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
Hello Eddie,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, as most of the class does, that new media is sweeping our resources. As you mentioned, skype and other computer webcam based programs are household names. Instead of calling up a family member on a home phone, you get see them with just an internet connection and a computer with a webcam. Which brings me to one very important question, are landlines becoming obsolete? I think so. With the internet, sell phones, and even new fads such as "magic jack" that can be plugged into a computer ANYWHERE in the world that has an internet connection, and used as a phone line, with a price of $20 a year, it's amazing how far our technology has come. I have a friend in Hawaii, and when I text her, she receives it seconds later. It's amazing how fast, considering she's across the globe!! Just a few things I ponder, and your blog surely had me thinking..