Human Flesh Search Engine: December 2011

Thursday, December 29, 2011

Posted

I've updated most of the pages above (with the rest still in the works) and posted links to my thesis and bibliography. In order to best view them, I have posted links to their respective locations in my Google Documents folder. Should you require or want another means to view them, please e-mail me and let me know.

Getting Up

I'm finally starting to work on this blog and set up the foundations. This blog will primarily aim to focus news stories and articles I find that are relevant to the Human Flesh Search Engine phenomenon which I researched and wrote about for my undergraduate honors thesis in 2010. I will post news stories as I come across them related to the Chinese internet, microblogs in China, and Chinese internet vigilantism and work to explain the article's implications with the Human Flesh Search Engine, and how it ties into my previous (and on-going) research.

In the pages underneath the blog's header you will soon be able to find a page dedicated to the most infamous and notable cases of the Human Flesh Search Engine being used to expose individuals. You will also be able to read my undergraduate thesis and view the list of sources I used in writing it. Last I will post some links that are relevant to the topic, as well as a page about myself, my background, and my interest in Chinese history.

What is Human Flesh Search?

Human Flesh Search (HFS) is a recent, unique phenomenon on the Chinese internet. Comprising thousands of forum, entertainment, and social media websites and mobilizing the overwhelming number of Chinese internet users, HFS is able to quickly find obscure information and identify seemingly anonymous internet personalities. Through clever investigative work, online vigilantes hunt down an individual's identity with the goal of bringing about "justice" - often getting the individual fired, shamed, or simply punished. Those exposed through the search engine lose all anonymity, with personal information displayed to people all over the world. On the other hand, those who seek and reveal this information have the luxury to hide behind aliases. As the internet in China continues to expand and become accessible to a wider net of the Chinese population, it is argued that the power of HFS will need to be reined in.

Contact

If you would like to contact me for any reason, or have come across a relevant article or piece of research on the subject matter, please feel free to e-mail me.

Email: vincentcapone@gmail.com

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This blog is used solely for the purpose of extending my academic research beyond conventional means and to keep readers and myself up to date with the evolution and growth in the academic subject matter. No material is used for commercial gain.

If you feel something is posted on this blog that shouldn't be, or you feel that the blog author has infringed on copyright then please e-mail the address above to have the content taken down.