Nov 1, 2010
Oct 28, 2010
Making Changes: Social Action in Online Networks
Louise McClean
Social media is a commonplace tool of modern communications. As it becomes increasingly pervasive in our personal lives, it is also becoming an intrinsic part of the way organisations operate to promote and foster support. The implications of this phenomenon for advocacy operations are substantial; often a not-for-profit organisation is characterised by its heavy reliance on the goodwill of the community to support the cause. Social media and networking have become vital tools, imperative to their business strategies as a cost effective way mustering a diversity of support. I will discuss some of the social theories which influence the way people respond to in social media and advocacy. I will then apply it to the Invisible Children case study, a youth oriented organisation dedicated to the North Ugandan children’s plight.
Social media is a commonplace tool of modern communications. As it becomes increasingly pervasive in our personal lives, it is also becoming an intrinsic part of the way organisations operate to promote and foster support. The implications of this phenomenon for advocacy operations are substantial; often a not-for-profit organisation is characterised by its heavy reliance on the goodwill of the community to support the cause. Social media and networking have become vital tools, imperative to their business strategies as a cost effective way mustering a diversity of support. I will discuss some of the social theories which influence the way people respond to in social media and advocacy. I will then apply it to the Invisible Children case study, a youth oriented organisation dedicated to the North Ugandan children’s plight.
We Are Anonymous - But Not for Long
Gregor Stronach
Online anonymity is considered both a blessing and a curse. Those that love it fight vigorously to defend it. Those that loath it are passionate in their calls for personal responsibility for all internet users. This article explores the notion of online anonymity, and the effects that anonymity has on the behaviours of people in an online environment.
Online anonymity is considered both a blessing and a curse. Those that love it fight vigorously to defend it. Those that loath it are passionate in their calls for personal responsibility for all internet users. This article explores the notion of online anonymity, and the effects that anonymity has on the behaviours of people in an online environment.
Me, Myself and I –The Profile Has Multiple Faces: The Art of [Mis]Representation in Internet Dating.
Charlotte Willis
What would once have been an intimate handwritten letter between two people, at some point or another has evolved into the instantaneous email that we receive in our multiplicity of inboxes every day, often several times daily. The recent trend towards internet dating however, has taken on a whole new dimension. In an era where it is commonplace to own your own blog, facebook page, Ebay/Amazon/Coles shopping account, the online dating profile sits comfortably at home among a continually rising 69 per cent of Australian internet users . The shift towards online profiles, in particular internet dating, has risen from the hidden depths of cyberspace, once occupied by the desperados and the introverted, and has now become commonplace; a billion-dollar industry attracting thousands of members each day within Australia alone.
This article investigates the evolving world of internet dating and the capacity for each individual to exercise complete control over disclosure of the self within this now ubiquitous practice. Strategies of self-presentation among online dating participants, exploring how they control their online presentation of self in order to accomplish their ultimate goal of finding a partner will be explored. The article will examine the choices each individual makes when constructing (and reconstructing) their online persona, and the potential for creativity and selectiveness when managing an online profile, operating unashamedly under a notion of “possible selves” , whereby members ‘self consciously go through a process of careful creation and re-creation while engaging in the continuous, dynamic process of cognitive negotiation and re-negotiation’. How far will individuals go to manipulate their ‘real online selves’ in order to be more appealing for potential viewers? Furthermore, operating within such an aesthetically reliant culture, where extreme dependence and preoccupation is placed upon the visual image, just how easily are those who view another’s profile misled? With the ease of misinterpretation merely the click of an uploaded photo away, how effortless is it to recreate and over-edit the ‘online self’ for various viewers? Where do we, as a contemporary culture, draw the line between light tweaking and shameless deception within the consumption of internet dating?
What would once have been an intimate handwritten letter between two people, at some point or another has evolved into the instantaneous email that we receive in our multiplicity of inboxes every day, often several times daily. The recent trend towards internet dating however, has taken on a whole new dimension. In an era where it is commonplace to own your own blog, facebook page, Ebay/Amazon/Coles shopping account, the online dating profile sits comfortably at home among a continually rising 69 per cent of Australian internet users . The shift towards online profiles, in particular internet dating, has risen from the hidden depths of cyberspace, once occupied by the desperados and the introverted, and has now become commonplace; a billion-dollar industry attracting thousands of members each day within Australia alone.
This article investigates the evolving world of internet dating and the capacity for each individual to exercise complete control over disclosure of the self within this now ubiquitous practice. Strategies of self-presentation among online dating participants, exploring how they control their online presentation of self in order to accomplish their ultimate goal of finding a partner will be explored. The article will examine the choices each individual makes when constructing (and reconstructing) their online persona, and the potential for creativity and selectiveness when managing an online profile, operating unashamedly under a notion of “possible selves” , whereby members ‘self consciously go through a process of careful creation and re-creation while engaging in the continuous, dynamic process of cognitive negotiation and re-negotiation’. How far will individuals go to manipulate their ‘real online selves’ in order to be more appealing for potential viewers? Furthermore, operating within such an aesthetically reliant culture, where extreme dependence and preoccupation is placed upon the visual image, just how easily are those who view another’s profile misled? With the ease of misinterpretation merely the click of an uploaded photo away, how effortless is it to recreate and over-edit the ‘online self’ for various viewers? Where do we, as a contemporary culture, draw the line between light tweaking and shameless deception within the consumption of internet dating?
The Only Game In Town: The Shape of Rights Management In Modern Video Games
Luke Lancaster
Piracy has forever changed the digital landscape, and the innovations and practices adopted by video game developers reflect how producers have responded to this new culture. Control of content has become paramount. New business, distribution and consumption models have been introduced with an online focus and the marked change that has occurred in the industry has been realized as a shift from the single and the local to the many and the global, in concept and execution of design. This article will focus on how and why game developers have incorporated online functionality in the current digital media climate. Specific examples of Digital Rights Management models will be addressed to justify and illustrate the shift towards digital distribution and online content at large. There is new value interplay in effect, in both how games are played and how content is provided. What consumers pay for is radically changed, as is how they pay for it. This article will show that there is a system of covert policing at work - an innovation that protects game developers and a practice that has already taken deep root in the industry.
Piracy has forever changed the digital landscape, and the innovations and practices adopted by video game developers reflect how producers have responded to this new culture. Control of content has become paramount. New business, distribution and consumption models have been introduced with an online focus and the marked change that has occurred in the industry has been realized as a shift from the single and the local to the many and the global, in concept and execution of design. This article will focus on how and why game developers have incorporated online functionality in the current digital media climate. Specific examples of Digital Rights Management models will be addressed to justify and illustrate the shift towards digital distribution and online content at large. There is new value interplay in effect, in both how games are played and how content is provided. What consumers pay for is radically changed, as is how they pay for it. This article will show that there is a system of covert policing at work - an innovation that protects game developers and a practice that has already taken deep root in the industry.
Illegal mp3 Downloading: A Cultural Battle
Jonathan Pippard
The internet has changed the music landscape forever. There was a time, now long past, where music fans would amass great collections of the CDs (or, thinking back even further, vinyl records) produced by their favourite bands and artists. Now those same music fans are more likely to have thousands of mp3 files stored on their computers, and no doubt most of them would have been downloaded illegally and without the artist’s permission. Most people are well aware of controversial exploits of file sharing services such a Napster and Kazaa, but less well known is where the fight against illegal music downloading goes from here. With record companies and individual artists constantly seeking ways to stem the flow of illegal mp3 sharing in order regain lost profits; has this cyber trend become unstoppable? This article will discuss the future of mp3 downloading considering impact of popular pay-per-download music site such as iTunes and Beatport, the creative efforts of bands such as Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails to curb the illegal downloading of their music, as well as the decision of the French government to actively cut down illegal downloading by cutting off the internet of repeat offenders as ways to combat the effects of file sharing sites.
The internet has changed the music landscape forever. There was a time, now long past, where music fans would amass great collections of the CDs (or, thinking back even further, vinyl records) produced by their favourite bands and artists. Now those same music fans are more likely to have thousands of mp3 files stored on their computers, and no doubt most of them would have been downloaded illegally and without the artist’s permission. Most people are well aware of controversial exploits of file sharing services such a Napster and Kazaa, but less well known is where the fight against illegal music downloading goes from here. With record companies and individual artists constantly seeking ways to stem the flow of illegal mp3 sharing in order regain lost profits; has this cyber trend become unstoppable? This article will discuss the future of mp3 downloading considering impact of popular pay-per-download music site such as iTunes and Beatport, the creative efforts of bands such as Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails to curb the illegal downloading of their music, as well as the decision of the French government to actively cut down illegal downloading by cutting off the internet of repeat offenders as ways to combat the effects of file sharing sites.
Copyright and Scholarship—Achieving a Balance
Barbara Wilson
Academic publishers’ use of copyright to benefit from the publication of research, particularly in the STM area, has encouraged the rise of new models of scholarly publication aimed at freeing up access to this material, notably “open access”. In addition, the extension of periods of copyright protection in the US and Australia, and the restrictions of “fair use” (US) and “fair dealing” (Australia), can be considered to work against the dissemination and creation of knowledge, in all fields of scholarly (and other) endeavour. This has also encouraged the rise of alternative models of knowledge sharing, such as Creative Commons.
Academic publishers’ use of copyright to benefit from the publication of research, particularly in the STM area, has encouraged the rise of new models of scholarly publication aimed at freeing up access to this material, notably “open access”. In addition, the extension of periods of copyright protection in the US and Australia, and the restrictions of “fair use” (US) and “fair dealing” (Australia), can be considered to work against the dissemination and creation of knowledge, in all fields of scholarly (and other) endeavour. This has also encouraged the rise of alternative models of knowledge sharing, such as Creative Commons.
I can haz English lessons? - The Impact of the Internet on the English Language
Ana Carolina Pomilio
This article aims to understand the impact of the use of the internet on the English language. The English language has and continues to evolve over time. Language is always changing and evolving but whether the internet is causing a degradation in the use of the English language in both spoken and written language is still unclear. English language has been expanding as a result of the web, for example the verb ‘to google’ has been added as a formal word in the English language to the Oxford dictionary, which means ‘search for information about (someone or something) on the internet’. Common internet abbreviations such as ‘lol’ (laugh out loud) have also found their way into the Oxford dictionary. New vocabulary is being added as our lifestyles are increasingly governed by internet usage. However I wish to address in this article, not only how it is evolving but if the English language is suffering from degradation in its online form and the social implications of such a change in language. Is this simply language evolution or the corruption of language? And if this is the case, what are the implications of the decline? The research into this topic is important in the field of social linguistics as the ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of vocabulary and grammar knowledge could be disappearing or changing dramatically.
This article aims to understand the impact of the use of the internet on the English language. The English language has and continues to evolve over time. Language is always changing and evolving but whether the internet is causing a degradation in the use of the English language in both spoken and written language is still unclear. English language has been expanding as a result of the web, for example the verb ‘to google’ has been added as a formal word in the English language to the Oxford dictionary, which means ‘search for information about (someone or something) on the internet’. Common internet abbreviations such as ‘lol’ (laugh out loud) have also found their way into the Oxford dictionary. New vocabulary is being added as our lifestyles are increasingly governed by internet usage. However I wish to address in this article, not only how it is evolving but if the English language is suffering from degradation in its online form and the social implications of such a change in language. Is this simply language evolution or the corruption of language? And if this is the case, what are the implications of the decline? The research into this topic is important in the field of social linguistics as the ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of vocabulary and grammar knowledge could be disappearing or changing dramatically.
R Dey Rly Lrnin NEthin? : Digital Media in Education
Rachel Dennis
With the proliferation of digital media in most areas of life, it is no surprise that digital media is being ever increasingly used for educational purposes. This essay seeks to explore the consequences of such uses, some of which are positive, such as the increase of visual literacy, which is shown to aid verbal literacy; the individualisation of student learning; and an increase in motivation. There are also some negative consequences, such as the possible decline in attention ability by high media users, and the subjugation of schools to transparency, which may have wider reaching consequences such as withdrawal of funding. Inevitably it is up to teachers and parents to determine whether or not our students effectively use technology.
With the proliferation of digital media in most areas of life, it is no surprise that digital media is being ever increasingly used for educational purposes. This essay seeks to explore the consequences of such uses, some of which are positive, such as the increase of visual literacy, which is shown to aid verbal literacy; the individualisation of student learning; and an increase in motivation. There are also some negative consequences, such as the possible decline in attention ability by high media users, and the subjugation of schools to transparency, which may have wider reaching consequences such as withdrawal of funding. Inevitably it is up to teachers and parents to determine whether or not our students effectively use technology.
oligopoly.com: A Case Study of newmatilda.com & the Business of Online Publishing in Australia
Brittany Taylor
Australia’s mainstream media industry operates as a political economy, where the most important aspect of a media business is that production is geared towards making a profit. New media theorists like Howard Rheingold (1994), Alvin Toffler (1981) and Nicholas Negroponte (1995) predicted that the internet would bring about the rise of a decentralised and empowering source of knowledge and information that was incompatible with free-market economics. Yet in Australia the rise of digital publishing and consumption of online news has yet to undermine, and has in fact extended print media oligopoly into the online realm. The demise of independent news analysis website newmatilda.com in June 2010 was both a consequence and an expression of Australia’s particular mediascape in which print media companies with almost 90 per cent combined market control have extended their range of operations and competitive advantage into the online publishing industry. But it is also reflective of a larger issue at stake, one that is currently plaguing not only independent news outlets but also mainstream online and multi-media news outlets – the general incompatibility of traditional print media business models with online publishing. In addition to discussing why print media paradigms are proving to be incompatible with online publishing, this article will also examine crowdfunding as an emerging business model that compliments the medium, as well as consumer interactions with and expectations of it. The successful development and adoption of crowfunding business models by independent outlets could be one avenue through which they can destabilise the current extension of media oligopoly across Australia’s online news media. If independent news websites like newmatilda.com are able to access, establish themselves and operate using this model, the potential result would be a more pluralistic online media market place in Australia.
Australia’s mainstream media industry operates as a political economy, where the most important aspect of a media business is that production is geared towards making a profit. New media theorists like Howard Rheingold (1994), Alvin Toffler (1981) and Nicholas Negroponte (1995) predicted that the internet would bring about the rise of a decentralised and empowering source of knowledge and information that was incompatible with free-market economics. Yet in Australia the rise of digital publishing and consumption of online news has yet to undermine, and has in fact extended print media oligopoly into the online realm. The demise of independent news analysis website newmatilda.com in June 2010 was both a consequence and an expression of Australia’s particular mediascape in which print media companies with almost 90 per cent combined market control have extended their range of operations and competitive advantage into the online publishing industry. But it is also reflective of a larger issue at stake, one that is currently plaguing not only independent news outlets but also mainstream online and multi-media news outlets – the general incompatibility of traditional print media business models with online publishing. In addition to discussing why print media paradigms are proving to be incompatible with online publishing, this article will also examine crowdfunding as an emerging business model that compliments the medium, as well as consumer interactions with and expectations of it. The successful development and adoption of crowfunding business models by independent outlets could be one avenue through which they can destabilise the current extension of media oligopoly across Australia’s online news media. If independent news websites like newmatilda.com are able to access, establish themselves and operate using this model, the potential result would be a more pluralistic online media market place in Australia.
Fan Culture: The Consequences of Fan Communities in an Online World
Dale Weber
The rise of the internet has brought about many social changes, including the ability to bring people together, albeit in a virtual setting. With many of the old challenges related to space and time becoming obsolete in an increasingly online society, people from all over the world are now able to share information and ideas with anyone, at anytime. This includes bringing together creators of texts and their audiences. This article seeks to show how there is an increasingly blurring of the previously distinct line between media producers and those who consume their texts. Through various case studies this article will explore how there have been examples of how online fan communities have influenced, changed or added to the world of certain media texts; and how the creators of these texts have responded. There will be voices in support as well as those who oppose this coming together of producer and audience, but this article will show how the sharing of creative ideas is becoming a much more democratic and worldwide system.
Keywords:
Digital media, Online Publishing, Online community, Fandom, Fans, Producers, Audience
The rise of the internet has brought about many social changes, including the ability to bring people together, albeit in a virtual setting. With many of the old challenges related to space and time becoming obsolete in an increasingly online society, people from all over the world are now able to share information and ideas with anyone, at anytime. This includes bringing together creators of texts and their audiences. This article seeks to show how there is an increasingly blurring of the previously distinct line between media producers and those who consume their texts. Through various case studies this article will explore how there have been examples of how online fan communities have influenced, changed or added to the world of certain media texts; and how the creators of these texts have responded. There will be voices in support as well as those who oppose this coming together of producer and audience, but this article will show how the sharing of creative ideas is becoming a much more democratic and worldwide system.
Keywords:
Digital media, Online Publishing, Online community, Fandom, Fans, Producers, Audience
The Narrowcast Feature of Internet
Ana Paula Ferreira
How segmented content precisely reaches the target audiences though the internet? How this feature enables the creation of professional communities? This essay explores the benefits of the segmented audiences while distributing information on the internet. Likewise, it shows applications and tools available for that purpose. Whereas, previously, segmented audiences were reached through specialized publications and services, now the internet made it feasible to economically reach segmented audiences creating boundless networks. The glue is the content. Forums, newsletters, networks, e-zones facebook, twitter are applicable examples. The news now can achieve one target public with a lot of channels, and connect the people that are interesting in specific content, allowing interaction and permitting exchange of information.
How segmented content precisely reaches the target audiences though the internet? How this feature enables the creation of professional communities? This essay explores the benefits of the segmented audiences while distributing information on the internet. Likewise, it shows applications and tools available for that purpose. Whereas, previously, segmented audiences were reached through specialized publications and services, now the internet made it feasible to economically reach segmented audiences creating boundless networks. The glue is the content. Forums, newsletters, networks, e-zones facebook, twitter are applicable examples. The news now can achieve one target public with a lot of channels, and connect the people that are interesting in specific content, allowing interaction and permitting exchange of information.
The Easy Way Out: Why Blogs Become Books and Beyond
Lilia Kanna
This article will be looking at the shift in the origins of ideas behind book publishing, and how book publishers are seeking out possible titles that already have an established fan base. This article will specifically address the newfound source of possible book material – internet blogs – and compare this to the original publishing practice of signing on authors and written texts and taking a risk. The process of taking an already successful blog and turning it into a book has only recently developed with the growing popularity of blogging. In a move by book publishers to gain some of the lost market share that bloggers have taken, they have chosen to incorporate many well-known internet blogs into books. Examples of this include Post Secret, Overheard in New York, Belle De Jour: The Adventures of a London Call-Girl and Baghdad Burning. This growing phenomenon has also been granted its own prize; The Blooker Award – celebrating this new hybrid. This article will continue to concentrate on the newfound blogs-becoming-books phase by assessing their success in the book market, and their adaptation into media markets other than books. This article aims to discover if the readership is a large proportion of existing blog readers or new readers, and how this affects the existing blog.
This article will be looking at the shift in the origins of ideas behind book publishing, and how book publishers are seeking out possible titles that already have an established fan base. This article will specifically address the newfound source of possible book material – internet blogs – and compare this to the original publishing practice of signing on authors and written texts and taking a risk. The process of taking an already successful blog and turning it into a book has only recently developed with the growing popularity of blogging. In a move by book publishers to gain some of the lost market share that bloggers have taken, they have chosen to incorporate many well-known internet blogs into books. Examples of this include Post Secret, Overheard in New York, Belle De Jour: The Adventures of a London Call-Girl and Baghdad Burning. This growing phenomenon has also been granted its own prize; The Blooker Award – celebrating this new hybrid. This article will continue to concentrate on the newfound blogs-becoming-books phase by assessing their success in the book market, and their adaptation into media markets other than books. This article aims to discover if the readership is a large proportion of existing blog readers or new readers, and how this affects the existing blog.
Uncovering the Cover: is book design becoming irrelevant in the digital publishing world or becoming stronger?
Georgia Eliades
With the introduction of digital media such as the iPad and the Kindle, the book publishing world is radically changing. Cover art and illustration commissions are rapidly declining in demand as electronic devices do not necessarily need book cover designs anymore. This could bring forth the question is this a way of people not being judged by the cover of the book they’re reading or is it turning the publishing world into a haven of choice without judgment? Historically speaking it was initially the book spine that was the differentiating point of reference between books, this evolved, with the invention of better printing techniques onto the book cover and now we are at the cross roads of publishing whereby print and digital mediums are forced to rethink their visual representations of books to attract the potential readership.
With the introduction of digital media such as the iPad and the Kindle, the book publishing world is radically changing. Cover art and illustration commissions are rapidly declining in demand as electronic devices do not necessarily need book cover designs anymore. This could bring forth the question is this a way of people not being judged by the cover of the book they’re reading or is it turning the publishing world into a haven of choice without judgment? Historically speaking it was initially the book spine that was the differentiating point of reference between books, this evolved, with the invention of better printing techniques onto the book cover and now we are at the cross roads of publishing whereby print and digital mediums are forced to rethink their visual representations of books to attract the potential readership.
The Devil May Wear Prada, But Her Competitor is Wearing an iPad
Stefanie Collins
Why is it that the tried and true magazine format is struggling to adapt in the constantly updating world of Web 2.0? Traditionally, women’s magazines tell women how to dress, how to behave and where to be seen. They translate trends, runway looks and designer garble into must haves and definitely avoids. Through the lens of the digital magazine produced by retail behemoth Net-A-Porter, this article will explore how magazine publishers are adapting to new digital mediums, along with how well tablet devices lend themselves to digital publishing.
Why is it that the tried and true magazine format is struggling to adapt in the constantly updating world of Web 2.0? Traditionally, women’s magazines tell women how to dress, how to behave and where to be seen. They translate trends, runway looks and designer garble into must haves and definitely avoids. Through the lens of the digital magazine produced by retail behemoth Net-A-Porter, this article will explore how magazine publishers are adapting to new digital mediums, along with how well tablet devices lend themselves to digital publishing.
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