coming soon....
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
An Early Goodbye
Here comes the end to my blogging adventure..
It has been a new and cherished experience.. where else would I have succumb to the power of blogger.com!
I hope you have learnt some fascinating new things from my work on here.. who knows, we might meet again one day...
So farewell for now!!!
It has been a new and cherished experience.. where else would I have succumb to the power of blogger.com!
I hope you have learnt some fascinating new things from my work on here.. who knows, we might meet again one day...
So farewell for now!!!
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Traditional vs. New Media- The Showdown
In the Internet age a common question has become apparent, does it make sense to read a newspaper?
Even though 'new media' seems to be overtaking 'traditional media' in the communications horse-race, I have often been confronted with the issue that 'online and global media is killing the newspaper'. Traditional news media is faced with several dominant issues that are influenced by the rise and uptake of the new economy. As the new economy embraces ideas and thoughts, rather than physical capital that was the past, intellectual resources are taking the forefront (Rifkin, 2000: 1). Once dubbed 'the most stable variable apart from sex and date of birth', newspapers are declining due to a number of factors such as the cost, concentration of media and the introduction of online mediums such as blogs, forums, wiki's and online editions (Tunstall, 1971). According to Schoenbach, Waal and Lauf (2005), the widespread introduction of daily online newspapers has helped attract the younger generation; online newspapers will replace printed dailies in future generations as the printed version is not attracting young audiences.
We all know that more and more people are turning to online mediums, with their ongoing development, efficiency and superiority of the Internet (particularly Web 2.0), newspapers are lagging behind with major news breaks and current affair events and the speed of the distribution patterns of daily newspapers is incompetent in comparison to its online counterparts (Tiffen, 2006). Once the dominant channel in media, newspapers have little choice in having to reinvent themselves as the digital media age continues to dictate the future (Hartigan, 2007). A particular form of new media that is becoming an issue for traditional news media is citizen journalism and open source, mainly news blogging. Blogs are a form of online writing, reading and publishing, that promote self expression and leave the field open for people or ‘citizen journalists’ from all walks of life to create their own or contribute on others if permitted. Cunningham & Turner (2006) describe blogs as being, “an online journal, that offer new ways to distribute news, ideas, images, and sounds, and to comment upon, and link to, others work” (272). An important aspect of society these days, blogs free up the ‘playing field,’ kick off new practices and unwrap new spaces for a mass of communities with varied interests. The world is changing, the public wants to be part of the process, contributing to content and sharing information, the term 'passive audience' has become dirty (Hartigan, 2007).
You only have to log onto websites such as perezhilton.com or tmz.com to satisfy your latest celebrity news and gossip craving, or add Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to your Facebook to view the Labor parties current situation, and you can even receive constant worldwide news coverage on websites such as current tv or ninemsn. Overall, these online news sources offer everyday publics' or 'citizen journalists' to bypass governing media bodies to voice their opinions and deliver open sourced news. As Bruns (2008) explains, Internet fan sites, blogs and open source publishing all stand as indicators that the Internet sites with the highest levels of investment in resources do not necessarily research the widest audience. Not only this, but mainstream media like CCN and daily newspapers have turned to blogs and 'citizen journalists' for reliable and up-to-date sourcing, and are using these online mediums as a determinant for public opinion. As Hartigan (2007) explains, "newspapers are far from dead" but the challenge for the traditional media is to become part of the online scene (Hartigan in AAP, 2007).
In my opinion the decline of printed newspapers was inevitable, with the increased accessibility and growth of the Internet, online mediums seem more attractive. Newspapers are not dead, nor will they soon be forgotten, but they will one day permanently shift to global and online media.
References:
Cunningham, S., and Tuners, G. (2006). The Media and Communications in Australia. Crows Nest: Allen and Unwin.
Hartigan, P. (2007). Online Age Revolutionising Traditional Media. Australian National News Wire (AAP). August 7.
http://gateway.library.qut.edu.au/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&dc=anh&AN=74C252985&site=ehost-live
(accessed May 12).
Rifkin, J. (2000). The Weightless Economy. In the age of access: how the shift from ownership to access is transforming modern life. Sydney: Penguin.
Schoenbach, K., Waal, E., and Lauf, E. (2005). Research Note: Online and Print Newspapers: Their Impact on the Extent of the Perceived Public Agenda. European Journal of Communication. London: SAGE Publications.
Tiffen, R. (2006). ‘The Press’, in S. Cunningham and G. Tuners (eds) The Media and Communications in Australia. Crows Nest: Allen and Unwin.
Tunstall, J. (1971). Journalists at Work. London: Constable.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Citizen Journalism- Quality Evaluation
How do communities evaluate quality?
It has to be said that this questions can be answered on many different platforms and in a million different ways. For the purpose of this blog, the question will focus on 'citizen journalism' with regards to community quality evaluation. Citizen journalism is an act that has turned into a horse-race between 'little' bloggers and 'big' media.
Citizen Journalism is generally known as 'participatory' journalism', the act of citizens playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analysing and distributing news and information. Best classified as journalism created by non-journalists. The 'act' generally includes DIY media content such as stories, images and video sources, open publishing and public discussions where commenting plays a very strong and important role (Bruns, 2008). As Axel Bruns explains, "citizen journalism and its allied forms of open news coverage (including news-related blogs) have developed a sophisticated array of processes, tools, and technologies for doing so, which are in place in different configurations across the Websites of the movement" (70).
Citizen journalism is an extension of a long-term trend, started from hard-copy/printing media, the activity has increased with the upsurge of Web 2.0. Personally, I celebrate the practice as it challenges mainstream media and brings real issues into light. It also allows 'us' citizens to bypass media governing bodies and red-tape to express ourselves in full form. As Bruns (2007) explains, "this dearth of alternative perspectives in the mainstream media (snidely abbreviated as 'MSM' by many citizen journalists and news bloggers) has become one of the major motivating factors for the establishment of prodused alternatives to industrial modes of news production" (71).
The question of credibility and quality often comes into consideration because of its sources- the 'citizen' journalism. Sourcing and credibility is often the underlying factor for community insecurity and open source unreliability. Katty S sums this up perfectly in some of her findings as she explains that, "The quality of any citizen journalism project reflects the contributions of those who choose to participate, and such projects can be havens for triviality or unreliable content. At the same time, many users are inclined to trust material they find online, particularly if it is called “news”. Look at examples such as Indymedia and Wikipedia, who are often questioned and critised for 'poor quality' content, but are still considered some of the most used, quoted and researched information sources on the Internet. When evaluating 'content quality' it is important not to police the system, otherwise the 'collaborative processes' often become like their controlled mainstream counterparts.
Overall, citizen journalism has both its strengths and weaknesses and I believe that it is an individuals choice to decide what sources to trust, read, believe or take-in. Mainstream media is often 'controlled' and misrepresents the truth or 'plays-around' with the story to adhere to audiences and regulatory bodies. All in all, I believe it is vital to have a variety of sources to help distinguish proper news and current events in all perspectives.
I know that I would be lost without my healthy daily dose of perezhilton!!
It has to be said that this questions can be answered on many different platforms and in a million different ways. For the purpose of this blog, the question will focus on 'citizen journalism' with regards to community quality evaluation. Citizen journalism is an act that has turned into a horse-race between 'little' bloggers and 'big' media.
Citizen Journalism is generally known as 'participatory' journalism', the act of citizens playing an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analysing and distributing news and information. Best classified as journalism created by non-journalists. The 'act' generally includes DIY media content such as stories, images and video sources, open publishing and public discussions where commenting plays a very strong and important role (Bruns, 2008). As Axel Bruns explains, "citizen journalism and its allied forms of open news coverage (including news-related blogs) have developed a sophisticated array of processes, tools, and technologies for doing so, which are in place in different configurations across the Websites of the movement" (70).
Citizen journalism is an extension of a long-term trend, started from hard-copy/printing media, the activity has increased with the upsurge of Web 2.0. Personally, I celebrate the practice as it challenges mainstream media and brings real issues into light. It also allows 'us' citizens to bypass media governing bodies and red-tape to express ourselves in full form. As Bruns (2007) explains, "this dearth of alternative perspectives in the mainstream media (snidely abbreviated as 'MSM' by many citizen journalists and news bloggers) has become one of the major motivating factors for the establishment of prodused alternatives to industrial modes of news production" (71).
The question of credibility and quality often comes into consideration because of its sources- the 'citizen' journalism. Sourcing and credibility is often the underlying factor for community insecurity and open source unreliability. Katty S sums this up perfectly in some of her findings as she explains that, "The quality of any citizen journalism project reflects the contributions of those who choose to participate, and such projects can be havens for triviality or unreliable content. At the same time, many users are inclined to trust material they find online, particularly if it is called “news”. Look at examples such as Indymedia and Wikipedia, who are often questioned and critised for 'poor quality' content, but are still considered some of the most used, quoted and researched information sources on the Internet. When evaluating 'content quality' it is important not to police the system, otherwise the 'collaborative processes' often become like their controlled mainstream counterparts.
Overall, citizen journalism has both its strengths and weaknesses and I believe that it is an individuals choice to decide what sources to trust, read, believe or take-in. Mainstream media is often 'controlled' and misrepresents the truth or 'plays-around' with the story to adhere to audiences and regulatory bodies. All in all, I believe it is vital to have a variety of sources to help distinguish proper news and current events in all perspectives.
I know that I would be lost without my healthy daily dose of perezhilton!!
Friday, May 2, 2008
Internet Advertising
Advertising- Will Internet replace traditional advertising?
Advertising is derived from Latin which means 'to turn the mind toward'. Advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, good and services by an identified sponsor. Advertising has always been shaped by technology. Radio did not replace newspapers but served to different audience needs, likewise with TV and the Internet. There are many changes that come from the Internet revolution, accepting the evolution from a simplified marketing/advertising concepts to a communication concept. It is now a process wherein the advertising agency enables, engages, facilitates, sustains and rewards interactivity between consumers and advertising throughout the entire consumption cycle.
Communication message becomes multidimensional and transaction, from intrusive communication to invited conversation. The beauty of open source and produsage is that consumers are actively seeking out and requesting advertising better known as 'invitational advertising'. Web advertising has become the greatest phenomena in advertising, through many different mediums, here are some examples:
- Banners and buttons, skyscrapers, pop-ups, direct e-mail, web commercials, video streaming, games, dynamic buttons, audio, radio and online TV.
According to Bauer and Scharl (2000, 31) and Holeckova and Li (2005, 77) a website must initially uphold east of access and an understandable technical system whereby connection to a website is quick and easy. Whereas an overly sophisticated website is more like to diver users away as the majority of users do have excessive understanding of complex technologies (Siegel 2006, 295).
Personally, I believe that the Internet has already changed the face of advertising, but it has not and will not replace traditional advertising for generations to come. The lack or speed of Internet connections in some markets will take years to catch up to western countries and the growing anti-spam or pop-up ad blockers can definitely stall the 'effectiveness' of the online advertising process. Finally, in today's era there are no set practices for consumers, with so much open source media, consumer patterns and response rates are unpredictable making it even harder to measure success or failure of certain advertising.
References:
Bauer, C. and Scharl, A. 2000. Quantitive evaluation of a Web site content and structure. Internet Reseach. Bradford, 10 (1): 31.
Holeckova, K. and Li, S. 2005. Evaluation of UK car insurance brokers’ websites: some preliminary findings. Marketing Intelligence and Planning. Bradford, 23
(1): 77.
Siegel, C. F. 2006. Internet Marketing – Foundations and
Applications. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company
Advertising is derived from Latin which means 'to turn the mind toward'. Advertising is any paid form of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, good and services by an identified sponsor. Advertising has always been shaped by technology. Radio did not replace newspapers but served to different audience needs, likewise with TV and the Internet. There are many changes that come from the Internet revolution, accepting the evolution from a simplified marketing/advertising concepts to a communication concept. It is now a process wherein the advertising agency enables, engages, facilitates, sustains and rewards interactivity between consumers and advertising throughout the entire consumption cycle.
Communication message becomes multidimensional and transaction, from intrusive communication to invited conversation. The beauty of open source and produsage is that consumers are actively seeking out and requesting advertising better known as 'invitational advertising'. Web advertising has become the greatest phenomena in advertising, through many different mediums, here are some examples:
- Banners and buttons, skyscrapers, pop-ups, direct e-mail, web commercials, video streaming, games, dynamic buttons, audio, radio and online TV.
According to Bauer and Scharl (2000, 31) and Holeckova and Li (2005, 77) a website must initially uphold east of access and an understandable technical system whereby connection to a website is quick and easy. Whereas an overly sophisticated website is more like to diver users away as the majority of users do have excessive understanding of complex technologies (Siegel 2006, 295).
Personally, I believe that the Internet has already changed the face of advertising, but it has not and will not replace traditional advertising for generations to come. The lack or speed of Internet connections in some markets will take years to catch up to western countries and the growing anti-spam or pop-up ad blockers can definitely stall the 'effectiveness' of the online advertising process. Finally, in today's era there are no set practices for consumers, with so much open source media, consumer patterns and response rates are unpredictable making it even harder to measure success or failure of certain advertising.
References:
Bauer, C. and Scharl, A. 2000. Quantitive evaluation of a Web site content and structure. Internet Reseach. Bradford, 10 (1): 31.
Holeckova, K. and Li, S. 2005. Evaluation of UK car insurance brokers’ websites: some preliminary findings. Marketing Intelligence and Planning. Bradford, 23
(1): 77.
Siegel, C. F. 2006. Internet Marketing – Foundations and
Applications. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Open Source and Commercial Production
How source work (as an example of community produsage) different from commercial production?
Open source work aspired as an abstract from open source culture which is a creative practice of activity which is predominantly focused on free 'sharing' of created content. Open source is generally centred around participatory culture, where participants can modify content and and redistribute or share it. The upsurge in open source work is a result of 20th century's battle between restrictive intellectual property laws and policies such as copyright and modern creative practices. The idea pf 'open source' often correlates with the term 'free' as produsage has resulted in free and open-source software that has allowed creative commoners to adopt free intellectual licensing techniques. Ultimately, this has resulted in a widespread of content information and creation which has pushed the business model to provide services around the software, unlike with closed 'commercial' source models where the business models resulted in selling finished software packages. Commercial produsage is sometimes more beneficial as it does not rely on size and viability of a 'community', unlike open source work which is often developmental in areas that are of most interest in the community. Benefits and differences of open source work include:
- Faster development and a greater resource horizon
- Ability to explore multiple solutions quickly
- Development in direct response to user requests and suggestions
- Immediate release of new revisions
- A growth of greater transparacy
- No costs of software purchase and upgrades.
(Bruns, 2008).
Friday, April 25, 2008
A Pirates Treasure- Music, Movies & More
A topic that has been a forefront of media and communication is 'piracy', a robbery not committed at sea- music, movie and TV pirates are considered thieves, plain and simple. It happens when you download movies for free, burn free downloaded CD's from the Internet and even when you jump online to watch that missed episode of your favourite show. What happens when people download or stream free online when they can't afford to go to the movies, or even when they live in countries where everyday shows like 'The Simpsons' are regulated and banned by governing bodies? They are still considered thieves!
Music piracy has been a major hotplate in media since the 1990's, with movie piracy hot on its heel. However, in today’s era, technology has been advancing society and businesses- but not without a price. Speedy Internet connections, high capacity storage availability, and underground peer-to-peer networks on the Internet have opened the gates of piracy wide open (Al-Rafee and Cronan, 2007). The MPA (2005) describes piracy as the unauthorised downloading, taking, copying or use of copyrighted materials without permission and recognised the act as a growing international phenomenon with serious consequences. The most costly and damaging of all is the experience dubbed 'Software Piracy 2.0', a type of digital piracy defined as
'the illegal copying/downloading of copyrighted software and media files' (Cronan and Al-Rafee, 2007: 2).
Since the introduction of the 'original' peer-to-peer media distributor Napster in 1999, the music industry has taken the hardest hit in pirated digital downloading. According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), there was a 31% decline in music sales from 1999 to 2002, which was primarily a result of piracy (Feuilherade in Al-Rafee and Cronan, 2007). Today file-sharing programs have paved the way for piracy by torrent-based websites such as Limewire, and Mininova. Due to the growth of Internet and file-sharing a new type of pressure has been placed on the music industry with most media industries opening digital music stores such as iTunes. However, this 'fluid' phenomena has now taken a competitive peak through a battle of digital rights management and price wars over which online music store will have the best prices. Still, it has to be considered that some digital stores pump their prices higher, therefore pushing consumers to download illegally.
In an attempt to shut-down piracy, initiatives such as 'The Industry Trust' have been established to try and tackle copyright breaches, and protect intellectual property. Furthermore, bands such as Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails are releasing their albums free on their websites in an attempt to make piracy useless. Following in similar footsteps, Coldplay has released a few free 'preview' songs from their new album 'Viva La Vida' for a week but insists they will not do a 'Radiohead'. All in all, in this avalanche of peer-to-peer file sharing and free downloads where music insiders leak albums, and the ever rising participatory culture and growth of Web 2.0 it is evident that digital piracy is here to stay.
It is in my opinion that piracy itself was unavoidable and the growth of digital piracy was to be expected. Firstly, cost-efficient and timely attributes have made digital piracy attractive options to everyone, not just those with minimum access to music. Furthermore, the music industry's shift to digital and their 'modern' distribution patterns will provide an ongoing piracy legacy.
References:
Al-Rafee, S. and Cronan, T. (2007) 'Factors that Influence the Intention to Pirate Software and Media'. Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 78, pp 527-545: Springer.
Motion Picture Association of America (MPA). (2005) https://mpaa.org/piracy.asp (Accessed May 15, 2008).
Music piracy has been a major hotplate in media since the 1990's, with movie piracy hot on its heel. However, in today’s era, technology has been advancing society and businesses- but not without a price. Speedy Internet connections, high capacity storage availability, and underground peer-to-peer networks on the Internet have opened the gates of piracy wide open (Al-Rafee and Cronan, 2007). The MPA (2005) describes piracy as the unauthorised downloading, taking, copying or use of copyrighted materials without permission and recognised the act as a growing international phenomenon with serious consequences. The most costly and damaging of all is the experience dubbed 'Software Piracy 2.0', a type of digital piracy defined as
'the illegal copying/downloading of copyrighted software and media files' (Cronan and Al-Rafee, 2007: 2).
Since the introduction of the 'original' peer-to-peer media distributor Napster in 1999, the music industry has taken the hardest hit in pirated digital downloading. According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), there was a 31% decline in music sales from 1999 to 2002, which was primarily a result of piracy (Feuilherade in Al-Rafee and Cronan, 2007). Today file-sharing programs have paved the way for piracy by torrent-based websites such as Limewire, and Mininova. Due to the growth of Internet and file-sharing a new type of pressure has been placed on the music industry with most media industries opening digital music stores such as iTunes. However, this 'fluid' phenomena has now taken a competitive peak through a battle of digital rights management and price wars over which online music store will have the best prices. Still, it has to be considered that some digital stores pump their prices higher, therefore pushing consumers to download illegally.
In an attempt to shut-down piracy, initiatives such as 'The Industry Trust' have been established to try and tackle copyright breaches, and protect intellectual property. Furthermore, bands such as Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails are releasing their albums free on their websites in an attempt to make piracy useless. Following in similar footsteps, Coldplay has released a few free 'preview' songs from their new album 'Viva La Vida' for a week but insists they will not do a 'Radiohead'. All in all, in this avalanche of peer-to-peer file sharing and free downloads where music insiders leak albums, and the ever rising participatory culture and growth of Web 2.0 it is evident that digital piracy is here to stay.
It is in my opinion that piracy itself was unavoidable and the growth of digital piracy was to be expected. Firstly, cost-efficient and timely attributes have made digital piracy attractive options to everyone, not just those with minimum access to music. Furthermore, the music industry's shift to digital and their 'modern' distribution patterns will provide an ongoing piracy legacy.
References:
Al-Rafee, S. and Cronan, T. (2007) 'Factors that Influence the Intention to Pirate Software and Media'. Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 78, pp 527-545: Springer.
Motion Picture Association of America (MPA). (2005) https://mpaa.org/piracy.asp (Accessed May 15, 2008).
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