LO5: D2: Evaluating the negative impact of my product

 Critically evaluate how the negative impacts of converging technology will be minimised within the proposed campaign

In this report I will be discussing the key problems that my product might have on society. To do this I will also be discussing the hypodermic syringe theory by Adorno and Horkheimer (1947) which implies that media has a negative impact and that mass audiences believe everything they see and hear as part of 'culture industry'. Alongside that I will talk about the Moral Panic theory by Stanley Cohen (1972) which is instance of mass public concern/panic in response to a media product. These can threaten groups of people or morals of society. Lastly I will speak about how this can be solved or minimised preventing the negative effects.

My product could cause negative effects due to some songs use of slurs, mainly the N word. This can cause a problem because some people think that because it is a word on a song they can say it which isn't the case. This can link to Adorno and Horkheimer's 1947 hypodermic syringe theory which states that mesa has a negative impact and mass audiences believe everything that they see or hear. This is because for example, people who aren't black saying the N word has negative impact towards people who are black since the word has negative connections to slavery and racism. The black community have reclaimed the word but for someone outside of that community to use it is harmful. This can be said for any other slurs.

Another issue that may occur with my product is bullying and trolling. Since my app has direct messaging there is also a risk that users may send hurtful and harmful messages to other users. Cyberbullying is a huge problem when it comes to social media and technology so there is always a risk but messaging can increase this since it allows them to message privately and directly rather than negative comments on posts. This also can link to the hypodermic syringe theory as if a user is constantly receiving hurtful messages they may start to believe them and it would obviously have a negative impact on them. Cyberbullying can cause low self-esteem and confidence issues and can also cause depression and even lead to suicide. To prevent this issue, I can add a report button which can be used to report the bully and the report will be reviewed if the claim is true their account will be suspended or depending of the offence it could be deleted. submitting a report will automatically block the bully account.

Some songs may have inappropriate or violent lyrics that may not be appropriate for children. This can link to Stanly Cohens 1972 moral panic theory because some people may worry that if children are exposed too this kind of thing they might copy it. For example, if they hear a song about behaving inappropriately towards women then they might start behaving that way. I could prevent this heart by putting a parental lock in the app for children under a certain age that gives parents the option to restrict their child listening to explicit songs and if the child toys to it will come up with a notification that says 'restricter' or something similar and will not allow them to listen to it.

To conclude, I have discussed the key problems that my product might have on society. I also talked about the hypodermic syringe theory, moral panic and the effects of bullying and trolling. I also addressed ways that I could prevent or minimise these issues.