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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First and foremost, I thank Allah for endowing me with health, patience, and knowledge to complete this
work.
Acknowledgement is also to our CSC Lecturer, Prof. Madya Wan Akil for the valuable guidance and
advice. He inspired us greatly to work in this assignment. His willingness to motivate us contributed
tremendously to our assignment. I would like to thank him for showing us some example that related to the topic
of our assignment.
Besides, I would like to thank to the authority of University Teknologi Mara (UiTM) for providing us with
a good environment and facilities to complete this assignment. Also, I would like to take this opportunity to thank
to the Faculty of Science Administration and Policy of University Teknologi Mara (UiTM) for offering this
subject, Management Information System (CSC208). It gave me an opportunity to participate and learn about the
input of computer.
Finally, an honourable mention goes to my families and friends for the understandings and supports on me
in completing this assignment. Without their helps, I would face many difficulties while doing this assignment.
















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INTRODUCTION/OBJECTIVES

About 1 months ago, we were given an assignment by our Management Information
System (CSC208) lecturer, Prof. Madya. Dr. Wan Akil about Social Media: Does Spin Work?
Does Spin work? The topic of the assignment is a little bit confusing for me. What does
he wants us to find actually? From my point of view, Prof. Madya Wan Akil wants us to explain
whether does using the Social Media really works in manipulating the publics? Manipulating
can be either in positive or negatives in their own ways.
From this assignment, we can learn how the media manipulated the public using the
social media. A brief example, Ali is a politician. He is in an opposition party. He made a
statement on sensitive issues in our country. Next day, the statement that he made has been
manipulated as a racist issue by the media. Because the public read the media, the public believe
what the media said.

In the end of this assignment, we are going to discuss whether the social media does spin
or not.
















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DEFINITION
First of all, what is social media? We heard about social media almost everyday in our
life, but not all of us know what does social media exactly means. Social media is the collective
of online communications, channels dedicated to community-based input, interaction content-
sharing and collaboration. In a simple word, social media are Internet sites where people can
interact freely, sharing and discussion information of each other etc. Examples of social media
are:
Facebook is a popular free social networking website that allows registered users to create
profiles, upload photos and video, send messages and keep in touch with friends, family
and colleagues. According to statistics from the Nielsen Group, Internet users within the
United States spend more time on Facebook than any other website.
Twitter is a free microblogging service that allows registered members to broadcast short
posts called tweets. Twitter members can broadcast tweets and follow other users' tweets
by using multiple platforms and devices.
Wikipedia is a free, open content online encyclopedia created through the collaborative
effort of a community of users known as Wikipedians. Anyone registered on the site can
create an article for publication; registration is not required to edit articles. Wikipedia was
founded in January of 2001.
LinkedIn is a social networking site designed specifically for the business community. The
goal of the site is to allow registered members to establish and document networks of
people they know and trust professionally.
Reddit is a social news website and forum where stories are socially curated and promoted
by site members. The site is composed of hundreds of sub-communities, known as
"subreddits." Each subreddit has a specific topic such as technology, politics or music.
Reddit site members, also known as, "redditors," submit content which is then voted upon
by other members. The goal is to send well-regarded stories to the top of the site's main
thread page.
Pinterest is a social curation website for sharing and categorizing images found online.
Pinterest requires brief descriptions but the main focus of the site is visual. Clicking on an
image will take you to the original source, so, for example, if you click on a picture of a pair
of shoes, you might be taken to a site where you can purchase them. An image of blueberry
pancakes might take you to the recipe; a picture of a whimsical birdhouse might take you to
the instructions.

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Social media is becoming an integral part of life online as social websites and applications
proliferate. Most traditional online media include social components, such as comment fields
for users. The term "social media" is likely to lose meaning as the social aspect of the Web
becomes increasingly taken for granted.






















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Social Media Evolution

















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Brief History about Social media Evolution

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Old social Media


Before internet is invented, all of us are using the old media to seek for information, and
gain the knowledge etc. The old media also known as Traditional Media are traditional means of
communication and expression that have existed before the Internet was invented. Examples of
the old media are broadcast and cable television, radio, movie, magazines, books and most print
publications. So does the old social media is still worthy or not?
Although traditional media is sometimes we called slow compared to modern media,
the traditional media is looked as the most reliable and trustworthy. Why? It is because the
content of the news is mostly reliable and it has been filter before published. Unlike the modern
media, people can simply post about the news without worrying about the content. It will make
the content of the news become unreliable; sometimes the news that had been published on the
modern social medial also fake/false because it is not been filters.
Yes, using the modern social media is faster than the old media, but faster is not we seek.
For example, we as a user of social media always found that not all the news that has been
published is accurate. It is more 60% of the sources of the news are inaccurate. It is because, in
the modern social media, all of us can be a journalist. We can simply post everything and be a
keyboard warriors, for example, if we doesnt like the politician, we can simply post a false
news about his/hers, but in the old traditional media, because the news is already been filters, the
writers of the news is an expertise in the field such as journalist.








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Modern Social Media

The world is now having advancement in technology. Simply to say, we can reach for
information using right click on the mouse and we can access the information in the blink of an
eye. Thats what we called internet. Because of the advancement of the technology, people are
no longer relies on the traditional media to seek for information. So what is the new modern
media? New media http://www.aibd.org.my/node/1226






















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Advantages of Social Media


One of the benefits of social media is, it allows us to interact with all others people in all
around the world. It allows us to exchange information and opinions with all people around the
worlds. These interactions have certainly made the worlds become smaller since we can interact
with people everywhere. For example Ali is from Malaysia, and Lee Gwang Soo is from korea.
Both of them are using the Facebook to interact and exchange information such as culture,
lifestyles, politic, music etc.
The social media can make the opportunity to widen business. By using social media,
entrepreneur can expand or promote their business in a creative ways. It not just allows the
employees to discuss and share ideas, asks questions, post news and share links but it can
minimize the use of advertising to businesses and also improves reputation.
Other than that, the advantage of social media is, people can extend their knowledge.
People can gain new knowledge through social media use. It is easier for them to know or find
out different information or something about almost anything in the world through a connected
media. As a student, we also engaged to this activities, it can give us the benefit of being
exposed to the technology and can be connected to a broader base of opinions and world views
through global connections.










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Disadvantages of Social Media

The first disadvantage of the social media is, it can leads to commits illegal crime. Using
a social media may open possibility for hackers to commit illegal crime such as fraud, spam or
even virus attacks.
Other than that, using social media can lead distraction. Most people who suffer from
distraction are mostly students. Instead of doing their homework, they tend to go online and
using social media in the wrong way.
Besides, the disadvantages of social media can have negative effects on worker
productivity. Because of the employee nowadays access social media such as Facebook during
work hours, it can result in lost productivity and the employees may use social media to attack
the companys reputation. Most of the employees waste their valuable time during the working
hours.
Last but not least, the disadvantages of social media are we dont understand on how it
works. We need to understand how social media works, when and how to use it and which
channels to focus on depending on our end goal of using social media in order to get its full
effects.












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"We live in a world of spin. It flies at us in the form of misleading commercials for products and political candidates and
about public policy matters. It comes from businesses, political leaders, lobbying groups and political parties. Millions are
deceived every dayall because of spin. Spin is the polite word for deception. Spinners mislead by means that range from
subtle omission to outright lies. Spin paints a false picture of reality, by bending facts, mischaracterizing the words of others,
ignoring or denying evidence, or just 'spinning a yarn'--by making things up."
(Brooks Jackson and Kathleen Hall Jamieson, unSpun: Finding Facts in a World of Disinformation. Random House, 2007)


SPIN
What is spin? In Public Relations, spin is a form of propaganda, achieved through
providing an interpretation of an event or campaign to persuade public opinion in favor or
against a certain organization or public figure. This mean, in order to get the public attention,
one has made a propaganda which is more into manipulate the public. Spin is often implies
disingenuous, deceptive and highly manipulative tactics.
Ever heard of P.T Barnum? He was an American Showman, businessman, prankster and
entertainer and he is the founder of the Circus that became the Ringling Bros. and Barnum &
Bailey Circus. So what is the relation between spin and PT. Barnum? He is the master of the
press agent because of his a promoter with endless imagination. Barnum promoted the midget
General Tom Thumb, Jenny Lind, the Swedish Nightingale, Jumbo the elephant, and Joice
Helth, a 161 years old woman. He is called harmless deceiver by the public. It is because; he
inaccurately used publicity to make money. For example, one of his midget, Joice Heth an,
extremely old African-American woman described as the 161 years former slave of George
Washingtons father. Of course Joice Heth was not actually 161 years old, but she looked it.
She was completely blind and toothless but she could speak, and sing. Since Heth is a slave,
Barnum was able to purchase her for 1000 dollar, and then he displayed her in New York City.
Because of his propaganda and with the help of the media such as posters newspaper ad, Barnum
made about 1500 dollar per week. So, with help of the media, Barnum is able to manipulate the
people at that time. Because of the power of the media, he is able to deceive people.





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Does Media Spin work?

Back to the main question, do media spin work? I questioned myself over and
over again. Different people have different perspective but as for me, I actually thought
that the media spin works to us. Media is used to manipulate everything you read, hear
and watch online. I mean everything! The media manipulator uses the media to make
people like us to do or think things they otherwise would not. People like them behind
the curtain, pulling the puppet strings. The sad truth is media spin work in more negative
than positive. People always tend to misuse the media to manipulate the public.
First, when the news is decided not by what is important but by what the readers
is clicking. It means that the media is not no longer published the news based on what
is priority but based on what the readers want to read. Maybe it is for the profit oriented.
In a negative perspective, some news that we heard on media does might not all true.
Some of them are just propaganda of the media just to get a public attention. Example
Rowan Atkinson aka Mr. Bean converts to muslim. The news is fake actually since there
is no evidence right now and Rowan never claimed that he converts and he does know
how the rumor spread. One people spread the rumor and all of us as a users of internet
and social media believes. Thats the power of the spin of the media. They can make a
false statement become true statement. Just to get the attention of the public.
Spin by the media is mostly worked. Lets look in the case of Micheal Jackson.
In the case of Micheal Jackson, he was falsely accused of sexually abusing a boy named,
Jordan Chandler. Of course, this is to blacken Michaels name. The media were paid to
write stories that would the public against Micheal. Can you see the power of the spin by
the media? He made us thinks that Micheal is gay and abusing a boy. Even his loyal fan
would turn over after heard this. The spin by the media can make the career of the
celebrity or politician vanished in a blink of an eye. Thats the power of the media; they
wont stop until they reach their goals.
Spin happens in the new modern media because of the poor incentives. When we
as readers dont pay for the news that we read, the creators of the news dont have any
loyalty to the readers either. Everything is read one off, passed around on Facebook and
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Twitter instead of by subscription. As a result, there is no consequence for blaming
everyone. Manipulators can deceive journalist because journalist are not held responsible
for deceiving the readers.
























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How to prevents from being manipulated?

The power of mainstream media is amazing, isnt it? But what is more even more
amazing is their ability to manipulate us to thinks exactly how they want us to think.
To avoid from being manipulated by the media, one must read carefully about what the
content/news is all about. We cannot simply trust the content of the news.
We also must not rely on one source. We must find the other resources to see whether
the news that we read is true or not. We cannot depend on one source. If you read about the
news is on the newspaper, look into others sources such as magazines, blog, other social media
etc. The news is reliable if all the sources state the same.
Another way to prevents from being manipulated by the media is, we verify the news that
we find fishy. We must refer to right sources about the news. We cannot believe the news
without refer to the true sources.


















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CONCLUSION

From my point of view, I do think that Media spin has a lot of negative impacts. It is
because the news that been published falsely and it can leads to defamation to individual or
party. Besides, the objectives of media spin are to gain the publicity. For example, the media
can spins the minor cases can be easily expanded to huge cases. The media should portrays true
news so they can gain public trust. As a conclusion, the media should free from bias.