1. Privacy and the Internet

The founder of WhatsApp, Jan Koum, announced he is quitting his position as a director of the board of Facebook over its use of user data and weakening encryption techniques used by WhatsApp.

WhatsApp had collected as little data from their users as was necessary, and encrypting users’ communications. After Facebook bought WhatsApp, Facebook pushed WhatsApp to change its terms of service to give the social network access to the phone numbers of WhatsApp users, along with analytics such as what devices and operating systems people were using.

Koum has since endorsed a #DeleteFacebook social media campaign. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, in reply, credits Koum with teaching him “about encryption and its ability to take power from centralized systems and put it back in people’s hands.

Has the privacy of WhatsApp users been compromised by Facebook, and if so, how, and how can users complain? Or does Facebook provide privacy protections for its users, and if so, how?

2. ‘News’ and the Internet

In a Freedom of Information request, Judge Andrew Bartlett QC of the UK’s Information tribunal said:

“WikiLeaks is a media organisation which publishes and comments upon censored or restricted official materials involving war, surveillance or corruption, which are leaked to it in a variety of different circumstances.”

Is Bartlett correct? Does wikileaks publish news? Should it be called a ‘media organisation’? And why, or why not

The requirements:

Write 1,500 words of articles around these two topics and their respective questions. （So a total of 3000 words）

Please demonstrate original research, including contemporary literature on philosophical, social or political issues concerned with Internet Culture and Governance. （The reference should be include the website address)