geek in white

I applaud the AGC for their recent “Responsibilities of Bloggers and other legislation issues on the use of Social Media in Brunei Darussalam” talk. I think it’s high time someone explain the do and don’ts of blogging.

I was absent from the talk but from what I’ve been reading it is mostly directed to bloggers despite ‘new media’ being mentioned. Do they mean Twitterers, Facebookers, Foursquarers, forums and the likes too?  As far as blogging is concerned, I think it is a rather dying activity in Brunei. Only the big names survived and there’s one or two emerging ones, which are all I would say, rather safe variety. I’ve handled the Simpur Blogging Nation for years before and I’ve seen how blogging has grew overnight and then instantly died too, the new ones are always those online “shops” selling all sorts of items from A to Z and mostly has no proper trading license or selling faked items. Are the AGC going to take action on this little-home-business?

It is good that cases from neighbouring countries and places like Iran have been mentioned but I do not think it is fair to compare with local blogs because most of local blogs are non-political in nature and basically sharing their experiences and thoughts on social issues. Many bloggers support aspirations towards nation building.

Facebook and Twitter is where everyone has decided to migrate these days. It’s easier to maintain and doesn’t take much creativity or commitment. I think it is a channel now to express ones feelings, happiness, sadness, hate, dissatisfaction and many more about a certain person, place, service, organisation, etc., People can be vague about who or what they are criticizing but sometimes it’s obvious. I admit I’m guilty of it sometimes and I’m sure many twitterers can relate to it too. From poor service at a certain bank, unhelpful civil servants or terrible food, we see it on regular basis.

So my question is are these people liable too? How will the authorities monitor the very fast flow of timeline on Twitter? What can one do when one feels that they are the one being talked about? How can they lodge a complain? Will the AGC help prosecute or is it still up to the individual to hire a lawyer to do the job? I think it is best for the AGC to come up with a simple instruction on the process of getting help if one is on the receiving side. Bloggers too have been the receiving end of criticism from Anonymous commentors via cyberbullying. However, many bloggers decided to join forces to educate readers by putting a badge SAY NO to INTERNET BULLY - to signify that we welcome comments and constructive feedback from readers with a name.

It’s easy to lay down the rule to say what is the proper way to converse online, but at the end of the day, the heart conquers over sensibility especially when one is enraged. What about those people who post their thoughts at Have Your Say? That place is even more notorious than any Brunei blogs I’ve encountered. 

I’m in no way criticizing or pouring any negative vibe towards the talk held, but I’m merely saying it’s quite unfair pinning it to the bloggers because it is only a small community now. The AGC will need to look into the other active medias too and totally understand how the flow of things are. It is easy to look from a law point of view, but I would suggest that the AGC consult those who have been active in the new media to better formulate a streamlined process of feeding the online community on proper internet conduct.

Having said that, I know it is never going to be easy. In a perfect world, everyone would abide to the law but if they do, the online community would be boring too. So the process is delicate to say the least. I myself wouldn’t quite know how to start.