In the late 1990s, the media was operating in an environment controlled by a few influences. Because this impinged on freedom of expression, people in the internet scene began creating their own content, organizing their own websites, and creating their own media. This is known as the do-it-yourself (DIY) ethic, ie: “don’t hate the media, become the media”. Sound familiar?
Social media is punk:
DIY
We’re all about “DO-IT-YOURSELF”… we create: culture, music, recordings, videos, distribution channels, art, writings, drawings, social gatherings, community centers, digital squats, art shows – everything that makes life meaningful and fun.
MUTUAL AID
Instead of “do whatever it takes to make maximum profit as fast as possible,” we think, “how can my work benefit others as well?”
You have to co-operate with other humans to be relevant in social media.
FINANCIAL MINIMALISM
We’re not about building, we’re about remixing, reusing and mashing together whatever digital trash is left at the corner of info-street. We scavenge the leftovers and make them our own. That picture, that riff, that video… is as much mine as it was ever yours.
ANTI-AUTHORITARIAN
Think for yourself, accept no authority. Neither oppressor nor oppressed be. You don’t enjoy being oppressed, so don’t oppress others. Don’t play pranks against other “victims,” play pranks against corporations, ad agencies, politicians, etc. That old bumper sticker “Question Authority” still rules. If you earn authority… question yourself.
BLACK HUMOUR
View the entirety of the web through a lens of black humour. Avoid all situations where humour is not permitted. Mass media slickness is replaced with a “destroyed” quality of execution, roughness, noise, collage, seams-showing, assemblage, appropriation and collective ecstasy – all reaching for that difficult-to-attain viral trance state.
“I think we’re going to have to forget about the radio and just go back to word of mouth. ” Joe Strummer – The Clash
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11 Responses to “Social Media is Punk”
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January 27th, 2009 at 10:12 am
Brilliant . . . with clear anarchist tendencies. Can I use this in my presentation to the IABC on Thursday night? I am on a panel with Jen Evans and Matthew Ingram and would love to appear smarter than I am.
January 27th, 2009 at 10:20 am
Sure Boyd. Remix away… that is punk.
January 27th, 2009 at 10:57 am
see also the situationist philosophy of Factory records – the film ’24 Hour party people’ is a very funny account of Tony Wilson and crew…all very social media in aspect
January 28th, 2009 at 4:25 pm
The following is a conversation that took place on Twitter relating to this post…
Tamera: @CollinDouma you and @ryantaylor thinking the same thing about it being punk – http://bit.ly/Qnlo (expand) – me, I disagree
CollinDouma: @ryantaylor think’s SM is punk too? Sweet. @tamera … any thoughts beyond disagreeing? Is SM Light rock?
(re: http://bit.ly/HKPv (expand) )
Tamera: @CollinDouma more grunge – wannabe rebels arguing about who *really* has streetcred. Thinking I shld write a counter-post to yours now
ryantaylor: @CollinDouma there are def some 2 fingers in the air folks in SM and then there are the Michael Bolton types.
CollinDouma: @ryantaylor Don’t forget the Nickelbacks.
ryantaylor: @CollinDouma *shudder*
CollinDouma: @tamera Jello B said “Punk is not dead, Punk will only die when corporations can exploit and mass produce it” Good place for you to start…
Tamera: @CollinDouma not a fan of the punk-ethos, find it lacking in a lot of key areas/ fake, & hate culture jamming – good book “The Rebel Sell”
Tamera: @CollinDouma I have a hard time celebrating smthg that was born frm drug, physical & mental abuse – e.g. Sid V mom gave him heroin. Cool.
CollinDouma: @tamera 2Bfair, Sid’s smack mom is beyond the metaphor of similar principles I was going for. But that woman could party!
tamera: @CollinDouma yeah but anarchist principles etc you mention were born out of that, so looking at ‘punk’ as a social barometer says same 2me
CollinDouma: @tamera Punk not founded in drugs and anarchy. Rather an anti estblshmnt movmnt. Those are the tasty sides. Like the Beats,Hippies etc
jeremyburgin: @CollinDouma Punk was also quickly hijacked by commercialism, ya? Just sayin’…
CollinDouma: @jeremyburgin yeap. Agree’n
joespencer: @CollinDouma @tamera I feel that John Sinclair’s MC5 from Detroit was a leading influence of the punk movement http://www.johnsinclair.us/
DoctorJones: @CollinDouma @Tamera I always think of punk as the rebellion against mainstream corporate rock. Excesses stripped away to reveal raw power
January 30th, 2009 at 11:46 am
Good Post. And cool Twitter discussion. I’m feeling that maybe this idea is making the mistake of categorizing/labeling something undefinable and emergent.
SM is punk for those who feel it that way (I do). But is the punk ethos the dominate one in SM, or should is it an online counter-culture balancing out the lame conservative side of SM?
January 30th, 2009 at 12:25 pm
I think you nailed it James. This proclamation was not meant to be binding, nor self evident… only a silly metaphor that many have been speaking, but few have been writing.
Thanks for the comment Mr. Pew!
collin
January 30th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
Interesting information and concepts.
I share some of these views but I have a more moderate opinion. “Opression” is a pretty strong word. There was plenty of media that operated freely, at least in the U.S. and West Europe without any pressure from government or large corporations.
There were plenty of positive media initiatives that were not all about profit maximization.
Individuals developed their own content, because it became easy and affordable to publish and distribute content to the great benefit of society.
Hey, Social Media can be punk…..but it doesn’t mean it is.
January 30th, 2009 at 3:12 pm
Fair enough Chris.
Please note, that i wrote: “Neither oppressor nor oppressed be. You don’t enjoy being oppressed, so don’t oppress others. ”
It was meant to be open to the interpretation of the reader of what the source oppression is, and not to become it. Perhaps the source is the government, or corporations, or the church, or your family, or some other authoritarian rule in your life… not necessarily “the media”
Perhaps i could have written it clearer.
thanks for the comment
January 30th, 2009 at 3:14 pm
Please note that I never mentioned “Anarchy” in the post, and do not see it as a core principle to Punk or to Social Media.
I am slightly more moderate than all out anarchy online… more libertarian in that regard.
cheers
collin
February 20th, 2009 at 1:01 am
This is so odd but I wrote a nearly identical article not too long ago. Here it is:
http://www.clickoptimize.com/blog/2009/02/everything-i-know-about-social-media-i-learned-from-punk-rock/
February 20th, 2009 at 9:20 am
Awesome Nick… Great minds think alike!