#6 The Development of Social Media and Federalist Papers (ym)

     Social media has a significant impact in the US politics today. Well not only in the United States because a Japanese teenager, like me, can comment about President Donald Trump's presidency, and it can start a whole conversation about US politics or even the US-Japan relationship, literally anything. The internet has also made American democracy more inclusive that it was in the Founders' Day, amplifying the voices of women, minorities, and other disadvantaged groups they excluded. The world changed with a greater freedom of speech, which the writers of the Federalist Papers have not expected at all.

     In 1787 and 1788, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay argued about the advantages and disadvantages of the new framework of United States government through newspapers. First of all, as I have mentioned above, the development of social media have allowed the public to share their opinions easily and freely. The development of technologies and globalization allow the people to share and receive information whenever they want to no matter where they are.

     Madison feared that congress would be the most dangerous branch of the federal government, sucking power into its "impetuous vortex." Therefore, I can say that the founding fathers might tremble and distress if they see the United States today. Media popularization has allowed the citizens to isolate themselves into virtual fractions, communicating only with the group of public who are interested in politics to reinforce their shared beliefs. Especially, social media can often share and spread misinformation and end up inflaming the public. Indeed, people on Facebook and Twitter are likely to be interested to aggressive and inflammable topics or posts. The passion that Madison was fearing from a large group of people have been proved that there are even more dangerous by people from all over the world meeting online.

     James Madison, in the Federalist Paper No.10, argued that a republican government should introduce a system of "representation"; here the elites who have knowledge, patriotism, and justice should have the perception of the government without the direct participation of the public. I think that Madison cannot argue this in this modern day, because politicians cannot betray the power of the public and prioritize their personal interests. This is because of the development of the public power by the developed technology such as social media. As the public share their opinions in social media such as Twitter, the politician will naturally be unable to stay in congress. However, I think that Madison was really saved by the development of social media. This is because on his Federalist Paper, he failed to consider the possibility that the politicians will prioritize their personal interests and use their status as a tool to earn a higher degree or salary. The whole argument of Madison in his republican government theory, was to function the mechanism of the perplex of personal interest and its deterrence by assuming their mutual conflicts.

     (Honestly, I was crying inside because I was mad that I did not speak up during class this week. I wanted to revenge and write a good blog post that is satisfying, but it didn't go well. As an outsider reading the Federalist Paper for the first time in my life, was difficult and it took me a long time to read. I will promise to myself that I will take risks and continue to challenge myself. I will try.)

Works Cited:
Akio, Y. Is the Republic Peaceful? An Aspect of American International Political Thought in Hamilton and Madison. (pp. 205-233).