Thursday, December 8, 2011
Class Thoughts
This class has brought to light many elements of our new technology-oriented media world that I had taken for granted or was used to seeing but never fully grasping. The explorations of blogs, social networking dynamics and the way new media worked kept my involvement in those activities interesting. I particularly liked reading about current events in technology as necessary for responding, as I already read articles online about technology trends, media, games and gadget developments. It was a natural fit of sorts for me to read about the next Facebook privacy concern or talk about the iPhone or what have you, so it was easy to write up responses to those articles without having it feel like an assignment. I did vote on the class poll for “work weeks” to begin on Monday morning and end on Sunday nights, simply so that the coursework fell in line for when weekend assignments for other classes were due. Besides, I am always working on homework on Sunday nights (typical college procrastination).
This class could see improvement if there were general discussion topics available on something like a forum, rather than just simply blog posts. The wiki entries were a nice change from the norm, but there are more “new media” mediums available online that this course could take advantage of. However, I am also glad that the video blogs were few and far between since that sort of static video interaction was not something I considered a strong suit. Overall, this communications course has helped me to better understand how the Internet has changed the way society communicates, and I would not mind taking a class similar to this one again in the future.
This class could see improvement if there were general discussion topics available on something like a forum, rather than just simply blog posts. The wiki entries were a nice change from the norm, but there are more “new media” mediums available online that this course could take advantage of. However, I am also glad that the video blogs were few and far between since that sort of static video interaction was not something I considered a strong suit. Overall, this communications course has helped me to better understand how the Internet has changed the way society communicates, and I would not mind taking a class similar to this one again in the future.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Most Interesting Concepts/Readings Discussion - Response
This course has brought forth many communication topics in new media to my attention, and I found the articles on identity and the development of online-only relationships to be the most interesting. Relationships developed online, like the one for the fictional girl suffering from leukemia, were relatable for me to read because of how much trust and truth we put into the statements people make online. It is far too easy to believe what’s read on the Internet if the source seems legitimate and genuine in their responses. Sarcasm and lies are sometimes the hardest things to read from people when you are not communicating with a physical presence, and in the case of Kaycee Swenson, a whole community of supports had formed around it. The establishment of understanding and personal disclosure for online-only partners in social networks and online games is another example covered in this class that I enjoyed reading, and it was because of the inherent levels of communication we create in these online worlds and communities that differ from our real-life counterparts.
The collective behavior article from this week, “Collective Behavior in YouTube” by Donna Chu (2009), also falls into this because of the public perception and opinion formed only through online recognition and communication. In general, the ideas behind self-presentation and identity were some of the more intriguing articles of this semester and it certainly gave me newfound thoughts about how I conduct myself online.
The collective behavior article from this week, “Collective Behavior in YouTube” by Donna Chu (2009), also falls into this because of the public perception and opinion formed only through online recognition and communication. In general, the ideas behind self-presentation and identity were some of the more intriguing articles of this semester and it certainly gave me newfound thoughts about how I conduct myself online.
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