7. The Blogosphere March 17, 2009

A weblog or blogging as we all call it today, has become a worldwide activity on the Internet. Having a blog has become an outlet for many people, to express their creativity with video-blogs, as well as to display their writing skills with the more “traditional” text blog. As of 2003 there were 133 billion blogs indexed by the technorati website, now that our society is even more intertwined with technology that number has potentially grown exponentially in the 6 year gap from then to now.

 Because blogging has become so mainstream and has a massive following that doesn’t seem to be slowing down, but rather gaining in popularity and momentum; the act of blogging has earned the #7 spot on My top Twelve pop culture phenomena’s.

 With the creation of blogs there has been a wide variety that can be found on the web, ranging from personal, to professional. From the likes of Perez Hilton’s gossip blog to credible newspapers like the Ottawa Citizen an Toronto Star that have their staff writers created blogs on a daily basis. The topics of discussion also range, there’s political blogs, travel blogs, health blogs, and literary blogs too. Just about any kind of blog you can think of exists on the web!

When it comes to demographics blogs don’t discriminate! There is an near equal balance as to who is creating blogs on the web. As stated by the technorati website around 74% of blog creators as of 2004 were college students, 52% were employed full-time, and around 36% of them are single. According to imedia connection the age group varies as well, as pointed out by  this chart:

  Blogs have impacted on our lives in various ways, and should not be ruled out as a novelty feature of the Internet. It has become more than just about communication nd personal entertainment, it has become a learning tool as well.

 

Blogs are becoming a part of our education, with many professors using web videos or video blogs to teach a class or to collaborate with other professors at other institutions of learning. Take for example Dr. Strangelove’s videotaped lectures at

 http://radicalmedia.wordpress.com/ad-tech/

 

 This is a helpful way for students to have their very own rewind button. If they have attended the class ( or for some valid reason skipped the class) they are able to go to the professors website and take a look at what they’ve missed through the form of a video blog. Ingenious And helpful!

 

According to The world of blogs created by the university for British Colombia:

 blogs are both individualistic and collaborative, they allow self-expression, a place where the author can develop highly personalized content while simultaneously allowing students connection with an online community, for they can comment and give feedback to other bloggers, and they can link to fellow bloggers, creating an interwoven, dynamic organization

 

I never thought about blogs in the classroom that way, but the more I think about the more global our classroom discussions could be, imagine talking about a certain topic that involves the state of Alabama, you’re professor could schedule a time where that professor in Alabama cold give you a brief lecture on his perspective, and afterwards your professor gives you his or her perspective. It would be like choosing both sides of a coin. It’s a win-win scenario.

 

It seems like now-a-days everyone has a blog, including celebrities and politicians, but as the blogosphere continues to evolve it has become a place where the average Joe/Jane can create a blog because it is so simple.

 

So in case you were wondering how simple it is I’ve included a little video that give you a step by step tutorial that helps you to create your very own blog!

 

Enjoy and happy blogging!

 

No Facebook? No Worries! March 14, 2009

In today’s day and age it seems like if you don’t have a Facebook profile, you must be out of touch with technology and not to mention the world around you. The explosive social networking site has become a household name to many and a staple in the social life of all who use it. Some may even call it a right of passage, but perhaps those who opt out of jumping on the Facebook band wagon along with the other social network junkies have valid reasoning besides simply boycotting it because “everyone has a Facebook account”

 

These “rebel users” may just be exercising caution when it comes to social networking websites, and with good reason!

 

There are countless dangers lurking on every website these days, if it’s not spam it’s a Trojan, if it’s not that then it’s a worm. You’re computer can be susceptible to a lot of viruses and hackers if you’re not careful and click on anything unsafe.

 

 But with social networking sites the danger is a little different. Due to the term networking, it makes sense to put some personal information on your profile so that others who stop by to take a look at your page get a quick snippet of what you’re about.

 

Unfortunately, many take this feature on Facebook to the extreme, with putting all kinds of personal information up on the site like their exact date of birth, their recent vacation. This doesn’t give criminals a challenge when they’re looking to steal people’s identities by hacking into a user’s Facebook login using malicious code such as worms or rogue applications.

 

According to CBC news, there’s even a more recent warning concerning applications the public are downloading on the social networking site, stating that “In the past week, several new variants of the Koobface worm, which targets Facebook users, and a number of “rogue applications” have been reported on the site” The article also goes on to discuss how malicious applications are disguising themselves as Facebook warnings, that you’ve violated the terms and service agreement.

 

Besides the issue of too much disclosure of personal information on the site, there is also the recent trend of companies starting background checks through Facebook. Yes, you read correctly; background checks. Many companies are deciding to use the social networking site to their advantage, by screening their future employees.

 

According to the University of Austin Texas, in 2007 Facebook enabled user profiles to become searchable through its new Public Search Listings, this means if you have a profile posted on Facebook, your name and profile picture can be indexed by one of the major search engines such as Google, Yahoo and MSN Search. This allows virtually anyone with an Internet connection to access to your personal information.

So that means every incriminating photo that is posted in one of your albums from Tuesday night’s wild party could be what prevented you from getting the job of your dreams over the person sitting next you.

 

With today’s power of technology the possibilities seem endless, but so are the dangers. Therefore it is important not to give out all your personal information, be mysterious!  Everyone loves a little mystery. It is also important to make sure that you enable or disable any features that allow you to limit your profile. Your future and personal identity could depend on it.

 For more information about the recent Facebook security issue visit, as well as tips to stay safe on Facebook visit:

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2009/03/03/tech-facebook-security.html?ref=rss

Are Newspapers Headed For The Shredder? March 11, 2009

As I was perusing my list of subscribed blogs I stumbled across a blog by jami89 entitled the Rise and Fall of Print Journalism. Now, I’m not so much interested in the rise of it all, because it goes back to 59 BC, which to me is of no interest. Besides, it only gets interesting during time William R. Hearst began to take over the newspaper industry in New York City with over 30 papers under his thumb and by instigating the largest a circulation rivalry at the time with Joseph Pultizer.

 

Which then lead to the creation of “yellow journalism” which is, in my opinion, a gaping wound in the history print since it sensationalized news and was rumored to be increasing conflict rather than reporting on it. As Martin Lee and Norman Solomon noted in their 1990 book Unreliable Sources, Hearst “routinely invented sensational stories, faked interviews, ran phony pictures and distorted real events.” But like I said the past doesn’t interest me, as much as its future does.

 

To me, the medium of print is wading in the waters of uncertainty; it’s simply drifting along with the current hoping it won’t be consumed by the wave of new media, with its fancy visuals and moving pictures and audience interactivity.  So they sit and wait in fear and anxiety that the issue they just sent to the press won’t be their last.

 

If newspapers do become an extinct medium of media’s past, it will have the internet to thank.  Since its emergence newspapers have been struggling to compete with the internet, due to society’s increased need and preference of visuals over text. An internet study was done by an NYU Professor, Jay Rosen, in 2006 and he found that 73 percent of all internet users get their news from the internet.

 

 This has proven to become a main concern for newspapers. According to the author the book “The Vanishing Newspaper”, Philip Meyer calculates that the first quarter of 2043 will be the moment when newsprint dies in America. If Meyer is correct in his prediction I’ll be 54 years old and possibly out of a job! Now this scares me, since I do wish to seek a career in the journalism field; however, like many currently working in the field I’m learning to adapt and adopt new forms of technology in order to better the chances of keeping and even getting a job in the future.

 

But I don’t think newspapers are down for the count just yet, they’ve begun to allow their newspaper articles to be available to internet users online, and for the most part free of charge. They’ve also included short clips on their websites of different news segments, similar to that of a sports reel of the day’s best game plays and highlights.

 

I’m hoping that print has a few more tricks up their sleeves, in order to stay around for longer than predicted by Philip Meyer, because reading the newspaper has become a part of a lot of people’s daily or weekly rituals. Who doesn’t want their kids to reminisce on the times when their parents would wake them up with breakfast on a Sunday morning, so that they could do the Sunday word-search with them or read the Saturday’s comics to them?

 

 Newspapers should be a staple in everyone’s household, if not for the crosswords and comics, then for its help in the exposure to world events, and its classic development of opinion.

Think Different. Think Creatively. March 8, 2009

Since the emergence of the Internet it’s clear that it has become a hot bed for creativity in all forms, with creative expressions like culture jamming, web designs and new web applications.

However, this creative fire could be snuffed out in a matter of years according to Jonathan Zittrain author of the novel of The Future of the Internet and How to Stop It. Zittran believes that the generativity of the internet, which is basically the internet’s ability to produce unanticipated change through the contributions from its audience. Will begin to become non-generative or a sterile appliance that is tethered to a network.

While reading this book, I’m trying to make sense of his arguments and decide for myself where the internet is heading. Although I haven’t quite made up my mind as of yet. It would suck to live in a world where you couldn’t tweak or hack into the gadgets companies create. We wouldn’t be able to improve the product or customize it to our own liking, we would be stuck with just the programming provided by the company.

It seems to me like creativity and the internet have become synonymous terms in recent years. Mainly due to the lack of boundaries the internet has, thus giving more creative wiggle room for those who use the internet as a creative outlet.  By not having censorship rules the idea of freedom of expresion is utilized and practiced ubiquitously all over the web.

Zittrain also mentions the two benefits of generativity as and innovative output, where new things are improved to better people’s lives, and the second is participatory output, the belief that a life well lived is one which thee is opportunities to connect with other people,work with them and express ones own individuality through creative endeavours.

The innovative output on the web today would be in the form of websites like Facebook where you can connect with people around the world, from early childhood or even the people you just met. We have online journals and newspapers,  where people can learn and educate themselves about the world around them.  As for the participatory output we have blogs as well as video blogs, where we as citizens can voice our opinion about whatever we like and share it with others who feel the same way, or share our common interest.

Thanks to the creativity of a handful of individuals, we have all kinds of outlets for creativity that can be distributed globally and receive recognition for it. This creativity has given the general public a chance to market themselves on websites like Facebook and MySpace, and get a foot in the door of the industry of their choice.

Without this kind of freedom and accessibility that the internet combined with creativity generates from the average individual, we would be stuck in a place where the internet would be regulated and controlled, thus making the public limited in terms of its creative capability.

I wonder what would be the new creative outlet if the internet did become regulated by major corporations. Would artists and aspiring artists return to their traditional roots of artistry or would they sell out and work for the companies creative design department? Would we see more artwork on buildings and  street corners rather than on web pages?

Whatever the future  holds for the relationship between the internet and the individuals creativity, I hope that it continues to grow so that we can see new and innovative forms of  creativity emerge and enrich our culture, and weaken the desire for control over creative expression.

8. Reality TV March 7, 2009

Not too many people would admit what I’m about to tell you even if they were being tortured to say it. I love reality tv. Yah, I said it and I’m not ashamed either!  There’s just something about them that grabs my attention and sucks me into watching it season after season, and I’m not the only one, people all over the world are gobbling up everything reality tv has to offer.

Its become part of our primetime television routines and is globally accepted ( I include those who are closet reality tv lovers as well) making it another staple in our popular culture, thus earning the  #8 spot on the top 12 Pop Culture Phenomenas.

According to Harriet Barovick, a staff writer of the New York Times who wrote “A Brief History of Reality Tv” the first reality tv show took place in In 1973 with  An American Family, a 12-part series that brought us the Santa Barbara, Calif. they were the Loud Family, the show “broke new ground with its artful, excruciatingly real portrayal of a family in transition.”

Society has come a long way since then, we now have a  variety of reality tv programs that range from finding that one true love with shows like The Bachelor and Bachelorette, to competing against others for money and glory like Big Brother and Survivor to showcasing your talent on shows like American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance, and Project Runway. The list of shows go on and on, but it’s crucial that as an avid viewer of television know how to sift through the crap reality tv shows that have been popping up lately. Like Paris Hilton’s My New BFF, Bromance, 50 cent: The Money and the Power, and Making the Band are just to name a few. These shows are just based on basic human interests: sex, fame, money and drama. That’s why people watch reality shows that are terrible or maybe even somewhat good. The entertainment factor is key, because we all just want to be amused by other peoples drama and stupidity.

For television stations the creation of reality tv is a gold mine! They don’t have to have over paid actors to star in them, instead they take regular folk like you and me off the street, along with people with different values and opinions, put us on a remote island or a secluded mansion, makes us compete of half a million dollars and watch the sparks fly! ( whether romantic or confrontational) As they count their stacks of money as they arrive at their door by the barrels.

But what’s the scientific reasoning behind reality tv’s allure to the average viewer? Well according to Steven Reiss an Ohio State Univeristy psychologist, he found that:

 ”Significant motive for watching reality television was social status, which leads to the joy of self-importance. Only slightly less strong was the need for vengeance, which leads to vindication. Some people may watch reality TV partially because they enjoy feeling superior to the people being portrayed. People with a strong need for vengeance have the potential to enjoy watching people being humiliated.”

Ok…so I do enjoy people being humiliated, but only because its funny, not because I’m some vengeance loving villain. Geez he makes us reality tv lovers seem like jilted citizens.

That’s not the only reason why I watch my favourite shows, I love Big Brother because their competitions are insanely creative and fun, I watch America’s Next Top Model because who doesn’t secretly want to live the model life ( minus the anorexic and bulimic factors), Project Runway because designers have the best imaginations and I love fashion, I watch So You Think You Can Dance and America’s Best Dance Crew because I wish I could move like those contestants!

So, maybe we watch reality tv because we as viewers can see ourselves in their shoes, or want to be, whether for good or bad reasons. I just hope they keep giving me the good stuff and less crappy reality, a person can only take so much crap.

The following clip is a verbal altercation between contestants on Big Brother 10, I  personally hate jessie, trust me he deserves to get yelled at.  This fight is common on Big Brother, a lot of he said she said arguments take place in this show that’s what creates the drama, not to mention the rampant paranoia in that house. It’s amazing!

9. Kermit Was Wrong! It Is Easy Being Green! March 2, 2009

Green Travels. Green Machines. Green Products. Green Energy.  Everywhere you go, the world is becoming increasingly Eco-friendly, and with good reason. Our planet is in a state of peril where our children’s children will have a next to none chance of leaving on a livable planet, thanks to Global Warming.

 For this reason, becoming more Eco-friendly and getting re-acquainted with our “grassroots” has become a staple in our popular culture, and has earned the #9 spot on my list.

The modern movement of  “going green” began with many scientists growing concern about Global Warming. According to the film by Al Gore entitled The Inconvenient Truth,  global warming is:

“Carbon dioxide and other gases warm the surface of the planet naturally by trapping solar heat in the atmosphere. This is a good thing because it keeps our planet habitable. However, by burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil and clearing forests we have dramatically increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere and temperatures are rising.”

Because of the carbon dioxide in our atmosphere we start seeing strange things happening across our planet like the Arctic Ocean could be ice free by the summer of 2050.(Arctic Climate Impact Assessment.2004) and global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, resulting in the devastation in coastal areas worldwide(Washington Post)

Originally, the term  for the movement is environmental economics, the term “Going green” is considered lingo for the convenience of the general public. It refers to the steps and actions taken by those who care about the environment to help preserve it, for as long as possible. This means reducing green house emissions, reducing the amount of pollution we create, using “environmentally friendly” products and of course energy conservation.

Though the concern to increase our environmental savvy has become ubiquitous in the last 8 years, it is only now that we are encountering the modern version of environmental movements.

 The initial eco-friendly movement began in the seventies, back when most people’s parents sported bell-bottoms, peace signs, and long shaggy manes.  Those individuals were cleverly coined “tree-huggers” due to their love for the environment, its inhabitants and its preservation. Back then they chained themselves to trees,  or even took up residence in them. But today the average person can do their part even if it is small to help with the preservation of our planet, and countries and their governments are taking it seriously.

For example, in 1997 various governments gathered in Kyoto, Japan to discuss the issue of global warming. They had agreed to set new targets for reducing the emission of green house gases; stating that by 2012 their goal is to reduce the level of emissions of six green house gases to below the 1990 level.

In 2009, we are seeing the number of people putting forth great effort to being environmentally friendly.  The fact that Media coverage of global warminng has used the fact that it saves consumers money to help reduce the harmful effects of global warming, has become a significant factor in the exponential growth of the movement. 

 Numerous companies from General Motors to Starbucks have realized it potential and now offer consumers products that are safe for the environment. There also many products at local grocery stores that have turned over a greener leaf, it has also sparked the creation of the Green Works cleaning products line.

With various companies beginning to be environmental issues at the forefront of their campaign, it is becoming even easier to Go Green,  so if you haven’t started there’s no time like the present, its as easy as  reading a label, or 1..2..3.. Just watch the video below and you’ll see!