London Riots: BlackBerry boys and BlackBerry yobs

When Ogilvy created this television commercial for BlackBerry on Vodafone, they would never have imagined how prescient they were.

The commercial was created to say that the BlackBerry was not the preserve of the suits, the management graduates and executives in high places; the BlackBerry was for everybody.

The commercial shows the divide between one class and the other - and the obvious disdain that the ‘suits’ felt when their turf was being infringed on.

BlackBerry has played a significant role in the London riots. Reports mashable.com, “As the riots in London look set to continue for a third night - and to spread to other parts of the UK - details are starting to emerge on how the rioters have been organizing themselves. The medium of choice? BlackBerry Messenger….

Watch youtube video of BlackBerry Commercial here

…But it soon became clear that BBM was by far the most popular means for rioters to communicate. BlackBerry devices, cheaper and more widespread than iOS or Android smartphones, are owned by more than a third of British teens, according to a recent study . BBM - an instant message service for BlackBerry owners - is free, instantly available, one-to-many, and the authorities can’t immediately trace it. BBM users must exchange PIN numbers, which keeps their conversations private.”

The Guardian reproduced some of these messages. _"_One BBM broadcast sent on Sunday, which has been shown to the Guardian by multiple sources, calls on “everyone from all sides of London” to vandalise shops on Oxford street.

It said: “Everyone from all sides of London meet up at the heart of London (central) OXFORD CIRCUS!!, Bare SHOPS are gonna get smashed up so come get some (free stuff!!!) fuck the feds we will send them back with OUR riot! >:O Dead the ends and colour war for now so if you see a brother… SALUT! if you see a fed… SHOOT!”

It’s too early to say, with any degree of authority, what fuelled the protests which quickly transformed into looting and riots. Originally, the protests were against the shooting of Tottenham resident Mark Duggan, allegedly by police officers, but the later developments seem to be, on the surface of it, unconnected.

The Duggan killing seemed to provide a reason to begin to riot. This has quickly transformed into a reason to loot, with the unfortunate Duggan forgotten in the madness.

Reports The Guardian: “One user who said he’d witnessed but not participated in Saturday’s riots said the riots were caused by: “Cultural divide, with anger towards the police. I don’t believe much of this has to do with Mark Duggan and is more about the “yob culture” in Tottenham.”

Adds another reader in the same newspaper. “The Mark Duggan protest proved a trigger for wider social tensions which authorities had long failed to address. Because the people of Tottenham feel as a community that they are trapped by the poor socio-economic environment (this may or may not be true, and many find another reason or excuse for why they are not working or in gangs).”

It’ll be some time before we know the degree to which socio-economic unrest contributed to the riots and looting and the degree to which plain and simple opportunism contributed to it; what is certain that BlackBerry Messenger, in particular, and other social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, in general, were important tools used in creating organised groups, all the more effective when looting is the objective.

It’s patent that the Internet, social media - and BlackBerry Messenger - are great levellers; anyone can use these to whatever the objective they seek to attain.

And it could be these very tools which end up helping the police understand and control the unrest. “The maker of the BlackBerry , Research in Motion, said on Monday night that it would co-operate with a police investigation into claims that its popular BlackBerry Messenger service played a key role in organising the London riots.

Scotland Yard vowed to track down and arrest protesters who posted “really inflammatory, inaccurate” messages on the service, and the social networking websites Twitter and Facebook.

Watch images from the riots

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The BlackBerry Boys, the authorities, will, hopefully, rein in the BlackBerry yobs, the rioters and the looters, taking the help of, who else but BlackBerry?