Social media and new media make it easy to share topics you are personally interested in. Hashtags make it easier to keep up with specific stories and on twitter help collaborative journalism to stay in an easy to reach tag. One example of this is the recently detained Rap and Hip-Hop artist A$AP Rocky. Over Twitter and Instagram the #FreeASAP and #JusticeForRocky hashtags have been shared, making it easy to keep up with his story in Sweden. Here's what I found through searching more using these tags on social sites.
With tour dates set and festivals lined up, ASAP Rocky cancelled his European appearances last week after being detained in Sweden after a court ruled he would stay in pre-trial detention for two weeks.
After video of a brawl between Rocky’s crew and two apparent “Drug addicts” was shared on Instagram June 30th, ASAP volunteered to go in with officers for questioning and was then detained on-site after a concert in Stockholm. Rocky claims that the two men involved were not fans and had followed him and his crew for many blocks being disrespectful to not only him but other people passing by and on the street.
According to TMZ, recent updates have laid out a picture that conditions in which ASAP is being held are less than sanitary and outrageous. The site claims that sources close to Rocky say conditions include “feces hurled about and not cleaned up, wretched food and facilities that are not fit for human beings.” Although proof of this is not clear, Rocky’s manager, John Ehmann,says that ASAP Rocky himself has not talked to TMZ about the conditions in which he is staying. Lawyers did, however, file an appeal based on inhumane conditions and human rights violations. The appeal was denied by the Swedish court. Ehmann is still in contact with the US embassy in Sweden as they try to work through the legal specifics of this case as he presented in an Instagram post.
After news broke of ASAP Rocky’s arrest, many fans and other artists, as well as U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat, came to the support claiming the nature of the arrest had been improper and that the Swedish police were trying to make an example of American tourists and celebrities. Twitter hashtags such as #FreeASAP and #JusticeForRocky became trending as more news was released on the topic with artists talking about unfair and unjust situations they too had been in.
If convicted, ASAP Rocky could face a sentence of up to six years for aggravated assault. A petition, currently at 74,000 signatures. is circling to #FREEASAP.
Collaborative Reporting through social media has gained traction through hashtags because it makes it easy to follow stories through links, especially when these hashtags go viral or start trending. they can create a change and awareness, for example the petition to free ASAP Rocky has grown tremendously through sharing of links through the hashtag.
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