Its a fact that the digital world has grown immensly over the years and now thrives with the younger generation. This means that our culture and our identity has changed due to the popularity of digital forms, such as the internet. The internet is a powerful source that people use everyday; they have become so reliant upon it, that if they were unable to access the internet they would struggle with their work duties, social contacting and boredom.
'Digital natives' is a term used for the younger generation who have been immersed in the digital age. It refers to them being the 'native speakers' of the digital language. It comes naturally to them and they are dependent on media such as, computers, mobile phones and music players. In contrast to the natives are the immigrants. 'Digital immigrants' are people who process and think differently to the natives. They are generally the older generation who socialised differently when they were younger and are now learning about the digital aspects around them. 'Digital immigrants' have a different language to the natives. For example the accent of an immigrant is printing out an email so that they can read it like a letter or physically bringing a person to their computer so that they can see a website instead of emailling the url or page to them. This automatically creates two identities in today's society.
These two identities also mean that they don't always communicate easily or understand each other. A debate has arose about whether or not the educational system is still designed to teach today's students. The teachers (digital immigrants) don't believe that their students (digital natives) can learn from TV or the internet. The assumption that the same methods that worked for the teachers will work for their students is no longer valid. This is because our identity is so enhanced and developed now that peoples brains learn in different ways to how they used to 10 years ago. The argument leads to whether the digital natives should learn the old ways or whether digital immigrants should learn the new? Some digitial immigrants accept that their world has changed and they know nothing about it, whereas other digital immigrants are complacent and don't like the idea of a digital world. Marc Prensky invites teachers and professors to change their way of teaching so that digital natives can make the most of learning. He get them to a subject or topic and he attempts to invent a game or another digital native way of learning it. Prensky thinks it is lazy for educators to believe that the digital immigrant way is the only way to teach and that they are capable of learning the natives language as their own. He believes that digital immgrants will have to change.
The notion of todays society is more fast-paced and people tend to want things instantly. This has been caused from modern technology which allows us to access things quickly and not have to put a lot of effort into getting results. For example, instead of using a dictionary or a book to research a word or term people can access google.com which gives a fast, straight-forward result in a language that 'digital natives' understand. Statistics show that today's kids have spent less than 5,000 hours of their lives reading, whereas they spent 20,000 hours watching TV. This shows how much people rely on the internet and as a collective identity would more likely be seen on the computer than being 'active.' This links to the internet creating a lazy society and having a less active notion of fitness and health.
People use social networking sites to create part of their identity. Sites such as, Facebook or Myspace allows you to upload photos of yourself, upload music that you like or talk about your favourite things in life. These factors create our idenitity and by accessing these sites we can share them with other users. Sites such as Twitter and again, Facebook allows people to write a mini blog or a 'status' describing what they did that day or how they feel about a certain situation. This seems natural and fine for digital natives, as they have become used to naturally sharing our personal lives on the internet. Whereas, with digital immigrants sharing these parts of our identity is something that they used to do in an occasional letter. Both, letters and social networking sites are updates of peoples lives that they naturally want to share, but our collective identity has changed in terms of how they do it. By using sites such as facebook these updates are regular or everyday, this shows how our notion and collective identity is more digitalised.
The internet is so widely popular because there are no limits to what you can access. Even if there is an age restriction on a specific webpage it can be easily worked around as there is no physical confrontation. From the power of the internet people can watch, listen or organize anything they like, which makes it so appealing. The internet also has to keep up with the changing times. The internet has been updated in the past from Web 1.0 to now what we know as Web 2.0. The internet and computer became more advanced and Web 2.0 offers a lot more choice that Web 1.0 lacked.
There is no doubt that the internet has changed our notion and collective identity. It has changed the education system and the way teachers have to learn again in order to communicate clearly and accuratly to their students. I think it is right for the teachers to learn again, rarther than the students learning the old ways as the world will keep developing digitally, which means there is no point fighting it and learning in past ways when the future identity is still moving on. Without the internet people will struggle to function with their daily routines and the level of communication will decrease. Computers and the internet are now part of our collective identity. I don't think that there will be a time when the internet doesn't exist, but that it will just advance to satisfy and benefit peoples needs. It could also mean that the current 'digital natives' could one day become the 'new digital immigrants' if technology gets that advanced it could become harder as they get older to understand; causing a constant cycle of a changing identity.
Tuesday, 24 November 2009
Monday, 9 November 2009
Critical perspectives on "media 2.0"
Are there any distinct 'media institutions' in the era of convergence? You can now share music on facebook on, download music for free and watch videos on YouTube. Now the questions is, is there such a thing as 'audience' in this postmodern 'we media' age?
- University of Westminster said they would no longer offer degrees in media studies. They will offer them but they will be more specialist - this come from the idea that media is no longer a subject that can be taught in such a broad way, it is too fluid, too complex and too different.
- Websites like Facebook, Myspace and YouTube have been labeled 'web 2.0'.
- People don't get represented by the media anymore, instead they make their own media and share it with the world.
- Media students need to move away from the 'media 1.0' way of doing things and do things creatively such as facebook and myspace.
Media 2.0 will be more about people and less about the media. With people writing in the form of blogs it looks specifically at 'citizen journalism' meaning web 2.0 enables ordinary people to participate in politics and the news.
But in 10 years time?
Playback - using websites such as YouTube to reach ambitions and goals by posting videos.
Britney 2.0 - that idea that Britney spears has ceased to be considered a human being by the public and now is understood primarily as a 'news commodity'.
Fan culture - sharing stuff online, and fans can upload their own versions of material within hours of the official broadcast.
Tardisodes - institutions such as the BBC offering tardisodes which, like podcasts can be accessed through subscriptions and viewed on a mobile.
Club penguins - an online world where you can live as a penguin. networking with other penguins, getting jobs and taking part in activities.
- How can you be a media 2.0 student?:
Guantlett argues that media can create an image of identity. - life is complex, culture is complex and so is media studies - or whatever they decide to call in in the future.
Birth of the internet - Web 2.0
Monday, 2 November 2009
Holiday homework
How do moral panics help or fragment cultural identity?
A moral panic can spread very fast as it is a situation created by the media knowing that the public rely on media coverage to keep up to date with their culture. If the media represents a situation in a bad light, then people are heavily influenced and their opinion of that situation or the people involved is changed and stereotyped.
AIDS, raves and paedophilia are examples of the a situation that the media creates in a bad light to cause the public to panic and look at their culture differently. AIDS was an epidemic first recognised between 1981- 86. During that time the media took the issue of AIDS and created fear and panic of a supposedly 'mass epidemic.' AIDS was first discovered among gay men, drug users and haemopiliacs. There were sections of the press that represented this disease as a 'gay plague.' By blaiming and targeting gay men the moral panic was focused on them, causing the culture to fragment and mentally seperate theirselves from the gay community. This can be compared to the panic of raves that were often related to irresponsible teenagers. Like the issue of AIDS, the media targetted teenagers, leaving them in a negative view, causing the public to believe teenagers are no good. However, there were sections of the press that were aware that AIDS wasn't restricted to the gay community, but that the disease could also be found in drugs users and haemophiliacs. The panic of AIDS was both global in its impact and implications. All countries had a range of policy options which meant there were compulsory blood tests and preventive measures, meaning needle exchange schemes, treatment programmes and research funding. The USA was a strongly affected country. There was no specific direction from the US government on how to handle the disease and it did not have a national AIDS policy or a coordinated strategy for combining the health threat. In 1983, groups who had a high risk of catching or carrying the disease were asked not to donate blood. Gay bathhouses were being closed down in many of cities, for example in San Francisco, 1984. There was national controversy when children with AIDS were being excluded from schools as it was seen as discrimination. This is an example of how extreme the moral panic affected the culture. The coverage of AIDS in the US magazines focused more on the 'deviant character of the victims' rarther than the disease itself. Press coverage was also criticized for crediting conspiricies and emphasizing entertainment value. It was argued that AIDS was not an attractive issue for television because it involved taboos such as blood, sex, semen and death. All of this public debate did not help the moral panic.
Similar to AIDS, raves was also an issue that caused moral panic, although not as strongly as the controversy of AIDS, raves caused fear of a down-hill society that affected culture. Originally founded in New York, Chicago and Detroit, raves was imported into Britain in 1988. A rave is a gathering of people with the newest style of music, drug use, distinctive dress codes and extensive lighting. They were kept secretive to avoid police intervention. They often took place in rural spaces, barns, unused airfields etc. If the police followed up the event of a rave they simply couldnt react as they were powerless and outnumbered. Raves were on the rise and during the end of the eighties they were seen as the 'biggest youth subculture Britian has ever seen.' The media immediatley condemned the rave culture. By emphazising statements such as 'a facade for dealing in drugs and 'a cynical attempt to trap young people into drug dependency' the media created a moral panic. Families feared for the well-being of their sons and daughters. This panic grew after the death of Leah Butts was reported. She died on her 18th birthday due to water intoxication caused by taking ecstasy. This was the biggest emotive shock from the rave culture. Later Leah's parents warned teenagers of the dangers of drug use and the press used this case as an example of 'teenage fun.' There were bold headlines in the paper, for example, The Mirror 'one million ecstacy consumers a week 'want fun' but end of like Leah on a life support machine.' This media coverage of raves caused the panic to focus and blaim the youth, causing the culture to loose faith in the future of teenagers and gave them a negative image.
Moral panic was again created when the issue of paedophilia arose. The media did not cover any stories of the sexual abuse of children until the mid-1980's, when they term paedophile would be first associated with the abusers. Before then the sexual offenders would be known as 'beasts, monsters and fiends.' Between the period of 1983-86 paedophiles were associated with organized abductions and the murders of children. By 1988 the possesion of child pornography became an offence and to enforce this the police created a child pornography squad. By the end of the decade the strong threat of paedophilia was realised and established. New stories that invovled paedophilia between 1990-93 was rarely seen. There were two serious cases involving seriel killers and sexual abuse to a children that were reported, but no media campaign or debate came about. The press showed little attention due to unanswered questions. Ireland and Belguim by 1977 had created a sex offenders act which allowed local newspapers to publish names of paedophiles living in the area. By doing this it caused community protests and panic for peoples safety. This also put a negative affect on the area on which those people lived which could of caused people to avoid. As the year 2000 wore on, paedophilia became less of an issue, until that summer when 8-year-old Sarah Payne was sexually abused and murdered. The coverage of paedophilia was extremely high. Just day after the Sarah's body was found the News of the World published 49 convicted male sex offenders, which included photographs, offences and locations. Later the News of the World published another set of offenders claiming that parents have the right to know if they were living near sex offenders, this act was named 'Sarah's law.' With the media coverage at a high with covering paedophiles it seemed that the culture of Britian was unsafe, making parents more aware of where they were living and how much freedom their child should have in that area.
The media coverage has a large influence on a moral panic and they strongly affect a culture's identity, as once an issue has been broadcasted and realised there is no forgetting and the culture remains changed forever. Most moral panics need to focus or blaim one particular group which causes stereotypes. For example with the issue of AIDS, gay people were targetted. Similar as with raves which was aimed at the youth culture. By doing this the media is seperating society from each other and classing the victims or offenders as 'folk devils.' Paedophiles are people who are dangerous and it seems right that the media should name and shame the offenders so that the public can be aware of the safety of their children, even if it does put the culture in a bad light; whereas by blaiming gay men for the spread of AIDS and teenagers for drug use in the media, it has a powerful affect on how society treats these groups.
A moral panic can spread very fast as it is a situation created by the media knowing that the public rely on media coverage to keep up to date with their culture. If the media represents a situation in a bad light, then people are heavily influenced and their opinion of that situation or the people involved is changed and stereotyped.
AIDS, raves and paedophilia are examples of the a situation that the media creates in a bad light to cause the public to panic and look at their culture differently. AIDS was an epidemic first recognised between 1981- 86. During that time the media took the issue of AIDS and created fear and panic of a supposedly 'mass epidemic.' AIDS was first discovered among gay men, drug users and haemopiliacs. There were sections of the press that represented this disease as a 'gay plague.' By blaiming and targeting gay men the moral panic was focused on them, causing the culture to fragment and mentally seperate theirselves from the gay community. This can be compared to the panic of raves that were often related to irresponsible teenagers. Like the issue of AIDS, the media targetted teenagers, leaving them in a negative view, causing the public to believe teenagers are no good. However, there were sections of the press that were aware that AIDS wasn't restricted to the gay community, but that the disease could also be found in drugs users and haemophiliacs. The panic of AIDS was both global in its impact and implications. All countries had a range of policy options which meant there were compulsory blood tests and preventive measures, meaning needle exchange schemes, treatment programmes and research funding. The USA was a strongly affected country. There was no specific direction from the US government on how to handle the disease and it did not have a national AIDS policy or a coordinated strategy for combining the health threat. In 1983, groups who had a high risk of catching or carrying the disease were asked not to donate blood. Gay bathhouses were being closed down in many of cities, for example in San Francisco, 1984. There was national controversy when children with AIDS were being excluded from schools as it was seen as discrimination. This is an example of how extreme the moral panic affected the culture. The coverage of AIDS in the US magazines focused more on the 'deviant character of the victims' rarther than the disease itself. Press coverage was also criticized for crediting conspiricies and emphasizing entertainment value. It was argued that AIDS was not an attractive issue for television because it involved taboos such as blood, sex, semen and death. All of this public debate did not help the moral panic.
Similar to AIDS, raves was also an issue that caused moral panic, although not as strongly as the controversy of AIDS, raves caused fear of a down-hill society that affected culture. Originally founded in New York, Chicago and Detroit, raves was imported into Britain in 1988. A rave is a gathering of people with the newest style of music, drug use, distinctive dress codes and extensive lighting. They were kept secretive to avoid police intervention. They often took place in rural spaces, barns, unused airfields etc. If the police followed up the event of a rave they simply couldnt react as they were powerless and outnumbered. Raves were on the rise and during the end of the eighties they were seen as the 'biggest youth subculture Britian has ever seen.' The media immediatley condemned the rave culture. By emphazising statements such as 'a facade for dealing in drugs and 'a cynical attempt to trap young people into drug dependency' the media created a moral panic. Families feared for the well-being of their sons and daughters. This panic grew after the death of Leah Butts was reported. She died on her 18th birthday due to water intoxication caused by taking ecstasy. This was the biggest emotive shock from the rave culture. Later Leah's parents warned teenagers of the dangers of drug use and the press used this case as an example of 'teenage fun.' There were bold headlines in the paper, for example, The Mirror 'one million ecstacy consumers a week 'want fun' but end of like Leah on a life support machine.' This media coverage of raves caused the panic to focus and blaim the youth, causing the culture to loose faith in the future of teenagers and gave them a negative image.
Moral panic was again created when the issue of paedophilia arose. The media did not cover any stories of the sexual abuse of children until the mid-1980's, when they term paedophile would be first associated with the abusers. Before then the sexual offenders would be known as 'beasts, monsters and fiends.' Between the period of 1983-86 paedophiles were associated with organized abductions and the murders of children. By 1988 the possesion of child pornography became an offence and to enforce this the police created a child pornography squad. By the end of the decade the strong threat of paedophilia was realised and established. New stories that invovled paedophilia between 1990-93 was rarely seen. There were two serious cases involving seriel killers and sexual abuse to a children that were reported, but no media campaign or debate came about. The press showed little attention due to unanswered questions. Ireland and Belguim by 1977 had created a sex offenders act which allowed local newspapers to publish names of paedophiles living in the area. By doing this it caused community protests and panic for peoples safety. This also put a negative affect on the area on which those people lived which could of caused people to avoid. As the year 2000 wore on, paedophilia became less of an issue, until that summer when 8-year-old Sarah Payne was sexually abused and murdered. The coverage of paedophilia was extremely high. Just day after the Sarah's body was found the News of the World published 49 convicted male sex offenders, which included photographs, offences and locations. Later the News of the World published another set of offenders claiming that parents have the right to know if they were living near sex offenders, this act was named 'Sarah's law.' With the media coverage at a high with covering paedophiles it seemed that the culture of Britian was unsafe, making parents more aware of where they were living and how much freedom their child should have in that area.
The media coverage has a large influence on a moral panic and they strongly affect a culture's identity, as once an issue has been broadcasted and realised there is no forgetting and the culture remains changed forever. Most moral panics need to focus or blaim one particular group which causes stereotypes. For example with the issue of AIDS, gay people were targetted. Similar as with raves which was aimed at the youth culture. By doing this the media is seperating society from each other and classing the victims or offenders as 'folk devils.' Paedophiles are people who are dangerous and it seems right that the media should name and shame the offenders so that the public can be aware of the safety of their children, even if it does put the culture in a bad light; whereas by blaiming gay men for the spread of AIDS and teenagers for drug use in the media, it has a powerful affect on how society treats these groups.
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