Blogs vs. Wikis

When my parents had an assignment in school they went to the library,
looked up a topic in a card catalog, and pulled books that were
updated a year ago, at best, to begin their research. In fact, their
entire class probably referenced more or less the same sources.
Interestingly enough, all their assignments turned out different.
Every student had their own perspective, analyzed information in a
different way, and generated conclusions that were based on a mix of
their own experiences, morals and beliefs. In class, the professor may
bring up a discussion in which the students shared their perspectives
and a lively debate would ensue.

Well today, a lively debate can be silent; it is conducted all through
hyperlinks, comments, re-tweets and re-posts and measured through page
views (http://faculty.washington.edu/kegill/pub/www2004_blogosphere_gill.pdf)
. It often doesn’t have a moderator, as it’s been said that “the
Internet is like closing time at a blue-collar bar in Boston.
Everyone’s drunk and ugly and they’re going to pass out in a few
minutes.” (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/26/opinion/26dowd.html) It
has allowed anyone to be an author, and like a good grade the readers
are earned. It is the human need to debate, share ideas, contemplate
and create that has carved a new category of media– the user generated
content: best known as the blog; and just like the user that generates
the content, it is the readers who determine, by their following, if
the content is good enough to become a real source.
(http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/26280/celebrity_blogs_the_impact_of_new_media_pg5.html?cat=49)

But there is also user generated content that’s simply an aggregator
facts. It is not heated and there are no “flame wars”
(http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/business/media/04link.html?_r=1).
It’s just like the card catalog that my parents used for their school
assignments, but updated – in real time, and even has the modern day
librarian, or editor
(http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/25/technology/internet/25wikipedia.html?_r=1)

Although both Blogs and wikis comprise new media, they have many
differences and similarities. Both offer people the opportunity to
express themselves, and become authors or contributors to the greater
community. They both rely on organic growth of readership, versus
support of mass distribution like newspapers and magazines. On the
other hand, blogs are a more of an op-ed piece or commentary, where is
a wiki parallels a traditional reference source. Wikis are based on
facts that can be supported through traditional sources, where as
blogs can be a bit more liberal when it comes to journalistic
integrity. One other differentiator is that blogs are very saturated
across the online medium, where as wikis are used more sporadically.
When in fact, there are many more uses for a wiki. For example, a
wiki would be great to use to profile various medical doctors, making
it easier for patients to find a specialist. Or having a wiki for
classes offered in a school instead of using a traditional catalog.

Despite the differences, the convergence of the two forums is
important in today’s world – it unites people from different parts of
the world, different cultures, ages and races, who may have other wise
never benefited from one other’s input. They both have become part of
today’s language – in pop culture, news, and opinion.

Describe New Media

When we think of New Media, or Media of the Information Age, many fairly new, though widespread, mediums come to mind. Wiki's and eBook's are quickly forcing standard texts to become obsolete. Ipod's and other mp3 players have long taken the place of the once trendy and prevalent compact disc and cassette players. VOIP services such as Skype and oovoo are quickly cutting into the profits of telephone companies by offering free international video calling. Although all of these new media technologies may seem to have great benefits such as providing music on the go and zapping information to your portable device in a New York second, I believe our societies' rapid change toward New Media and Web 2.0 has many detrimental effects. Instead of attaining intellect through novels and newspapers, people now lose it by staring into their 55 inch television screens watching prime time reality shows. Randall Stross of the New York Times states that the average American spends over 147 hours a month watching TV and upward of 27 hours staring at the computer screen. New Media differs from Old Media in several ways. I believe that the distinction between Old Media and New Media is fairly simple. In most cases, New Media is just a form of old media that has been simplified, enhanced, or made more easily accessible to the user. For example, as traditional newspapers are a form of Old Media, the New Media counterpart could be the news we receive on our mobile phones. Although the result is the same and the same information is transmitted to the user, New Media has made it easily accessible and efficient. Additionally, I agree with the class notes that New Media are internet based technologies that use at least 3 out of the 5 C's and I think this is a good way to distinguish it from Old Media. For example, the information on Wikipedia relies heavily on Communication, Collaboration, and Community of the users. Contrarily, the process of looking up the same information via an Old Media source such as an encyclopedia would not have any of those characteristics.

Cited:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/04/technology/personaltech/04basics.html?emc=eta1
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/business/media/08digi.html

Social Networking: Virtue or Vice?

For my term project, I will be discussing Social Networking. I am particularly interested in examining the trade-off between the benefit of being able to meet people that you would have never encountered without the aid of Social Networking, and the alleged detrimental effects of too much e-socialization. It seems as though since the boom of new media, and the addition of social networking sites, people rely more on electronic mingling rather than traditional face to face interaction. I think that the adverse effects are eminent as the recent generations are often not comfortable in social situations as they are so used to interacting via e-mails or text messages. I will touch upon the effect social networking sites have relating to personal growth as well as on a societal level.