1. Describe the difference between Political Design and Hacktivist Art. Use an example of each and describe how that work fits the category of design or art.

Political Design is more about bringing attention to important political dilemmas so that something can be done about it.  An example of this is a web site created to track the number of injured and tortured people in Sri Lanka and Guatemala.  This is something that is done the “right and moral way.” They create a group or website with a set goal and don’t use any kind of dirty tactics.  Hactivist art is similar in that it still wants to draw attention, they are “hackers with a cause.”  An example of this is the Yes Men.  They want to help bring attention to important things that often get overlooked, and they will do almost anything in order to achieve that. The yes men hide their true identities and goals from people in order to bring about change. This can be seen are wrong because they lying in the process but they are doing it for a good cause. Digital Robin Hoods if you will.

2. What does execution mean? How does it relate to computers (ie .exe files). What are some example of executable art? How is execution different from representation? In other words how does each relate to the media paradigms of one-to-many vs many-to-many?

Execution means that something is to be carried out or put into effect by others.  An executable file on a computer has a specific action it is supposed to carry out, just like executable art.  As stated in the text, the Barbie voice-box switch is an example of executable art because it was more than an idea, it was something that people were actually sent out to put in place to make a point about how we raise our children. This is different from representation because it is more integrated into our culture.  Representation is something that is only seen by people who come across it or are looking for it.  But when something is executed, it is sent out in the public to get reactions and start a wave of new thinking.  Representation is one-to-many and execution is many-to-many.

3. Why do you think Hacktivist artists find themselves hacking capitalist and political structures that most other people revere? What problem or dangers do they see in these forms of power? Use sample projects to answer this question.

I think most hactivists attack political structures that others revere because they know something that the general public doesn’t.  The hacktivists spend time researching “behind the scenes” facts about structures that others don’t think to question.  Therefore, when something is brought to our attention by hacktivists, we view them as radicals.  For instance, the Yes Men collect knowledge about companies that many other people not have time or resources to know about.  They knew that Dow chemicals owed the people of Bhopal money for their losses.  Therefore they felt it was their responsibility to bring it the attention of the general public. They attack the people no one else will touch or no one else would think to look twice at. They seen through the disguise and bring that knowledge out for everyone to see.

4.How do hacktivists confirm McLuhan’s prediction that the ‘nation-state’ would not survive the advent of electronic media? Do hackitvists challenge or question any critical policies of nation-states? Does their practice suggest any alternatives to the nation-state? Or why are they not really concerned about anarchy?

Hactivists confirm this fact about the advent of electronic media because they know that a large amount of people will not be able to live peacefully in a media-heavy environment under a nation-state.  Hactivists challenge the fact that not everyone can share and identify with a certain culture.  The United States especially has a lot of diversity and this is still evident in an online environment.  They are not concerned about anarchy because they think they have the capacity to change the world before it gets to such a point.