Hacker's to the.. rescue?

okay,
so i have unfortunately been slacking on this whole blogging thing, but not to fear, i am back in full force.

most recently in class, we have been discussing the topic of hackivism and their influence in the media. in my personal opinion, i feel that hackivism can be a very effective form of addressing a certain issue and presenting it to the public, but as a whole i do not feel that they can make a substantial impact on the world.

sure.. the internet serves as a public forum where everyone can freely express their feelings and protest against issues that they strongly oppose to. it is also used as a place where people can become influenced based on the given knowledge they acquire throughout the web.

however, not to long ago in my communication and globalization class, we came across an article that argued that the new information age and the era of hackivism could essentially change the world. through google bombing and web-blogging, they would eventually be able to take down the dominate hegemony. the article argued that these people have the advantage of connecting with smaller-niche markets in developing a collective idea or position on a topic. but as much as we rely on the influence of the internet, i DO NOT feel as if they can take down the hegeomic power. looking at protests in general- sure these people get their point across but is anything ever done about it? NO! because those in power ultimately get their way. there is always going to be forums where people can express their ideas, values and beliefs, but i do not think it will ever get to the level where individuals words can create a 180 in the way the world us run.

for those who are interested in reading the article on the future of web-blogging, it was called:
"Oppositional Politics and the Internet" by Richard Kahn & Douglas M. Kellner