1) Research the Ian Tomlinson case. What would the traditional, hegemonic view of the police be in a case like this? How did new and digital media create a different story? What does the police officer's subsequent aquittal suggest about the power of new and digital media?
New and digital media creates the ability for citizen journalism to challenge these views; in particular the statement from he police stated that there were efforts to save his (Ian Tomlinson) life after he collapsed. However", video footage proves that the polices version of the event was not true. from traditional hegemonic view, this particular case is seen to be standard as police brutality is happening more often. new and digital media help to enforce this as it proves the police are abusing the power that they have.
Ian Tomlinson was an English newspaper vendor who collapsed and died in the City of London on his way home from work after being unlawfully struck by a police officer, Simon Harwood, during the 2009 G-20 summit protests. The traditional hegemonic view of the police in this case would be that Tomlinson done something wrong to aggravate the police, giving them a reason to push him to the ground and eventually kill him. Simon Harwood (the police offer responsible for Tomlinson's death) had been charged with the crime, however had stated he is not guilty on several occasions. This suggests that the power of new and digital media is great to a certain extent as the video of the Ian Tomlinson death was recorded by a member of the public and is therefore citizen journalism. However, the police officer has 'gotten away' with this case, as have a few others in the past, which highlights the power of the authorities as although new and digital media can bring these stories to light, it will never be the final judge of what happens to the offender.
2) What does the author argue regarding whether hegemony is being challenged by Web 2.0?
The author believes that there is less hegemony because the audiences no longer have to rely on traditional media such as radios and newspapers as we can easily produce texts ourselves. Moreover, the author stated that 'injustices can be challenged more easily; but the problem of political, and legal, controls will be harder to surmount.'
3) In your opinion, does new and digital media reinforce dominant hegemonic views or give the audience a platform to challenge them?
In my opinion, I believe that new and digital media reinforces dominant hegemonic views to some extent. Although powerful institutions still have the power to publish whatever content they like, these are now more often challenged by audiences. For example, if the Daily Mail post a controversial/bias viewpoint of a story, then audiences can comment, share their opinions and even criticise the newspaper or story. Also, the author argues that the internet is becoming more diverse as there are more 'amateur' and 'professional' opinions/views available. as audiences are challenging more, there is less hegemony.
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