Bio In 2006, I founded ZapBoom Consulting, which specializes in the analysis of how digital
tools like cell phones and the Internet can be used in social change campaigns in developing countries. I have
researched and written reports on topics ranging from online
citizen journalism to blog advocacy and internet censorship. I have
also performed in-country Internet monitoring and international
conference organizing.
You can contact me at MaryCJoyce AT gmail DOT com. Read full bio....
Client BuzzFeedback from Zapboom Clients: "Mary's passion and energy for digital activism is obvious in every action and initiative she makes."...read more "Right away she cut to the core of our needs."...read more "She deserves much of the credit for organizing a tremendously successful event."...read more "She was able to turn a potentially complex technical task into
something that brought all the different viewpoints together
and channelled everyone's energy in a collaborative manner."...read more Digital Activism Projects
Current CVDouble-click the image to download. 
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Posted by Mary on 31/12/2007 at 23:25
 In April of this year I was hired by the OpenNet Initiative to go to Lagos, Nigeria, to install election-monitoring software which tested whether the government was filtering the Internet during the presidential elections. (No filtering was found, either during the elections or in the two weeks preceding, though several sites were down at times because of faulty infrastructure.) Here is the final version of the report I wrote. You can download it by clicking on the image on the left or by clicking the link below.
ONI Nigeria Report (PDF)  |
Posted by Mary on 31/12/2007 at 20:46
As we look forward to our new year, it's also a good time to look back, to remember how far we've come and how quickly we are moving into the future. That's why I chose this week's quote from What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848, by Daniel Walker Howe. We are in the midst of another transformation, not national but global, where information moves around the world at the speed of light. Yet, as Howe mentions in the beginning of his book, "Neither Alexander the Great nor Benjamin Franklin ... two thousand years later knew anything (Read more) |
Posted by Mary on 29/12/2007 at 14:09
translation: "We Blog Freedom"
I really liked this image from Abdel Monem's blog, Ana Ikhwan, so I decided to post it here. He has a whole post (in Arabic) about imprisoned bloggers. |
Posted by Mary on 27/12/2007 at 20:32
 Fouad Alfaran, only of Saudi Arabia's most important bloggers, was arrested on December 10 for blogging about Saudi Arabia's political prisoners. Ironically, he is now a political prisoner himself. The campaign to free him is taking advantage of several digital activism techniques, including a Free Fouad blog (in English and Arabic), a Free Fouad Facebook group, and an e-petition. Please consider taking action by signing the petition, joining the Facebook group, and learning more about the case on the blog. I'll be posting more about this campaign as it develops. |
Posted by Mary on 23/12/2007 at 22:06
The New York Times Week in Review featured a list of neologisms for 2007. Not surprising, many were digital. They haven't been implicated in digital activism yet, but who knows. Take a look and see if you're inspired. Happy holidays and happy Lolcat! 
bacn n. - Impersonal e-mail messages that are nearly as annoying as spam but that you have chosen to receive: alerts, newsletters, automated reminders and the like. Popularized at the PodCamp conference in Pittsburgh in August. crowdsource v. - To use the skills or tools of a wide variety of freelancers, professional or amateur, paid or unpaid, (Read more) | |
Posted by Mary on 18/12/2007 at 14:39
Today I attended the Berkman Center luncheon presentation by Victoria Stodden of Stanford University on “The Internet and Democracy: Problems and Ideas.” (The event was webcast live.) Her talk inspired an animated discussion of what empirical methods are most appropriate for studying the Internet's effect on the democracy. Victoria said that the Internet could potentially affect democracy in three way: 1. by disseminating information (increase in accessibility of information, increased accountability, more informed citizens)
2. as a tool for democratic processes (online voting, activist mobilization)
3. as a means of educating people about democratic values (respect for human rights, freedom (Read more) |
Posted by Mary on 18/12/2007 at 2:15
This could be big (from Slate): The Los Angeles Times leads with a look at how a number of striking writers are currently in talks with venture capitalists to create Internet content that would "bypass the Hollywood studio system." Is this the year that TV jumps the shark? We can dream.. |
Posted by Mary on 14/12/2007 at 17:50
 If you don't have any plans for the weekend of March 1 & 2, consider coming to the eDemocracy BarCamp in Washington DC. It's the first BarCamp ever on e-democracy. From the web site: eDemocracyCamp wants to connect citizens, researchers, developers, practitioners and anyone else interested in the topic to learn about the current state of e-democracy and share their visions for its future direction.
Topics may include (but aren't limited to): e-democracy, e-participation, e-government, e-voting, online civic engagement, online political campaigning, online dialogue and deliberation. Technical tracks may cover things like the importance of open standards, hacktivism, mashups (Read more) | |
Posted by Mary on 09/12/2007 at 19:25
 candidates treat the Internet as a soapbox and tip jar, but it's so much more
Matt Bai writes in this week's New York Times Magazine about how the presidential candidates still don't understand how the Internet works, even after Howard Dean: ...It seems clear that the candidates and their advisers absorbed the wrong lessons from Dean’s moment...these things can’t really be orchestrated. Dean’s campaign didn’t explode online because he somehow figured out a way to channel online politics; he managed this feat because his campaign... became channeled by people he had never met.... In the new and evolving online world, | |
Posted by Mary on 06/12/2007 at 17:23
A little reminder from my friend Ken Banks that the nGOmobile Competition closes December 14 (next Friday). Consider applying! |
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Quote of the Week"If you think you can influence the agenda, you walk through the world with different eyes and different ears."
-Yochai Benkler What is Digital Activism?Digital activism means grassroots activists using digital technologies like cell phones and the internet to increase their impact, thus subverting traditional power hierarchies and changing the world.
The Blog Advocacy Guide  Click image to download! Zapping the BoomThere are 62 people browsing "ZapBoom" at the moment.
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