Abstract
AbstractTen years after the Belfast Agreement, Northern Ireland remains a divided society as signified by the persistence and even proliferation of interface areas, often divided by so‐called ‘peace walls’ and intermittent conflict between rival communities on either side. Recent media reports have suggested that online interactions between rival interface communities on social networking sites may be undermining efforts to foster better intercommunity relationships. This article explores the extent to which key stakeholders are aware of the use of the Internet by young people to plan street riots in interface areas in Northern Ireland and their responses to this ‘anti‐social’ use of sites such as Bebo. It presents evidence to suggest that stakeholder awareness about the extent of the use of social media by young people to organize street riots is based on rumour and hearsay. Key stakeholders report that Internet Safety programmes have received positive feedback from local audiences but concede that they are unlikely have any significant impact upon the level of anti‐social behavior in interface areas.
Highlights
Zittrain (2008) asserts that strategies to protect the Ògenerative spirit of the InternetÓ must Òblunt the worst aspect of todayÕs popular generative Internet and PC without killing these platformsÕ openness to innovationÓ (p. 150)
All of the community workers confirmed that they were aware of incidents of street rioting that had been organized on social networking sites
The drama workshops organized by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) in conjunction with local councils and schools may prove more useful than Internet Safety programs in developing an understanding of the motivations of teenage rioters and informing policy in this area. This preliminary study suggests that, on the basis of the evidence to date, stakeholder awareness about the extent of the use of social media by young people to organize street riots is based on rumor and hearsay
Summary
Zittrain (2008) asserts that strategies to protect the Ògenerative spirit of the InternetÓ must Òblunt the worst aspect of todayÕs popular generative Internet and PC without killing these platformsÕ openness to innovationÓ (p. 150). Lloyd and Devine (2009) point to the potential online risks that children may face on these platforms, with a small minority of 8Ð11 year olds (17 percent) in Northern Ireland confirming that they had met in person someone who they had initially contacted on a social networking site. This is one example of the Òyouth thrill-seeking behaviorÓ in Northern Ireland that has arguably been made easier via social networking sites such as Facebook (Goldie and Ruddy 2010)
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