Smartphones Trump Rally

Analyse the significance of the convergence of smartphones with mass communication technology.

"Since the convergence of smartphones with mass communication media technology, this has lead to organised riots and rallies, one example being the January 6th Capitol Riots."

Significance of smartphones in the January 6th Capitol Riots:

- Facilitation of Communication: Rioters and Trump Rally participants were able to share their ideals on the whole election matter, reach a popular idea, create and follow opinion leaders (two-step flow) leading to more people believing a certain story, with this whole thing being a part of the mass community known as the internet, however restricted, not limited to the media bubble surrounding trump supporters, usually on social media platforms that encourage free speech, namely twitter.

- Documentation and Accountability: Recordings of the rally were very soon posted to social media, both from officials and participants. Rioters then recorded themselves storming into the capitol, then posting these crimes onto social media, making it much easier for the police force to locate them and hold them accountable for their actions.

- Global Awareness: Since the footage was released not only to social media but plenty of news outlets, the news and the global public were made aware of the violence going on in the US, as well as the political views of the American people, and in some ways maybe showing how uneducated some Americans can be.

- Resource Sharing: Before the events, rally participants and rioters were able to coordinate the times and locations of the rally through social media topics such as twitter hashtags, instagram pages, facebook groups, etc. 

Impact on Protestors and Authorities during the January 6th Riots:

- Safety, Surveillance and Policing: Protestors who used smartphones during the riots likely were then tracked down afterwards since storming into the capitol would be considered a crime of treason. The convergence of smartphones has made it much easier for authorities to track down participants in riots like these, as with the increase in social media culture regarding participation in certain big events has led to people often posting their activities on social media through accounts that have their credentials, thus their address, etc. The authorities then used this data to track down these people and hold them accountable for their actions. The protestors were then put in danger of being caught due to this convergence in smartphone technology with rioting, as well as the development in social media culture.

Evolution over Time:

- Historical Perspective: Due to smartphones in technological convergence for mass communicative media in this digital age, it has become much easier for rallies like this to happen in larger masses, as the distribution of information is much more widespread through the use of internet and social media. (missing a comparison to other historical movements)

- Global Comparisons: -

Essential Smartphone Features:

- Live Streaming: Trump's rally was livestreamed, and a lot of his tweets were tweeted live during the riots to ufrther