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! ! ! ! !Digital!Philanthropy!
The!new!age!of!empathy!
! ! ! ! Ysabel!Favis!Camus! Master’s!in!New!Media!and!Digital!Culture! Prof.!Dr.!Richard!Rogers! June!24,!2016! ! ! !! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
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Introduction……….……….……….1! Chapter/1:/Questioning/Humanitarianism/and/Philanthropy.……….………4! Chapter/2:/The/Mediation/of/Distant/Suffering…..………..…...……….7! ! The!Witnesses!of!Suffering! ! The!Spectators!of!Distant!Suffering! ! The!Ethics!of!Distant!Suffering! Chapter/3:/The/Digital/Practice/of/Philanthropy………..15! ! Empathy!and!Compassion! Technologization!of!Action! ! Enabling!Philanthrocapitalism! The!Global!Village! ! ! Chapter/4:/Analytical/Frameworks………..………...………….………..22! The!Analytics!of!Mediation! The!Analytics!of!Social!Mediation! Chapter/5:/The/Humanitarian/Reach/of/Humans/of/New/York………..28! Introduction! Findings! Discussion! Conclusion! Chapter/6:/The/Case/of/Courageous/Caitie……….46! ! Introduction! ! Findings! Discussion! ! Conclusion! Chapter/7:/The/New/Age/of/Empathy……….58! The!Mediation!of!Suffering!on!Digital!Platforms! The!Treatment!of!Human!Dignity!by!Humanitarian!Social!Media!Campaigns! The!New!Age!of!Empathy! A!Critique!of!Digital!Philanthropy!
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INTRODUCTION
! In!this,!as!in!many!other!historical!situations,!the!fortunate!and!unfortunate!can!live!in! the!same!country!without!the!former!seeing!the!latter,!either!as!the!result!of!a!kind!of! physical!blindness!arising!from!a!subtle!separation!of!the!spaces!within!which!they!each! move,! that! is! of! their! social! networks,! or…due! to! a! moral! blindness,! when! the! discrepancy!between!their!respective!conditions!creates!a!gulf!that!prevents!the!class!of! ‘those! who! do! not! suffer’! from! forming! an! idea! of! the! suffering! of! the! unfortunate.! (Boltanski!5)!!
Manila,!Philippines!is!a!place!where!you!can!grow!up!and!live!in!comfort,!but!be!surrounded!by! poverty!at!the!same!time.!The!coexistence!of!comfort!and!suffering!in!the!world,!and!of!wealth! and!poverty,!is!something!I!realized!early!on!but!never!fully!understood.!In!the!context!of!the! entire! world! the! disparity! of! living! conditions! are! all! the! more! heightened.! For! wealthier! societies,! it! is! understandably! more! difficult! to! comprehend! the! suffering! of! people! from! farH flung! places,! much! less! to! feel! compassion! for! them.! In! these! situations! the! media! is! largely! responsible!for!shaping!the!idea!of!suffering!in!the!minds!of!those!who!do!not!suffer.!After!all,! television! has! the! power! “to! represent! the! world! to! the! world”! (Chouliaraki! Spectatorship, of, Suffering, 4).! Chouliaraki! poses! the! question,! why! does! the! media! present! the! spectacle! of! suffering!to!people!who!are!thousands!of!miles!away!from!the!person!suffering!(ibid.)?!It!seems! unnecessary! unless! there! was! a! way! for! those! far! off! to! help! those! in! need.! That! is! why! this! academic! work! will! examine! the! spectatorship! of! distant! suffering! and! how! digital! platforms! evoke!empathy!by!hosting!philanthropic!or!charitable!initiatives.! ! The!research!objective!is!to!determine!whether!philanthropic!campaigns!on!social!media!fit!into! Chouliaraki’s!definition!of!the!new!age!of!compassion.!Two!case!studies!will!be!used!towards! this!goal,!each!of!which!addresses!the!subHquestions:! (1) Under!which!circumstances!do!digital!platforms!inspire!compassion?!! (2) To!what!extent!do!social!media!virals!have!humanitarian!effect?!! (3) How!does!the!digital!practice!of!philanthropy!treat!objects!of!suffering!with!respect!to! their!human!dignity?!! The!first!case!study!tackles!the!humanitarian!initiatives!of!Humans,of,New,York,and!its!founder,! Brandon!Stanton.!The!second!case!study!tells!the!story!of!little!Caitie!Lucas!and!her!public!battle! with!a!rare!disease!on!the!Courageous,Caitie,Facebook!page.!
To!peruse!the!portrayal!of!suffering!on!social!media!campaigns,!I!will!utilize!the!Facebook!data! extractor!Netvizz!v1.25!on!both!Facebook!pages.!The!tool!gathers!data!from!different!sections!of! the!Facebook!platform!and!“creates!networks!and!tabular!files!for!user!activity!around!posts!on! pages”!(Rieder).!This!method!will!allow!me!to!collate!images!and!text!from!the!campaigns!and! to!narrow!down!the!most!engaged!materials!that!sought!to!inspire!compassion.!In!addition,!an! inHdepth!analysis!of!press!coverage!surrounding!both!events!will!be!included!in!narrative!form.! I! will! then! proceed! to! a! critique! of! the! approaches! taken! towards! mediating! suffering.! Three! modes! of! analysis! will! be! applied:! (1)! Portrayal! and! Narration! of! suffering! others,! (2)! Community!Building,!and!(3)!Campaign!Creator.!!!
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The! first! half! of! the! study! covers! relevant! literature! in! relation! to! humanitarianism! and! philanthropy,!the!mediation!of!distant!suffering!and!the!digital!practice!of!philanthropy.!Chapter! one!summarizes!the!ideological!flaws!of!humanitarian!reason,!as!laid!out!by!Didier!Fassin,!and! the!pitfalls!of!traditional!charity!according!to!Domen!Bajde.!Chapter!two!defines!the!concept!of! distant! suffering,! which! is! the! mediation! of! suffering! to! distant! viewers,! and! draws! from! the! works! of! Luc! Boltanski! and! Lilie! Chouliaraki.! It! describes! the! characters! and! the! moral! and! ethical! implications! of! distant! suffering.! The! third! chapter! tackles! digital! philanthropy,! presenting!distant!suffering!as!a!new!form!of!philanthropy!facilitated!through!online!platforms.! Before!proceeding!to!the!case!studies,!the!fourth!chapter!outlines!an!analytical!framework!used! by!Chouliaraki.!Her!‘Analytics!of!Mediation’!was!developed!for!the!analysis!of!distant!suffering! on! television! and! news! coverage.! Then! it! introduces! an! updated! analytical! framework! for! the! study!of!distant!suffering!via!social!media!campaigns.!The!following!chapters!present!two!case! studies!that!investigate!humanitarian!campaigns!on!social!media.!The!case!studies!feature!the! humanitarian! initiatives! of! Humans, of, New, York, and! the! plaintive! story! of! Courageous, Caitie.! The! seventh! chapter! applies! the! literature! on! distant! suffering! towards! the! findings! from! the! two! case! studies.! It! also! discusses! what! digital! platforms! add! to! the! realm! of! philanthropy,! thereby!updating!the!new!age!of!empathy.!The!final!section!recaps!the!work’s!most!important! findings!and!reverts!back!to!the!main!research!objectives!and!research!questions.!
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The!social!relevance!of!this!topic!stems!from!an!ageHold!dilemma!that!cannot!be!resolved!by!any! one! solution.! That! is,! the! unequal! distribution! of! wealth! and! opportunities! around! the! globe.! When! Chouliaraki! speaks! about! disparity! between! the! spectator! of! suffering! and! the! sufferer! himself,!she!says!that!it!reflects!economic!and!political!divisions!that!exist!in!the!world.!!
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landscape!of!information.”!(Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!4)!! ! This!is!in!the!context!of!television!and!news!media.!While!digital!technology!currently!modifies! this!setup,!I!am!convinced!that!there!is!a!way!to!bridge!this!gap!albeit!in!small!ways.!I!do!not! expect!to!answer!deepHrooted!problems!in!society.!However,!I!aim!to!contribute!a!conceptual! and! methodological! approach! towards! analyzing! the! adaptation! of! philanthropy! to! the! digital! realm.!The!research!provides!additional!knowledge!to!this!rapidly!evolving!and!socially!relevant! field.!
CHAPTER ONE
Questioning!Humanitarianism!!
and!Philanthropy!
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Listening! to! excluded! and! marginalized! individuals,! assisting! the! poor! and! disadvantaged,! granting! recognition! to! sick! immigrants! and! asylum! seekers,! showing! compassion! for! Aids! orphans! and! disaster! victims,! testifying! on! behalf! of! populations! afflicted!by!wars—these!are!all!attitudes!and!actions!that!we!automatically!believe!to!be! good,!for!causes!that!we!deem!just!in!and!of!themselves.!(Fassin!and!Gomme!244)! Humanitarianism,!philanthropy!and!acts!of!charity!are!indeed!generally!perceived!as!‘morally! untouchable’.!Movements!of!this!nature!are!rarely!questioned!and!critique!of!it!is!considered!an! intellectual!taboo.!Those!who!do,!fall!at!risk!of!being!accused!of!relativism!or!cynicism!(ibid.).! However,!with!the!technological!advancement!of!humanitarian!action!there!is!a!need!to!review! the!ideological!frictions!that!accompany!it.! !
Among! the! ideological! frictions! is! Fassin’s! critique! of! humanitarian! reason! itself.! In! his! book! Humanitarian,Reason:,A,Moral,History,of,the,Present,!he!goes!into!the!definition!of!‘humanity’.! Humanity!is!the!“sympathy!one!feels!for!one’s!fellows”!and!it!implies!that!“all!lives!are!equally! sacred!and!that!all!sufferings!deserve!to!be!relieved”!(Fassin!and!Gomme!248).!However,!Fassin! argues!that!when!humanitarian!reason!tells!us!that!all!human!lives!are!equal!and!that!everyone! deserves!to!be!alleviated!from!suffering,!it!actually!hides,a!reality!of!the!world.!!
Humanitarian! reason,! by! instituting! the! equivalence! of! lives! and! the! equivalence! of! suffering,!allows!us!to!continue!believing—contrary!to!the!daily!evidence!of!the!realities! that! we! encounter—in! this! concept! of! humanity! which! presupposes! that! all! human! beings! are! of! equal! value! because! they! belong! to! one! moral! community.! (Fassin! and! Gomme!252)!
Social!inequality,!injustice!and!suffering!are!brought!to!life!by!unfortunates!like!the!refugees!in! Europe,!the!terminally!ill,!and!the!typhoon!victims!in!Asia.!These!are!intolerable!entities!in!the! world!that!humanitarian!movements!address!in!order!to!relieve!the!feeling!of!guilt!for!those!in! more!fortunate!circumstances.!
Thus! humanitarian! government! has! a! salutary! power! for! us! because! by,saving,lives,,it, saves, something, of, our, idea, of, ourselves! [emphasis! added],! and! because! by! relieving!
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Hence,! Fassin! critiques! the! very! existence! of! humanitarian! governments,! stipulating! that! they! are! merely! a! way! for! mankind! to! stomach! the! existence! of! suffering! and! inequality! in! the! world.! !By! watering! down! harsh! realities! and! soothing! it! with! a! semblance! of! a! solution,! humanitarian!reason!represents!a!“powerful!social!imaginary!of!our!time”!(Fassin!and!Gomme! 247).!
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Moreover,!while!humanitarian!reason!says!that!all!human!lives!are!equal,!Fassin!gives!evidence! that!the!practice!of!humanitarian!action!does!not!necessarily!embody!this.!One!of!his!examples! shows! how! France! is! more! likely! to! grant! residence! to! immigrants! suffering! from! serious! illnesses!over!those!who!are!not.!This!practice!reduces!people!to!a!condition!of!victimhood.!
Humanitarian, reason, pays, more, attention, to, the, biological, life, of, the, destitute, and, unfortunate,,the,life,in,the,name,of,which,they,are,given,aid,,than,to,their,biographical,life,! [emphasis!added]!the!life!through!which!they!could,!independently,!give!a!meaning!to! their!own!existence.!(Fassin!and!Gomme!254)! ! Even!in!the!practice!of!humanitarianism,!there!is!still!inherent!inequality.!Especially!when!one! considers!how!throughout!the!history!of!humanitarian!reason,!there!has!occurred!a!“shift!from! the! ‘right! of! the! receiver’! to! the! ‘obligation! of! the! giver’”,! which! in! turn! “institutes! a! radically! unequal! order! that! is! the! mark! of! the! humanitarian! relationship—a! structural! fact,! in! other! words,!regardless!of!the!motivations!of!actors”!(Fassin!and!Gomme!253).!We!can!apply!this!to! the!most!recent!humanitarian!crisis,!whereupon!a!refugee!may!enter!European!territory!“on!the! basis!of!humanitarianism!rather!than!as!of!a!right”!(Ibid.).!It!is!for!this!reason!media!can!easily! phrase! the! current! refugee! crisis! as! a! ‘humanitarian! burden’,! presenting! the! acceptance! of! refugees!as!an!added!obligation!for!western!society.!For!their!part,!Fassin!and!Gomme!declare! that! in! situations! like! these! the! right! of! a! refugee! to! be! welcomed! should! be! recognized! as! a! “right!beyond!any!obligation,!and!hence!a!subject!beyond!any!subjection—even!to!humanitarian! reason”!(Fassin!and!Gomme!255).!!
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While! Fassin! reviews! humanitarianism! as! carried! out! by! governments! and! nonHgovernmental! organizations!(NGO’s),!Bajde!also!brings!up!a!critique!of!traditional!charity!that!sheds!light!on! neoliberal!utilitarian!perspectives!of!charitable!giving.!Neoliberalism!can!be!defined!as:!
…a!set!of!political!economic!practices!that!proposes!that!human!wellHbeing!can!best!be! advanced! by! liberating! individual! entrepreneurial! freedoms! and! skills! within! an! institutional! framework! characterized! by! strong! private! property! rights,! free! markets! and!free!trade.!(Harvey!2)!
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For!neoliberals!traditional!charity!is!a!form!of!giving!that!is!blind!to!the!longHterm!needs!of!the! receiver.! It! is! merely! done! to! achieve! selfHfulfillment,! or! to! eradicate! a! little! of! the! guilt! that! comes!from!being!born!in!better!conditions.!For!example,!a!person!who!drops!spare!change!into!
a! beggar’s! cup! provides! the! unfortunate! with! a! semblance! of! shortHterm! help.! The! charitable! giver!benefits!from!a!feeling!of!selfHfulfillment!and!may!be!under!the!illusion!that!he!somehow! contributed!to!the!eradication!of!poverty.!And!yet,!one!may!argue!that!the!unknowing!giver,!by! the!innocent!donation!of!loose!coins,!has!fortified!the!beggar’s!condition!in!life!by!supporting!a! lifestyle! of! desperation.! This! can! be! scaled! towards! larger! institutions! of! charity,! wherein! a! group!may!feed!homeless!persons!once!a!day,!or!donate!boxes!of!toys!to!an!orphanage!without! providing!more!longHterm!solutions!that!can!alter!their!conditions!of!living.!Flannery!even!calls! conventional! charity! an! ‘act! of! domination’,! comparing! it! to! colonialism! in! that! it! “propagates! the!helplessness!and!benefactorHdependence!of!the!poor”!(qtd.!by!Bajde!9).!These!are!remindful! of! Fassin’s! earlier! points,! wherein! he! stresses! how! humanitarian! movements! are! band! aid! solutions!that!do!not!address!the!root!cause!of!the!problem,!resulting!in!a!social!imaginary!of! saving!the!world!from!worldly!evils.!Both!critiques!point!towards!selfHcentered!motivations!for! helping! others:! selfHfulfillment! for! the! charitable! giver! and! mitigation! of! guilt! for! the! humanitarian!philanthropist.!!
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Furthermore,! “neoliberal! utilitarians! construe! gift! giving! as! an! outdated,vestige,of,preCmodern, times! [emphasis! added],! a! strain! on! individual’s! freedom! and! an! impediment! to! efficient! allocation! of! resources! better! achieved! by! the! market”! (Liebersohn! qtd.! by! Bajde! 6).! Conventional!charity!is!outdated!in!light!of!new!and!hybridized!practices!of!philanthropy!that! integrate! marketing! and! capitalistic! business! models! to!attain! sustainability.! New! practices! of! philanthropy! no! longer! depend! on! donations! because! they! find! ways! to! make! the! money! go! around!instead.!Neoliberals!deem!this!as!a!more!efficient!allocation!of!resources!in!comparison! to!how!charities!accumulate!donations,!letting!it!pile!up!until!the!next!event!or!activity.!These! philanthropic!innovations!have!yet!to!become!prevalent,!but!they!are!growing!with!the!use!of! digital!platforms.! ! Conclusion, All!in!all,!Fassin!and!Bajde!apply!a!critical!perspective!to!humanitarianism!and!philanthropy!by! highlighting!ideological!flaws!in!these!systems.!These!are!mainly!the!act!of!helping!for!selfish! motivations,! the! watering! down! of! harsh! inequalities! in! society,! and! the! inherent! inequality! within!the!system!of!humanitarianism!itself.!There!is!also!the!switch!from!‘right!of!the!receiver’! to! the! ‘obligation! of! the! giver’! as! a! basis! for! performing! humanitarian! action.! Lastly,!new! and! innovative!forms!of!philanthropy!are!leaving!behind!traditional!charity.!
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CHAPTER TWO
The!Mediation!of!Distant!Suffering!
By,Journalistic,Reports,and,News,Coverage,on,TV
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!In! the! progression! of! humanitarianism! and! philanthropy! throughout! history,! the! spectacle! of! suffering! has! become! increasingly! communicated! via! evolving! mediums.! Classic!images!of!suffering!display!a!starving!African!child,!a!terminally!ill!patient,!or!a! bereaved!mother!or!father!holding!on!tightly!to!their!child’s!cold!body.!
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the! ethicality!and!morality!of!portraying!suffering!is!still!heavily!questioned.!Journalists!and! news!agencies!seem!to!prey!on!famine,!war,!natural!disasters!and!epidemics!to!capture! compelling!images!for!the!world!to!feast!their!eyes!upon.!But!to!what!extent!is!it!morally! acceptable!to!portray!suffering,!particularly!on!television!and!mass!media?!! ! I!like!to!think!this!question!was!on!Kevin!Carter’s!mind!when!he!captured!the!little!girl! and!the!vulture,!a!worldHfamous!photo!depicting!the!1993!famine!in!Sudan!and!which! won! the! Pulitzer! Prize! for! feature! photography! that! year.! The! photo! depicts! an! emaciated! child,! starving! and! near! death,! with! a! vulture! lurking! behind! her! patiently! waiting!for!a!moment!to!strike.!!As!the!story!goes,!the!child!was!crawling!towards!a!UN! feeding! center! when! Carter! came! across! her.! When! a! vulture! landed! nearby,! Carter! waited!for!20!minutes!until!the!vulture!was!close!enough!to!frame!the!perfect!picture.!It! was!only!then!he!chased!the!vulture!away!and!then!watched!the!girl!continue!to!struggle! (Macleod!156).!“Afterward!he!sat!under!a!tree,!lit!a!cigarette,!talked!to!God!and!cried”! (Ibid.).!The! entire! incident! put! forward! a! moral! dilemma! that! raged! both! from! within! and! without! Carter.! A! critique! was! published! by! the! St.! Petersburg! Times:! "The! man! adjusting! his! lens! to! take! just! the! right! frame! of! her! suffering! might! just! as! well! be! a! predator,!another!vulture!on!the!scene"!(Ibid.).!The!New!York!Times!also!shared!how,! after!publishing!the!photo,!they!had!received!hundreds!of!phone!calls!inquiring!whether! the!girl!had!survived!and!if!there!was!a!way!to!help.!Apart!from!this!public!reaction!it! was!clear!that!Carter!was!also!undergoing!an!internal!moral!crisis.!Friends!reported!that! he! showed! signs! of! depression! and! regret.! Then,! only! 2! months! after! he! had! won! the! Pulitzer!Prize,!Carter!took!his!own!life.!!!
Fig.!1.!Carter’s!Pulitzer!PrizeHwinning!photograph!published!by!The!New!York!Times!on!March!26,!1993.!
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This! anecdote! sets! a! clear! illustration! of! the! elements! of! distant! suffering,! and! the! complex! dynamics! that! play! around! it.! Using! this! example! one! can! identify! the! characters! within! a! scenario! of! distant! suffering.! The! first! character! is! the! object, of, suffering.! He! or! she! is! the! unfortunate,! the! victim,! or! the! one! undergoing! the! crisis! at! hand.!Next!is!the!witness,!the!one!who!sees!the!one!suffering!with!his!own!eyes!and!in! proximity.! The! witness,! upon! seeing! a! person! suffering! in! the! flesh,! has! a! choice! of! whether!or!not!he!will!act!on!what!he!sees.!Should!he!or!she!choose!to!communicate!this! suffering,! he! may! then! use! a! medium! (text,! photograph,! video,! or! a! combination! of! these)!to!display!what!he!has!seen!to!a!wider!audience.!In!this!case!he!is!also!an!agent!or! a!mediator.!The!endHreceivers!of!the!witness’s!message!are!then!called!spectators.!They! also!see!the!suffering,!but!from!a!distance!and!most!likely!from!behind!a!TV,!desktop!or! mobile!screen.!They!are!a!farHoff!audience!with!a!similar!option!of!acting!or!not!acting! upon! the! suffering.! In! the! anecdote! above,! the! object, of, suffering, is! the! little! girl,! the! witness,is!Kevin!Carter!and!the!spectators,are!the!wider!audience!of!the!New!York!Times! and!the!callers.!!
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Kevin!Carter’s!story!is!an!extreme!case,!but!it!also!sets!forward!an!impactful!message!for! those! who! endeavor! to! mediate! suffering! from! a! distance.! Evidently,! a! considerable! amount!of!moral!responsibility!falls!upon!a!witness!of!suffering!and!those!who!choose!to! mediate! it.! When! you! become! a! witness! there! is! a! choice! between! flight! and! help,! to! ignore!what!you!see!or!act!upon!it.!The!guilt!of!omission!falls!upon!those!who!choose!to! ignore! it.! Meanwhile,! there! are! two! choices! of! action! for! those! compelled! to! act:! 1)! to! help! right! then! and! there,! 2)! or! communicate! what! he! sees! with! the! intention! of!
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since!he!was!warned!beforehand!not!to!make!physical!contact!with!the!victims!for!fear! of!transmitting!disease.!Thus,!Carter!chose!to!‘mediate’!what!he!saw.!! Mediation!is!responsible!for!deterritorialization,!the!overcoming!of!geographical! distance,! as! well! as! the! compression! of! space! and! time! and! the! realHtime! witnessing! of! faraway! events.! Mediation,, in, this, definition,, is, not, only, about, overcoming,geographical,distance,,but,also,‘the,closing,of,moral,distance’,between, people, who, live, far, away, from, one, another, [emphasis! added].! (Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship,of,Suffering,19)!!
Hence,!mediation!seeks!to!‘close!the!moral!distance’!between!those!suffering,!and!those! who!are!far!away!from!them.!However,!spreading!the!word!is!only!morally!acceptable!if! it!is!presented!alongside!an!option!to!help!out,!which!Carter!was!unable!to!do.!His!tragic! story! exemplifies! how! the! depiction! of! suffering! without! offering! a! way! to! alleviate! it! brings! about! an! ethical! crisis.! As! Chouliaraki! points! out,! “the! most! profound! moral! demand! that! television! makes! on! spectators,! Ellis! claims,! is! to! make! us! witnesses! of! human!pain!without!giving!us!the!option!to!act!on!it”!(Spectatorship,of,Suffering!2).!!This! is! the! moral! demand! that! magazines! and! newspapers! also! create! when! portraying! suffering!without!providing!a!bridge!through!which!philanthropic!action!may!be!carried! out.!
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The,Witnesses,of,Suffering,
Boltanski! talks! about! the! ‘politics! of! pity’,! which! is! how! television! uses! image! and! language!to!present!the!spectacle!of!suffering!in!a!way!that!is!ethically!acceptable!for!the! spectator!(qtd.!by!Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!3).!Do!the!images!and!the!text! move! the! viewing! public! towards! compassion?! Was! that! the! intended! result?! When! examining!ethics!or!morality!one!studies!the!choices!that!are!made!behind!the!scenes.!It! is! the! choices! that! are! made! with! regard! to! how,the,sufferer,is,portrayed,and! how,the, scene,is,narrated,that! are! telltale! of! the! ethical! values! embedded! within! the! spectacle! (Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship, of, Suffering! 3).! These! ethical! values! embedded! in! news! discourse!then!orientate!and!help!shape!public!disposition!towards!the!sufferer!(Ibid.).! Both! in! the! past! and! in! the! present,! the! ethical! question! has! much! to! do! with! the! intention!of!the!witness!who!is!creating!the!material!depicting!suffering.!From!the!era!of! painters,!to!photographers!and!journalists,!and!now!of!bloggers!and!content!creators!on! social!media,!a!key!question!is!how!did!they!intend!the!spectator!to!relate!to!the!sufferer! afterwards?!(Ibid.)!!
!
Witnessing! is! a! semantically! challenging! concept.! It! can! refer! to! an! actor! (who! bears! witness),! an! act! (bearing! witness),! a! statement! or! text! (witnessing! testimony)! or! the! ‘inward! experience! that! authorises! the! statement! (the!
witnessing!of!an!event)’!(Peters,!2001:!709).!In!this!sense,!as!Peters!(2001)!puts! it,!it!is!intelligible!to!claim!that!‘the!witness!(speechHact)!of!the!witness!(person)! was!witnessed!(by!an!audience)’!(p.!709).!(Kyriakidou!217)!
To!shed!light!on!witnessing,!Luc!Boltanski!identifies!three!different!routes!of!action!that! a! firstHhand! witness! of! suffering! may! choose! from.! The! first,! which! is! the! least! he! expounds! on,! is! to! intervene, and! take! action! to! alleviate! the! sufferer’s! condition.! The! second! communicates! the! spectacle! of! suffering! to! others.! He! is! described! as! a! ‘metaH describer’!in!that!he!“welds!the!unfortunate’s!suffering!and!the!spectator’s!sensibility!in! a! single! statement”! (Boltanski! et! al.! 116).! He! passes! on! the! spectacle! to! others! by! describing!and!reacting!to!what!he!sees,!with!either!indignation!or!tenderHheartedness.! On!the!other!hand,!he!is!also!impartial!in!that!his!primary!desire!is!simply!to!gain!social! approval.! Boltanski! does! not! think! very! highly! of! this! second! type,! calling! him! hypocritical! and! accusing! him! of! seeking! and! gaining! pleasure! from! the! spectacle! of! suffering.! For! my! part,! this! second! class! of! witnesses! is! difficult! to! gauge! or! identify.! Lastly! and! thirdly,! a! witness! has! the! option! and! the! ability! to! sublime! what! he! sees.! Boltanski!refers!to!this!person!as!an!agent!of!truth.!He!opines!that!this!third!witness!has! the! unique! ability! to! reveal! the! truth! by! unveiling! the! horror! of! suffering,! thereby! preserving!the!dignity!of!the!sufferer.!In!that!sense,!he!is!an!agent!and!a!creator,!and!not! a!just!a!viewer!because!the!latter!does!nothing.!
Holding! in! check! the! emotion! which! rises! within! him! to! be! released! as! indignation! or! tenderHheartedness,! rejecting! the! masks! of! denunciation! and! sentiment,!this!third!spectator1!confronts!the!truth!and!looks!it!in!the!face.!What! he! sees! is! the! horror.! It! is! inasmuch! as! he! is! given! up! to! naked! suffering,! imputable! to! noHone! and! with! no! hope! of! remission,! that! he! sympathises! with! the!unfortunate.!His!primary!quality!is!courage:!he!dares!to!cast!his!eyes!on!the! unfortunate!and!look!evil!in!the!face!without!immediately!turning!away!towards! imaginary!benefactors!or!persecutors.!He!allows!himself!to!be!taken!over!by!the! horrific.!(Ibid.)! Why!does!Boltanski!give!this!ability!to!withdraw!sympathy!to!this!third!person,!but!not! to!the!first!and!second?!He!says!further!that!the!existence!of!this!agent!is!“necessary!in! order!to!understand!the!possibility!of!sympathetic!communication!and!the!formation!of! a! collectivity! on! this! basis”! (Ibid.).! ! Chouliaraki! provides! some! clarity! on! the! matter,! stipulating! that! pity! and! emotion! should! be! combined! with! detached! reflection.! This! manner!of!detached!reflection!is!important!because!it!is!in!this!way!that!we!can!question! the!importance!of!suffering!and!what!we!can!do!about!it!(Spectatorship,of,Suffering,!13).!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1!Although!I!refer!to!witnesses!as!witnesses,!and!the!audience!as!spectators,!Boltanski!and! Chouliaraki!interchange!the!term!“spectator”!for!both!types!of!people.!Boltanski!simply!makes! the!distinction!between!first!spectators!(for!witnesses)!and!second!spectators!(for!those!who!!
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All! in! all,! it! is! the! intentions! of! these! witnesses! that! determine! the! ethicality! of! their! actions.!!
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The,Spectators,of,Distant,Suffering,
Now! we! explore! the! audiences! of! distant! suffering.! Chouliaraki! calls! them! spectators! while!Kyriakidou!refers!to!them!as!media!witnesses.!Chouliaraki’s!main!character!is!the! ‘ironic! spectator’,! who! she! describes! as! “a! figure! that! is! skeptical! towards! any! moral! appeal!to!solidary!action,!and!yet!is!open!to!doing!something!about!those!who!suffer”! (Chouliaraki,! Ironic, Spectator! 2).! While! she! also! describes! three! types! of! spectators! (‘involved’,!‘omnipresent’!and!‘distantiated’),!Kyriakidou!incorporates!and!adjusts!their! traits! into! her! own! set! of! media! witnesses.! Kyriakidou! uses! the! term! ‘witnessing’! because!to!know!about!the!pain!of!others!implies!“complicity!in!their!suffering!and!the! moral!obligation!to!act!for!its!alleviation”!(217).!Hence,!witnessing!goes!beyond!seeing! or!watching!as!it!implies!participation!(ibid.).!However,!Kyriakidou!is!mindful!that!the! geographical!distance!between!the!viewer!and!the!unfortunate!“undermines!the!moral! impulse! to! act! upon! the! suffering”,! resulting! in! audiences! generally! reacting! with! “indifference! and! solitary! enjoyment”! (ibid.).! This! is! based! on! a! study! about! different! audience!encounters!beyond!television!news!(ibid.).!!
Kyriakidou’s! media! witnesses! are! composed! of! four! categories:! affective,, ecstatic,, politicized, and, detached.! Affective, witnessing, favors! sentimentality! over! reflection! and! judgment!(Kyriakidou!222).!This!manner!of!audience!engagement!is!denoted!by!a!high! degree!of!emotional!involvement!with!human!pain!that!is!witnessed!through!the!media,! as! well! an! empathetic! identification! with! suffering! (Kyriakidou! 220).! In! this! case,! the! viewer!feels!both!empathy!and!frustration!from!“being!unable!to!act!upon!the!suffering”.! However!Kyriakidou!also!points!out!that!the!viewer’s!empathy!is!conditional,!depending! on!the!presence!of!the!image!of!a!human!face,!and!the!assumption!of!the!commonality!of! human!pain.!The!second!condition!refers!to!how!imaginable!and!relatable!the!suffering! is!for!a!viewer.!A!study!based!this!on!audience!members!who!are!affected!by!disaster! footage! especially! when! they! see! human! faces,! and! if! they! can! picture! a! sufferer! in! relation!to!themselves!(ex:!when!the!audience!reacts!with!statements!like!“she!could!be! my!mother”)!(Kyriakidou!221).!!
Imagination! thus! becomes! a! moral! force,! in! that! it! connects! the! viewer! to! the! emotions! of! the! sufferer! and! can! form! the! basis! for! cosmopolitan! empathy,! as! the!capacity!and!willingness!to!take!the!perspective!of!the!other.!(Beck!6!qtd.!by! Kyriakidou!220)!
Kyriakidou!detects!an!aspect!of!narcissism!in!this!type!of!witnessing!because!the!viewer! seems! to! focus! on! “her! own! affective! response! rather! than! on! the! reality! of! suffering”! (Kyriakidou! 221).! Moreover,! the! compelling! imagery! of! suffering! evokes! empathetic! connections! between! the! viewer! and! the! distant! other.! However! this! type! of! viewer! seems! to! aggregate! the! victims,! highlighting! the! “irreducibility! of! difference”! between! them! (Kyriakidou! 222).! The! less! feasible! it! seems! to! contribute! to! a! solution,! the! less! likely!these!viewers!will!actually!extend!help.!!
The! second! type! of! witnessing! is! ecstatic, witnessing,! which! involves! more! intense! emotional!involvement!and!a!sense!of!immediacy!(Kyriakidou!223).!The!viewers!react! as! if! he! or! she! were! actually! at! the! scene! of! suffering,! positioning! themselves! as! immediate! witnesses! (ibid.).! They! tend! to! be! fully! immersed! in! the! scene! and! they! experience! “unconditional! empathy! with! the! people! suffering;! and! unquestioning! acceptance!of!the!media!coverage”!(ibid.).!“In!ecstatic!witnessing,!the!sufferer!appears!to! be!identified!as!a!universal!human!being!marked!by!fear!in!the!face!of!death”!(ibid.).!In! this!way,!this!manner!of!audience!engagement!feels!almost!‘unmediated’!(ibid.).!! The!third!manner!of!engagement!is!called!‘politicized!witnessing’.!The!viewer’s!reaction! is!to!“search!for!causes!and!the!attribution!of!blame!and!political!responsibility!for!the! events!witnessed”!(ibid.).!The!discursive!reactions!of!these!witnesses!address!“relations! of! political! and! social! power! and! inequality”! (Kyriakidou! 224).! For! these! viewers! the! level!of!emotional!involvement!is!more!associated!to!indignation.!In!sum,!this!dimension! of! witnessing! indicates! “a! broader! culture! of! suspicion! towards! institutions! and! the! powerful! rather! than! as! a! moral! stance! as! a! witness! to! the! suffering! of! others”! (Kyriakidou!225).!
The!viewers’!emotional!involvement!decreases!as!you!progress!to!the!fourth!and!final! type!of!media!witnessing,!called!detached,witnessing.!This!is!a!telltale!term!for!viewers! who! see! the! suffering! of! others! as! “remote! or! ultimately! irrelevant! to! the! viewers’! everyday! life”! (Kyriakidou! 226).! Based! on! the! study,! these! types! of! witnesses! do! not! exude! an! emotional! response! and! hardly! acknowledge! the! suffering! itself.! There! is! “a! failure! to! imagine! the! pain! of! the! other”! due! to! the! stark! differences! between! what! is! seen! on! the! screen! and! the! viewer’s! immediate! surroundings! and! everyday! life! (Kyriakidou!227).!This!is!ultimately!justified!by!the!emotional!and!geographical!distance! between!the!viewer!and!the!unfortunate!(ibid.).!Hence,!“there!is!a!distinction!between! relevant! and! irrelevant! suffering.! And! the! measure! of! relevance! seems! to! be! proximity…”!(Ibid.).!Though!not!unwelcome,!the!suffering!other!is!neither!morally!nor!
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emotionally!engaging!to!the!viewer.! The,Ethics,of,Distant,Suffering, On!the!other!hand,!while!mediation!is!seen!as!a!way!to!close!the!moral!and!geographical! gap!between!two!worlds,!it!may!also!compromise!a!suffering!human’s!dignity.!These!are! several! ethical! implications! when! portraying! a! suffering! person! on! media.! First,! this! desire! to! arouse! pity! in! an! audience! may! compromise! the! “demand! of! respect! for! the! person! of! the! unfortunate”! (Boltanski! 33).! Boltanski! explains! that! by! depicting! one’s! suffering,!their!human!dignity!is!reduced!to!their!state!of!suffering:!A! picture! which! goes! too! far! in! the! realistic! description! of! details,! one! which! might!be!described!as!repulsive,!may!actually!be!denounced!as!on!the!one!hand! reductive,,inasmuch,as,the,person,is,entirely,defined,by,their,suffering,[emphasis! added],, and! on! the! other! hand! as! taking! the! suffering! away! from! the! person! inflicted!by!it!in!order!to!exhibit,this!suffering!to!those!who!do!not!suffer.!(Ibid.)! Second,!the!testimony!of!the!body!is!naturally!far!more!compelling!than!seeing!suffering! from!behind!a!screen.!Television,!for!example,!is!unable!to!mediate!physical!senses!like! smell,!touch!heat!or!discomfort.!Hence,!the!‘intervention!of!the!technology’!of!television! “severs! suffering! from! its! physical! context! and! weakens, its, moral, appeal! [emphasis! added]”!(Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!24).!Furthermore!Chouliaraki!takes!into! account!the!‘domesticity!of!reception’,!which!refers!to!how!spectators!view!suffering!in! the! comfort! of! their! own! homes.! When! suffering! is! broadcasted! on! a! television! “it! is! miniaturized,!so!to!speak,!and!made!equal!to!other!objects!within!the!physical!viewing! environment,”! thereby! minimizing! the! spectator’s! concern! for! distant! others! (Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!25).!Thus,!“No!matter!how!compelling!suffering! on!television!is,!it!remains!–!by!virtue!of!its!mediation!–!a!distanced!and!discontinuous! experience! that! presses! less! demandingly! on! the! spectators’! moral! sensibilities! than! events!within!their!own!immediate!sphere”!(Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering,26)., Apart!from!weakening!the!moral!appeal,!Chouliaraki!also!notes!how!an!overexposure!to! human! suffering! can! have! a! numbing! effect! on! the! viewer,! causing! feelings! of! indifference!or!discomfort!rather!than!awakening!a!sense!of!responsibility!(Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship, of, Suffering, 18).! ! All! in! all,! mediation! is! “unable! to! deliver! ‘the’! truth! of! suffering! because! it! cannot! offer! us! direct! access! to! it!–! it! can! only! deliver! evidence,of! this!truth”!(Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!31).!
!
Conclusion,
To! conclude,! distant! suffering! is! the! term! used! to! describe! the! mediation! of! one’s! suffering!to!a!distant!viewer.!The!literature!used!here!pertains!to!distant!suffering!in!the!
context!of!journalistic!reports!and!news!coverage!on!television.!The!chapter!discusses! the!ethical!and!moral!implications!of!mediating!suffering,!as!well!as!all!those!involved!in! its! process.! These! are! namely! the! sufferer,! the! witness! and! the! spectators! (or! media! witnesses).! Boltanski! describes! three! routes! of! action! a! witness! may! choose! from:! to! intervene,! to! communicate,! or! to! sublime! what! he! sees.! Then,! Chouliaraki! and! Kyriakidou! describe! the! different! ways! spectators! or! media! witnesses! respond! to! distant!suffering:!affective,,ecstatic,,politicized!or!detached.,
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CHAPTER THREE
The!Digital!Practice!of!Philanthropy!
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In! order! to! talk! about! how! public! norms! change! as! a! result! of! mediation,! we! should! focus! on! mediation! as! not! only! institutionally! driven! but! also! technology! driven! discourse!(Chouliaraki,,Spectatorship,of,Suffering,3).!!
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While!Chouliaraki!investigates!distant!suffering!in!the!context!of!television!and!mass!media,!this! section! moves! towards! the! next! era! of! philanthropy! and! applies! the! past! literature! to! the! context! of! digital! technology.! When! studying! humanitarian! action! online! one! can! investigate! texts,! images! and! video! clips! of! distant! sufferers,! the! creators! of! these! content,! as! well! as! the! online! platforms! that! host! these.! This! chapter! studies! the! technologies! through! which! the! discourse!on!suffering!and!philanthropy!circulate!online,!mainly!social!media!outlets!and!digital! platforms.!!
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Empathy,and,Compassion,
Earlier,!I!described!the!options!of!flight!or!help!when!one!is!confronted!by!suffering!in!the!flesh.! The! missing! link! in! this! scenario,! the! determinant! between! nonHaction! and! action,! is! compassion.!Even!within!a!digital!setHup!where!a!viewer!of!suffering!has!the!option!to!ignore! what! he! sees! and! click! or! scroll! through! the! next! page,! compassion! or! pity! is! also! the! gameH changer.!
“We!have!seen!that!by!bringing!together!particular!individuals!in!a!faceHtoHface!situation! compassion,fills,the,space,between,sight,and,gesture,,between,knowledge,and,action, [emphasis!added],,leaving!only!the!alternative!of!flight!or!help,!despite!the!indeterminate! nature!of!the!unfortunate!who!is!no,matter,who.”!(Boltanski!et!al.!11)!
Boltanski! says! that! one! of! the! principal! features! of! compassion! is! that! it! begins! with! the! spectacle!of!suffering!(8).!!He!refers!to!the!famous!Christian!parable!about!the!Good!Samaritan,! wherein!several!travelers!see!an!injured!man!on!the!roadside!but!only!one!stopped!to!help.!In!a! situation!where!a!person!physically!encounters!someone!who!is!suffering,!“what!is!within!the! range! of! eyesight! is! also! within! the! reach! of! hand”! (Ibid.).! The! possibility! of! acting! and! being! involved!is!much!higher,!and!yet!it!is!still!very!possible!to!walk!on!without!offering!help.!It!is! only!when!the!passerby!feels!pity,!which!in!turn!may!transform!into!compassion,!that!he!will! extend!a!helping!hand.!!
The! ‘pity’! he! feels! at! the! sight! of! the! unfortunate! is! immediately! transformed! into! ‘charity’,! that! is! to! say! into! the! ‘objective! disposition! to! relieve! the! distress! of! others’! which!incorporates!‘the!sentiment!which!prompts!the!act!of!pity’.!(Ibid.)!
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Charitable!actions!arise!from!a!scene!of!suffering!when!it!evokes!feelings!of!pity.!When!suffering! is! presented! on! a! medium,! the! outcome! leans! on! the! medium’s! ability! to! stir! pity.! Thus! the! importance!of!studying!how!digital!platforms!evoke!empathy!from!audiences,!particularly!since! the!objective!of!this!research!is!to!examine!digital!approaches!that!inspire!philanthropic!action.!! !
Boltanski! stipulates! that! people! are! more! likely! to! help! one! who! is! suffering! when! they! can! connect! with! them,! easily! seeing! their! commonality! as! fellow! human! beings.! In! a! sense,! it! is! when! they! can! see! themselves! in! the! objects! of! suffering! that! they! feel! pity! and! compassion! towards! others.! This! is! where! empathy! comes! in,! defined! as! “the! capacity! to! understand! and! respond!to!the!unique!affective!experiences!of!another!person”!and!as!“an!interaction!between! any! two! individuals,! with! one! experiencing! and! sharing! the! feeling! of! the! other”! (Decety! and! Jackson!54).!Consequently,!“To!arouse!pity,!suffering!and!wretched!bodies!must!be!conveyed!in! such! a! way! as! to! affect! the! sensibility! of! those! more! fortunate”! (Boltanski! et! al.! 11).! Furthermore,!“the!unfortunate,!or!rather,!every!unfortunate,!must!therefore!be!conveyed!as!if! they!were!there!in!person;!as!if!one!could!touch!their!wounds!and!hear!their!cries”!(Boltanski!et! al.!12).!To!conclude,!a!scene!of!suffering!will!more!likely!affect!the!sensibility!of!the!fortunate! viewer!if!the!presentation!of!the!ordeal!is!real!and!convincing,!with!a!sense!of!immediacy.! ! However,!despite!these!directions!that!point!towards!shaping!empathy!among!audiences,!it!is! not! just! the! scene! of! suffering,! or! the! imagery! and! language! with! which! it! is! presented,! that! assures!the!arrival!of!help.!In!the!example!of!the!Good!Samaritan!each!traveler!saw!the!injured! man!in!the!same!state!of!suffering!and!yet!only!one!stopped!to!help.!It!is!important!to!keep!in! mind! that! shaping! empathy! is! not! a! universal! possibility,! it! is! only! possible! to! those! who! are! capable!of!empathy.!!
Compassion,! pity!and! empathy! are! unpredictable! and! unfathomable! elements! of! philanthropy! especially!when!observed!from!without.!The!presence!of!compassion!within!a!spectator!is!even! harder!to!gauge!once!we!throw!in!the!concept!of!the!‘duality!of!emotion’.!‘Duality!of!emotion’! relates! to! the! pleasure! one! feels! in! helping! others.! This! leads! theorists! to! question! the! real! intentions!of!donors!and!helpers.!Do!they!act!to!change!an!unfortunate’s!condition!or!to!achieve! the!pleasure!and!selfHsatisfaction!that!is!found!in!selfHfulfillment?!Boltanski!says,!“beneficence!is! only! a! secret! enjoyment”! (Boltanski! 130).! However,! Chouliaraki! addresses! this,! stating,! “empathy! is! a! constitutive! dimension! of! public! life! that! enables,! rather! than! corrupts,! civic!
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sensibilities—provided!that!it!is!combined!with!judgment!so!as!not!to!collapse!into!narcissistic! emotion”(Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!23).!According!to!her,!empathy!is!not!only!the! determinant!between!action!and!inaction,!but!also!the!redemptive!factor.!It!redeems!the!notion! of! selfish! help.! Furthermore,! “it! is! not! authenticity! but! objectivity,! seeing! suffering! others! as! human! others! and! recognizing! ourselves! as! actors! upon! their! suffering,! which! must! become! central! in! our! public! culture”! (ibid.).! To! conclude,! compassion! remains! unadulterated! when! practiced! objectively! and! with! proper! judgment.! To! conclude,! compassion! remains! unadulterated! when! pity! and! emotion! are! combined! with! detached! reflection,! putting! an! emphasis! on! why, this! suffering! is! important! and! what! we! can! do! about! it! (Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship,of,Suffering!13).!!Technologization,of,Action,
Chouliaraki! paints! a! picture! of! the! new! age! of! compassion.! She! describes! the! progression! of! humanitarian!and!philanthropic!action!as!the!technologization!of!solidarity!or!action:!
Technologization!of!solidarity!refers!to!the!capacity!of!digital!media!to!incorporate!the! moral! imperative! to! act! on! vulnerable! others! within! digital! platforms! that! render! solidarity! a! matter! of! tweeting! personal! emotion,! downloading! the! message! of! our! favorite!celebrity,!web!streaming!our!preferred!live!8!bands,!clicking!the!donation!link! of! ActionAid! or! clicking! ‘like’! on! a! Facebook! wall.! (Fenton! qtd.! by! Chouliaraki,! Ironic, Spectator)!
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Chouliaraki! also! calls! this! the! ‘technologization! of! action’,! where! action! is! commodified! or! reduced!to!a!click!(Ironic,Spectator!117).!For!example,!instead!of!giving!or!volunteering!in!real! life!media!theorists!say!that!internet!users!tend!to!settle!for!sharing,!commenting!or!liking.!The! technologization! of! solidarity! has! two! main! features.! First,! there! is! an! “invitation! to! selfH expression”!and!second,!there!is!“an!absence!of!normative!morality”!(Ironic,Spectator!16).!She! explains!that!the!first!feature!is!particular!to!social!media,!which!has!turned!media!users!into! producers! of! public! communication! when! they! were! formerly! mere! consumers! of! it.! Consequently,! the! voice! of! suffering! no! longer! belongs! solely! to! humanitarian! institutions! or! NGO’s.! The! sufferer! can! share! their! voice! and! so! can! any! other! witness! of! their! suffering.!! Furthermore,!spectators!now! have! a! platform! where! they! can!both! see! suffering! and! verbally! react! to! it! in! public.! This! affects! the! way! people! respond! to! the! spectacle! of! suffering! in! that! reactions! are! now! technologized,! possibly! reducing! actual! action.! However,! it! is! difficult! to! prove!whether!or!not!the!technologization!of!action!actually!reduces!action!in!real!life!since!it!is! impossible! to! measure! how! many! people! who! clicked,! shared! or! commented! on! an! online! campaign!would!have!helped!in!real!life!instead.!All!the!same,!there!is!still!a!great!need!to!find! effective!ways!through!which!technology!can!enhance!rather!than!replace!human!action.!
The! second! feature! of! the! technologization! of! solidarity! is! the! absence! of! normative! morality.! According!to!Madianou,!the!aesthetics!of!social!media!campaigns!and!its!lack!of!grounding!on! the!‘moral!question!of!why’!bring!about!a!disconnect!between!cause!and!action!(260).!! Because!of!the!disembedding!of!the!suffering!from!the!grand!emotions!of!pity!and!guilt! and!the!attendant!moral!frameworks,!appeals!to!action!in!postHhumanitarian!campaigns! lose!their!legitimacy!and!moral!meaning!(Chouliaraki!2010).!What!we!observe!in!these! two!campaigns!is!a!fetishization!of!action!which!is!decoupled!from!an!understanding!of! the!causes!or!contexts!of!suffering.!(Ibid.)! The!quote!above!refers!to!two!humanitarian!campaigns!that!were!executed!in!the!form!of!HHHH.! The!opportunity!to!help!is!offered!in!a!frivolous!and!superficial!manner,!removing!the!emotions! of!guilt!and!pity!from!spectators.!It!also!abolishes!any!further!promptings!to!discover!the!cause! or! context! of! the! suffering! they! are! helping! alleviate.! Madianou! adds! that! “without! an! understanding! of! the! causes! of! humanitarian! appeals! and! without! a! moral! framework! of! engagement! with! distant! others,! action! becomes! almost! meaningless! at! least! when! evaluated! from! a! standpoint! of! cosmopolitan! ethics”! (ibid.).! Hence,! according! to! these! theorists! the! absence!of!normative!morality!robs!digital!philanthropy!of!both!meaning!and!purpose.!
!
Enabling,Philanthrocapitalism!
In!chapter!one,!the!qualms!of!neoliberalism!against!traditional!charity!were!discussed.!With!the! support! of! digital! architectures! and! digital! processes,! neoliberals! have! found! new! methods! of! fundraising,! microHlending! and! awareness! campaigns! that! are! characteristic! of! the! digital! practice! of! philanthropy.! Digital! platforms! allow! for! new! applications! of! ‘marketized! philanthropy’,! an! offshoot! of! neoliberalism! that! applies! market! thinking! and! methods! to! philanthropy!(Bajde!3).!Some!hybridizations!of!commerce!and!philanthropy!are!called!‘venture! philanthropy’,!‘philanthrocapitalism’,!and!‘social!entrepreneurship’!(Bajde!4).!!
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A!concrete!example!of!philanthrocapitalism!is!Kiva.!Kiva,is!an!online!microlending!platform!that! connects! willing! donors! to! aspiring! entrepreneurs! from! underprivileged! communities.! Donations!are!typically!gathered!in!small!amounts!($25)!but!from!large!numbers!of!people,!a!la! crowdfunding.! Kiva’s,mission! is! to! ‘empower! people! around! the! world! with! a! $25! loan’! (Kiva, qtd.!Bajde!10).!More!interestingly,!part!of!Kiva’s,appeal!is!the!idea!of!addressing!the!‘working! poor’.! While! traditional! charity! caters! to! the! helpless! poor,! Kiva! focuses! on! hardHworking! entrepreneurs!who!are!limited!only!by!their!means.!One!of!Kiva’s,founders,!Jessica!Jackley!even! appeals!to!donors’!imaginations!by!asking!them!to!compare!the!feeling!of!approaching!a!beggar! with!empty!hands!versus!contributing!to!a!hardworking!and!productive!individual.!Hence,!they! are!seen!as!worthy!recipients!with!‘moral!qualities’!and!‘entrepreneurial!prowess’!(Bajde!10).!
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Kiva, celebrates! the! working! poor,! giving! the! message! that! failing! to! assist! them! is! “letting! ‘human! potential! go! to! waste’”! (Ibid.)., For, Kiva’s, supporters! it! is! a! ‘dignified’! and! ‘commonsensical’!answer!to!poverty.!
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Philanthrocapitalistic!platforms!like!Kiva,champion!utopian!ideologies!that!challenge!common! conceptions!of!charity!and!poverty!alleviation!(Bajde!9).!While!traditional!charity!focuses!on!the! helplessness! and! hopelessness! of! the! poor,! microlending! is! presented! as! an! “egalitarian! opportunity! for! ordinary! individuals! to! actively! and! effectively! participate! in! poverty! alleviation”! (ibid.).! Instead! of! encouraging! benefactorHdependence! among! the! poor,! Flannery! argues!“loans!‘turn!a!charitable!relationship!into!a!business!relationship’!and!hence!‘empower! the!poor!by!making!them!business!partners’”!(qtd.!by!Bajde!9).!Ultimately,!the!basis!of!its!moral! superiority!lies!in!its!focus!on!providing!longHterm!solutions!as!well!as!its!claim!of!upholding!the! receiver’s!dignity.!In!this!way,!it!addresses!certain!critiques!of!traditional!charity!discussed!in! chapter!one.! !
However,! Bajde! lays! out! his! thoughts! regarding! this! emerging! practice! of! philanthropy.! Inasmuch! as! Kiva’s! founders! and! supporters! believe! in! the! platform,! Bajde! points! out! the! ideological! frictions! between! philanthropy! and! market! practices.! In! his! words,! “market! discourse!can!weaken!donors’!engagement!with!social!causes!as!philanthropic!values!(e.g.!civic! engagement! and! altruism)! get! eroded! by! appeals! to! selfHinterest! and! convenience,! thus! ‘devaluing!idealism!and!activism!and!privileging!consumerism’”!(Wirgau!et!al.,!2010:!621!qtd.! by!Bajde!5).!In!this!way,!“marketization!simply!erodes!solidarity”!(Bajde!5).!The!ways!in!which! these! hybridized! platforms! encourage! the! public! to! participate! appeal! to! feelings! of! selfH fulfillment! rather! than! to! a! moral! conscientiousness.! That! is! why! Berking! says,! “When! such! ‘solidarity!of!individualism’!prevails,!social!action!is!pursued!from!the!perspective!of!one’s!own! selfHfulfillment,! rather! than! one’s! obligation! and! service! to! others”! (qtd.! by! Bajde! 5).! In! other! words,! the! act! of! giving! is! made! appealing! by! “selling”! gratifying! emotions.! This! results! in! a! paradox! of! selfish! giving.! This! selling! through! branding! and! appealing! to! emotions! “deprives! humanitarian! communication! of! an! argumentative! rationale! for! solidarity”! and! taints! “our! moral!encounter!with!human!vulnerability”!thanks!to!the!shadow!of!market!logic!(Chouliaraki,! Ironic, Spectator! 5).! All! in! all,! while! philanthrocapitalism! addresses! certain! critiques! of! humanitarianism!and!philanthropy,!it!is!guilty!of!appealing!to!a!‘duality!of!emotion’!and!takes! away!the!moral!motives!of!compassion!or!solidarity.!!
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On!the!other!hand,!the!new!age!of!empathy!appeals!particularly!to! a! global! citizen,! especially! since!online!mediums!of!suffering! have!the!capacity!of!reaching!and!engaging!a!global!public.! The!idea!of!global!citizenship!is!a!prevalent!concept!in!popular!culture.!Digital!natives!consider! themselves! part! of! the! global! community! to! which! they! are! constantly! exposed! to! online! via! entertainment,! news! flows! and! social! campaigns.! It! is! a! global! fellowship! that! recognizes! the! equality!of!all!human!beings,!regardless!of!nationality!or!race.! It!is!almost!counterHnationalist! and!transnational!in!nature,!where!the!belonging!to!a!global!community!is!seen!as!modern!and! progressive.!Chouliaraki!writes!about!“the!conditions!under!which!it!is!possible!for!the!media!to! cultivate!an!ideal!identity!for!the!spectator!as!a!citizen!of!the!world!–!literally!a!cosmoHpolitan”! (Spectatorship,of,Suffering,2).!! ! Ideal!and!progressive!as!the!concept!of!global!citizenship!sounds,!Chouliaraki!warns!to!keep!the! optimistic! celebration! of! the! planet! as! a! global! village! in! check! despite! the! instantaneous! and! global! reach! that! technology! has! achieved! (Spectatorship, of, Suffering! 4).! The! economic! and! political! divisions! within! the! world! are! very! much! real,! and! they! are! reflected! in! what! Chouliaraki!calls!the!viewing!asymmetry!of!television.!! Who!watches!and!who!suffers!reflects!the!manner!in!which!differences!in!economic! resources,!political!stability,!governmental!regimes!and!everyday!life!enter!the!global! landscape!of!information.!(Ibid.)! Media!has!the!power!“to!represent!the!world!to!the!world,!its!power!to!map!information!flows! in!terms!of!geographical!neighbourhoods,!cultural!affinities!and!political!alliances!and,!by!this! token,!to!‘other’!those!who!live!in!poverty!or!with!war”!(Ibid.).!Chouliaraki!problematizes!the! way!in!which!the!portrayal!of!suffering!can!disintegrate!global!citizenship!by!separating!those! who!are!safe,!fortunate!or!comfortable!from!those!who!are!suffering.!It!creates!divisions!rather! than!abolishing!them.!Whilst!they!are!already!distanced!physically,!the!manner!in!which!their! suffering! is! portrayed! can! distance! them! psychologically! as! well.! Thus,! television! can! shape! presentHday! norms! by! “staging! our! relationship! to! the! far! away! ‘other’”! (Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship,of,Suffering!13).!The!question!now!is!whether!the!portrayal!of!suffering!on!digital! mediums!has!the!same!disintegrating!effect!on!the!global!village!as!television!does.!Can!media! witnessing,!“formulate!the!basis!for!a!cosmopolitan!outlook”!(Kyriakidou!229)?!
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Chouliaraki!says!that!one!of!the!key!problems!regarding!cosmopolitan!citizenship!is!how!“public! action! is! still! understood! as! compassion! –! that! is,! onHtheHspot! action! on! suffering! –! but! now! needs! to! be! acted! as! pity! that! is! action! that! incorporates! the! dimension! of! distance”! (Chouliaraki,, Spectatorship, of, Suffering! 2).! In! this! statement,! Chouliaraki! exposes! the! need! to! adapt!the!practice!of!compassion,!and!for!my!part,!philanthropic!action,!to!the!digitally!evolving!
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landscape.!! Conclusion, The!practice!of!compassion!progresses!alongside!the!conditions!that!surround!it,!one!of!which!is! the! spectacle! of! distant! suffering.! For! example,! once! upon! a! time! it! was! only! possible! to! be! a! witness,to!suffering,!during!which!the!only!possible!way!to!experience!others’!suffering!was!in! proximity.!Eventually!the!introduction!of!mass!media!brought!about!the!possibility!of!being!a! spectator, to! suffering,! that! is,! to! view! others’! suffering! from! a! distance! with! no! immediate! means!to!intervene.!Decades!after!the!age!of!mass!media!and!broadcast!communication,!today’s! age! is! characterized! by! the! integration! of! digital! tools! into! everyday! activities.! The! digital! landscape!makes!it!possible!to!not!only!view!suffering!from!a!distance,!but!also!to!act!upon!it!as! a! user! of! a! digital! platform! from! miles! away.! This! brings! us! back! to! Chouliaraki’s! call! to! incorporate!the!dimension!of!distance!to!compassion.!Digital!natives!are!learning!and!inventing! new! ways! to! extend! their! sympathy.! Digital! tools,! social! media,! and! crowdfunding! platforms! attest!to!this.!But!there!is!a!need!to!define!this!new!age!of!compassion,!what!its!moral!limits!are,! and!how!far!it!can!go!in!bringing!truly!transformative!help!to!society.!“Does!technology!facilitate! an!ethical!public!life!or!undermine!this!possibility”!(Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!5)?!!
CHAPTER FOUR
Analytical!Frameworks:!
From,Television,towards,Social,Media,
! !“As!Silverstone!argues,!the!study!of!mediation!requires!giving!attention!to!both!the!institutions! and!technologies!via!which!the!circulation!of!news!discourse!takes!place”!(qtd.!by!Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship, of, Suffering! 3).! ! In! the! same! way,! I! have! endeavored! to! study! the! technologies! through! which! the! discourse! on! suffering! and! philanthropy! circulate! online.! My! methods! of! analysis! have! their! foundation! on! frameworks! and! theories! discussed! by! Chouliaraki! in! her! study!of!mediation!for!news!coverage!and!television,!which!I!will!elaborate!on!before!showing! how!I!have!adjusted!these!to!my!research!objectives.!! ! ! Fig.!2:!Diagram!depicting!a!scenario!of!distant!suffering!for!television!and!news!coverage.! ! To!quickly!sum!up!the!frameworks!discussed!in!chapter!two,!the!characters!within!the!scenario! of!distant!suffering!are!namely!the!object,of,suffering,!the!witness,!and!the!spectators,(or!media! witnesses).!A!witness!may!react!to!suffering!in!three!ways:!to!intervene,!to!communicate,what!he! sees,! or! sublime,the! scene! of! suffering.! On! the! other! hand,! spectators! or! media! witnesses! can!!
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spectators!do!not!always!have!a!bridge!connecting!them!to!the!object!of!suffering!via!television! and!news!coverage.! ! In!addition!to!these,!Bolter!and!Grusin!use!the!following!terms!in!approaching!the!mediation!of! suffering:! hypermediacy,and! immediacy.,Hypermediacy! construes! suffering! as! passing! through! media!while!immediacy!shows!suffering!“as!if!it!were!happening!in!front!of!our!eyes”!(qtd.!by! Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship, of, Suffering! 39).! To! further! expound,! hypermediacy! assesses! how! technology! participates! in! the! social! process! of! mediation! and! how! it! shapes! the! encounter! between! the! spectator! and! the! sufferer.! It! has! a! strong! aesthetic! orientation,! affirming! Chouliaraki’s!belief!that!“the!formation!of!publics!is!an!aesthetic!operation”!(ibid.).!For!example,! how!do!techniques!of!visual!editing!or!slow!motion!trigger!spectator’s!emotions?!It!covers!how! discourse!and!historical!genres!come!together!to!stage!suffering!as!an!onHscreen!spectacle!that! touches!the!heart!and!mind!of!the!spectator.!All!in!all,!it!raises!the!issue!of!how!media!stages! suffering,as,a,spectacle,!as!opposed!to!the!spectacle,of,suffering,(ibid.).!! !On! the! other! hand,! immediacy, assesses! how! television! arouses! specific! emotional! states! and! modes!of!action!that!are!natural!and!objective!for!the!spectator!(ibid.).!It!seeks!to!minimize!the! effect!of!technology!as!a!carrier!of!the!spectacle,!in!order!to!extract!reactions!from!a!spectator!as! if!they!were!actually!at!the!scene.!It!gauges!how!a!person!would!react!if!he!were!then!and!there.! “Does! the! spectacle! of! suffering! appear! factual! and! urgent! or! fictional! and! irrelevant! to! spectators?! Does! it! spark! empathy! or! indignation,! or! leave! no! trace! in! their! memories?”! (Chouliaraki,, Spectatorship, of, Suffering! 39).! All! in! all,! it! draws! attention! “to! how! suffering! becomes!an!immediate!reality!for!spectators.”!These!two!concepts!are!included!and!spread!out! in!Chouliaraki’s!‘analytics!of!mediation’.!
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The,Analytics,of,Mediation,
The! ‘analytics! of! mediation’! is! a! method! of! studying! news! text! that! Chouliaraki! applies! to! her! research.!The!following!are!three!categories!that!are!inherent!in!the!portrayal!of!suffering!and! which! I! intend! on! applying! to! my! analysis! of! social! media! and! crowdfunding! campaigns! (Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!8).!
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1) Multimodality,
The! term! multimodality! connotes! multiple! forms! of! sensory! perception.! In! this! case,! they! are! the! languages,and,images,that! portray! suffering! to! an! audience.! According! to! Chouliaraki,! the! use! of! images! and! words! communicates! suffering! as! the! spectator’s! most! immediate! reality.! This! includes! the! mode! of! presentation,! how! the! verbal!
narratives!and!imagery!correspond!to!each!other,!and!the!aesthetic!quality!of!the!visuals! (Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!74).!
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When! suffering! is! communicated! as! an! immediate! reality! to! a! distant! spectator,! there! are! four! ways! reality! can! be! presented! and! received.! This! is! greatly! influenced! by! the! mode!of!presentation.!One!is!a!reality,of,facts,!accepting!the!spectacle!based!on!the!truth! of!what!we!see.!This!is!reliant!on!the!power!of!visual!reception,!convincing!because!of!its! facticity.! Next! is! the! reality,of,the,heart,! an! understanding! that! is! influenced! by! strong! feelings!and!emotions.!Thirdly,!there!is!the!reality,of,morals,!which!appeals!to!our!“deepH rooted! certainties! of! what! the! world! should! be! like”! (Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship, of, Suffering, 75).! Chouliaraki! calls! this! doxastic,! which! denotes! to! an! individual’s! beliefs.! This!way!of!knowing!reality!is!characterized!by!a!strong!sense!of!justice.!There!is!also!a! fourth!reality,!which!we!can!call!a!reality,of,the,heart,and,morals!for!simplicity’s!sake.!It! appeals! to! both! our! emotional! and! moral! sensibilities,! without! putting! much! focus! to! facticity.!
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2) SpaceCtime,,
SpaceHtime!refers!to!the!“representation,of,proximity/distance,to!the!scene!of!suffering”.! In! other! words,! this! category! analyzes! how! the! spectator! encounters! the! distant! sufferer,! and! the! degree! of! intensity! and! involvement! between! them! (Chouliaraki,! Spectatorship,of,Suffering!85).!How!can!a!person!react!to!famine!mortality!or!death!by! stoning,! when! these! situations! are! almost! unimaginable! for! that! person?! It! challenges! the!spectator’s!imagination.!In!this!sense,!the!spaceHtime!concept!“regulates!the!moral! distance!between!spectator!and!sufferer”!(ibid.).!!!
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On! a! more! practical! level,! the! space! aspect! can! be! analyzed! according! to! whether! an! image!of!suffering!takes!place!in!proximity!or!at!a!distance.!A!long!shot,!for!instance,!can! give!a!voyeuristic!or!reflective!effect!on!a!viewer.!A!mediumHshot!is!arguably!neutral!and! more! personal.! On! the! other! hand,! a! closeHup! shot! establishes! proximity! with! the! sufferer.!Ironically,!zooming!in!on!a!body!part!may!‘fetishize’!a!fragile!body!and!distance! the!viewers!even!more!(Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!87).!
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3) Agency,
Lastly,! Agency! is! the! “representation! of! action! on! the! sufferer’s! misfortune”! (Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!8).!This!category!studies!whether!a!sufferer!uses! his!own!voice!or!whether!other!agents!speak!on!their!behalf!to!appeal!to!an!audience.!
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Who!is!appealing!to!an!audience!and!how!they!do!it!affects!whether!or!not!a!spectator! will! react! to! what! he! sees.! Whatever! the! form! of! agency,! whether! the! agent! is! the! sufferer! himself! or! an! advocate,! it! is! “a! proposal! for! spectators! to! engage! in! pity”! (Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!91).!! ! An!important!thing!to!consider!here!is!how!agency!can!lead!a!spectator!towards!either! identification,with!the!suffering!person!as!a!fellow!human!or!towards!contemplation,of! the!unfortunate!as!a!separate!‘other’.!The!more!people!see!themselves!in!those!suffering,! recognizing!them!as!fellow!human!beings,!the!more!they!are!likely!to!speak!or!act!upon! what! they! see.! On! the! other! hand,! spectators! are! less! likely! to! act! if! they! fail! to! see! a! commonality!with!the!one!suffering!!(Chouliaraki,!Spectatorship,of,Suffering!88).!!
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The,Analytics,of,Social,Mediation,
This!section!covers!the!modes!of!analysis!that!I!have!adjusted!to!meet!my!research!objectives.! There! are! three! main! elements! that! I! investigate! when! analyzing! humanitarian! campaigns! on! social!media:!
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1) Portrayal,and,Narration,
When!evaluating!the!materials!that!are!used!on!social!media!campaigns,!one!may!study! the! visual! and! linguistic! approaches! used! to! stir! compassion! in! the! hearts! of! viewers.! This!is!the!manner!of!mediation,!and!the!technique!with!which!a!person!or!institution! inspires!empathy!or!compassion!among!audiences.!One!may!study!these!techniques!by! applying!Bolter!and!Grusin’s!concepts!of!hypermediacy!and!immediacy!when!analyzing! how! sufferers! or! their! witnesses! carry! out! social! media! campaigns.! For! example,! hypermediated! campaigns! may! be! analyzed! according! to! how! content! creators! inject! sentiments,!beliefs!or!perspectives!in!their!use!of!language!in!order!to!move!the!hearts! and! minds! of! audiences! online.! Photographs! may! be! considered! hypermediated! when! they!are!taken!from!an!artistic!angle,!zooming!in!and!skewing!the!image!in!a!way!that! the!normal!eye!would!not!see!it!in!real!life.!Even!the!timing!with!which!content!creators! choose! to! publish! their! material! online! may! be! considered! part! of! the! process! of! hypermediation.!!
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On! the! other! hand,! social! media! campaigns! that! demonstrate! immediacy! use! subtle! techniques! and! minimal! input! when! construing! suffering.! Instead! of! processing! what! they! have! seen! for! audiences,! content! creators! attempt! to! give! a! realistic! and! straightforward!narrative!and!visual!account.!For!example,!the!use!of!quotation!marks!
to! present! a! conversation! between! the! witness! and! the! sufferer! can! give! a! firstHhand! feeling! of! witnessing! for! the! spectator.! Photographs! may! also! be! taken! from! the! perspective! of! a! faceHtoHface! encounter.! The! point! of! view! is! straightforward! with! no! special!angles!that!may!skew!the!visual!in!an!artistic!manner.!The!subjects!of!the!photo! are! presented! as! though! taken! from! a! normal! standpoint! between! people,! neither! zoomed!in!as!through!a!micro!lens!nor!zoomed!out!from!a!bird’s!eye!view.!!
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For! both! approaches,! what! is! important! to! detect! is! how! the! technique! inspires! a! spectator! to! identify! with! an! object! of! suffering! as! a! fellow! human.! How! does! the! approach! humanize! the! object! of! suffering?! In! these! ways! and! many! others,! digital! technology!participates!in!the!social!process!of!mediation!and!in!shaping!empathy.! ,
2) Community,Building,
The! concept! of! community! building! is! not! new! to! the! realm! of! social! causes! and! humanitarian!movements.!This!is,!however,!a!new!aspect!of!philanthropy!in!that!social! media! allows! for! online! communities! to! be! built! around! a! cause.! Whereas! distant! suffering! in! news! coverage! simply! presents! suffering! to! viewers,! social! media! allows! audiences!to!engage!with!the!images!and!stories.!Users!can!publicly!react!to,!comment! on! or! share! images! and! stories! of! distant! suffering.! When! internet! users! follow! or! subscribe! to! a! humanitarian! social! media! campaign,! the! spectators! of! that! particular! suffering!are!clustered!together!into!a!community.!
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When! observing! these! communities! one! may! study! how! these! spectators! react! to! the! spectacle!of!suffering;!in!an!affective,,politicized,,ecstatic,!or!detached,manner.!One!may! also! look! at! the! discourse! within! the! community! to! gauge! whether! they! form! an! ideal! audience!for!the!objects!of!suffering.!An!ideal!audience!is!prone!to!action,!ready!to!act! upon!feelings!of!empathy!in!any!form!of!intervention!like!donations!or!volunteer!work.! By! observing! the! discourse! among! the! community,! one! may! also! detect! whether! a! cosmopolitan! outlook! is! generated! by! the! campaign.! This! is! to! answer! Kyriakidou’s! question,!can!media!witnessing,!“formulate!the!basis!for!a!cosmopolitan!outlook!(229)?”! By!making!visible!the!suffering!of!others,!does!the!social!media!campaign!contribute!to!a! ‘‘democratisation! of! responsibility,! in! the! sense! that! concern! for! others! becomes! an! increasing! part! of! the! daily! lives! of! more! individuals’’! (Thompson! qtd.! by! Madianou).! Finally,!this!capacity!to!build!communities!can!be!studied!by!simple!metrics,!like!the!size! of!the!community!and!how!fast!it!grew.!,
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3) Campaign,Creator,
Campaign! creators! are! the! institutions! or! personalities! behind! the! charitable! social! media! campaign.! They! can! be! witnesses! who! chose! to! mediate! suffering! or! are! the! objects!of!suffering!themselves.!Social!media!communities!form!around!institutions!or! personalities! that! are! deemed! trustworthy! and! authentic! by! the! public.! The! transparency! with! which! they! operate! is! crucial! to! earning! public! trust.! Thus,! when! looking! at! the! campaign! creator,! their! intention, is! an! important! factor! to! take! into! account.! Although! intent! is! neither! easily! observed! nor! quantified,! this! is! key! to! analyzing! the! ethicality! of! the! campaign.! As! mentioned! in! chapter! two,! the! ethical! question!has!much!to!do!with!the!intention!of!the!witness!who!is!creating!the!material! depicting!suffering.!Chouliaraki!emphasizes!the!need!to!study!the!choices!that!are!made! with! regard! to! the! portrayal! and! narration! of! suffering.! The! key! question! is! how! campaign! creators! intended! the! spectators! to! relate! to! the! sufferer! afterwards.! To! analyze! this,! one! may! study! the! campaign’s! tone! of! voice! and! the! credibility! of! the! person!behind!the!campaign.!! , To!conclude,!the!analytics!of!social!mediation!are!(1)!Portrayal!and!Narration,!(2)!Community! Building!and!(3)!Campaign!Creator.!These!are!the!elements!I!have!deemed!worthy!of!attention! when!studying!how!digital!platforms!inspire!empathy!among!audiences.! !
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CHAPTER FIVE
The!Humanitarian!Reach!
Of!Humans,of,New,York,
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The!case!study!begins!with!an!introduction!to!the!Humans,of,New,York,Facebook!page!and!its! founder,! Brandon! Stanton.! It! then! proceeds! to! analyze! some! of! the! press! coverage! of! its! humanitarian!initiatives!and!moves!to!a!critique!of!its!humanitarian!approach!with!regards!to! five! key! observations:! (1)! the! use! of! art! and! storytelling! to! shape! empathy;! (2)! the! individualization! of! humanity;! (3)! humanizing! the! suffering! other;! (4)! the! use! of! digital! platforms!to!bridge!a!distant!sufferer!and!a!spectator;!(5)!building!a!compassionate!community.! It!then!dissects!what!these!do!and!do!not!achieve.!! ! Introduction! It!is!the!storytelling!that!makes!Humans,of,New,York,(HONY)!stand!out.!The!approach!is!simple:! unlike!other!photography!blogs,!the!images!are!enriched!by!a!unique!story!behind!each!photo.!A! standard! post! contains! a! straightforward! and! unassuming! portrait! of! a! New! Yorker,! accompanied! by! an! excerpt! from! conversations! between! the! photographer! and! the! subject.! It! started!as!a!Facebook!page!in!2010,!but!now!has!over!20!million!followers!on!social!media,!with!17,009,863!followers!on!Facebook!and!4.9!million!on!Instagram!(as!of!April!2016).!The!content! has!also!been!published!into!two!bestselling!books,!“Humans!of!New!York”!and!“Humans!of!New! York:!Stories”.!While!the!initial!goal!of!the!project!was!to!photograph!and!catalogue!10,000!of! the! city’s! inhabitants,! somewhere! along! the! way! Stanton! began! to! interview! his! subjects! (“Humans! of! New! York”).! The! quotes! and! short! stories! from! these! interviews! became! the! perfect!captions!for!the!portraits.!The!themes!of! the!captions!vary!from!life!stories,!struggles,! joys,!to!random!facts!about!the!person.!
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Since! then,! HONY! has! become! a! viral! and! social! media! engagement! model! for! brands! and! aspiring!internet!sensations.!Corporations!frequently!try!to!get!in!touch!with!him,!not!only!to! access!his!everHgrowing!following!but!also!to!learn!how!he!builds!his!audience!and!keeps!them!
