Category: Uncategorized

DiscussionRacism culture in the United States of America has lasted since colonial times. This involved laws and actions that discriminated certain groups based on their race and negatively impacted their daily lives. This moral code became diffuse in the United States with time, such as discrimination against black Americans. They were denied equal privileges such as restrictions on economic, social, and political freedoms. The Native Americans faced segregation from the whites and were forced into slavery and kept in reserves, which is morally unacceptable. Slavery became a norm to the fact that it was supported by Christianity and resulted in poverty among the discriminated groups as they were denied equal access to resources and forced into slavery. The war between the native Americans and the whites was also a result of this unequal treatment as they tried to fight for their freedom, which led to disorganization in the society due to lack of peace. The problem of this culture was solved according to Durkheim as racial discrimination was banned in the 20th century and declared morally and socially unacceptable. When America was served by the first black president in 2009 to indicate America was into a new post-racial era, it was evident enough.

The impact of the global financial crisis on public private partnerships: a UK perspective

This chapter examines how Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) have been affected by the global financial crisis (GFC). After briefly discussing PPPs, particularly with reference to risk, the chapter outlines their contribution to the development of worldwide public infrastructure and highlights some initiatives designed to assist projects following the withdrawal of credit. It then analyses the effect the GFC has had on United Kingdom (UK) PPPs by investigating approximately 630 projects to assess whether difficulties in obtaining finance brought about by the crisis has led to a delay in PPPs reaching financial close. The findings confirm that PPPs currently in procurement are finding it more difficult to achieve financial close than pre-GFC projects and that therefore there are fewer PPPs now underway. The chapter concludes by looking at the future of PPPs in the UK following the change of government in 2010.

INTRODUCTION

Her Majesty’s Treasury (HMT) (2000) claims that PPPs bring the public and private sectors together in long term partnership for mutual benefit, asserting that the PPP label covers a wide range of different types of partnership including (p. 8):

the introduction of private sector ownership into state-owned businesses, with sales of either a majority or a minority stake;

arrangements where the public sector contracts to purchase services on a long-term basis so as to take advantage of private sector management skills incentivised by having private finance at risk. This includes concessions and franchises, where a private sector partner takes on the responsibility for providing a public service, including maintaining, enhancing or constructing the necessary infrastructure; and

selling government services into wider markets and other partnership arrangements where private sector expertise and finance are used to exploit the commercial potential of government assets.

In many cases, PPPs use a private company to design, build, finance and operate (DBFO) a new development such as a hospital or school over a contract period of 20-30 years. Throughout this period, payments are recouped from the public sector, which is ultimately responsible for the delivery of these services. When first introduced in the UK by the Conservative Government in 1992, the PPP initiative was met with relative scepticism and, although Labour opposed the scheme in opposition, it embraced PPP when it came to power in 1997. Since then the volume of PPPs, not only in the UK but throughout the world (Grimsey and Lewis, 2004), has increased significantly. Despite widespread criticism, the use of PPPs showed no sign of abating. However, the GFC that began in 2007 has significantly reduced the availability of private finance, and has therefore had a detrimental impact upon PPPs.

There are a number of well-documented reasons behind the GFC. One of the principal factors was the sharp rise in the number of subprime mortgages sold in the United States of America (USA) (Krinsman, 2007; Brunnermeier, 2009) and the subsequent ramifications in other countries, including the UK (Hall, 2008a). Uncertainty over the magnitude of the crisis has meant that banks have been reluctant to lend, with even the largest companies finding it difficult to obtain finance due to default and insolvency fears (Hall, 2008a). In the UK, the desire to safeguard existing PPPs and future infrastructure projects led at the time to government initiatives and increased borrowing from the European Investment Bank (EIB). Since, then, concerns over sovereign debt levels have also emerged in many countries within the European Union (EU) (for example Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal) as well as elsewhere (for example, Japan and the USA). These concerns have exacerbated financial nervousness. Whilst Burger et al. (2009) provide some general statistics for how the GFC has affected PPPs in a number of countries; this chapter examines approximately 630 PPPs in the UK, a key user of this procurement method, to assess the impact of the GFC on the programme.

In terms of the format of the chapter, the next section reviews the literature associated with PPPs and risk. The effect of the GFC on PPP funding is then considered, together with several of the initiatives designed to safeguard existing and future projects. The methodology is then outlined before the research findings are presented and conclusions drawn.

public private partnerships

The introduction of PPPs was in response to concerns about the need to provide public infrastructure despite the high level of public debt, which grew rapidly during the macroeconomic dislocation of the 1970s and 1980s. As a consequence, pressure mounted to change the standard model of public procurement. In essence, a PPP is a contract between government and a consortium of private companies (referred to as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)), under which the latter is required to DBFO an asset in return for payment over a number of years for both the cost of construction and the operation of the related service. Such payments may be based on either direct user charges (for example, toll roads), or a unitary payment from a public authority or a combination of both (Grimsey and Lewis, 2004).

The original objective of PPPs in the UK was to enable new infrastructure to be provided outside of the public sector borrowing requirement; however when Labour came into power in 1997 the emphasis shifted towards the achievement of value for money (VFM). This change in focus was in response to an amendment of Financial Reporting Standard (FRS) 5 which stated that the purchaser (the public sector) was required to demonstrate that the involvement of the private sector offered VFM when compared with alternative ways of providing the services (Accounting Standards Board (ASB), 1998). This VFM calculus was achieved by valuing the transfer of risk from the public to the private sector, with VFM being assessed through a comparison of the Public Sector Comparator (PSC) – the hypothetical cost of undertaking a project under conventional procurement – with the cost of procuring via PPP. VFM was deemed to be achieved when the price established under the PSC exceeded the price offered by the most competitive private bidder.

Since its conception, PPP has been heavily criticised. Some critics argue that the transfer of risk to the private sector is inappropriate, overvalued or does not take place at all. This criticism is on the basis that PPPs are rarely terminated, often due to potentially high litigation and counter claims by contractors (Hencke, 2003). Furthermore, as essential public services must continue to be delivered even if the contractor fails, this risk cannot be transferred. Edwards et al. (2004), for example, raised concerns over the level of risks actually being transferred and questioned whether those who are not best able to manage the risks are bearing them nonetheless, with the public sector being left with risks which are not easily quantified. Broadbent et al. (2008) also found that with regard to 17 PPP health projects certain items could be made invisible, whilst others that were either deemed more significant or possibly easier to monitor, were given unprecedented attention. Moreover, Pollock and Price (2008, p. 176) suggested that ‘the government’s central justification for PPP in terms of risk transfer remains largely unevaluated’ due to a lack of oversight in this area by government and reported that out of 622 PPP contracts signed up to October 2007, ‘only 10 financial inquiries into central government operational PFIs had been undertaken by the NAO [National Audit Office] by 2006, and of these only three examined the relationship between risk transfer and risk premiums’ (p. 177).

The risks posed by the GFC and today’s continuing market turbulence on PPPs stem from the interaction of threats and vulnerabilities. Burger et al. (2009, p. 10) identify the follows threats (i.e. the likelihood of a negative event occurring in the future):

The risk of an increase in interest rates leading to increasing costs, liquidity problems and project feasibility considerations for private partners and the possible postponement of projects by the government or it having to inject cash to support the SPV;

The risk of credit being unavailable leading to the termination of existing projects, existing projects failing to reach financial close and capital injections from government;

The risk of a decline in stock market prices leading to banks having reduced capital, which affects their ability to lend and causes reduced investment in new and existing PPPs;

The risk of exchange rate depreciation making new investments that rely on external borrowing less attractive, with private partners being tempted to export their services thus reducing the pool of domestic bidders; and

The risk that there is a slump in domestic demand leading to liquidity problems for private partners and lower domestic revenue for governments, meaning lower investment for new and existing PPPs.

PPP vulnerabilities (i.e. the preparedness of the partners to either prevent a threat or cope with its impact) to market turbulence can be project specific or extend more widely. The former includes overly optimistic revenue projections (for example, with respect to toll roads) while the latter may be related to the institutional framework. The institutional context is fundamental to managing PPPs to secure their benefits whilst containing the risks, which can be can be classified in a number of ways.

The ASB (1998) identified six main risks: demand; residual value; design; performance/availability; potential changes in relevant costs; and obsolescence. Moreover, a distinction may be made between commercial, macroeconomic and political risk. Macroeconomic risks entail aggregate demand risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk and exchange rate risk. The materialisation of macroeconomic risk can, in turn, cause other risks. For instance, interest rate or demand risk can cause credit risk. Risk may also be categorised as exogenous and endogenous, with the latter being those risks that can be actively managed by changing behaviour. The risk management philosophy underpinning VFM has long asserted that risk should be allocated to the party best suited to carry, or manage, that risk. In principle, this should incentivise each party to act in a manner that manages the risk allocated to them and therefore improves the overall efficiency of the PPP.

To best allocate risk, two questions need to be answered (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), 2008): first, which party is best able to prevent an adverse occurrence from occurring, and thereby ensure that the actual outcome conforms as closely as possible to the expected outcome; and second, in the case where no party can prevent an adverse occurrence (an exogenous risk), which party is best able to manage its outcome. Different parties carry different types and amounts of risk, and not all are affected in the same way. This may alter the attractiveness of PPPs for the parties most affected and reduce their interest in participating in PPPs unless they are compensated. As such they may not want to: enter into new PPPs; refinance debt in existing PPPs; or continue operating under an existing agreement. Risk can be managed in several ways including through (OECD, 2008): risk avoidance – the risky activity is not undertaken as, for example, when a public body forgoes an investment; risk prevention – action is taken to reduce vulnerabilities, for example, when a PPP consortium borrows in domestic currency to avoid exchange rate risk; and risk transfer – risk is transferred to another party through a contractual arrangement, such as minimum traffic guarantees.

The notion of ‘risk transfer’ plays an important role in justifying PPPs. Firstly, it is a key element in Eurostat’s definition of whether the debt is treated as being on or off the government’s balance sheet. Secondly, it is used, especially in the UK, to justify the use of PPPs which do not demonstrate that they are better value than the public sector option. This occurs when the aforementioned PSC is compared with a PPP bid and the latter is made less expensive by factoring in risk. However, transferring risk is not free. While it is possible to create contracts that transfer the risk of construction delays to the contractor, such contracts cost about 25 per cent more than conventional contracts (Hall, 2008b). Nor is risk transfer necessarily the best policy option, and it needs to be subjected to a cost-benefit analysis. For example, a theoretical analysis of risks and PPPs concluded that it is most efficient for demand risk to remain with governments (Engel et al., 2011). The International Monetary Fund (2004, p. 14) warns that governments may ‘overprice risk and overcompensate the private sector for taking it on, which would raise the cost of PPPs relative to direct public investment’. It is argued that this may have occurred in the UK as no attempt appears to have been made to monitor if risk transfer happens in reality, or how much benefit it really brings (Pollock and Price, 2008).

THE IMPACT OF GFC ON PPPs

The value of PPPs in Europe (excluding the UK) rose sharply during the period 2004 to 2006 to approximately €18 billion per annum (European PPP Expertise Centre (EPEC), 2010). The total value of PPPs signed by the end of 2006 was €31.6 billion, of which €23.6 billion were signed between 2004 and 2006. Moreover, at the start of 2007, projects valued at €67.6 billion were in procurement (Hall, 2008a). In the UK, the annual PPP programme increased from nine projects valued at £667 million in 1995 to 65 projects valued at £7.6 billion in 2002 (HMT, 2003). In addition, it was estimated that a further 200 projects with a total value of £26 billion would be closed between 2005 and 2010 (HMT, 2006). However, the value of PPP transactions reaching financial close fell sharply across Europe in 2008 and 2009 (from a high of approximately €30 billion in 2007) and, whilst returning to the 2004-6 levels in 2010, it remains well below the record years of 2005-7 (EPEC, 2010). In terms of the number of transactions, the UK remains by far the most active market across the European Union, with 44 PPP deals reaching financial close in 2010 (EPEC, 2010) and 20 during the first half of 2011 (with a total value of approximately €1.8 billion) (EPEC, 2011a). In value terms, Spain was the largest PPP country in 2010 (with 13 deals totalling approximately €4.4 billion) (EPEC, 2010), with France being the largest during the first half of 2011 (with eight deals totalling approximately €8 billion). Regardless of the improvement in 2010 and the first half of 2011 reflected in the figures above, the numbers and value of PPP transactions remain considerably less than those observed prior to 2008. To put the extent of this reduction in context, while the value of all European PPP deals for 2007 was approximately €30 billion, this figure had fallen to €18.3 billion in 2010 (recovering from just over €15 billion in 2009); this represents a decline of 39 per cent. (See Figure 1 for an illustration of the financial details of European PPPs between 2003 and 2011a.) Moreover, few large deals closed in the UK in 2010 and the first half of 2011 (EPEC, 2010 and 2011a).

FIGURE 1 European PPP Market 2003-2011 by € Billion

Source: EPEC, 2011b

PPPs are normally funded by 90 per cent debt finance and 10 per cent equity finance. Equity is higher risk as it will be lost first if the project company fails. Therefore, such shareholder loans are seen as junior to the external debt, known as senior debt, which is repaid first (NAO, 2010). Between 1995 and 2002 the use of both indexed linked and wrapped bonds in the financing of PPPs grew (see Kirk and Wall (2002) for a fuller explanation). However, following the 2007 housing market decline, the monoline industry, which guaranteed bond repayment if an issuer defaulted, collapsed resulting in the closure of the wrapped bond market (BBC, 2009). Consequently, the only viable source of finance for infrastructure projects was banks; however, the demise of Lehman Brothers in September 2008, widely accepted as the tipping point for the GFC, meant that the global interbank lending market dried up as banks stopped trusting each other. At the height of the crisis, banks were unable to fund themselves at the wholesale money market reference rates and there were suggestions that those rates had become unrepresentative. This constraint on liquidity meant:

less debt available for any given project and the need for a consortium of banks for all but the smallest of projects;

a higher price of debt, making it harder for privately financed deals to beat the PSC;

a shorter term for debt leading to refinancing risk and hedging issues; and

greater conditionality relating to the debt during the procurement phase.

A global review by PricewaterhouseCoopers (2008) reported that interest rates for lending to infrastructure projects had risen between 1.5 and 2 per cent above the lowest rates obtainable by governments, causing difficulties for both existing and future PPPs. Indeed, the NAO (2010) found that loan margins (i.e. above the interbank rate) for UK PPP projects had increased to around 2.5 per cent on average, with some complex projects facing margins of 3 per cent. EPEC (2010) reports similar commercial debt pricing. With respect to existing PPPs, loan repayments become more difficult, refinancing problematical due to the reluctance of banks to provide funding and, for concession-type PPPs such as toll roads, forecasted earnings are unlikely to be achieved due to a slump in domestic demand (Hall, 2009). Consequently, as reported above, the flow of new PPPs has slowed down.

Standard and Poor’s (2008) warned that some Spanish public authorities may have their credit rating revised downwards unless expenditure on employment and services is reduced because of the inflexible burden of PPP debt coupled with declining tax revenues due to the GFC. Ironically, this will increase the cost of debt and further reduce uncommitted income. In other countries there is also evidence that PPPs are being cancelled because of the GFC. For example, in Ireland, six social housing PPPs have been cancelled, a planned prison PPP was postponed indefinitely (Hall, 2009) and a metro PPP has been deferred (Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, 2011). In Australia, despite its extensive use of the PPP model, there has also been a renewed questioning of overinflated traffic forecasts (Ferguson, 2009; KPMG, 2009a) following the failure of a number of projects.

The GFC has also had a significant impact on PPPs in the UK with only 34 deals being signed in 2008 (Hall, 2009), which was approximately half that of 2007 and the lowest level of activity for over a decade (Kapoor, 2008). Although, as noted above, EPEC reports that this has recovered slightly to 44 deals in 2010 (albeit the value of such deals is much lower). The NAO (2010, p. 9) highlighted that as well as charging higher margins, banks are adopting a more cautious approach to lending following the credit crisis and are as a result: lowering the proportion of debt in projects; requiring the private sector to inject equity earlier; and placing more onerous conditions on when the private investors can withdraw cash from the project. Hence, UK public service programmes that currently rely on PPPs may suffer. Moreover, the GFC led to the collapse of land and property values which contributed to the failure of businesses, declines in consumer wealth, substantial financial commitments incurred by governments and a significant decline in economic activity. This impacted upon PPP deals which involved disposal of land as part of the financing, and may have contributed to the termination of the Defence Training Review programme (see Case Studies) (Defence Policy and Business, 2010). Further issues include increased government guarantees, greater state involvement in some UK banks and direct HMT lending (see below) which makes the achievement of VFM more difficult. This increased public sector risk coincides with substantial strain being put on public finances, arguably due to the measures taken by the previous Labour Government to protect the fragile economic recovery, support growth and job creation and provide reassurance to capital markets (Ostry et al., 2010). Consequently, the Coalition Government has reversed a number of policies implemented by the previous Labour Government, including the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme (see Case Studies) (Richardson, 2010). Given these difficulties, the UK and other countries have sought to introduce measures to assist PPPs struggling to reach financial close. Some of these are now outlined.

UK Initiatives

Four main approaches being were trialled in the absence of traditional financial approaches in the UK; they were mini perm structures, HMT lending, the non-profit distributing model and the prudential borrowing framework. Each of these is now briefly explained.

Mini-perm structures

Broadly speaking, a mini-perm is a short-term financing tool, usually payable in three to five years and typically used to pay off income-producing construction or commercial properties. The term ‘perm’ is short for ‘permanent’, alluding to permanent financing, albeit for a short period of time as indicated by the word ‘mini’. Mini-perm financing might be used by a developer until a project has been completed and can therefore start producing income and establish an operating history. In other words, this type of financing is used prior to being able to access long-term financing or permanent financing solutions. The interest payable on a mini-perm will usually be higher that longer-term financing options, often with a balloon payment at the end of the term in anticipation that the loan can then be easily refinanced due to the fact that the asset now has an operating history on which to successfully obtain less-expensive permanent financing. They can be split into two distinct types – hard and soft (KPMG, 2009b). The former has a relatively short maturity, typically five to seven years, at which point the bulk of the loan remains outstanding. Arguments for hard mini-perms are that they force refinancing, which would be at prevailing market prices, and they allow the lenders to price on a short term basis. In contrast, soft mini-perms have a longer maturity, for example 26 years of a 28 year contract. Nevertheless, two features encourage early refinancing. Firstly, incremental step ups of 25-50 basis points at certain dates result in the cost of borrowing being more expensive if the loan is not refinanced. Secondly, a cash sweep at a certain date is used to repay the outstanding debt rather than distribute rewards to shareholders. In 2009, it was reported that two large PPP projects and one small one had been financed using a mini-perm; however, it was felt that these projects had caused affordability issues for the public sector and increased the private sector’s risk exposure (KMPG, 2009b). Therefore it is doubtful that such structures will prove to be much of a solution, particularly with their emphasis on refinancing which is less likely due to the GFC. An example of a large project using a soft mini-perm structure would be London’s Riverside waste-to-energy £570 million PPP, which reached financial close in July 2008.

HMT lending

In 2009, the Labour Government announced its intention to lend to PPPs which were unable to raise sufficient finance (HMT, 2009). The aim was not to replace banks or capital markets, but to provide additional funding, with the private sector and EIB continuing to supply the majority of finance. To qualify for HMT lending, there must have been a failure to secure finance following a competitive process and any funding offered must have been unrepresentative of market terms. These loans would still bear interest and be repaid over the life of the project. However, HMT hoped that if favourable market conditions returned the loans could be sold prior to maturity at a profit. These loans were to be issued by HMT’s own finance unit known as The Infrastructure Finance Unit (TIFU), which was established with the aim of supporting PPP schemes in procurement, thereby safeguarding £13 billion of public investment (HMT, 2009). These included the Greater Manchester waste project (see Case Studies), the M25 widening, Merseyside Waste, Building Schools for the Future (see Case Studies) and a number of hospital projects. However, TIFU only provided lending for the Greater Manchester waste project (see Table 5) and was subsequently placed under the umbrella of Infrastructure UK, which has a much wider role in reducing the cost of infrastructure projects (NAO, 2010). As with mini-perms TIFU loans were seen as a short-term solution until the project could obtain more conventional finance.

Non-Profit Distributing model (NPD)

Although similar to PPP, the main difference is that the NPD provides economic or social infrastructure financed 100 per cent by debt (90 per cent senior and 10 per cent junior). This differs from PPP deals, which normally consist of 90 per cent debt and 10 per cent equity. Under an NPD, SPV shareholders receive a capped return on their capital, with any surpluses remaining at the end of the contract being passed to a designated charity as opposed to being paid out as dividends. Subsequently the dividend opportunity is removed, which is considered to flatten out overall risks when compared to equity-based PPPs or public procurement. NPDs are therefore still attractive to banks, but not as popular with investors or bidders as they do not obtain the same returns (Hellowell and Pollock, 2009). This model was piloted in Scotland in the Argyll and Bute Council’s schools’ project, which reached financial close in September 2005. Since then, two more schools’ projects (in Falkirk and Aberdeen) reached financial close in May and December 2007 respectively. Moreover, the National Health Service in Tayside has used this model for a PPP and the Borders rail link project, which was announced in 2008, will also use NPD.

Prudential Borrowing Framework (PBF)

Although it could be argued that the PBF was not initiated in response to banks’ reluctance to lend, it does provide an alternative to PPP. Indeed, as it excludes the private sector from all aspects of the project apart from construction it is closer to traditional procurement. Under the Local Government Act 2003, local authorities were given greater freedom over their capital expenditures; therefore whilst most of their revenue still comes from central government, it now has less say over how this money is spent. Therefore local authorities are no longer forced down the PPP route by central government. However, whilst Hood et al. (2007) believe that the PBF has benefits, they feel it is not as robust as PPP regarding the treatment and allocation of risk. One UK local authority spent £11 million on a programme of highways structural work via the PBF, which they calculated would not only deliver a better long-term solution but would deliver savings of £1 million from the highways maintenance budget and reduce future liabilities by a further £1.9m. Moreover the resurfacing work would increase the operational life of the road and reduce the number of insurance claims and litigation from potholes created by adverse weather conditions. Had they gone down the PPP route they would have had to deal with the substantial running costs of such projects, complex contractual arrangements and extended contractual periods, all of which contribute to a heightened risk profile (Hood et al., 2007).

Other initiatives

PPPs in France have never been equivalent to PPPs elsewhere from a legal perspective, but recent financial turmoil has prompted financial reforms, there too. In order to alleviate the problems with the financial markets, several measures have been introduced (Hall, 2009). These include: a government guarantee for all PPP bank loans; tax allowances; allowing the government to advance to a bank the majority of the loan required by the private partner (thus enabling the bank to pass on lower interest rates obtainable by government); and allowing PPPs to be signed on the basis of ‘adjustable financing’ without finalising a deal with banks so that it can proceed on the basis of government advances while waiting for improved conditions in the financial market. PPPs have been widely promoted in developing countries for many years by the World Bank and other donors and development banks. However, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the World Bank’s private sector arm, believes that the GFC will make it even harder to finance PPPs. It estimates that projects totalling $110 billion may be delayed or cancelled, and that $70 billion of existing PPPs are at risk because of increased financing costs (IFC, 2008). Therefore, the IFC has created a global equity fund and a loan financing trust to support PPPs.

It can be seen therefore that the financial threats highlighted by Burger et al. (2009) have impacted on the PPP initiative. Interest rates have increased, credit has become less available, there has been a slump in domestic demand and increased borrowing from the EIB could expose the UK public sector to exchange rate risk.

METHODOLOGY

The data used for this research was obtained from two primary sources: HMT (2011) statistics for both signed projects (698) and those still in procurement (61) at 16 March 2011 and Partnerships UK’s (PUK) (2011) project database. The HMT signed projects’ list is revised on a six-monthly basis to reflect the updates HMT receives from departments at Budget and Pre-budget Review. The list of projects in procurement is also updated regularly. The PUK database holds details of 920 projects that have all achieved financial close. In compiling this database, PUK liaise with HMT, government departments, the Welsh Assembly and the Northern Ireland (NI) and Scottish Executives. The main reason for the difference between the HMT signed list of 698 projects and the PUK database of 920 is that the latter also contains non-PPP projects. Furthermore, with respect to the HMT list of both signed projects and those in procurement, the same amount of information is not provided for each project. Accordingly, for the purposes of this research, 570 (82 per cent) signed projects and 57 (93 per cent) of those in procurement were deemed useable.

In order to ascertain whether the GFC has led to delays in projects being closed, the length of time between the appearance of the project in the Official Journal of the EU (OJEU) and financial close was measured. The EU Public Procurement Directives require all public sector bodies to publish details of tenders and contract opportunities in the OJEU and financial close is deemed to be when both the bidder and the purchaser have reached agreement on: all the contractual documents; all relevant technical issues; and all matters affecting the unitary charge. The only remaining issue is for the bidder to fix the interest rate on the debt taken out to finance the project. Comparisons were then made between the length of time from the OJEU notice to financial close for projects signed since the beginning of the PPP scheme in 1992 and those in procurement at 16 March 2011. It was expected that these latter projects would have been delayed due to the reluctance of banks to lend.

Three case studies are also presented to demons

The Impact of the Internet on Traditional News Media

Name

Course

Course instructor

Date

This essay explains the impact of the internet on the traditional conventional media which currently encounters challenges of maintaining its primary role of being the only source of public information. Internet has become a universal news medium and the traditional media is on the receiving end since many people can access to the high speed internet which has become a part of modern life hence making almost everyone a journalist. The argument of this writing is to carefully examine, evaluate and analyze both the positive and negative impacts of the internet based on the creation of information as well as network society on the conventional media.

According to Scherer (2008), Internet has really enhanced communication amongst many people by making it quick and at global scale. It is undeniable that the internet through blogs and many other social media has created a sense of freedom which has enabled expression of thoughts and feelings liberally. On the other hand, traditional media restricts the freedom by making one person to communicate to many after carefully choosing the information while the receivers receive every information got from the media. Additionally, interactivity enhanced by the internet cannot be assumed as it is experienced in the social media such as Facebook and online forums where the public participate and interact through airing their views and asking questions. The social media empowers people to make an option on what to react or participate in through narrowcasting that minimizes interference from others (Chadwick & Howard, 2009).

Moreover, the internet has created a base in which people can acquire information in a most flexible and suitable way thus making the process more fashionable and likable than the traditional media. Ahlers and Hessen (2013), argue that most people globally obtain information from the online resources because of the instant and efficient style associated with the internet. Nevertheless, conventional media resources have really been challenged by online resources and World Wide Web, in fact, in most cases, the traditional media also obtains information from the online resources (Scherer, 2008).

Additionally, rapid development of the internet has really brought information revolution. It is obvious that the internet has made information available everywhere around the world thus reducing the world to a small global village. According to Ahlers & Hessen (2013), people have the capabilities of accessing the latest dimension of any information and even gain superb experience and knowledge which empowers them to be autonomous media producers. Individuals can now upload a video or any information of their own to the rest of the world either on the social media or even YouTube thus changing their self-perception, identity and determining their own destiny.

Ahlers & Hessen (2013), feel that negative and damaging effects of the internet on conventional media are seen to expose the latter to extinction. Internet has proved superior to the traditional media in terms of information media since more people search online news and information. Television is nowadays substituted by computers which most people enjoy and find useful while searching for any information. Introduction of digital television has led to more complex network and even development of HDTV that enables people to watch high quality images via installation of the internet into the television. Moreover, the dominant role of newspaper in reaching a huge populace of audience is no longer in existence.

Chadwick & Howard (2009), online media has made some newspaper to lose their readership and their survival largely depends on their ability to embrace new technology, and maintain their relevancy through restructuring of their organization and content. Online newspapers have become dominant of late because they provide detailed information by including some vital links to the primary source of information after just a click. It is evident that the daily printed newspaper is in great shock and is therefore supposed to conform to the new technological advancement to appeal to the young readers. Perhaps the exploring nature of newspaper will be retained amid the transformations.

Radio is not left out in this case as most of the listeners browse or may be decide to listen to online news thus leading to many journalism crossover experienced. Ahlers & Hessen (2013), argue that the internet provides a base in which one can tune in to previous news or information from the radio which the traditional radio functions cannot do. This makes the internet more reliable and convenient to people who could have not listen to probably an interesting program the previously.

Radio has also been transformed by the internet in such a way that people listen to radio via other forms such as digital radio as well as internet radio. According to Scherer (2008), the internet has enabled online broadcasting which has grabbed ears of many listeners across the world thus providing a superior and efficient alternative to the traditional on air broadcasting. Additionally, the conventional on air broadcasting is limited by signal range thus limiting its spread to a wide geographical area or to a global perspective unlike the online broadcasting that is available everywhere provided there is internet coverage.

Generally internet has become the major source of information to the public due to its flexibility that enables individuals to find it easy sharing and responding to information. Individuals have gained incredible knowledge, experience and independence when it comes to creation of information thus making them more creative in the media environment. Traditional media should adopt and meticulously embrace the new information technology to ensure their existence and eliminate possible extinction. The internet has transformed the media environment in such a way that the needs of the public are met and even contributing to public journalists. Perhaps restructuring the traditional media and introducing regulation on the consumption of the internet media would rescue the conventional media whose content still remains vital.

References

Ahlers, Douglas & Hessen. (2013). Traditional Media in the Digital Age Data about News Habits and Advertiser Spending Lead to a Reassessment of Media’s Prospects And Possibilities. Nieman Foundation. Retrieved From Http://Www.Nieman.Harvard.Edu/Reports/Article/100642/Traditional-Media-In-The-Digital-Age.Aspx

Chadwick, A., & Howard, P. N. (2009). Routledge Handbook of Internet Politics. London: Routledge.

Scherer, Michael. (2008, March, 24). The Internet Effect on News. Time Swampland. Retrieved From Http://Swampland.Time.Com/2008/03/24/The_Internet_Effect_On_News/

Name:

Professor:

Course:

Date:

Racism in ‘Get Out’

‘Get Out’ is a critically acclaimed 2017 film directed by Jordan Peele. It is a horror film centered on racial relations and issues in the United States. The film marked Peele’s directorial debut and earned multiple nominations and awards such as Best Original Screenplay and Best Picture at the 90th Academy Awards. Peele explained that one of the main motivations for the film was to expose race issues that most people still sweep under the rug. A perfect example of this is the fact that Obama had been president, which meant that racism was effectively dead. Peele also took aim at white liberals who think that they cannot be racist, minimizing the problem without recognizing their role in it. The film highlights many fears such as racial discrimination that minority groups in America go through, and the film employs various devices such as symbolism and metaphors to address race relations in the country.

Racial profiling is one fear that minorities face every day, shown in the interaction between Chris and the police officer. While on their way to meet Rose’s parents, Chris and Rose hit a deer and they call the police. When the police arrive on the scene, the officer asks Chris for his license even though Rose was the one driving (MovieClips Trailers 0: 45). Interactions between African-American males and the police have been a major part of racial profiling in the country. There have been multiple shootings and fatalities resulting from a simple interaction that quickly escalated, or even from unprovoked assault. Many black men fear approaching or being approached by the police out of fear that they might end up dead for no reason at all. There is some bias within the police force, and ‘Get Out’ highlights this issue in the scene between Chris and the officer. Rose protests, explaining that there is no need to ask Chris for his ID, but unfortunately Chris recognizes that this is what he expects from a police officer.

Another fear that minorities experience is the belittling of their everyday struggles, quite evident in the film. The idea of a post-racial America is one that was widely taunted especially after the US elected its first black president. However, many individuals still experience racial discrimination in their lives, and dismissing these struggles just because the president is a black man is unfortunate. During the party at the Armitage estate, Chris experiences a lot of racial micro-aggressions as everyone tries to prove that they are not racist. A perfect example of this is when Rose’s father said he would vote for Obama a third time. Tiger Woods is also mentioned as a way to show that black men hold powerful positions, and the white liberals accept and praise them. This can be explained as liberal racism, where people try to deflect from real issues by pointing out the positives and distancing themselves from the negatives.

Eyes and cameras are important symbols in exploring racism in the film ‘Get Out.’ The eyes are the organs with which we perceive the outside world and the happenings around us. Chris’ eyes are a major part of his craft as a photographer. When he and Rose go to visit her parents, he takes his camera with him. When he tries to take a photo of Logan who looks familiar to him, he sets off an unexpected reaction. Logan tells him to ‘get out’, a phrase Chris will later come to understand. Cameras and videos have become a crucial part of exposing racial discrimination today, which makes the camera significant in the film. Jim Hudson, a blind art dealer, wants to take over Chris’ body and see through his artistic eyes, which essentially translates to robbing him of Chris of his most important organs. Taking away Chris’ eyes takes away his vision and opportunities, something that minority groups have experienced.

Peele uses metaphors in ‘Get Out’ to highlight how inaction leads to grave consequences with regard to racial issues. Chris lost his mother at a young age and was not there when she passed away. Under hypnosis, Chris admits that he did nothing as his mother suffered. In an interview with the New York Times, Peele explained that the act of watching TV represents inactivity and complacency during critical moments (Zinoman 1). Everyone is aware that there is a serious race issue in the country, but most people would rather sit back and do nothing. Some of the grave consequences include death, exclusion and discrimination of minority groups. The fear of speaking up is because people want to downplay racism and avoid rustling feathers, an approach which will only exacerbate the problem.

In summary, the horror film ‘Get Out’ does an exceptional job of tackling a heavy subject in society today; racism. Peele brings a new perspective of what a horror film looks like and addresses serious topics in the process. There are many symbols and metaphors in the satirical film that enhance the theme of the movie. The movie is particularly relevant today as the country continues to grapple with race issues and a growing awareness of racism. The idea of liberal racism also comes out quite clearly, showing that people can be racist without intending to be, or cause further problems by minimizing the issue. Electing a black president should not be the end of it, every minority individual must be treated with the dignity and respect that they deserve just like any other person.

Works Cited

MovieClips Trailers. “Get Out Official Trailer 1 (2017)” YouTube. 5 October 2017. www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzfpyUB60YYZinoman, Jason. “Jordan Peele on a Truly Terrifying Monster: Racism” The New York Times. 16 February 2017. www.nytimes.com/2017/02/16/movies/jordan-peele-interview-get-out.html

Racism in Education Field

Student’s Name

Institution

Racism in Education Field

How are cultism, peer pressure, corruption and nepotism realities in the education sector differ from racism realities in the education field? It is an inquisitive question that lingers in many people mind and may take longer to come up with the correct facts. There arise distinct differences between the target realities which include cultism, peer pressure, corruption as well as nepotism and the non-target truth, racism in the learning institutions. In many instances, racism is subtle as is precise and challenging to describe compared to the other realities that are significant points of focus when it comes to unethical values in the education forum. The Africa-Americans, Asians and the minority groups in the United States community become the most affected victims when it comes to issues regarding racism. The humiliating reality does not only affect the students but it also significantly impacts the tutors as well as the community at large (Troyna & Williams 2012). In the discussion below, racism reality in the education sector is explained into a profound extent as well as its juxtaposition with the peer pressure, corruption, nepotism, and cultism realities in the same field.

The education sphere is enormous as it involves all the members of the community starting from the students, teachers, parents and guardians, the government as well as the public. At long last, the skills and knowledge acquired by the learners will not only be used for individual benefits but will also be essential in community development and enhancement of social-economic as well as political stability. All of the members mentioned above can be a victim of unethical reality either directly or indirectly, and it significantly hurts. Many refer to racism in the learning institution as unintentional or an unconscious deed that the participant commits unaware (Leonardo, 2013). However, to a to an extreme extent I tend to disagree with it as everyone in the field tends to have cognition hence end up determining the demoralized act through ignorance.

The racial reality has negatively impacted the society as the victims either end up as failures or performing less than their capability. It is a significant source of the achievement gap that hinders many from going for their potential goals at the millennium age. Let us take an example of a black student who is discouraged by her professor who teaches her mathematics that she is not capable of achieving better grades as her white counterparts in the subject. The student will feel inferior as well as have a fear of approaching that particular tutor when she comes to a challenging point when studying the issue and at the end, the manifested failure comes into reality. Why discriminate others while one does not know the potential capability of the other person? Racism reality in school may not be directly portrayed. For example, the tutor may be avoiding to ask the black and minority group student questions assuming that they do not know the answer. Another instance may be the case of tutors knowing the names of all white pupils in a class while he or she does not have the interest of identifying the black and other minority students in the same category. Such a tutor will only be bothered by the success and whereabouts of the whites leaving aside the others to incur low performance in the related course (Ladson-Billings & Tate 2016).

How are the target realities faced in the education sector in the nation? It is inquisitive that the government and the community at significant tries to find the practical solutions now and then. Peer pressure, corruption, nepotism, and cultism are the everyday realities that are faced in the learning institutions where in some sound measures have been put in place while the others are yet. These realities are contradictory with racism in various ways. At first, the target realities are inclusive of all the people involved in the sector sphere which is not the case with racism which only touches the minority and isolated groups to a broad extent. For instance, cultism consists in being a member of a devoted group, and this can be inclusive of every student whether white, black, Asian or from the minority group. Cultism leads to the involvement of the young people to immoral vices such as alcoholism, rape, early sexual activities, burglary and exposure to abuse of illegal substances. It is a direct influence which the participant has to choose of whether taking the oath or not getting involved with the group’s activities. Cultism misconduct depends on the individual cognition, and the case is the same when it comes to peer pressure, nepotism and corruption activities (Harper 2012). Therefore, the contrast between them and racism is vibrant as with racism the victim has no chance to choose as the person is segregated with regards to the skin color, ethnicity or the social status.

When one dictates racism to a victim, it is inevitable for the casualty to reject as it is unintentional and nothing more can be done. For instance, take the example of the act of the government paying the Africa-American, Asian and minority group tutors lower salaries than other white teachers with the same qualification level. It is disgusting and discouraging but nothing can be done out of the fear of being regarded as a troublemaker, and the result will be an act of getting fired. According to the research, the Africa-American, Asian and minority group tutors only takes around ten percent of the tutors in the nation. Therefore, they do not have the majority force in the education sector that may be effective to fight for their equal rights. The best option remains to be keeping silence and secure the job opportunity than talking and getting dismissed. When it comes to the other realities in the education field such as corruption and nepotism, it is evident that the teaching staff of the particular institution join hands, demonstrate and efficiently pass their views to the government agents for significant actions to be put in place in settle the issues.

Who will be the advocate to fight for the rights of the Africa-American, Asian and minority groups in the nation? As seen above the racism reality significantly affects the marginalized group tutors as they incur act of underpayment which is against their will. However, the case is not different in the learning institutions like the black and marginalized groups do not have the freedom of airing their views to the teachers and other institution leaders. The number of African-American and other minority groups students being suspended from schools is high than that of the white students in the same institutions (Grubb & Leonardo 2013). It has been revealed that probability of a white student being dismissed regardless of the fault is three times less than the possibility of a black or minority student being suspended.

For instance, consider the example of the white student who was a witness of a racism reality involving the head of school, a group of white students and a group of black students in the same institution. The principal on his regular duties came across the group of white girls walking along the hallway during the class time, but she alters that they are not supposed to be loitering around at that time. They were left to go on with their concerns with the intervention that they had performed well with high-grade point aggregates. At the same time after walking for a distance, the principal spotted the group of black boys loitering around the dormitories, and they were shattered and ordered to go back to the class immediately. The White student was touched by the principal’s act of racism claiming that there was a possibility of the black boys having higher grade point aggregate than hers. The African-American boys could not argue with the tutor as the next step could be their dismissal from the learning institution. It is a relevant example of how the minority groups and blacks are forced to swallow the painful deeds of racisms in the education sector with no response as well as efforts to fight for equity.

When it comes to the other realities, all the students regardless of their ethnicity has the right and capability of airing their views and making decisions. Taking an example of corrupt school staff, the students, in general, will be considerate in gaining a sound conclusion which can be reporting the case to the institution’s head or another leader. In the fact of peer pressure, ethnicity is not a fierce vice as when it comes to joining the specific group and making them friends is a personal decision whether white, black or belong to the minority group. Therefore, the issues regarding racism are sensitive and a threat to the well-being of significant components of the education field as its root have been dug deep in the society leaving the victims helpless. The participants need to understand that it is by nature and not a personal choice to choose which ethnicity that one belongs to as well as the social status as it will significantly influence them to stop the mischievous conducts or segregation (Gillborn 2016).

Many learning institutions as well as other education-related perpetuates the racist ideology and becomes a threat to their performance and development in general. Integrity differs from one individual to the regarding personal cognition, but the differences are not determined by the race or the social status that one belongs to. It is evident that a significant number of students who performs better in the nation are from the needy families as well as the Africa-Americans and the Asians. This signifies that with conducive learning environment all the students are capable of performing better to their capability levels. Also, when it comes to the tutors and other members of education forum from the black and minority groups their performance is pleasing as in consideration of their experience and skills level, they are capable of delivering services to the same extent as their white counterparts. Therefore, it is depicted that all people are equal and are capable of achieving their goals if postulated to the conducive environments free from the racism that degrades personality as well as demoralizing the victims from putting extra efforts in the involved field.

In alleviating racism as a worker in the education sector, various methods such as educating the teaching staff on the ways to avoid unintended racism, teach students on equity ideologies as well as seeking government’s intervention in improving the salary of the black and minority group teachers as well as their working conditions will be applied. In educating the tutors about racism avoidance techniques, I will put into consideration the three principles which include rigor, relationships and relevance. To start with is relationships. It is an essential element in determining the performance of both the students and the teacher. As a tutor relate friendly with all the students in such a way that they are free to approach and participate in the class sessions. Do not justify or ignore any student regardless of the ethnicity as it will bring embarrassment and later affect the overall performance of the particular student. Also, it is vital to incur some fear to the students in such a way that they will adhere to the instructions given and they will not hesitate to do assignments as well as participating in class (Flintoff et al. 2015). Discipline is a critical factor in their performance, and it is employed to them through punishment as well as guidance and counselling.

The other element vital in teaching is relevance. As a tutor use relevance examples in class and avoid the use of the ones that portray racial segregation and diversity. Significance also enhances better understanding of the point put in place by the students, and they significantly stick in their minds. Furthermore, rigor is an important aspect that depicts that a teacher should demand a lot from himself or herself as he or she requires from the students. If the students fail, their tutor is also at an equal extent part of the failure. Therefore, it is the urge of the teachers to avoid racism as well as other vices that may lead diversity among the students in the class. For instance, group discussion works well towards students’ performance, and with cohesion, in the class, all of them will be active improving the results. Also, tutors should get into close contact with the parents and guardians so that they are capable of informing them about their children’s performance, for instance through phone calls.

Teaching students the ideologies regarding racism is the next step to take in eradicating the reality in education forum. The subjects regarding human ethnicity and equality should be put as general focusses in learning institutions. Tutors have to be significantly used in spreading the importance cohesion and unity among the students regardless the racial bias. The other pace involves seeking government’s intervention in improving the teachers working conditions as well as enhancing their salaries. The government should strengthen equity when it comes to the payment of the teaching staff whether one is white or belongs to the African-American and other minority groups. Salary is the motivation and reward after work hence its increment will improve the tutor’s incentive as well as performance. Finally, the government should ensure that there is a conducive learning environment in the nation regarding the students’ hygiene and security measures. Also, the number of teachers per school should be significant in consideration of the population (Capper 2015).

As discussed above, it is evident that racism is there in the education field and it is much sense that the peer pressure, corruption, nepotism, and cultism realities. Therefore, it is not the government’s role to eradicate this diminishing vice but every community member responsibility as it significantly affects the whole society. In consideration of the discussed techniques of alleviating racism, the reality will be curbed and brought to an end in the nation.

References

Capper, C. A. (2015). The 20th-year anniversary of critical race theory in education: Implications for leading to eliminate racism. Educational Administration Quarterly, 51(5), 791-833.

Flintoff, A., Dowling, F., & Fitzgerald, H. (2015). Working through whiteness, race and (anti) racism in physical education teacher education. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 20(5), 559-570.

Gillborn, D. (2016). Critical Race Theory beyond North America: Towards a Trans-Atlantic Dialogue on Racism and Antiracism in Educational Theory and Praxis. In Critical race theory in education (pp. 97-122). Routledge.

Grubb, W. N., & Leonardo, Z. (2013). Education and racism: A primer on issues and dilemmas. Routledge.

Harper, S. R. (2012). Race without racism: How higher education researchers minimize racist institutional norms. The Review of Higher Education, 36(1), 9-29.

Ladson-Billings, G., & Tate IV, W. F. (2016). Toward a critical race theory of education. In Critical race theory in education (pp. 21-41). Routledge.

Leonardo, Z. (2013). Race frameworks: A multidimensional theory of racism and education. Teachers College Press.

Troyna, B., & Williams, J. (2012). Racism, education and the state. Taylor & Francis.

The Impact of the Next Industrial Revolution

Student’ name

Institutional affiliation

The Impact of the Next Industrial Revolution

Introduction

We are on the verge of another technological uprising set to superficially alter how we work, live, and recount to each other. The scope, complexity, and scale of this transformation will be different from any experience humankind has encountered before. At this point, we are not sure about how the revolution will unfold, but the one thing that is certain is that there will be a broad and incorporated response that involves global stakeholders from classified and public sectors, the academia, and civil society. The First Industrial Revolution mechanized production using steam and water. The second Industrial Revolution employed electricity to develop mass production. The Third revolution capitalized on information technology and electronics to make production automatic. Undoubtedly, the Fourth Industrial Revolution will capitalize on the third industrial revolution of the digital revolution. Digitization has been taken place since mid 20th century. The next Industrial Revolution is characterized by the merging of technologies blurring along digital, physical, and biological spheres. The current transformations that people are experiencing today are a representation of a prolonged third revolution that marks the arrival of the fourth revolution, which is distinct. There is no historical precedent of the speed of the present breakthroughs. Compared to preceding previous revolutions, the fourth one is evolving at an exponential instead of a linear pace. Noteworthy, the fourth revolution is touching on nearly all sectors. The depth and breadth of these changes is a sign of the transformations of systems of governance, production, and management systems. This essay highlights the impact of the next industrial revolution on government, people and businesses.

Impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on the Government

The more digital, biological, and physical worlds carry on to converging new platforms and technologies will significantly enable citizens to voice their opinions, connect with governments, synchronize efforts and get around the management of public authorities. Similarly, governments will possess new technologies that allow them increased control over the people. This is because the will be increased invasive surveillance systems. Governments will also have more control of digital infrastructure. Governments will be under constant pressure to put aside their current policymaking and public engagement approach because their central policymaking role keeps diminishing because of competition and power decentralization enabled by new technologies.

Ultimately, government systems ability to adapt will decide if they survive or not. Those governments that will prove the capacity to embrace a world filled with disruptive change are the ones who will endure. They will survive if they subject their structures to efficiency and transparency, which will enable them to keep a competitive edge. Those that will not evolve will be faced with increased trouble. This will be particularly true for regulation. Current systems of decision-making and public policy have become better with the second revolution, at a time when decision-makers studied issues and developed necessary response and regulatory frameworks. The entire process was meant to be mechanistic and linear meaning that it strictly follows a top-down strategy. But given the rapid pace of the fourth industrial revolution, the approach is no longer applicable. Regulators and legislators are increasingly facing unprecedented challenges and for the better part, they are proving difficult to cope with. This begs the question of how governments can preserve consumers’ interest while at the same time supporting technological development and innovation (Ragulina, Alekseev, Strizhkina, & Tumanov, 2019). This can be done by following in the footsteps of private sectors of embracing an agile system of governance. This includes responding to business operations and software development more generally. Essentially, regulators should be prepared to commit to continuously adapting to fast-changing new environments and reinventing themselves to truly understand what they are responsible for regulating. To achieve this, regulatory agencies and governments will be required to closely coordinate with civil society and businesses.

Furthermore, the fourth industrial revolution will have an immense impact on both international and national security, affecting the nature and probability of conflict. The history of technological innovation is the same history of international and warfare security and today’s situation is no exception. It is worth noting that modern conflicts touching on states are becoming increasingly hybrid in nature as they involve traditional battle techniques and elements previously linked with non-state actors. The distinction between peace and war, violence and non-violence, combatant and noncombatant is slowly becoming blurred. As digitization continues taking place and new technologies, including biological or autonomous weapons continue taking place, small groups and individuals will continue joining states that have the capacity to form mass harm. Worth noting, the new vulnerability will cause new fears. Consequently, technological advancement will increase the potential of impacting violence, reducing the scale because of newly developed modes of protection.

Impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on the People.

Furthermore, the fourth industrial revolution will not only impact what we do but also who we are. It will impact people’s identity and the things associated with it including consumption patterns, sense of privacy, ownership notions, the time they dedicate to leisure and career, and how they cultivate skills, push careers, nature relationships and meet new people. The fourth industrial revolution is changing people healthy resulting in a quantified version of self, and very soon, it will result in human augmentation (Skilton & Hovsepian, 2018). Worth noting, the list of the impact of the revolution on people is endless and is bound only by imagination. The question that has crossed the minds of many is whether the uncontrollable integration of technology in people’s lives will diminish some quintessential human capacities like cooperation and compassion. One good example is the relationship that people have with their smartphones. People have become so drawn to these devices that nearly all facets of their lives depend on them. People have become addicted to social media applications such as Instagram and Snapchat. The constant reliance on technology, particularly with regards to social media, deprives people of life’s most significant assets; time to take a step back, reflect and take part in meaningful conversation.

Worth noting, information technology poses a challenge to privacy. People should understand that privacy is very crucial and sharing and that sharing and tracking of information is becoming crucial for new connectivity. In the years that lay ahead, debates to do with critical issues of impact of technology in people’s inner lives owing to data loss will only increase. Similarly, revolutions taking place in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) and biotechnology which are giving new meaning to being human through pushing back today’s threshold of health, life span, capabilities and cognition, will compel people to redefine ethical and moral boundaries.

Impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on Businesses.

A common theme for conversations between senior business executives and CEOs is the velocity of disruptions and accelerations of innovation are hard to anticipate and comprehend. Additionally, they agree that these drivers constantly surprise even the most well-informed and best-connected business executives. There is clear evidence across the boards that technologies underpinning the next industrial revolutions will have serious effect on businesses. As regards supply, many companies now realize that incorporating new technologies can develop new ways of serving various existing needs and significantly disrupt current industry value chains. Moreover, disruptions are also coming from innovative and agile competitors have access to limitless global digital innovations for sales, marketing, research, development, and distribution. These competitors have the capacity to oust established incumbents faster than through improving the speed, price, and quality at which value gets delivered. Additionally, major shifts are taking place as regards to demands as consumer engagement, transparency and new consumer behavior patterns continue forcing businesses to change the way they deliver, design, and market products and services. Another key trend that technology is having n businesses is that it has enabled the development of applications that incorporate both supply and demand of products and services (Morrar, Arman, & Mousa, 2017). These platforms thrive on sharing and demand economy. The platforms are easy to use as they use data and smartphones, making them an easy way to convene people. This leads to the creation of new and alternative ways of consuming services and products. Additionally, the platforms have reduced the barriers for individuals and businesses to create wealth, hence altering workers’ professional and personal environments. These new business platforms are multiplying rapidly and transforming into entirely new services that range from travel to massages.

Conclusion

In closing, whether people realize it or not, the world is currently in the middle of a shift from the simple digitization of the third industrial revolution to innovation-based technology, which is the fourth industrial revolution. The next industrial revolution affects nearly all aspects of people’s lives, ranging from management, governance, and business. The next industrial revolution will have effect people, businesses, and governments differently. It is high time companies realize that companies re-examine how businesses do what they do. The bottom line is that businesses leaders should understand that business environments are changing and digitization and technology have everything to do with it.

References

Morrar, R., Arman, H., & Mousa, S. (2017). The fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0): A social innovation perspective. Technology Innovation Management Review, 7(11), 12-20.

Ragulina, Y. V., Alekseev, A. N., Strizhkina, I. V., & Tumanov, A. I. (2019). Methodology of criterial evaluation of consequences of the industrial revolution of the 21st century. In Industry 4.0: Industrial Revolution of the 21st Century (pp. 235-244). Springer, Cham.

Skilton, M., & Hovsepian, F. (2018). The 4th industrial revolution. Springer Nature.

The Impact of Using Body Cameras by Law enforcement Officers.

Student’s Name

Department of affiliation

Course

Professor

Date

The Impact of Using Body Cameras by Law enforcement Officers.

Dawes, D., Heegaard, W., Brave, M., Paetow, G., Weston, B., & Ho, J. (2015). Body-Worn Cameras Improve Law Enforcement Officer Report Writing Accuracy. Journal of law enforcement, 4(6).

In this article, Dawes et al. delves into the issue of using the body-worn cameras and its importance in recording an accurate and valid statements. In an era where every move an acts by the law enforcement officers are recorded by the members of public, it is becoming increasingly necessary for the police to have body-worn cameras that they can use to record videos and have the valid evidence against suspect when they come into contact to avoid misreporting from the members of public. This research was conducted by involving several law enforcement officers who recorded different scenarios of their engagement with the members of public and recorded their statements. Evidently, there were some adjustments that they made in their reports after reviewing their video recordings.

The authors of the study are qualified scholars who are often involved in conducting researches that deal with issues affecting the judicial system in the country. Therefore, they are qualified and have the authority to conduct researches on such matters that affect members of the society. This research is also important because it explores the impact that body-worn cameras have on the accuracy of reports recorded by the law enforcement officers. However, the research has some limitation because it may have been subjected to biases as a result of the people who participated on the matter under investigation.

Pelfrey Jr, W. V., & Keener, S. (2016). Police body worn cameras: A mixed method approach assessing perceptions of efficacy. Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management.

This journal highlights the efficacy of the body-worn cameras in ensuring that the police do not use excessive force when they are discharging their duties. It also highlights the perception that the police officers have regarding the use of body-worn cameras. The study establishes that the cases of police using excessive force have reduced significantly since the introduction of the body-worn cameras. This is critical in ensuring that the relationship between the police and members of the society is improved. The findings also indicate that the law enforcers have their reservation regarding the use of BWC data.

It is authors are accomplished writers on matters pertaining policy strategies and management. Therefore, they have the authority to conduct research on such important matters which relates to policies in the police force.

Phillips, S. W. (2018). Eyes are not cameras: The importance of integrating perceptual distortions, misinformation, and false memories into the police body camera debate. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 12(1), 91-99.

In this article, Philips discusses the distortion of information that people have had over the years that police who cannot recall all the events that they encounter are rogue police who want to cover up for an incident. The author argues that the eyes of police officers are not cameras and police officers are subject to forgetting some incidences they encounter on the streets. However, the author acknowledges that cameras are important in capturing the reality on the ground but that should not be interpreted to mean that the police cannot execute their mandates without the use of body-worn cameras.

This article is important in demystifying the unusually long-held notion that police who do not recall some of the events they encounter are officers who are covering up for criminals in the streets. The author is a writer who is interested on issues of policing and governance.

Smykla, J. O., Crow, M. S., Crichlow, V. J., & Snyder, J. A. (2016). Police body-worn cameras: Perceptions of law enforcement leadership. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 41(3), 424-443.

American Journal of Criminal Justice is an article that articulates the perception that the leaders of the police in the United States have regarding the body-worn cameras. It also explores the impact that these body-worn cameras have on how the police discharge their duties. According to the authors, the public have a positive perception on the use of body-worn cameras by the law enforcement officers. However, the leaders of the police have a contrary opinion and majority of them think that these cameras influence how the police discharge their responsibilities and may deter them from using necessary force to maintain law and order.

Smykla et al. (2016) are working with the school of criminology and criminal justice system at the Florida Atlantic University. They have a wealth of knowledge in the criminal justice system and they have the authority to research on such a compelling matter to understand the perception of the police leadership on the use of body-worn cameras. This research work is important and can be used as secondary data to further research on the impact of using body-worn cameras by the law enforcement officers. One of the strength of this study is the quality of data collected which affected officers from the three tiers of government in the United States; local, state and federal government.

Voigt, R., Camp, N. P., Prabhakaran, V., Hamilton, W. L., Hetey, R. C., Griffiths, C. M., … & Eberhardt, J. L. (2017). Language from police body camera footage shows racial disparities in officer respect. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 114(25), 6521-6526.

In this article, the researchers conducted a study to establish the level of respect that police officers in the United States accord people from different racial backgrounds when they are communicating with them. In the study, the researchers established that police accord more respect to the white community compared to the people of color. Although body-worn cameras are often intended to aid the police officers in discharging their duties in accordance with the law, the finding of this study is important in reforming the police and ensuring that they treat all citizen equally.

The authors of this article are researchers drawn from different departments at the Stanford University. Some of the researchers are scholars from linguistic department while others work in the department of psychology. Although the findings of this research may be necessary in conducting future researches on the same subject, it has several weaknesses and the method of data collection maybe have been subjected to biases.

Racism in the 21st Century

Student’s Name

Institution

Racism in the 21st Century

It sounds sound awkward and disgusting to talk about the existence of racism in America in the 21st century a thing that is believed to have been curbed many years back. How does racism exist while the Negros and other minority groups were granted a civil right in the nation? It is an alarming question, but the fact remains that the direct form of racism was changed into an indirect way where the people of color are granted citizenship in the country but segregation follows up them in all the things they do as well as where they go (Hurston, 1999). It right that the action groups such as white supremacists who directly spread racism are not active but the roots of the entire threat to the society are still prevalent in the state. Today, there is a bounty of racial aggression in the community both in the media and people’s day to day life encounters. According to Claudia Rankine, racial discrimination encounters are astonishing and rampant in everywhere in the society when it comes to workplace, television, online platforms as well as access to public amenities such as school and hospital (Rankine, 2014). The roots of racism are prevalent in American subjecting the people of color into victimization and other offensive scenarios making their livelihood in the nation demanding.

The situation in America today can only be referred as a post-race society where its citizens are a significant testimony to racism at both collective and individual level. Many advocates and policymakers have struggled to address the situation as well as expressing the pain it causes to the souls of these patriotic citizens as they face discrimination in an inhumane manner. The present condition in the modern society is a reflection of what happened during the Jim Crow’s era where the African-American were oppressed and discriminated in a way that it was inevitable to undergo through harsh conditions where they were not granted civil rights as other citizens in the nation. The situation in South America was menacing where supremacist spread white supremacy throughout the country through the Rebel groups. The case today is only different than the segregation is done in a friendly way in the name of legal actions that are unavoidable and plays a significant role in strengthening the roots of racism in the community. With regards to Du Bois in his work “Of the Passing of the First Born,” he depicts that the society is race biased as to the extent that the white was not concerned about what was going on during the tender child’s burial (Du Bois, 2017). They could only say that they are niggers and move on to their business.

The mentioned above facts are clear according to Michelle Alexander’s book “The New Jim Crow” where she talks about the rebirth of a social order system in the United States where the blacks are denied a variety of civil rights resulting to their demotion at the middle-class status and the enormous number being put in custody (Alexander, 2012). It is upsetting that regardless of America celebrating victory over race, a large number of Africa-Americans in the cities are locked behind bars or in a way or the other maltreated with a criminal record of life. Michelle put it that the racial caste in the country has only been redesigned and not ended where the blacks are legally discriminated against the convicted crimes. For instance, today African-Americans are detained in the prisoned for quire offenses that do not deserve such kind of jurisdiction denying them fundamental human and civil rights such as freedom to vote. Also, the legal discrimination is extended to a greater extent where they do not have access to housing, secluded housing, and employment as well as not having the right to benefit from any social amenity.

“The Fire Next Time” by James Baldwin is an excellent example of how racism has spread in the society and affects the blacks to the extent of determining where they live, what they do and where they go in the nation (Baldwin, 2013). In his letter, Baldwin advises his nephew to stay strong and tough not to follow the white ways which are upsetting and planned to victimize the Negro’s way of living. Racism in the community has made the blacks residents of the ghetto where they are subjected to poverty and other social injustices such as criminality and poor housing as well as other social facilities. They are dominated by the whites in a way that they cannot have diversification in the society and only have access to limited resources. Baldwin tells the young man never to give up or adhere to the ways of white as he has the capability of enlightening his future together with other Negros to change America into the state that it should be at free from racism and other social evils. According to Zora Hurston in her work “My Most Humiliating Jim Crow Experience,” she is ill-treated in a hospital where the doctor did not serve her in the actual health care rooms but in a secluded cabin where dirty working clothes are kept before laundry. She is served in a manner that depicts that the doctor was not comfortable with her passing time at the hospital as if it could lead to devastating effects on other patients.

As discussed above, the act of people of color being treated as inferior and unacceptable race in the society is revolting, and there is a need for change. The nation’s sovereignty portrays all citizens to have equal civil rights, but the case is different today. In public amenities, backs are discriminated, and into reality, they are contrary given better services like other white people. It is devastating, and the government, as well as the public at the individual level, have to play the role of eradicating the racism as well as its humiliation to enhance national growth and development.

References

Alexander, M. (2012). The new Jim Crow: Mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness. The New Press.

Baldwin, J. (2013). The fire next time. Vintage.

Du Bois, W. E. B. (2017). Of the Passing of the First-born. American Roots.

Hurston, Z. N. (1999). My most humiliating Jim Crow experience. Worlds of difference: inequality in the aging experience, 296.

Rankine, C. (2014). Citizen: an American lyric. Graywolf Press.

Name:

Professor:

Course:

Date:

Racism in the American Justice System

“Is the American justice system racist?” Journalist Shane Smith posed this thought-provoking question to President Obama during his 2015 visit to the FCI El Reno in Oklahoma. The President’s candid reply to this amounted to one word, yes. The America justice system is racist because it punishes people of particular races and ethnicities more than others, and this is a well-documented issue. The United States incarcerates more people than any other country in the world, with more than 2.3 million people in the country’s local, state and federal prisons. These figures, by themselves, point to a problem in the country’s system. Closer inspection brings out some more concerning issues, such as the fact that the majority of all inmates at federal prisons belong to minority communities such as African-American and Latino backgrounds. The American justice system is racist because it disproportionately targets minority groups, consistently gives them harsher punishments and

The VICE documentary titled ‘Fixing the System’ gives an eye-opening insight into the prison system within the country, and the harmful effects incarceration has on many people. The documentary focuses on different parties within the system, such as politicians, judges, inmates, and the President of the United States. President Obama made history as the first sitting US president to visit a federal prison to discuss various issues in the justice system. The Vice special begins by laying out the history of the War on Drugs that began in the 1980s and its colossal failure. The documentary also sheds light on the mandatory minimum sentencing that is one of the biggest problems, especially with drug offences in the country. Vice does not just focus on the challenges in the justice system; it gives these issues a human face. Some of those interviewed include inmates in prisons and their families, and they get to speak about how incarceration affected their lives. Interviewing politicians from both sides of the political spectrum also supports the idea that the justice system is broken, as former Attorney General Eric Holder, Senator Corey Booker (D), Rand Paul (D) and Mike Lee (R) all testify.

The first reason why the American justice system is racist is because the majority of those incarcerated in the country come from minority groups. In the documentary, Shane Smith explains that 1 in 3 black men are likely to go to prison in their lifetime, while only 1 in 17 white men face the same chances (VICE). These numbers are quite shocking, and they bring to light the reality that minority groups, especially young males, are more likely to be incarcerated than any other group in the country. Currently, 80% of all inmates in federal prisons incarcerated for drug offences are either Latino or black (Bell 164).

Another reason why the American justice system is racist is because of the disproportionate punishments that people of colour receive for similar crimes as their white counterparts. President Obama explains that this is an unfortunate reality for many drug offenders in the country, especially non-violent ones. The country has put in place mandatory minimum sentencing for such offenders, and this means that more and more people get sent to prison each year. Additionally, officials in the justice system such as law enforcement officers, prosecutors and judges routinely seek and hand out harsher punishment to people from minority groups, indicating a racial bias in the system. President Obama explains that this is a problem that begins with the broader society, and the justice system is merely a reflection of this. For example, when a black student engages in similar disruptive behaviour as a white student, the black youth is more likely to get suspended than their white counterpart (VICE). The same pattern plays out when the same black youth are also more likely to be arrested, prosecuted and sentenced more stiffly and aggressively than their white counterparts for similar offences.

The American justice system is racist because it affects minority communities more than majority groups in the country. In the documentary, inmates and their families speak of their challenges as a result of incarceration. When a family’s breadwinner gets sent to prison, their family suffers because they cannot afford many of the necessities they need. Such families are often plunged deeper into poverty due to incarceration. Additionally, when a person is released from prions, they have a hard time getting jobs because of their record (Harris &Lieberman 9). There is also much stigma that comes with incarceration; a former inmate will always be viewed as a criminal and a bad influence in their community. Such people fail to reintegrate into the community and may end up getting involved in criminal activity. Many of those sent to prison, especially for non-violent drug crimes might be petty offenders who do not deserve the harsh jail terms that they get and this ends up ruining their lives.

To summarize, the Vice documentary titled ‘Fixing the System’ sheds light on some serious and pertinent issues in the American justice system. Since the war on drugs began, minority groups have been the biggest casualty, and often because of blatant unfairness in the justice system. The justice system can be termed as racist because of the disproportionate number of minorities incarcerated, as well as the consistent harsher sentences that they get. President Obama and other politicians talk about the glaring evidence on the failure of the war on drugs, and the massive cost to inmates, their families and communities. There needs to be reform in the justice system to ensure that all people are treated fairly, and also to address the skyrocketing incarceration rates in the country.

Works Cited

“Vice Special Report: Fixing the System.” VICE. https://video.vice.com/en_us/video/fixing-the-system/584ae51c0226b0e6061f54e0Bell, Marcus. “Criminalization of Blackness: Systemic racism and the reproduction of racial inequality in the US criminal justice system.” Systemic Racism. Palgrave Macmillan, New York, 2017. 163-183.

Harris, Fredrick C., and Robert C. Lieberman. “Racial inequality after racism: How institutions hold back African Americans.” Foreign Aff. 94 (2015): 9.

Racial Discrimination Projected by the Media Industry

Student’s name

Institution

Course code

Professor’s name

Date

Introduction

Over the years, many interactive social media platforms have been invented to facilitate communication and connection between individuals from different parts of the world. Most of these platforms are dominated by young people in society. Some of these social media platforms include but are not limited to Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, WhatsApp, and telegram. Like most young people worldwide, social media has become a crucial part of my life and daily routines. Not a day goes by without me accessing and using at least one social media platform. I am more drawn to the YouTube, WhatsApp, and Twitter applications. I find them fascinating, helpful, entertaining, and educative as well.

Moving forward, I see myself incorporating and exploring a wide range of social media platforms depending on how useful they will be to me, my interest, and my objectives. Social media has a lot to offer to its users, and it is practically impossible to exhaust all the contents it offers. I aim to identify the platforms that align with my identity and interests, tap the most out of it, and experience significant growth. I believe social media is key in enabling deep and meaningful connections between people in different geographical regions. By allowing individuals to share their interests, pictures, places of interest, and videos, social media align people with similar characteristics together and enable them to converse and help each other grow in their identified fields of interest.

As much as social media has brought people together and created a small world, I feel like it has drawn individuals far from their physical surroundings. Since the onset of social media platforms, most individuals have disconnected from the physical world. Convincing individuals to get off their gadgets and focus on their surroundings, family members, friends, and neighbors is quite challenging in the modern world. In addition, social media has seen many people lock themselves indoors and avoid physical contact with the outside world. For this reason, they fail to recognize and appreciate the beauty of their environment (Carlson et al., 2017). I understand that this aspect of social media has worked to the advantage of Covid-19 eradication since it allows for communication with no physical contact. However, it poses other health risks like obesity and damaged eyesight because it limits their movements and overworks individuals’ eye muscles, respectively.

My opinions regarding social media and its effects have shifted throughout the semester. Through evaluation of social media and a dive into its significance in various aspects of life, this study has enabled me to appreciate their role in our lives and the positive impacts it has had on society in general. Furthermore, I have discovered that some platforms like YouTube and Instagram have helpful programs that help individuals adopt healthy lifestyles through healthy eating habits and regular in-house exercises (Gündüz, 2017). Therefore, there is no need to worry about lifestyle diseases or long indoor period stays. I have also learned that information can be manipulated to drive a user’s narrative to portray to other users globally. Therefore, many people, things, or events propagated through social media platforms are sometimes exaggerated and unreal. This manipulation has contributed to some of the issues experienced in society. The media has contributed to the racial discrimination issue and has drawn media users’ attention for a long time now.

The links between the media and the racial discrimination

The issue of racial discrimination has been in play for over decades now. The emergence of the media has magnified the tension surrounding racial discrimination (Tynes et al., 2019). Social media has contributed to the issue both positively and negatively. However, the negative impacts of social media on racial discrimination are strongly felt in society. Racial discrimination has captured my attention because it affects many people in society directly and indirectly. We live in a mixed-race society, where people from different races meet and interact daily. Racial discrimination occurs when members of a certain race get treated differently compared to members of another race. The African American race has proven to be the most affected by racial discrimination and the media propagation of the same.

Media exposure of African American People to Discrimination Risks

The media expose African American people to the risk of getting discriminated against more. Individuals hide behind their gadgets and send discriminatory messages towards people of color in society (Carlson et al., 2017). Perpetrators of this awful act use social media platforms to convey discrimination and hatred towards people of color because they know it is difficult for the authorities to trace and punish them accordingly. Some individuals go to the extent of threatening the lives of people of color through social media platforms. This action compels other platform users who share the same ideas to make stereotypical comments about people of color publicly and shame them for their identity. Studies show that 60% of young African American youths have reported cases of racial epithets.

Monetization of the Issue by Media Houses and Platforms

some media platforms and houses use the racial discrimination narrative to promote themselves and increase their viewer ratings (Tao & Fisher, 2021). These actions are wrong and unjust to people of color. More often than not, black people fall for the traps of the media and agree to work for or with them because they believe these media houses are looking out for them. After achieving their objectives regarding the narrative, media houses and platforms tend to dispose of their African American facilitators and ignore them completely. The naivety of some African American individuals bars them from protecting themselves against such advances from social media houses and platforms.

Graphic Presentation and Display of Black Bodies by Media platforms

Most media platforms tend to be insensitive when it comes to the content they display on their pages. They expose the public to graphic content that is likely to cause trauma. The realization that these media houses actually target black people when posting such graphic content is devastating. I can’t help but wonder why people behind the media platforms would subject individuals as human as them to such mental torture. They are inconsiderate of how black people feel when they see the bodies of their own mutilated or videos of other black people being tortured or handled brutally (SIMMONS & LECOUTEUR, 2018). Such disturbing images are likely to shake a black person or have long-term effects on their mental health.

Impacts of Racial Discrimination Propagated by social media on the People of Color

Online racial discrimination leaves many black people feeling insecure and unsafe in their various locations. The constant death threat and bullying because of color cause black people to question their safety and their loved ones’ (Matamoros-Fernández & Farkas, 2021). Furthermore, it also makes them lose their sense of belonging in society. Discriminatory acts and comments displayed on social media platforms leave many black people feeling demoralized and inferior in the community. This feeling translates to a lost sense of belonging. Consequently, such individuals, especially young people, fall into depression and engage in drug and substance abuse as a coping mechanism.

Long-term Effect of Online Racial Discrimination

Discrimination against black people affects their performance, efforts, and contributions to the development of society. The loss of self-esteem and a sense of belonging bars them from participating in societal development projects. As a result, areas dominated by black people stagnate development-wise and deteriorate over time. Furthermore, racial discrimination is likely to affect the economy of a given country. Discrimination against black people means denying them opportunities in the market. Therefore, they cannot contribute to the economy through their wages (Chan, 2017). Consequently, the economy underperforms and lags compared to other economies that offer all genders equal opportunity in the job market.

Measures to adapt to Combat the Online Discrimination Issue

Media platforms need to develop ways of tracking individuals who propagate racial discrimination in society through their pages. When caught, such individuals should be punished according to the law. In addition, the government should also jump on board and establish policies under which media platforms must comply. These policies should incorporate and prioritize the rights of black people using various media platforms. Media houses or platforms that fail to adhere to regulations imposed by the government should be penalized, suspended, or shut down depending on the level of their offense and negligence. Media platforms should also create segments specifically for people of color to express themselves freely with no fear of discrimination.

These actions by the government and the media houses will motivate the black community to come out of their hiding and feel safe to interact with people freely through different platforms. It also restores a sense of belonging to them because they feel cared for and loved. Protecting against discrimination gives black people power and the desire to explore their creative side, discover their potential and work towards achieving their goals. The general society could benefit from media literacy because people will know the various platforms, their importance, and the need to treat other users with the utmost respect. For this reason, most media platforms will achieve a race-neutral platform that allows individuals to be themselves and be free to communicate their minds.

References

Carlson, B. L., Jones, L. V., Harris, M., Quezada, N., & Frazer, R. (2017). Trauma shared recognition and indigenous resistance on social media. Australasian Journal of Information Systems, 21.

Chan, J. (2017). Racial identity in online spaces: Social media’s impact on students of color. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 54(2), 163-174.

Gündüz, U. (2017). The effect of social media on identity construction. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 8(5), 85-85.

Matamoros-Fernández, A., & Farkas, J. (2021). Racism, Hate Speech, and social media: A Systematic Review and Critique. Television & New Media, 22(2), 205–224. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527476420982230SIMMONS, K., & LECOUTEUR, A. (2018). Modern racism in the media: constructions of “the possibility of change” in accounts of two Australian “riots.” Discourse & Society, 19(5), 667–687. http://www.jstor.org/stable/42889222Tao, X., & Fisher, C. B. (2021). Exposure to social media racial discrimination and mental health among adolescents of color. Journal of youth and adolescence, 1-15.

Tynes, B. M., Willis, H. A., Stewart, A. M., & Hamilton, M. W. (2019). Race-related traumatic events online and mental health among adolescents of color. Journal of Adolescent Health, 65(3), 371-377.