Power to Create Change and the Dangers of Misinformation

A node community is a wonderful example of the extraordinary power of technology, where individual connectors (nodes) can instantaneously move information among themselves. Add to this speed the ability to improve and add value to the information while correcting inaccuracies as soon as they crop up and extending access to those who would not otherwise have the information in traditional hierarchies, and we have a whole new communication revolution capable of toppling the whims of a would-be leader, or anyone with the intent to withhold information. We don’t have to look far for an example. As mentioned earlier, social media outlets and node communities fanned the flames of the Arab Spring uprisings that began in Tunisia in December 2010 and moved quickly to Egypt, Libya, Syria, Yemen, and other countries in the Middle East. This resulted in the removal of more than one leader.

At the other extreme, nodes can also pass along inaccurate, unwanted, or unintentional information in the same instant fashion. Take, for example, a sophomore at a large urban university who accidentally clicked “Reply To All” in forwarding a note to his mother that the university had sent to him, only to find the note went to every student at the university! Upon receiving this note, students recognized their power and began sending frivolous messages. This inadvertent consequence of the power that just one node community had within the university was not trivial.

Social media also spun out of control in a negative way when Ryan Lanza (older brother to Newtown, Massachusetts shooter Adam Lanza) was accidentally identified as the suspect in the Newtown shooting. Based on news networks identifying him as the shooter, Ryan Lanza was wrongfully maligned as a mass-murderer, and social networks like Facebook and Twitter were almost instantly alight with modern torches and pitchforks—people created myriad anti-Ryan Lanza groups based on inaccurate information that had been disseminated quickly. Like any new and powerful technology, there is always a danger that tools will be misused. The more we are aware of potential dangers and challenges, the more likely we will be to anticipate and avoid them.