New New Media

Out of the many books that we have read for this class I found this book to be the most interesting. Every chapter of this book talks about a medium that has to deal with what we consider to be “new media.” Much of the book discusses very current aspects of media in which we can all relate to. I became quite intrigued with the chapters that dealt with my favorite type of medium: social media.

The author begins the book by introducing us with the first forms of media, which is e-mail and the Internet. The author then begins to introduce us to what is considered to be new new media. This part of the book is significant in understanding the term remediation. Many parts of what we consider new media today were taken from earlier forms of media. We must understand that the foundation of new media was established through old media.

To get back on the topic of my favorite type of medium, I have to say that I enjoyed the chapter about “Blogging.” Being the blogger that I am, I found many points of this chapter to be appealing. The section named “Blogging About Anything, Forever” was interesting because the author spoke about how blogs lack the complete reliable locatability of books. I find that blogging is something that cannot be compared to books. Where books focus on one thought, blogging consists of many thoughts. People enjoy the idea of blogging due to the fact that you are free to talk about anything and at any moment that you want, you can delete what you have written if you don’t want anyone to read it. Durability is another issue that is dealt with in terms of books and blogging. Unlike books, you can easily access your blog through a simple connection to the Internet. What I also enjoy about blogging is the fact that not only can you write your thoughts but you can also simply post pictures and videos that interest you. This medium also allows you to interact with other people and get a glimpse of the thoughts of other bloggers. Blogging is highly popular within the new media spectrum. People are more open to talk about there thoughts more then ever. We can honestly look at bloggers as modern day journalists.

The sections that were covered about Facebook, Twitter, and MySpace clearly displays how interaction is the reason behind the evolution of such mediums. Social media is quite innovative and unique given the fact that for anything to be under the “social media” spectrum it must consist of the interactions between people within the web. Although, the three are different in terms of the way people interact, they all still give its users the opportunity to have the freedom in speaking to anyone they want. As a user of all three, I found the usage of social media is the easiest way to communicate with people from all over the world. I have friends that live in other countries and the fact that I can easily contact them through such mediums has given me a greater appreciation for this type of new media. Social media has grown to establish a foundation in the way our society communicates. The way we communicate with those around us is constantly changing. There is no guarantee that the social media we have become accustomed to now is going to be relevant to society in the next few years. Social media outlets like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace,YouTube, etc have become mainstream and it seems hard for the generation who has grown with them to imagine life without it.

Communication & Cyberspace sect. 4 & epil.

I found flaming to be a very interesting part of this chapter.  The book listed over ten different definitions that were all interesting and all had the same underlying meaning of vulgarity and unpleasantness on the computer.  My favorite definition is "rudeness, profanity, exultation, and other emotional outbursts by people when they carry on discussions via computer."  People now use the internet all the time.  Flaming is something that happens all the time on the internet.  We can see it on social networking sites or on the videos people post on YouTube.  
The above video is satirical but it gets the point across of what people do on the internet that is wrong, specifically in this case Facebook.  People can use blogging, twitter, facebook, myspace and other forms of new media to influence people with their  flaming.  People do not have to participate in flaming to be affected.  I had never thought about this until I had read this section.  When you write something on the internet it will never go away.  And writing hateful messages on the internet and on social networking sites like Facebook is terrible.  The first Amendment is used here but when you are applying for a job or trying to meet knew people and the first thing they see is hateful messages about people they know or ex-boyfriends/girlfriends they will be turned away.  Having something written down that is impolite and hurtful can be detrimental especially with the internet because nothing is truly erased, deleted, or gone.

New New Media Ch. 1-6

Youtube is a wonderful media.  In its young life it has transformed the way we view entertainment and media.  In the past it was hard to find videos of past events or shows.  Now because of how accessible Youtube is we can watch events that happened before we were born or re-live certain events.  I recently had to write an essay about 24 hour news coverage and what events would keep the media going.  Being able to go on a website like Youtube was a blessing.  I was able to watch clips of the Berlin Wall falling which I was not able to see until this website was introduced. 


Youtube can also be used to watch shows that you missed or watch upcoming Movie Trailers.  Youtube really is something that is unbelievable.  It is a free medium where anybody can watch clips of their favorite movies or watch an important event like what has happened in Egypt. 

Youtube is also for people who want to post their own videos.  It is a place to express yourself.  Many artists are becoming famous because of this website.  Justin Beiber, for instance, was a nobody and then he posted a video of himself singing and became a sensation.  Athletes are now posting themselves on Youtube so they can get scouted to the best universities.  This has become the new generation.  It is a way for people to get their information as quickly as possible and watch small clips without watching the full movie to get to their favorite part.