Task 7.3: Planning a Podcast

As stated by Kruse, social media has its limitations and one of them includes heavy monitoring that creates hesitation to be honest about their political leanings due to fear of online harassment and the potential effect it has on their employment or relationships with family and friends (Kruse, 2018 p. 65).

An example of this would be Jakarta's former governor, Ahok who was sentenced to two years in prison for blasphemy. This created a divide between supporters of Ahok and hardline Islamist groups as Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim-majority country. The head judge, Dwiarso Budi Santiarto, said "“As part of a religious society, the defendant should be careful to not use words with negative connotations regarding the symbols of religions, including the religion of the defendant himself" (Lamb, 2017).

Ahok did not feel guilt as he thought he did not make any mistakes. Having a spotlight on Ahok, his words are monitored in the public eye. One minute they can support him and his academic speeches about world peace, and another they can change sides in regards to what he said about the Muslim religion.

Reference List

Kruse, LM, Norris DR & Flinchum JR ‘Social Media as a Public Sphere?: Politics on Social Media’, The Sociological Quarterley, vol. 59, no. 1, pp. 62-84.

Lamb, K, 2017, Jakarta governor Ahok sentenced to two years in prison for blasphemy, The Guardian, retrieved 17 April 2020, <https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/09/jakarta-governor-ahok-found-guilty-of-blasphemy-jailed-for-two-years>.