the incident.
The story was covered by several news outlets such as USA Today, Washington Post, NBC news, LA Times, and UK’s Dailymail.
Overall, the article did have some questionable pieces but I still say it was
for the most part accurate.
Bilefsky, D.
(2014). After prank by Dutch girl on Twitter, real trouble. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/16/world/europe/dutch-girl-twitter-threat.html?hp
