The Misconception of Hackers. Are they doing anything wrong?

            I want to bring the light the controversial topic of “hacking.” In today’s society, there are two very distinct opinions on the nature of hacking. Many people believe that people who “hack” are merely troublemakers, attempting to disrupt the formal institutions that govern our society. However, I believe differently along with scholars such as Peter Ludlows in his article “Wikileaks and the Hacktivist Culture.” Ludlow believes that they are fighting for what they believe to be ethical: that all information should be free. He refers to this belief as “hacktivisim” which is defined as “the application of information technologies (and the hacking of them) to political action” (Ludlow). It is this idea that also helps change the aditude towards the recreation of other work to be acceptable. I believe that remix culture is just another form of hacking as it takes multiple media forms and with manipulation is able to create something new that portrays an entirely different message.

            When one imagines a stereotypical hacker, they think of what is portrayed in the media: young teenagers. However, there are hackers from all classes, age groups and races. Thus, it is not a common background that connects these people, but a shared belief: that it is a free world, and information should be available to all people. Many people criticize hackers for attempting to disregard the formal institutions that govern our society. These critics believe that hackers are stealing, and do not wish to follow our communities laws. This is seen to be untrue, due the fact that hackers are not inherent troublemakers; they are trying to gain the rights to all information legally. They are doing this by gaining seats in government, such as the “Pirate Party” which is now a member of the Swedish parliament.

            I believe that this is a complex and controversial issue, due to the fact that I can see the rationale behind both sides of the argument. I understand that the government and many other formal institutions are in place in order to keep us safe, and I would like to believe that everything they do is for the greater good. Ignorance is a very dangerous state of being, and if something terrible were to happen to our society, I would like to be able to protect both my family and myself. Thus, I believe that in a perfect world, the average individual would have access to all information that was applicable to their lives. Yet, knowledge that could cause any potential danger to our society would be kept private.