Netizen power

Many people talk about how the internet can be harmful to society because of fake news and other spurious information that can be easily spread through it. As a technological tool, however, the impact of the internet still depends on the choices people make. One good choice is when netizens simultaneously express their moral sentiments in relation to a social issue, and when positive results actually happen.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources has recently issued a warning against the release of balloons in the air during special events, saying it is a violation of Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000. No doubt this warning came about as a result of the Okada Manila balloon drop affair, though the latter was about dropping 130,000 balloons on the ground, not releasing them into the air (where they will come down anyway).

The casino resort was forced to cancel what was supposed to be a record-breaking balloon dropping event on New Year’s Eve, after netizens protested and the DENR accordingly ordered it stopped. But it wasn’t just about a mob of netizens rising up to share their voices on an environmental issue. It’s more about the power of the compelling argument carried by the online ensemble.

Netizens, including pro-environment groups, said the balloon drop for a world record is “wasteful, unsustainable, and ecologically apathetic.” Organizers of the event, on the other hand, assured that the balloon drop will be held indoors and the balloons are “biodegradable” and will be recycled. But netizens countered that while the event “will be done indoors and follow waste disposal guidelines,” the activity itself still “contradicts the basic principles of environmental sustainability.”

The balloons, which emit greenhouse gases, will still end up as waste in landfills, harm wildlife, marine and terrestrial ecosystems, and clog sewage systems, said the group named The Climate Reality Project Philippines in a report by The Philippine STAR. And for what purpose, netizens asked: to celebrate New Year and break the current world record of 109,000 balloons dropped indoors?

In Cebu, organizers of a Sinulog party immediately cancelled their plan to release hundreds of sky lanterns during the party. In a report by Cris Evert B. Lato Ruffolo of Cebu Daily News online, La Vie in the Sky restaurant assured the public that the Sinulog party will push through without the sky lanterns. This after the restaurant received complaints from netizens within an hour after posting the advertisement about the event on their Facebook page. They thanked the people of Cebu for reacting.

These two cases show the role of the internet in enabling a more critical and politicized citizenry which results to more positive outcomes. These also show the changing power dynamics between consumers and service providers, with consumers gaining more power through enhanced social networking and communication tools.

Netizens with compelling arguments now represent an emerging social force that can challenge traditional levers of power both in business and in politics. Marketing and consumer behavior experts Umit Kucuk & Krishnamurthy (2007) in their study “An analysis of consumer power on the Internet” have this to say: “Consumers are also now creating new meanings and values about products and brands in these communities, and are shaping companies’ future strategies.”

“These consumers can also easily contact the company directly with a complaint, creating social pressure on the company’s operations. Consumers communicate with each other to create solutions among themselves, and push the company to change its decisions.”