Introduction
The advent of information and communication technology has induced various effects that have changed the way people relate and interact with one another alongside how businesses are conducted globally. Diplomacy is not exempted since it has equally been affected by information and communication technology. The drastic development of ICT has contributed to a dramatic change in the nature and conduct of diplomacy and diplomatic services in the present day. ICT is mighty communication and collaboration apparatus that greatly impact diplomacy. Therefore, this paper discusses how ICT has affected diplomacy, focusing on both its positive and negative effects on diplomacy.
ICT has positively affected diplomacy by providing new communication tools used by the global actors to promote diplomacy and public relations. Advanced information technologies have offered new communication apparatus that altered existing rankings and power relationships among global actors. Additionally, it has encouraged diplomatic communications, which has consequently affected how diplomats engage in arrangements dictated by the trends in globalization, global economy, digitization, and trans-nationalization (Pilegaard, 2017). Besides, information and communication technology hold the key to soft power, making it possible to directly appeal to multiple actors. The communication tools offered by ICT also impact diplomacy by promoting public diplomacy that allows a country to secure another country’s consent or support by altering the will of a significant segment of its population.
Likewise, ICT positively impacts diplomacy by triggering and encouraging the use of database documents and submission, as opposed to the age of conventional diplomacy when communication was based on formal notes and circulars. ICT has also made it easy to share more informal information of lower importance, making the diplomatic team more coherent (Pilegaard, 2017). Similarly, ICT has positively affected diplomacy by promoting virtual representation either in the form of information services or virtual envoys; thus, this, in turn, enhances diplomatic relationships between various countries and actors. The real-world examples of the positive impacts of ICT on diplomacy include but are not limited to the realms of digitization in circular economy. There are three main realms of digitalization in consular diplomacy:
- Automation of consular activities: It involves activities like visa-issuing processes
- Interaction with diaspora and nationals: This involves issuing passports, certificates and other documents; thus, this in turn enhances diplomatic relationship between nations.
- Crisis management: During major natural disasters or in conflict and security crises digital tools are often used to assist nationals, coordinate relief and operations, and providing humanitarian assistance consequently promoting diplomatic relations between nations.
Nonetheless, ICT negatively affects diplomacy by making diplomats deal with a new set of digital policy issues when promoting the interests of their countries. In most counties, digital foreign policy is emerging; hence, this poses challenges to the diplomats since they must adhere to the new foreign policies to enhance their diplomatic relationship and representation of their countries (Pilegaard, 2017). Also, ICT negatively affects diplomacy by promoting cybersecurity challenges and making countries to be vulnerable to cyber-attack by cybercriminals. Cyber security issues like hacking and sharing confidential data with unauthorized people have remained key challenges associated with the ICT. These challenges impact diplomacy, consequently impacting the diplomatic relationship between counties. Cyber security often makes countries lose their trust in one another, thereby affecting their diplomatic relationships. Likewise, the real-life example of the adverse effect of ICT on diplomacy involves cybersecurity. For instance, NATO’s declaration that it is a fourth military operational domain on top of the land, water, and sea created a challenge of identifying a common understanding on the applicability of concepts like state responsibility and right to self-defense. This, in turn, negatively affects the diplomatic relationship between different nations, which are NATO affiliates.
Conclusion
ICT induces both positive and negative effects on diplomacy. It offers communication tools that enable diplomats to share information easily and quickly. Furthermore, it encourages directory documents and submission, which promote safe storage and dissemination of information. Despite the positive benefits, ICT adversely impacts diplomacy by making diplomats deal with new sets of foreign policy issues. It is also associated with cyber security issues like hacking that negatively affect the diplomatic relations between countries. Regardless of the negative effects, the positive effects outweigh the negative impacts, and it would be concluded that ICT is beneficial to diplomacy.
Reference
Pilegaard, J. (2017). Virtually Virtual? The New Frontiers of Diplomacy. The Hague Journal of Diplomacy, 12(4), 316-336.
How I Use Instagram Everyday Essay Example
Instagram is probably the greatest app, or at least one of the best apps to use on your phone in this day and age. This is because Instagram allows you to share your images with a public audience, making it easy for anyone out there who has an iPhone to see what you’re up to. As someone who just got their first iPhone today, I was excited about the prospect of people being able to see all my new photos coming soon. I went ahead and did what any average millennial would do at this point: download Instagram onto my phone and get started right away. The first step when I got onto Instagram was to fill out my profile and get started on sharing pictures of things that I find interesting. As someone who’s really into food, which a lot of people at the college seem to be based on their Instagram accounts, I decided to make a folder for myself with pictures of food.
However, there is one person in my class who does not have an Instagram account. Sure, there are a few people in our class who do not use Instagram but this one student seems to be the only one in our entire class who does not seem to care about getting an account or even taking any selfies or anything like that. He is also the only guy who doesn’t own an iPhone.
I mainly use this app for two different reasons: sharing images and keeping up with friends. I really like it when I get to see photos from other people who also share their Instagram images on their feed, so I try to keep up with them and check in. It’s a great way to catch up on what’s happening in other people’s lives, which makes me feel like I have more of a connection with them. I also like to use it as a way to share photos with my friends, and when I send someone a message, they are notified that they got a new message in their Instagram app. Due to this reason; I tend to spend most of my time on Instagram these days.
I also use this app for personal use. Like I said earlier, my main reason for using Instagram is to share pictures of myself cooking and eating with my friends. I like to think of it as a journal of my life, where I can look back and see what I was up to during that time. It’s also fun to share pictures of when other people cook for me and I enjoy eating their creations. It’s also reassuring to see that other people enjoy eating the same types of food that I do.
Instagram can be used for many more purposes than just sharing images, however. There are plenty more uses such as posting the occasional video, sharing information about events and much more. I think the main reason why Instagram is such a popular social media app is because of its easy-to-use layout, which is available on all of your smart devices. Because of Instagram’s layout and how it works, there are very few people who can compare it to any other social media network. It helps you to stay in touch with your friends, family or even people that you don’t even know and see what they’re doing at any given time. “Whether you love or hate the idea of being able to view pictures on Instagram before they go public, (it is) a wonderful way for friends, family and acquaintances to stay connected” (Neves, 2013).
With Instagram, you have the power to share your life with whomever you’d like, whenever you’d like. You are welcome to post whatever pictures you’d like, but be wary that there are always trolls and people who may try to bring you down for it. Just ignore them and keep being yourself (Zillich, A. 2021). The only thing you have to remember is never share anything on Instagram that you wouldn’t want to share with everybody.
Instagram has been a big part of my life since I first got my iPhone, and I don’t see it going away anytime soon. No matter how old you are and what kind of lifestyle you live, there is almost always a way to fit Instagram into your everyday routine. Whether you use it for fun or just for keeping in touch with friends and family, it’s always fun when people can share what’s happening in their lives with others. According to Neves, B. B. (2013), Instagram is a great way to keep up with who your friends and family are and everything they are doing. Keeping up with your friends through social media is especially useful because you will never have to worry about being behind on things like birthdays, anniversaries etc. This way, you won’t have to worry about your loved ones wondering why you forgot their special day, because now you have the power to just go online and check.
The main reason why I’m using Instagram is to share my images with others. The main purpose of this app is to share your images, not just with your friends, but with total strangers as well. People can easily use the app for the briefest amount of time and start creating a community around them. It fascinates me how ladies take selfies of themselves on their phone and then go online and put a filter on there. It’s not as if they are doing it to make their face look better than it is naturally. It’s just that they had to put some work into there image to make sure it looked perfect, which is a very interesting concept. A lot of people don’t understand how girls can take selfies, edit them and post them online, but I think the whole concept of such things fascinates me.
Not only do I use Instagram to share my pictures with others, but it is also a way that I keep in contact with my family. Keeping in contact with them doesn’t mean we just message back and forth on our own phones, it’s more like we will send random photos to each other on a daily basis. For example, one day I could take a photo of my dinner and then send it to all of them. They will then each choose one of their favorite dishes that they would want me to make for them at some point during the week when I get home from work. Duque, R. B. (2009) suggests that Instagram can be a great way for your family or friends to know what you are doing on a daily basis. It’s a great way to be able to see what’s going on in their lives and know that they’re doing well. In his article he further suggests that people can use Instagram to keep in contact with their family or friends who live far away. It’s a great way of being able to see the things they are doing and feel like you’re right there with them.
Instagram can be used for many different purposes, but it still remains to be quite social in how it works. There have been many other authors who have shared what they think about Instagram as a social media outlet, as well as why they think it’s not one (Duque, B. & Nogueira, D., 2013; Neves, B., 2013). They all have a different opinion, which is the point of social media. People have to use what works for them and what makes them happy, but the main thing that people should remember is to keep their lives in check when it comes to posting images online. It’s easy to become addicted and want to post everything you do, but you have to remember that there are people out there who read everything you post. People can easily get offended by what you post, so try not to take it personally. If someone were to get offended by one of your posts, then don’t be upset, just remember how the saying goes: “If you don’t have anything nice to say, then don’t say anything at all”.
With that being said, I’ve come across many different posts from Instagram and Facebook in my day. People will just post things that make them happy and provide no thought as to who might see it or what they may think about it (Duque & Nogueira, 2013). People will post pictures that are meant to be funny, but there is a big problem with some of them. There are pictures that people post about how their kid just got out of the bathtub and they look absolutely adorable (Duque & Nogueira, 2013). Then there are other posts that involve sharing a picture of someone who is passed out from drinking too much. These types of posts could be seen as something different to different people. Some people might see the positive side and think it’s funny, while others will take it differently. The truth is, if you don’t want a certain image or picture to be shared or viewed by others or even yourself for that matter then don’t share it on Instagram (Neves, B. 2013).
No matter what anyone says, Instagram, Facebook and other social media are very serious in regards to themselves. Everyone wants to be on top of the game and have a good life, so most people will try to use these sites to get them there. The only thing you should do is try not to take it too seriously, because these sites are only a small part of your everyday lives. If you post an image that is off-putting or alarming for others or even yourself then it’s probably best that you don’t post it at all (Neves, B. 2013). This has been my view about the use of Instagram for social media. I would like to know what you think about it as well. Also, if you would like to share anything about your experience using Instagram I would love to hear from you.
Just like Instagram, Facebook is a social site that allows people to interact with each other in a different way, as well as connect with their family members and friends that they may have lost contact with over the years (Duque B., & Nogueira, 2013). There are a number of ways that one can share their thoughts and feelings through Facebook whether it involves status updates, images, videos or even live streaming. Facebook is an amazing way for parents to be able to stay in touch with their children when they are not around.
Overall, Instagram is an app that has gained a lot of popularity quickly, and it’s easy to see why they have decided to keep it around as long as they have. It’s a great way for people to share their experiences with others and also keep in touch with their friends and family all over the world at the same time. If you’re deciding to download Instagram, then I highly recommend that you do because it’s a great way of staying connected with people and keeping yourself updated on what’s happening in your life. The choice is all yours, now. Will you choose to download it or not? Only time will tell (Duque, B. & Nogueira, D., 2013). I appreciate the social aspect of this app and believe it’s a great way for people to stay involved with what is happening in each other’s lives. In some instances, however, there are far too many people who would rather spend their time online looking at what others are doing rather than actually doing anything themselves. According to authors like Ellison, (2014), Instagram can be a great way for people to remain grounded and informed about the world. It’s a great way to keep yourself updated on what’s taking place in your neighborhood, or even around the world. There are very few things that can compete with getting instant information from your social media platforms, however. Ellison further explains that Instagram is a way of maintaining relationships with friends, family and other individuals who you care about. It’s a way to stay connected, share photos and remember those special moments that are so important in life.
References
Duque, R. B. 2009. Book Review: Ralph Schroeder, Rethinking Science, Technology, and Social Change. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2007. 179 pp. ISBN: 0804755884, $39.95 (cloth). New Media & Society, 11(8), 1403–1404. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448090110080702
Ellison, N. B., Vitak, J., Gray, R., & Lampe, C. 2014. Cultivating Social Resources on Social Network Sites: Facebook Relationship Maintenance Behaviors and Their Role in Social Capital Processes. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 19(4), 855–870. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcc4.12078
Neves, B. B. 2013. Social Capital and Internet Use: The Irrelevant, the Bad, and the Good. Sociology Compass, 7(8), 599–611. https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.12059
Zillich, A. F., & Riesmeyer, C. 2021. Be Yourself: The Relative Importance of Personal and Social Norms for Adolescents’ Self-Presentation on Instagram. Social Media + Society, 7(3), 205630512110338. https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051211033810
How Racial Thinking Influenced Housing Policy Writing Sample
Introduction
The American dream and citizenship are inextricably linked to property ownership. It is also essential for generating intergenerational wealth. However, this dream accomplishment of becoming a homeowner is becoming increasingly rare among Black Americans (CHANG et al., 2021). Due to segregation and disparities in property appreciation, people of color are at a disadvantage when it comes to establishing equity and generating wealth. The isolation of people of color in some neighborhoods in big cities has long been explained by a story of racially prejudiced bankers and landlords, all independent actors. However, this widely held belief that residential segregation in America is justified misses the lengthy history of state, federal, and even local actions that have resulted in today’s residential segregation.
A century of policies resulted in today’s divided America. From President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s first segregated public housing projects to the 1949 Housing Act, which fortified White migration to the environs, to unconstitutional zoning regulations ratified by city governments, the current state of country is the result of illegal, state-sanctioned racial discrimination (Tobey, 1996). One common confusion is that this is because of a succession of mishaps that drive prejudice and human choices that neighborhoods in most urban region in the nation are separated by race. De facto exclusion includes income variances, private discrimination by real estate brokers and banks, which the Courts defined as “something that happened by accident or by individual choice.” That deception, generally held across the political field, deadlocks the capability to concentrate segregation and the excessive misery it causes in the country.
The truth is that segregation was forced in every urban region by racially explicit national and local regulation, which rendered private actions of discrimination or prejudice ineffectual. Only after the country recognizes that segregation is a government-sponsored structure, which we would call de jure segregation, then we start addressing it. It is not easy to imagine how to fix it if an individual’s choice caused it. The country has to be willing to design effective administration arrangements to reverse them since they are caused by government action. There are two significant reasons why the crisis persists even after several decades.
Redlining Effect
Generations of families were hampered by redlining, which combined with racially discriminatory housing restrictions that prevented Black Americans from purchasing specific properties, gaining equity in their homes, or renovating those they already owned. These unfair behaviors are part of an extensive history of prejudice that has furthered the existing disparities in homeownership and wealth among people of color and white Americans. The demographics and socioeconomic outcomes of redlined communities and the adjacent cities would potentially be faint if the effects of redlining had faded. The fact that this is has not happened, but the degree to which a redlined neighborhood’s people of color vs. non-color population corresponds to the nearby area differs greatly between cities. In 114 of the 174 major cities studied, the redlined districts had a statistically significantly higher population of Black people than the rest of the city (Perry & Harshbarger, 2019).
The exercise of redlining was overt in its discrimination towards people of color. While Hispanic or Latino inhabitants, low-income residents, immigrants, communists, and other communities deemed “risky” by the federal government were frequently redlined, they were not targeted in the same way that African American residents were. Neighborhoods that were once redlined had a higher percentage of the Black population, lower wages, lower property values, and other unfavorable economic characteristics than the rest of their cities. (Perry & Hershberger 2019).
Irresponsible Government Policies
Even though the Fair Housing Act of gave some enforcement to avert future discrimination but nothing was done to reverse or repair a century of federal sanctioned abuses of the Bill of Rights, predominantly the 13th Amendment, which prohibits treating formerly enslaved people as lower cadre citizens (Rothstein, 2017). Due to this, the organizational conditions established by state policy in the 20th century have remained even now. The administration and the courts upheld discriminatory measures to keep whites and people of color apart at every turn, resulting in the powder keg that has defined many cities. This is the tale of America in all of its cities, large and small. Rothstein offered the most compelling thesis on how the federal, state and municipal governments created and sustained neighborhood segregation, based on a thorough analysis of many historical records. His central argument, calls for an ultimate reexamination of US constitutional law. The Supreme Court has been unable to comprehend for decades the extent to which residential segregation in the country is the result of unconstitutional administration action rather than the private decisions made by private individuals (Rothstein, 2017). His findings have far-reaching ramifications.
Effects of The Housing Policies
Despite African Americans’ economic and political progress since the Civil Rights Act, major disparities remain between people of color and whites in terms of homeownership, quality, employment chances and education. These imbalances are echoed in housing segregation and a segmented residential market, which have serious consequences for people of colors economically. Segregation, unequal access to finance and homeownership, and the continued depreciation of property in the communities limits their ability to create equity and wealth through homeownership (Perry, 2019).
According to empirical studies, the average Black American now lives in a neighborhood that is just 35% white. This has not improved substantially than in the previous century when non-Hispanic whites made up 40% of the population (Logan, 2013). Today’s racial landscape is still shaped by yesterday’s public policy. This is especially true in the field of housing, where racially prejudiced state administration policies played a key part in the development and maintenance of segregated zones for much of the twentieth century. For example, in response to the Great Depression, a two-tiered approach to housing policy benefited white middle-class households while deliberately hurting persons of color (Policy, 2005).
To stabilize homeownership financial circumstances, the federal administration introduced the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation, the FHA, and the secondary mortgage market. Housing demand and the construction and banking industries were boosted by the establishment of government-backed, payment, amortizing, fixed-rate and long-term, house mortgage loans. On the other hand, the Public Works Administration Housing Division programs reinforced public housing expansion and removal of slums to progress the housing circumstances of economically challenged homes and increased engagement in construction.
However, this two-tiered method of housing policy resulted in significant residential segregation. The government’s home-buying assistance routinely favored white borrowers, excluding people of color and other minorities. The HOLC formalized redlining as a means of evaluating community quality based on ethnic and racial configuration. Discrimination in the residential market promotes residential segregation patterns that have been created in large part by decades of racially discriminatory housing regulations. The capacity of people of color homebuyers to accumulate equity is hampered by housing discrimination and residential segregation. Homes in primarily Black American communities have more fluctuating demand and prices compared to those in principally white districts, where resources like better paying employment and good colleges are located, contributing to higher housing prices and demand (Cohen et al., 2012). In formerly redlined districts, the depreciation of African American-owned property is particularly noticeable. Furthermore, since the pinnacle of the housing bubble, African American-dominated communities have depreciated and are not expected to appreciate than primarily white districts (Lane, 2019)
Conclusion
Due to segregation and disparities in property appreciation, areas covered by people of color are at a disadvantage when it comes to establishing equity and generating capital. Homebuyers remain to be focused in nonwhite communities even when they have the economical ability to pay for homes in any community of their choosing, where the prospects for equity accumulation are equivalent to those of white buyers of similar socioeconomic position. This is alarming since they show and contribute to racial exclusion in the housing scene. The Fair Housing Act was supposed to abolish residential segregation by removing explicit prejudice and inequities in the housing market. Even though the Fair Housing Act has prospered in removing the most flagrant kinds of segregation that existed several decades ago, the housing market in the U.S. remains intensely fragmented racially. The legacy of national discriminatory and redlining residential rules and practices can still be seen now. Housing segregation has evolved, and people of colored communities are still undervalued compared to white communities. Not only are homebuyers continuing to buy in mostly nonwhite communities, but property prices in segregated districts where people of color are concentrated are also continuing to appreciate at a slower rate than in neighborhoods where white purchasers buy. This has remained even as national property values have improved following the recent financial crisis.
References
CHANG, A., INTAGLIATA, C., & MEHTA, J. (2021, May 18). Black Americans And The Racist Architecture Of Homeownership. NPR.org. https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2021/05/08/991535564/black-americans-and-the-racist-architecture-of-homeownership
Cohen, J. P., Coughlin, C. C., & Lopez, D. A. (2012). The boom and bust of U.S. housing prices from various geographic perspectives. Review, Sep, 341–368. https://ideas.repec.org/a/fip/fedlrv/y2012iseptemberp341-368nv.94no.5.html
Lane, B. (2019). Home – HousingWire. HousingWire. https://www.housingwire.com/
Logan, J. R. (2013). The Persistence of Segregation in the 21st Century Metropolis. City & Community, 12(2), 160–168. https://doi.org/10.1111/cico.12021
Perry, A. (2019). The Devaluation of Assets in Black Neighborhoods: How Racism Robs Homeowner of the American Dream. Brookings Scholar Lecture Series. https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/brookings_lectures_events/143/
Perry, A. M., & Harshbarger, D. (2019, October 14). America’s formerly redlined neighborhoods have changed, and so must solutions to rectify them. Brookings; Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/research/americas-formerly-redlines-areas-changed-so-must-solutions/
Policy, H. &. (2005, November 10). History & Policy. History & Policy. https://www.historyandpolicy.org/policy-papers/papers/when-affirmative-action-was-white
Rothstein, R. (2017). The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America. Economic Policy Institute. https://www.epi.org/publication/the-color-of-law-a-forgotten-history-of-how-our-government-segregated-america/
Tobey, R. C. (1996). Technology as freedom: the New Deal and the electrical modernization of the American home. University Of California Press.