Oh what a tangled web...

In Weeks 7 and 8 of the course you're going to be learning about the function of 'online personae' and deceit in cyberspace and the following article recalls the sad consequences of constructed persona and rampant, malicious deceit gone wrong. Although at first consideration the story seems to be simply a stark warning of the potentially catastrophic effects of embarking on a campaign of deceit on the internet (and yet another reminder of the power of the affordances of the medium) it also, on closer reflection, unveils the extent to and detail with which online persona are often created and how authentic they can be. The motive for this particular web of deceit seems pretty clear-cut...but something about the very last paragraph chills (at least me) even more than the calculated, vindictive lies and vitriol that caused a young girl her death. Consider the richness with which the character of Josh had been created. Does that final paragraph reflect the beliefs and tastes of 'Josh' or the woman behind his mask, tweaking the strings. I'd bet good money that it's the former; that the 'history' of this figment of fiction had been scripted to match her vision of 'Josh'....to make him plausible and conform to 'type'. Why? Because even if there is no or little possibility of the perpetrator being exposed....if the mask of invisibility and anonymity is impenetrable, there seems to be a compelling need for cyberspace deceivers to paint a fully rounded, valid and 'true' character. Once they begin to tell the persona's story, they feel driven to recount it in full.

I began to ponder this.....why?....and one of the most reasonable explanations I could come up with was the medium of communication. Text. For centuries words have been the vehiicle for expression of normally unspoken desires and fantasies. Works of fiction, no matter how exrteme, are received as acceptable because they are just that. Not-real. Fantasies. Just words. Diaries and journals have always contained the private longings and aspirations of their authors....again...no matter how socially unacceptable (even deviant) those thoughts and dreams might be. In other words, it possibly ISN'T just the fact that the perpetrators are invisible and anonymous that frees them to behave in such a way; it may be the fact that they are weaving their web of deceit via the 'emancipatory ', fantastical medium of words. I'm betting good money that there's research out there that indicates that even with cast-iron guarantees of anonymity....if they could be 100% assured that they could deceive successfully, people do not and would not indulge in such deceitful character construction when they communicate via voice chat...the spoken voice.

Here's the story: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/09/AR2008010903367_pf.html

While you're reading it, you might also consider the motives of the 'vigilantes'.....