Trinh Minh-Ha (1991) "The World as Foreign Land"
Although, the theorization of racial and sexual otherness has become accepted as a legitimate area of study, but vigilance must be maintained in the discourse. Discussions can lead to a predominately Western, mainstream view that emphasizes the foreign nature of the "others." Those who would be categorized as the "others" must be wary and not allow the domination of the dominant thought created by another claiming to be an authority. They must be able to affirm the differences they have while at the same time not allow other individuals to isolate them.
Dominant control of the discussion is sometimes used through the media. The media is often used to create a single collective truth that silences other views. This often stereotypes the "others" and in response, they point out these stereotypes. It creates a certain repetition in the argument that may at first seem tiring, but is actually a powerful tool. It continually re-draws attention to the media and makes people begin to look at invisible meanings within the text. Thus it is not enough to simply make the invisible visible, but to make known the invisibility of the invisible.
Comments:
New media plays with the role of consumer and producer, but I believe that the mainstream will always exist. The thing that people view as the norm and is widely accepted as well as having tons of money pumped into it. As much as we celebrate the our podcasts, amateur videos on YouTube, and our other attempts at being producers, it's never the same as being a part of the mainstream. However, the mainstream is often run by corporations for profit, which has bending over to appeal to the masses with popular preconceived images. You probably know where I'm getting at by now, which is representation of minorities in the media. Minh-Ha's article made me think about the fact that we are often conflicted at seeing some minority actors make it big. It's great to see a person of color in popular media, but the roles that they often end up with reenforces some stereotype. This is especially true when it comes to the queer community. Television shows such as Will & Grace (which actually had straight actors) has created a predominant image of a gay man. While minorities, those categorized as "others" are happy to be accepted into popular discourses, a certain vigilance and critical analysis must take place. The reenforcing of stereotypes only makes the idea of people being foreigners, different, ever the more stronger.
Trinh Minh-Ha (1991) "The Other Censorship"
Art and theory are often separated from each other and considered different practices, but the boundaries between the two are not set in stone. Inevitably a critical practice will cross between the two and serve to upset the status quo, the accepted ideologies. They remain as neither wholly separate or assimilated. To approach it from only one side, either only as an artist or as a critic, creates a standard considered normal, and either eliminates different forms of art, or places them under scrutiny. In a sense, this is another form of censorship.
This type of censorship is often used work done by minorities. Minorities find difficulty in gaining acceptance as either artists or theorists. Even after gaining acceptance, they can be pigeon-holed into a certain domain, usually about their "ethnic heritage." Being pigeon-holed is problematic as they continue to write within what is expected means bowing down to the dominant ideology, but to do differently can be seen as a betrayal of ethnic loyalty. To prevent such a thing from happening, critical practice must be used to constantly question and examine art and its boundaries.
Comments:
The comments about being pigeon-holed are interesting. It's a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation. It places individuals in a very confining situation in which they do not have any real room to move and truly express oneself. This is especially problematic if there is a continual relation back to the area assigned to you. In a sense, independence as an individual is lost. Individual identity is subsumed underneath a subject. It's the equivalent of being typecast for actors. An individual wants room to explore and experiment but is not given the chance.
As with the other Minh-Ha article, a critical examination of media is of the utmost importance. There is more to a text than what is seen. From stereotyping in the form of acceptance to an invisible censorship, we must be wary and able to look at the meanings behind texts.
Mizuko Ito (2002) "Technologies of the Childhood Imagination: Media Mixes, Hypersociality, and Recombinant Cultural Form
The larger context of media mixing is looked at through the lens of Yugioh. The old form of media mixing usually involved the transferring of text from one form of media to another, usually from books to film or television. The new form of media mixing is a product appearing across several media simultaneously. This new form of media has an influence on the childhood imagination, intricately tying it to the technologies of new media. The media mix itself has provided a new interactivity between the visual imaginary world and the real physical world. In the context of Yugioh, the cards and the game seen in the anime and manga have a real life counterpart that children can engage in. In addition, video games that retell the narrative can be interacted with and physical cards can even be transferred over to the video game. This media mixing causes a change in the social aspects of children. Hypersociality occurs rather than the shut-in, introverted and passive view of children as consumers. There are multiple access points to the text through several media. It begins to pervade several aspects of childhood. From there it goes on to the remixing of the media. Children can re-appropriate it and customize it to their own personal likings. This has also attracted adults who engage in more sophisticated forms of the same thing, such as making their own zines about the characters, methods of rare card collecting and entrepreneurship.
All of these represent changes in the social and cultural interactions of children through the shift from one form of media to another. This leads to the need to take new examination in the relations between new media and life on many different levels.
Comments:
The thing I'm interested in is all of this taken in the context of a popular fad. Pokemon and Yugioh are both popular fads that despite their initial excitement and phenomenon in capturing the attention of many, it does fade. The popularity goes from all encompassing to being a niche. Honestly, I haven't heard much about Yugioh since my senior year in high school two years ago. So what exactly happens to these social and cultural effects once the fad dies? Where does the hypersociality and remixing go? As exciting as a phenomenon such as Yugioh is, it's a rarity. It's multimedia success was directly related to its popularity. There have been other products that have attempted the same strategy, but have failed to catch on. It's too early to look at the great changes that these types of products of on the children and the expansion of imagination. The current fad includes all of this media mix, but the next one might not necessarily pull off the same thing, and all of the things described here may not occur.
Mizuko Ito (2002) "Mobiles and the Appropriation of Place"
Ito examines the changes in the experience of co-presence and social interactions in Japanese youth that the mobile phone has brought about. In particular, Ito looks at how the boundaries of a physical gathering are extended before, during and after the meeting. Before the advent of mobile phones, the normal thing was to suggest a fixed time and place to meet. Now, no fixed time or place need to be set. A general time and place is set and then mobile communications narrow it down. Even the normal manners of being on time are as problematic as a message can be sent stating that one will be late, which allows the other person to occupy themselves until then. During the actual meeting, mobile phones augment the meeting by allowing the invitation of other friends, retrieval of information concerning a conversation, or even as a conversation starter when they receive a message. They also showed no qualms in talking to someone else when they receive a phone call. Communication that would usually not be possible is possible as well, especially with text messaging which can be done discretely. After the meeting, things such as thanks, continued conversation or forgotten bits of information can still be passed on. The effect of all of this is that the urban environment is becoming highly personalized with individuals continuously in contact with each other.
Comments:
Fascinating how this sounds like my life right now, except without the excessive texting as it is not free for me. Mobiles have really changed the way people interact with each other. It creates a new culture and as shown, a new set of rules and social norms. So what about those who do not have ready access to this technology? Yeah, everyone and their pet dog has cell phones now a days, but people have varying models and billing plans, which limits how much and what they use their phone for. For example, I truly dread text messaging because it costs me about 35 cents per message which can pile up when people don't get the point. Anyways, the whole point is what happens to those who do not have access? Do they become isolated from the society, or become a part of a different culture parallel to the one described here? It's interesting that new media is creating a new culture, but those of the old still remain and interact with the new.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Justin Lin's "Better Luck Tomorrow"
The film is a challenge to the model minority image of Asian Americans. The funny thing is that it feeds into the image in order to challenge it. A part of the model minority image is overachieving in what they do. All of the main characters are very smart, involved in many extracurricular activities, doing lots of service work and pretty much focused on doing whatever it takes to get into the top universities. They are also all pretty privileged characters seeing as how they all live in the suburbs. All of them seem to be living the American dream. The model minority image is holding up considering they really have no problems other than the pressure to succeed.
The guys create the problems for themselves by becoming involved in crime. In this case, the model minority image is challenged in that they are not perfect honor roll students. They want to shake off the squeaky clean academic image associated with the model minority stereotype. As Ben states in the beginning, it felt good to be able to do something that can’t be put on a college application. There is something exhilarating about doing the wrong thing, or at least what is not expected of them. Virgil, more than any of them, revels in the rumors flying around about them. The rumors make them seem tougher and cooler than they really were. It does challenge the model minority stereotype but not in the same way as AKA Don Bonus.
AKA Don Bonus shows an Asian American youth that is unable to succeed because he comes from a low-income family that is also divided, crime is not started by him but finds his way to him and the institutions are unable to help him achieve the “American dream.” The characters of Better Luck Tomorrow are in the complete opposite situation from Don Bonus. Things are working in their favor, but they choose to work against the model minority stereotype by creating the crime that Don Bonus is forced to face.
Beyond challenging the model minority, it would appear to challenge the portrayal of Asian American men in media and the stereotype of them being submissive, quiet and asexual. The focus is reclaiming Asian American masculinity. The guys act tough, do illegal crimes, have sex, get into fights, drink and all other kinds of things. They’re all doing what would be considered masculine activities. However, I never feel a real sense of masculinity being portrayed. They all seem like weak individuals. The fight they get into with a jock ends with them getting beat up and Daric needing to pull a gun on him in order to win. In order to lose their virginity, they have to resort to a prostitute. Ben kills Steve with a bat while he’s being held down. They try to establish masculinity, but fail repeatedly.
The reason it fails is because it feels so false. The masculine things they do seem like an act to rebel against how others perceive them. It is not who they really are. As much as they hate to admit it, they really are the image of the model minority. They are highly focused on academics and push themselves in order to get into top universities.
One other thing I noticed is that parents do not show up at all in the film. They are mentioned but none ever make an appearance on the screen. I find that rather odd. We do not learn what generation they are, what kind of interactions they have with their children or any of their opinions. I feel an important element of the youth’s lives is being left out by doing this.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
NML Week 8
Buckingham (2003) Ch. 2 "New Media Childhoods"
Buckingham looks at the relationship between childhood and new media. In order to examine this, he acknowledges that it cannot be examined separate from cultural, social and economic influences. The view of the relationship between childhood and new media can take two perspectives. One is that of Neil Postman, which sees new media as the death of childhood as greater access exposes children to the "secret" world of adults. The opposing view is that of Don Tapscott, who sees as a liberating entity as it gives children more choices and enables them to be more active in their selection. Either way, the line between adults and children are simultaneously blurred and reinforced.
The boundary between adults and children are blurred in that no longer are children targeted by companies as an avenue to their parents, but are now directly targeting the children themselves. The children are now the consumers and products are directly being targeted towards them. A niche market is being created that exclusively targets children. Intertextuality provides an example as current media text are constantly connected or referred to other texts, or products. Disney not only has films, but spin-off shows, toys, music, theme parks, etc. all related to a single product. Children programs are also including more and more topics that were once considered taboo. However, at the same time that this blurring between the child and adult world is occurring, a child culture is being created that only children can really understand. It excludes adults.
Commentary
An important point made in the reading is what are the consequence for those children from lower income families who do not have equal access to technology. The childhoods in contention here are under the assumption that the family has access to all of these technologies. Does this polarization between these two socioeconomic backgrounds lead to the experience of two different childhoods? If the gap between rich and poor ever becomes greater, a gap between two cultures, the new media literate and illiterate, could grow within societies. With education pretty much being incapable of keeping up with technological advancements, children from poorer backgrounds may never get the experience necessary for the jobs in the future as learning of new media occurs more frequently within the home than in the classroom.
Intertextuality is becoming ever the more interesting with the licensing out of products. Taking a look at major motion pictures, a single company, the creator that owns the original rights can license it out to several different companies to make different products all on the thing. However, the problem that many are able to pick up is, that all they're really doing is milking a cash cow, so the quality of said products have to always be checked. This is probably most evident with video games. As gamers become older, they become warier of licensed games. These games are most often shabbily put together, so that it can sell not based on quality but on the license connected to it. This begs the question of whether or not intertextuality can cause a decrease in the overall quality of products, because they heavily rely on the name to move units.
Buckingham looks at the relationship between childhood and new media. In order to examine this, he acknowledges that it cannot be examined separate from cultural, social and economic influences. The view of the relationship between childhood and new media can take two perspectives. One is that of Neil Postman, which sees new media as the death of childhood as greater access exposes children to the "secret" world of adults. The opposing view is that of Don Tapscott, who sees as a liberating entity as it gives children more choices and enables them to be more active in their selection. Either way, the line between adults and children are simultaneously blurred and reinforced.
The boundary between adults and children are blurred in that no longer are children targeted by companies as an avenue to their parents, but are now directly targeting the children themselves. The children are now the consumers and products are directly being targeted towards them. A niche market is being created that exclusively targets children. Intertextuality provides an example as current media text are constantly connected or referred to other texts, or products. Disney not only has films, but spin-off shows, toys, music, theme parks, etc. all related to a single product. Children programs are also including more and more topics that were once considered taboo. However, at the same time that this blurring between the child and adult world is occurring, a child culture is being created that only children can really understand. It excludes adults.
Commentary
An important point made in the reading is what are the consequence for those children from lower income families who do not have equal access to technology. The childhoods in contention here are under the assumption that the family has access to all of these technologies. Does this polarization between these two socioeconomic backgrounds lead to the experience of two different childhoods? If the gap between rich and poor ever becomes greater, a gap between two cultures, the new media literate and illiterate, could grow within societies. With education pretty much being incapable of keeping up with technological advancements, children from poorer backgrounds may never get the experience necessary for the jobs in the future as learning of new media occurs more frequently within the home than in the classroom.
Intertextuality is becoming ever the more interesting with the licensing out of products. Taking a look at major motion pictures, a single company, the creator that owns the original rights can license it out to several different companies to make different products all on the thing. However, the problem that many are able to pick up is, that all they're really doing is milking a cash cow, so the quality of said products have to always be checked. This is probably most evident with video games. As gamers become older, they become warier of licensed games. These games are most often shabbily put together, so that it can sell not based on quality but on the license connected to it. This begs the question of whether or not intertextuality can cause a decrease in the overall quality of products, because they heavily rely on the name to move units.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
NML Week 7
Lister et al. (pgs. 219-279)
This chapter explores the new media within everyday life. In looking at this topic, the authors begin to address the question of whether or not cyberspace really means a disconnect from the physical world, including the cultures and societies in which new media exists within. In the end, cyberspace is not this separable entity from everyday life, but rather something that modifies it.
Some of the modifications involve the strengthening of the consumerist culture. There are now vast amounts of media to take in, however this leads to different visions of consumerism. One in particular, the "leftist pessimists" sees people as dominated by new media, reinforcing ideologies of oppression and suppression. Another vision shows greater freedom in the hands of the consumers as they can select what they choose to consume.
Another modification is the family relationship within the home. The relations revolve access to the computer which is often done through negotiations between family members, especially when there is only one PC in the home. Each individual uses the PC for different purposes, changing their view of it. The location of the computer also stems from the communal nature of it. Knowledge of the technology is connected to the amount of authority that an individual possesses concerning a particular piece of technology.
Education, or rather edutainment is another form of modification in which the entertainment values that we take from various forms of media is synthesized with educational material. It becomes a process by which we can learn through play. Leisure activities become productive processes.
The anonymity of the internet also for a special kind of identity formation. Through the internet, a unique act can occur in which individuals can play with their identity, changing it to whatever they feel like. It creates another life, another experience complimentary to that experienced in real life.
Video games, which possibly is the most widely consumed new medium. Video games can be seen as providing wide opportunities to relate to fantastical worlds and new experiences, but at the same time, it can provide tremendous fears. Among them is their simulations being taken into the reality of life, especially FPS. The integration between fantasy and reality can become blurred. Another fear is the isolation and lack of social interaction that video game playing can cause. Video games can also open the window for learning how a piece of new media operates.
Comments
Despite being only four-five years old, this book all of a sudden feels very out of date. This is a book that came out before MySpace, YouTube and the next generation of video game systems became established in popular culture. The language of the text just seems old to me. I take issue with several points made.
First things first, edutainment is a useless concept as described here that should be mocked and forgotten. The things being passed off as edutainment are too simple and seem to be aimed more for profit than actual education. From my own childhood, I know that edutainment allowed me to pick up random facts, but it could not match up in comparison to structured and formal teaching. Even shows that were considered edutainment are more pieces of nostalgia now than instrumental lessons toward my intellectual development. Edutainment is not without some merit, but it fails to realize that the children growing up now are vastly different from children that just grew up a few years ago. They are much more used to the digital era in which technology is such an integral part of their life. The stimulus that they receive is much more complex and introduction of complicated technology occurs at a younger age. I remember how complicated I thought a Nintendo was when I was 6, and could never imagine some of the video games now, and yet in today's kids, we have 6 yr olds that can mercilessly crush players 3 or 4 times their age in Halo. Edutainment is too dumbed down to promote true education or entertainment.
The internet's use for identity formation is an important idea, but what about the rise in popularity of social networks such as Friendster, MySpace and Facebook, which often times can completely destroy anonymity. In fact, the complete and utter opposite thing can occur, in which much of a person's daily life becomes completely public. A battle between public and expectations of privacy occurred with MySpace at my high school when pictures popped up on pages, in which students were drunk in said photo, were seen by one of our teachers who was deliberately searching through student pages for this kind of stuff. The students were punished, and in another school, a girl was expelled for making comments about a teacher on her page. Many individuals still experiment with their identity, but these social networks promote completely opening up your identity to the entire world.
Finally, on video games, things have dramatically changed in just the last couple of years. Games are becoming progressively more real and interactive (Nintendo Wii), to the point of strengthening old fears. However, video games are being pushed as a form of art, of free speech protected underneath the 1st amendment. Games have advanced by tremendous leaps in just a few years. So much so, not that they are categorized in different categories beyond their respective genres. For example, a distinction is now made between games for hardcore gamers, complex, time intensive, and casual gamers, those of the pick up and play variety. Games have also made good use of visuals and interactivity to create a cinematic experience that can only be categorized as art. Also, the gaming population is getting older, and views of video games and their impact on society is changing. The advent of console online gaming has greatly linked the gaming community and a gamer culture is being formed. However, during all this, the consumerist culture is influencing the games created and marketed, often creating a conflict between profit and creativity.
This chapter explores the new media within everyday life. In looking at this topic, the authors begin to address the question of whether or not cyberspace really means a disconnect from the physical world, including the cultures and societies in which new media exists within. In the end, cyberspace is not this separable entity from everyday life, but rather something that modifies it.
Some of the modifications involve the strengthening of the consumerist culture. There are now vast amounts of media to take in, however this leads to different visions of consumerism. One in particular, the "leftist pessimists" sees people as dominated by new media, reinforcing ideologies of oppression and suppression. Another vision shows greater freedom in the hands of the consumers as they can select what they choose to consume.
Another modification is the family relationship within the home. The relations revolve access to the computer which is often done through negotiations between family members, especially when there is only one PC in the home. Each individual uses the PC for different purposes, changing their view of it. The location of the computer also stems from the communal nature of it. Knowledge of the technology is connected to the amount of authority that an individual possesses concerning a particular piece of technology.
Education, or rather edutainment is another form of modification in which the entertainment values that we take from various forms of media is synthesized with educational material. It becomes a process by which we can learn through play. Leisure activities become productive processes.
The anonymity of the internet also for a special kind of identity formation. Through the internet, a unique act can occur in which individuals can play with their identity, changing it to whatever they feel like. It creates another life, another experience complimentary to that experienced in real life.
Video games, which possibly is the most widely consumed new medium. Video games can be seen as providing wide opportunities to relate to fantastical worlds and new experiences, but at the same time, it can provide tremendous fears. Among them is their simulations being taken into the reality of life, especially FPS. The integration between fantasy and reality can become blurred. Another fear is the isolation and lack of social interaction that video game playing can cause. Video games can also open the window for learning how a piece of new media operates.
Comments
Despite being only four-five years old, this book all of a sudden feels very out of date. This is a book that came out before MySpace, YouTube and the next generation of video game systems became established in popular culture. The language of the text just seems old to me. I take issue with several points made.
First things first, edutainment is a useless concept as described here that should be mocked and forgotten. The things being passed off as edutainment are too simple and seem to be aimed more for profit than actual education. From my own childhood, I know that edutainment allowed me to pick up random facts, but it could not match up in comparison to structured and formal teaching. Even shows that were considered edutainment are more pieces of nostalgia now than instrumental lessons toward my intellectual development. Edutainment is not without some merit, but it fails to realize that the children growing up now are vastly different from children that just grew up a few years ago. They are much more used to the digital era in which technology is such an integral part of their life. The stimulus that they receive is much more complex and introduction of complicated technology occurs at a younger age. I remember how complicated I thought a Nintendo was when I was 6, and could never imagine some of the video games now, and yet in today's kids, we have 6 yr olds that can mercilessly crush players 3 or 4 times their age in Halo. Edutainment is too dumbed down to promote true education or entertainment.
The internet's use for identity formation is an important idea, but what about the rise in popularity of social networks such as Friendster, MySpace and Facebook, which often times can completely destroy anonymity. In fact, the complete and utter opposite thing can occur, in which much of a person's daily life becomes completely public. A battle between public and expectations of privacy occurred with MySpace at my high school when pictures popped up on pages, in which students were drunk in said photo, were seen by one of our teachers who was deliberately searching through student pages for this kind of stuff. The students were punished, and in another school, a girl was expelled for making comments about a teacher on her page. Many individuals still experiment with their identity, but these social networks promote completely opening up your identity to the entire world.
Finally, on video games, things have dramatically changed in just the last couple of years. Games are becoming progressively more real and interactive (Nintendo Wii), to the point of strengthening old fears. However, video games are being pushed as a form of art, of free speech protected underneath the 1st amendment. Games have advanced by tremendous leaps in just a few years. So much so, not that they are categorized in different categories beyond their respective genres. For example, a distinction is now made between games for hardcore gamers, complex, time intensive, and casual gamers, those of the pick up and play variety. Games have also made good use of visuals and interactivity to create a cinematic experience that can only be categorized as art. Also, the gaming population is getting older, and views of video games and their impact on society is changing. The advent of console online gaming has greatly linked the gaming community and a gamer culture is being formed. However, during all this, the consumerist culture is influencing the games created and marketed, often creating a conflict between profit and creativity.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
NML Week 6
Jenkins (2006a) Ch. 6
Consumers of media are not passive, but rather active participants that can discuss as well as manipulate the media. The digital revolution has broken down barriers between individuals to a tremendous degree that expansive communities have opened to any and everyone. Fan communities have taken the greatest use of this fact. What once was done by letters, conventions and print zines, can now be done at amazing speeds on the web. A collective intelligence is created by pooling in all of the knowledge of the fans. No one fan can know everything, only pieces that together form a mass knowledge accessible to everyone. Although this was happening before hand, now it is happening at greater and greater speeds. The digital revolution has also allowed the fans to move from simply be consumers to also being producers to a much wider audience.
These speeds can be used for consumer activism. Fans voice their opinions about the shows they love and hate in an attempt to try to alter the decisions of executives. Sometimes these opinions can erupt into flame wars between other fans. At times, it can cause other conflicts relating to the rules of the fan community. These conflicts can run the risk of alienating new fans.
A reciprocity between the media producers and the fan consumers eventually develops. This relationship can influence one another in the material they produce or the activities they engage in. However, a conflict arises over intellectual property. Companies take legal action against those who use their property without permission. However, such action can be seen as premature as these communities provide an untapped source of promotion and loyalty. Strengthening the fan loyalty requires broadening consumer participation, not narrowing it.
Jenkins VPodcast "Welcome to Convergence Culture: Consumer Participation and Branded Entertainment"
Convergence is defined as the flow of stories, communities, brands, etc. across media platforms. The convergence culture goes to two extremes, everything put into a black box as Jenkins calls it, or a collection of many black boxes. Convergence is seen in two ways, either as media consolidation or the bottom up, grass roots power of the internet. In order to think of convergence, one must think of these two in relations to each other and not separate. Convergence can occur in the black box as well as in our heads as can be seen in multi-tasking. Media becomes even more complex, so much that it cannot be concentrated into one media, instead people and media contain certain pieces that go together. Consumers pull their knowledge together, expanding knowledge capacity. Levy argues this is a emerging structure of power that can change the way capitalism works. Adhocracy principle best exemplified by Wikipedia. There's no leader, no central structure, but information emerges.
Convergence culture is not talking about the digital revolution in which new media replaces old media. Predictions made about mass media crumbling within the decade, but that's not occurring but rather convergence is an interplay between the old media and the new media. There are new relations with mass media rather than trying to replace it. Interactivity is a property of technologies while participation is a property of cultures. Any new technology taken into a participatory culture will take on new uses. The old consumer stayed when told, were predictable, isolated, silent, invisible, compliant while the new consumers are migratory, showing a declining loyalty to networks or media, and more socially connected, noisy and public, resistant, taking media into their own hands. Pop cosmopolitan, thinking outside of our locality and in this context taking the content that they want from another culture and bringing it into their own market.
Companies react either with prohibitionist or collaborationist logic. There are incentives to collaborationist logic as can build loyalty to the brand, the company. Contradictory message as give message of collaboration while at the same time taking legal actions against people. With some video games, have found that collaborationist logic to be much more profitable as self-expression creates better communities and more commitment to the product. Battle over intellectual property is really determines what participation includes, but the rules keep changing by the commercial company.
Comments (Due to the similarities in points, this comments section is for both selections):
The conflict between the fans and the companies is an interesting one that may never be resolved in my opinion. The reason for this is that I feel that the fans who do devote the time and energy to a certain property often makes a niche market that is substantial for maintaining that property, but may not be enough to actually garner profit. Fans voice also does not always match the actual amount of support that exists for a property. I use the show Firefly as an example. When the show was having falling ratings, many campaigns appeared across medias in order to try to keep the show on the air and eventually to bring it back after it was canceled. Eventually the fan response was great enough that the show was revived as a big budget motion picture. Everything seemed successful except for the amount of revenue the film actually took in. I'm sure someone asked, "Where are the fans?"
Networks and movie distributors often dislike taking risks, but they do so because you never know what might be the next big thing. However, they often go by the mantra of if it isn't broke, don't fix it. This often makes them rely on formulas, archetypes, ideas etc. that have worked in the past and rehashing them, at times, downright stealing them. The mainstream wants and needs take dominance, and often the mainstream wants what is familiar and comfortable. This just be my personal opinion, but look at the state of the music industry today, in which bands and musicians that are picked up often sound remarkably alike. There is a fear for something new that makes them crowd to the established forms, often at the expense of creativity. I can see the massive appeal of mainstream to the teeny boppers and pre-teens who have yet to develop a sense of taste, but as individuals become older, preferences become more refined, often appealing for one of those niche markets. At times, those niche markets can even become a part of the mainstream with enough support.
The fight over intellectual property is, as I see it, a struggle between the established forms and the desire to breath new life into something familiar by taking into an unfamiliar realm. It is a struggle between profits and creativity.
Consumers of media are not passive, but rather active participants that can discuss as well as manipulate the media. The digital revolution has broken down barriers between individuals to a tremendous degree that expansive communities have opened to any and everyone. Fan communities have taken the greatest use of this fact. What once was done by letters, conventions and print zines, can now be done at amazing speeds on the web. A collective intelligence is created by pooling in all of the knowledge of the fans. No one fan can know everything, only pieces that together form a mass knowledge accessible to everyone. Although this was happening before hand, now it is happening at greater and greater speeds. The digital revolution has also allowed the fans to move from simply be consumers to also being producers to a much wider audience.
These speeds can be used for consumer activism. Fans voice their opinions about the shows they love and hate in an attempt to try to alter the decisions of executives. Sometimes these opinions can erupt into flame wars between other fans. At times, it can cause other conflicts relating to the rules of the fan community. These conflicts can run the risk of alienating new fans.
A reciprocity between the media producers and the fan consumers eventually develops. This relationship can influence one another in the material they produce or the activities they engage in. However, a conflict arises over intellectual property. Companies take legal action against those who use their property without permission. However, such action can be seen as premature as these communities provide an untapped source of promotion and loyalty. Strengthening the fan loyalty requires broadening consumer participation, not narrowing it.
Jenkins VPodcast "Welcome to Convergence Culture: Consumer Participation and Branded Entertainment"
Convergence is defined as the flow of stories, communities, brands, etc. across media platforms. The convergence culture goes to two extremes, everything put into a black box as Jenkins calls it, or a collection of many black boxes. Convergence is seen in two ways, either as media consolidation or the bottom up, grass roots power of the internet. In order to think of convergence, one must think of these two in relations to each other and not separate. Convergence can occur in the black box as well as in our heads as can be seen in multi-tasking. Media becomes even more complex, so much that it cannot be concentrated into one media, instead people and media contain certain pieces that go together. Consumers pull their knowledge together, expanding knowledge capacity. Levy argues this is a emerging structure of power that can change the way capitalism works. Adhocracy principle best exemplified by Wikipedia. There's no leader, no central structure, but information emerges.
Convergence culture is not talking about the digital revolution in which new media replaces old media. Predictions made about mass media crumbling within the decade, but that's not occurring but rather convergence is an interplay between the old media and the new media. There are new relations with mass media rather than trying to replace it. Interactivity is a property of technologies while participation is a property of cultures. Any new technology taken into a participatory culture will take on new uses. The old consumer stayed when told, were predictable, isolated, silent, invisible, compliant while the new consumers are migratory, showing a declining loyalty to networks or media, and more socially connected, noisy and public, resistant, taking media into their own hands. Pop cosmopolitan, thinking outside of our locality and in this context taking the content that they want from another culture and bringing it into their own market.
Companies react either with prohibitionist or collaborationist logic. There are incentives to collaborationist logic as can build loyalty to the brand, the company. Contradictory message as give message of collaboration while at the same time taking legal actions against people. With some video games, have found that collaborationist logic to be much more profitable as self-expression creates better communities and more commitment to the product. Battle over intellectual property is really determines what participation includes, but the rules keep changing by the commercial company.
Comments (Due to the similarities in points, this comments section is for both selections):
The conflict between the fans and the companies is an interesting one that may never be resolved in my opinion. The reason for this is that I feel that the fans who do devote the time and energy to a certain property often makes a niche market that is substantial for maintaining that property, but may not be enough to actually garner profit. Fans voice also does not always match the actual amount of support that exists for a property. I use the show Firefly as an example. When the show was having falling ratings, many campaigns appeared across medias in order to try to keep the show on the air and eventually to bring it back after it was canceled. Eventually the fan response was great enough that the show was revived as a big budget motion picture. Everything seemed successful except for the amount of revenue the film actually took in. I'm sure someone asked, "Where are the fans?"
Networks and movie distributors often dislike taking risks, but they do so because you never know what might be the next big thing. However, they often go by the mantra of if it isn't broke, don't fix it. This often makes them rely on formulas, archetypes, ideas etc. that have worked in the past and rehashing them, at times, downright stealing them. The mainstream wants and needs take dominance, and often the mainstream wants what is familiar and comfortable. This just be my personal opinion, but look at the state of the music industry today, in which bands and musicians that are picked up often sound remarkably alike. There is a fear for something new that makes them crowd to the established forms, often at the expense of creativity. I can see the massive appeal of mainstream to the teeny boppers and pre-teens who have yet to develop a sense of taste, but as individuals become older, preferences become more refined, often appealing for one of those niche markets. At times, those niche markets can even become a part of the mainstream with enough support.
The fight over intellectual property is, as I see it, a struggle between the established forms and the desire to breath new life into something familiar by taking into an unfamiliar realm. It is a struggle between profits and creativity.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke
The primary theme of the film is not lost in contemporary times. The battle between nature and the industrial world of man is one that is forever waged. The film places the two side by side in the presentation of Irontown and the forest surrounding it where the Forest Spirit resides. There is an untouched natural beauty of the forest compared to the dark, cloudy industrial town. The color palettes used for the two are in sharp contrast to each other with Irontown seeming dirty. The move of industrialization, of progress is tainting the forest. Representative of this is the ominous shape the boar god Nago takes in the beginning of the film. Twisted by hate and rage, he becomes a monster.
The representation of the two sides of the conflict are Lady Eboshi and San. Lady Eboshi is completely representative of the industrial world. She is similar to the tycoons of the industrial revolution. Lady Eboshi is driven by the greed and arrogance at her own powers. She even goes so far as to believe that she can challenge the gods, most representative when she takes the head of the Forest Spirit. The power of technology as well as the wealth that can be derived from it at the expense of nature is intoxicating. San, on the other hand is completely rejected humanity as seen in the end of the film when she leaves Ashitaka and returns to the forest. Raised by the wolf goddess Moro, she considers herself a wolf. San is comfortable with living with, or rather in nature undisturbed.
However, the conflict is not as black and white in its portrayal. While the industrial world is polluting nature, it is providing opportunities for the people within Irontown. Lady Eboshi may be your traditional industrialist, but she is not completely without a heart. She takes in the dregs of society such as lepers and prostitutes and gives them opportunities to have worth in their lives when the rest of society has abandoned them. Just as industry in the real world provides jobs for people and makes life more convenient for everyone, but also comes at a cost to nature as we constantly have to destroy lands, or pollute them in order to build our skyscrapers and factories. Ashitaka seems to serve as a middle road.
Although he tends to side more with nature, Ashitaka does not abandon humanity. In the end, taking the path opposite of San, he returns to Irontown, to people. He respects nature but he also wants to protect humanity, not destroy or take revenge on them like San. He brings awareness of the conflict, able to see both sides and attempt to mediate the two. Ashitaka's stance is one that people should take as it provides a perspective often lost especially in today's discussion between conservation and industrialization for the benefit of the people in countires around the world.
The representation of the two sides of the conflict are Lady Eboshi and San. Lady Eboshi is completely representative of the industrial world. She is similar to the tycoons of the industrial revolution. Lady Eboshi is driven by the greed and arrogance at her own powers. She even goes so far as to believe that she can challenge the gods, most representative when she takes the head of the Forest Spirit. The power of technology as well as the wealth that can be derived from it at the expense of nature is intoxicating. San, on the other hand is completely rejected humanity as seen in the end of the film when she leaves Ashitaka and returns to the forest. Raised by the wolf goddess Moro, she considers herself a wolf. San is comfortable with living with, or rather in nature undisturbed.
However, the conflict is not as black and white in its portrayal. While the industrial world is polluting nature, it is providing opportunities for the people within Irontown. Lady Eboshi may be your traditional industrialist, but she is not completely without a heart. She takes in the dregs of society such as lepers and prostitutes and gives them opportunities to have worth in their lives when the rest of society has abandoned them. Just as industry in the real world provides jobs for people and makes life more convenient for everyone, but also comes at a cost to nature as we constantly have to destroy lands, or pollute them in order to build our skyscrapers and factories. Ashitaka seems to serve as a middle road.
Although he tends to side more with nature, Ashitaka does not abandon humanity. In the end, taking the path opposite of San, he returns to Irontown, to people. He respects nature but he also wants to protect humanity, not destroy or take revenge on them like San. He brings awareness of the conflict, able to see both sides and attempt to mediate the two. Ashitaka's stance is one that people should take as it provides a perspective often lost especially in today's discussion between conservation and industrialization for the benefit of the people in countires around the world.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
NML Week 5
Freire & Macedo (1987) "The Importance of the Act of Reading"
A part of the importance is its inseparability from the real world. As the author puts it, we begin by reading the world. The perceptual experience of the world had its own meanings and interpretations. From these experiences, one develops their initial vocabulary and ideas concerning the world. As one's understanding of the world grows, initial fears and terrors can diminish. Reading words is no different from reading the world. We are in effect reading the word-world. As such, understanding the written text is something that should occur naturally rather than through mechanical practices. An approach of quality over quantity is taken to reading. It is a quality that stresses the same critical perception from reading the world combined with the ability to eventually interpret the reading and rewrite it.
Comments:
I agree that the reading of written text is not different from reading the world. The initial thing we see, whether it be a word, action or image, means nothing unless we ascribe meaning to it. We perceive the world and place meanings and interpretations to everything. The skills needed to understand text is not all that different from the skills needed to interpret the physical around us. In both instances, our subjective experiences colors our understandings of the material being presented to us. With this understanding, we have the power act on the world or text before us.
Luke & Freebody (1997) "Shaping the Social Practices of Reading"
The primary argument of Luke and Freebody is that reading is a social practice that is done everyday in private and public spaces and is tied to politics and power relations. Going into this, there is an emphasis of a change in Western cultures of textbook learning from skills, morality and citizenship to now invoking meaning to the readers. A "progressivist" view has taken root. However, despite change in focus, the purpose of reading models have not changed, which they view as finding how a literate person should fit into the social order. The education of reading can be painted by the majority ideology of society. This can be either through the text itself or through the teacher. It ignores the cultural and societal differences that children bring to the classroom. Luke and Freebody are calling for another shift, from a psychological approach of reading to a social that is aware of the implications that ideologies of society and/or the instructor can influence a student's learning. Their model of education involves:
I agree that reading is a social practice, but I disagree with the portrayal of the student/reader as passive recipient of information. Yes, in the early years, children take in information quite willingly and without question, but as they become older, people begin to question the text. Rather than passive sponges absorbing information, they are active participants in their own education, choosing what they deem important and doing their own interpretations. Except in situations of stifling rigidity and conformity that the feeding of dominant ideologies become problematic. In other situations, many would question these dominant ideologies, especially those from different cultural and societal backgrounds as the dominant ideology can be detrimental to or seek to erase those backgrounds. Unrest and uncomfortable feelings can well up when this dominant ideology is taught. People resist it and seek to change it.
A part of the importance is its inseparability from the real world. As the author puts it, we begin by reading the world. The perceptual experience of the world had its own meanings and interpretations. From these experiences, one develops their initial vocabulary and ideas concerning the world. As one's understanding of the world grows, initial fears and terrors can diminish. Reading words is no different from reading the world. We are in effect reading the word-world. As such, understanding the written text is something that should occur naturally rather than through mechanical practices. An approach of quality over quantity is taken to reading. It is a quality that stresses the same critical perception from reading the world combined with the ability to eventually interpret the reading and rewrite it.
Comments:
I agree that the reading of written text is not different from reading the world. The initial thing we see, whether it be a word, action or image, means nothing unless we ascribe meaning to it. We perceive the world and place meanings and interpretations to everything. The skills needed to understand text is not all that different from the skills needed to interpret the physical around us. In both instances, our subjective experiences colors our understandings of the material being presented to us. With this understanding, we have the power act on the world or text before us.
Luke & Freebody (1997) "Shaping the Social Practices of Reading"
The primary argument of Luke and Freebody is that reading is a social practice that is done everyday in private and public spaces and is tied to politics and power relations. Going into this, there is an emphasis of a change in Western cultures of textbook learning from skills, morality and citizenship to now invoking meaning to the readers. A "progressivist" view has taken root. However, despite change in focus, the purpose of reading models have not changed, which they view as finding how a literate person should fit into the social order. The education of reading can be painted by the majority ideology of society. This can be either through the text itself or through the teacher. It ignores the cultural and societal differences that children bring to the classroom. Luke and Freebody are calling for another shift, from a psychological approach of reading to a social that is aware of the implications that ideologies of society and/or the instructor can influence a student's learning. Their model of education involves:
- An emphasis on critical literacy: The texts needed to looked at in a more analytical sense, comparing different viewpoints as well as understanding the purpose of the text itself.
- A shift from a psychological model to a social model of reading: Recognition must be paid to the differences that students bring to the classroom based upon their differences in culture and discourses. We should capitalize on these differences rather than subverting them to a dominant one.
- Integration of new media: The idea of being literate has changed that these new forms of text and information must be taken into account.
- Focus on instruction on how the context of everyday discourses work linguistically and politically
I agree that reading is a social practice, but I disagree with the portrayal of the student/reader as passive recipient of information. Yes, in the early years, children take in information quite willingly and without question, but as they become older, people begin to question the text. Rather than passive sponges absorbing information, they are active participants in their own education, choosing what they deem important and doing their own interpretations. Except in situations of stifling rigidity and conformity that the feeding of dominant ideologies become problematic. In other situations, many would question these dominant ideologies, especially those from different cultural and societal backgrounds as the dominant ideology can be detrimental to or seek to erase those backgrounds. Unrest and uncomfortable feelings can well up when this dominant ideology is taught. People resist it and seek to change it.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller's Sin City
A gory, visceral and self-indulgent work is the best way to characterize Sin City, and yet we just can't look away. The film takes things to extremes especially in the visuals to create a film that strikes at the senses. The sound is accentuated by the deep voice of a self-narration given by the main characters. It entices with a interesting story and then grabs you by overwhelming you with the thoughts and feelings of the characters. The senses of touch, taste and smell cannot be directly felt, but are imagined. The film does not hold back in its violent scenes. Although it is not happening directly to you, you can't help but wince a couple times the first time seeing it because your imagination can go wild, and you wonder what it would feel like happening to you. Taste and smell are connected with the film's locale. The film takes place in a dark, crime-ridden city. There is difficulty in imagining something that doesn't taste or smell repugnant. The scene with the cannibal and the dog eating him doesn't help either. These three senses are connected to vision. The fact that a response can be aroused by these senses, speaks to the power of the visuals.
The film heavily relies on CG. Beyond the actors, very little of the film is real. This allows the director to create a world that really stands out. The choice of black and white places sharp contrasts in the images, allowing for certain things to really stand out and catch your eye. This is further enhanced by the few objects in color. The shades of black and white makes the city even more ominous. By having almost everything CG, scenes and images that would be impossible by normal cameras become possible. This is another reason why the film just stands out. It looks and feels different.
The film heavily relies on CG. Beyond the actors, very little of the film is real. This allows the director to create a world that really stands out. The choice of black and white places sharp contrasts in the images, allowing for certain things to really stand out and catch your eye. This is further enhanced by the few objects in color. The shades of black and white makes the city even more ominous. By having almost everything CG, scenes and images that would be impossible by normal cameras become possible. This is another reason why the film just stands out. It looks and feels different.
NML Week 4
Kress (2000) "Multimodality"
Kress argues that communication incorporates many of our senses, that it cannot simply be considered monomodal, but multimodal. The human body itself is designed to allow us to engage the world in many different ways and rarely does one operate in isolation. Thus the written language, which has often been considered monomodal is actually multimodal as we can see the words and hear the sound they make either from someone else or within our own mind. Everyday language can have different meanings that require more than one sense in order to pick up. Through multimodality, images and objects can deliver message almost as complex as the accepted written form.
However, as Kress sees it, forms of communication that dissent from the norm are placed in a separate category of aesthetic expression. This effectively removes them from being examined in the academic world in the general theory of communication.
Comments:
Everything in life is truly multimodal because as Kress put it, rarely do we ever experience one sense in isolation from all of the others. Even if we do not physically touch, smell or taste something very often, upon hearing or seeing a word that invokes one of these senses, we can imagine it and simulate it in our minds. Our mind is always so active that sometimes it is difficult to separate the description of a cool refreshing drink after a long hot day with the imagined sensation. Without willing thinking about it, we bring it to mind.
Also dipping into psych a little, experiencing one sense in the absence of another normally associated it with it can mess with you a little. Although most of us cannot read lips, unconsciously we can recognize sound patterns created by our lips. If we hear something that is the opposite from what we expect from the observation, we sometimes fuse the sound actually heard with the sound we expected. In blind children, the sense of touch from reading braille can become sensitive enough that the brain rewires so that the vision center of the occipital lobe activates when they read braille. The senses' interactions with each other are so common that it is difficult to separate them from our brain's structure.
Kress argues that communication incorporates many of our senses, that it cannot simply be considered monomodal, but multimodal. The human body itself is designed to allow us to engage the world in many different ways and rarely does one operate in isolation. Thus the written language, which has often been considered monomodal is actually multimodal as we can see the words and hear the sound they make either from someone else or within our own mind. Everyday language can have different meanings that require more than one sense in order to pick up. Through multimodality, images and objects can deliver message almost as complex as the accepted written form.
However, as Kress sees it, forms of communication that dissent from the norm are placed in a separate category of aesthetic expression. This effectively removes them from being examined in the academic world in the general theory of communication.
Comments:
Everything in life is truly multimodal because as Kress put it, rarely do we ever experience one sense in isolation from all of the others. Even if we do not physically touch, smell or taste something very often, upon hearing or seeing a word that invokes one of these senses, we can imagine it and simulate it in our minds. Our mind is always so active that sometimes it is difficult to separate the description of a cool refreshing drink after a long hot day with the imagined sensation. Without willing thinking about it, we bring it to mind.
Also dipping into psych a little, experiencing one sense in the absence of another normally associated it with it can mess with you a little. Although most of us cannot read lips, unconsciously we can recognize sound patterns created by our lips. If we hear something that is the opposite from what we expect from the observation, we sometimes fuse the sound actually heard with the sound we expected. In blind children, the sense of touch from reading braille can become sensitive enough that the brain rewires so that the vision center of the occipital lobe activates when they read braille. The senses' interactions with each other are so common that it is difficult to separate them from our brain's structure.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Wong Kar Wai's As Tears Go By
My first impression of the film was that it was a very industrial film. From the backdrop of Hong Kong to the filming style, a gritty urban realism is created. Hong Kong is a heavily industrialized city, giving the settings a very mechanical and dark atmosphere. Natural light is often subdued in favor of artificial light such as neon signs. The city is not a bright, welcoming place, but rather a rough place where individuals have fall into crime or dirty jobs in order to get by. There is a lack of background music for scenes in the city, so the audience is not removed the situation. The cinematography rarely goes for extravagant angles, but is rather right there in the midst of everything.
The urban realism is further strengthened by the juxtaposition of the time spent on the island of Lantau. Those scenes are filled with natural light and background music does occur, separating the audience, by creating a sense of surrealism. This is especially apparent in the extended "Take My Breath Away" scene. The realism is lost to fantasy and romance. Compared with the scenes in the city, the scenes in the countryside are like a dream.
The urban realism is further strengthened by the juxtaposition of the time spent on the island of Lantau. Those scenes are filled with natural light and background music does occur, separating the audience, by creating a sense of surrealism. This is especially apparent in the extended "Take My Breath Away" scene. The realism is lost to fantasy and romance. Compared with the scenes in the city, the scenes in the countryside are like a dream.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
NML Week 3
Lister et al. (pg. 72-92)
The views of Marshall McLuhan and Raymond Williams concerning the whether or not media technology has the power to transform a culture and society. Even though McLuhan and his technological determinism has essentially lost this debate, it is still important to look at both of their theories.
McLuhan
Goodman (2003) "Introduction"
Goodman explores the importance of a curriculum centering around "critical literacy." For Goodman, "critical literacy" centers around the "ability to analyze, evaluate, and produce print, aural and visual forms of communication" (3). In a culture of mass media consumption, it is important for youths to critical examine the messages and intents behind the media presented to them. This is especially important for children and teenagers from low-income neighborhoods as it can be used to as a tool for looking at the issues and problems surrounding them and using it as a tool for change. "Critical literacy" allows for the change because the voices and opinions of individuals can be expressed to a wide audience through mastery of dominant media, which in this case is the image in Goodman's opinion.
The inability for a curriculum to be integrated into the classroom is made difficult by a factory, conveyor belt system of education. However, some attempts have been made on 3 aspects:
The views of Marshall McLuhan and Raymond Williams concerning the whether or not media technology has the power to transform a culture and society. Even though McLuhan and his technological determinism has essentially lost this debate, it is still important to look at both of their theories.
McLuhan
- 4 cultures determined by media forms: 'Primitive' Oral/Aural Culture, Culture of Literacy, Print Culture (seen as the villain as the sensory experience was fragmented with vision dominating) and Electronic Culture
- Medium is "any extension of ourselves"
- No distinction between the medium and technology
- All new media remediate the content of previous media
- The "medium is the message," or that the significance of media is not its content but the way in which its existence changes our perception of the world as well as our relations.
- Technology is created by human agency to aid in known and foreseen human activities
- Plural possibilities and uses of a technology
- A concept of technology that includes the knowledge and skills to operate machines and tools
- The medium is not the message but a piece to a greater whole
Goodman (2003) "Introduction"
Goodman explores the importance of a curriculum centering around "critical literacy." For Goodman, "critical literacy" centers around the "ability to analyze, evaluate, and produce print, aural and visual forms of communication" (3). In a culture of mass media consumption, it is important for youths to critical examine the messages and intents behind the media presented to them. This is especially important for children and teenagers from low-income neighborhoods as it can be used to as a tool for looking at the issues and problems surrounding them and using it as a tool for change. "Critical literacy" allows for the change because the voices and opinions of individuals can be expressed to a wide audience through mastery of dominant media, which in this case is the image in Goodman's opinion.
The inability for a curriculum to be integrated into the classroom is made difficult by a factory, conveyor belt system of education. However, some attempts have been made on 3 aspects:
- technology integration: Even though there existed a lot of initial excitement, the use of technology within the classroom became stagnant either through limited or no access to it, or failures at finding means to incorporate it into the lesson.
- media literacy: As a form of study, media literacy has been only growing slowly due to a lack of support by many professional educational associations.
- community media arts: Many of the programs have been taken out of the classroom due to a lack of funding.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
NML Week 2
Lankshear and Knobel (2003) "From the 'Reading' to the 'New Literacy Studies'
Lankshear and Knobel examine the changes that have occurred to the meaning of "literacy" and the reasons behind it. Prior to the 1970s, the term "literacy" focused on reading and writing, but in a non-formal setting, as in not as a part of general education. Literacy was considered a "means for learning, not an end" (4). The change that occurred post-1970s can be contributed to 3 factors:
Comments: Looking at society today, the idea and meaning of literacy has certainly exploded. The term "literacy" can be found in many different aspects of life beyond the original focus and reading and writing. Even within the original focus, the study has indeed become more complex. It is no longer the isolated case of someone being literate enough to understand text on a page and be able to produce text themselves. There is a focus on the societal and cultural context in which literacy occurs. Language is complicated by this variable as additional meanings, presuppositions, etc. become intrinsic learning that is not necessarily picked up by the student or the teacher. It is ingrained in the way we move through and interact with our environment. The understanding of literacy has grown beyond the original conventions of reading and writing into a tool of that acts upon and of which we can act upon ourselves to create change.
Lister et al. (pg. 9-37)
What are new media? This is the question explored in this reading. Some of the defining concepts of new media are digitality, interactivity, hypertexuality dispersal and virtuality.
Comments: I do mostly agree with the characteristics used to define new media, however I think there is too much of an emphasis on technological advancements. I believe that new media also encompasses innovation in expression. While often times this does take place in the digital world, it can still occur within the physical world. A new way of expressing a story through written text or images can very well be considered new media. The defining characteristic given to new media seems more reflective of industrialized societies in which there is an emphasis on speed and short attention spans. These societies seem to demand more stimulation quicker and quicker in order to not get bored, which new digital media is able to provide. It also has the ability for individuals to completely shun out points of disagreements with oneself, so that an individual can become sheltered within a digital world that only pleases and satisfy themselves with the exception of others. One other point of disagreement I'll bring up is on the middle ground between the two terms of VR. Such a middle ground has actually existed since the '90s. This is online video games, particularly massive multiplayer online role playing games. It immerses people into a virtual world while at the same time creating a space for social interactions.
Lankshear and Knobel examine the changes that have occurred to the meaning of "literacy" and the reasons behind it. Prior to the 1970s, the term "literacy" focused on reading and writing, but in a non-formal setting, as in not as a part of general education. Literacy was considered a "means for learning, not an end" (4). The change that occurred post-1970s can be contributed to 3 factors:
- Paulo Freire's work with peasant groups in Brazil and Chile: Freire took literacy to go beyond reading and writing, and to act as a tool to become aware of how societal and cultural systems function, particularly when they cause oppression and injustice. Awareness would lead to action for change.
- 'Literacy crisis' in postindustrialized nations: The postindustrialized era created major structural changes in several areas which subsequently led to failures in schools to educate individuals to standards required to live 'effectively' in this new era.
- The increase in the popularity and development of a sociocultural perspective in the studies of language and social studies: The research challenged the current instiutions to change their methods of teaching.
Comments: Looking at society today, the idea and meaning of literacy has certainly exploded. The term "literacy" can be found in many different aspects of life beyond the original focus and reading and writing. Even within the original focus, the study has indeed become more complex. It is no longer the isolated case of someone being literate enough to understand text on a page and be able to produce text themselves. There is a focus on the societal and cultural context in which literacy occurs. Language is complicated by this variable as additional meanings, presuppositions, etc. become intrinsic learning that is not necessarily picked up by the student or the teacher. It is ingrained in the way we move through and interact with our environment. The understanding of literacy has grown beyond the original conventions of reading and writing into a tool of that acts upon and of which we can act upon ourselves to create change.
Lister et al. (pg. 9-37)
What are new media? This is the question explored in this reading. Some of the defining concepts of new media are digitality, interactivity, hypertexuality dispersal and virtuality.
- digitality: New media are digitized. That is, they exist as data that has been assigned numerical values that can exist apart from their physical forms, greatly compressed, accessed at high speeds non-linearly, and more fluid.
- interactivity: Individuals can intervene and manipulate data. The individual no longer becomes just simply a viewer, but a user. In comparison with 'old' media, there is control over what individuals want to see and in shaping the media.
- hypertexuality: Works that have multiple pathways to other works are considered hypertext. This feeds into the other two characteristics of new media as hypertext allows fast retrieval of information possible through digitality and interactivity as individuals can choose their own pathways to the information.
- dispersal: Media is not centralized, standardized or produced by industries. Rather it is characterized by the emergence of prosumers, those who not only consume the media created by technology, but also uses it to produce some product.
- virtuality: Virtuality can take on two forms, either the immersion into a digitized, computer generated world, or a virtual space for talking and social networks.
Comments: I do mostly agree with the characteristics used to define new media, however I think there is too much of an emphasis on technological advancements. I believe that new media also encompasses innovation in expression. While often times this does take place in the digital world, it can still occur within the physical world. A new way of expressing a story through written text or images can very well be considered new media. The defining characteristic given to new media seems more reflective of industrialized societies in which there is an emphasis on speed and short attention spans. These societies seem to demand more stimulation quicker and quicker in order to not get bored, which new digital media is able to provide. It also has the ability for individuals to completely shun out points of disagreements with oneself, so that an individual can become sheltered within a digital world that only pleases and satisfy themselves with the exception of others. One other point of disagreement I'll bring up is on the middle ground between the two terms of VR. Such a middle ground has actually existed since the '90s. This is online video games, particularly massive multiplayer online role playing games. It immerses people into a virtual world while at the same time creating a space for social interactions.
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