Showing posts with label Blogger. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Blogger. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Issues in Online Media : New media ecosystem; new media qualities & freedom of speech & public sphere

Labels: , , , , at 11:08 PM

Is print media as credible?
With sites like The Onion creating parody news, have journalistic ethics been thrown out the window?

Recently, there was a particular piece of news circling the online world, that caught my eye.
Online news has the upper hand with breaking news, heck; I for one live a life that revolves around the internet.

When the connection is down, one wants to cry. It also drives me nuts not being able to use applications on my smartphone or laptop. Basically, you are rendered handicapped.





Source: www.theonion.com

back to the news mentioned, it was regarding the British Royal Family.
The headline read "Prince William Divorces Kate Middleton after 5weeks"

The article said:

"LONDON—Barely a month after marrying 29-year-old Kate Middleton in a royal wedding ceremony watched by an estimated 2 billion people worldwide, Prince William announced Tuesday that he and Middleton have divorced and that the entire marriage was "a tremendous mistake in every possible regard." "I really don't know what I was thinking—we're a terrible match, I don't love her and never have, and, to be honest, I never really had any interest in being married in the first place," announced the now unattached Prince William to a dead-silent British press corps. "People thought our wedding was some sort of fairy tale, but I assure you it was all just some ghastly ceremonial farce that got out of hand. I'm just relieved it's over, frankly. And I'm glad I'll never have to see that awful woman again." Prince William then told the assembled reporters, "Well, see you all later," smiled, and walked back into Buckingham Palace"


So ladies and gentleman, what do you think about all this sensational head-liners? Do they destroy the ethics and standards that real journalist set? In my opinion, the recent parody news released by the Onion is extremely offensive.

For one, it can be considered as slander, do they really want to be sued?
Two, it is defamation of a public figure, yet another lawsuit.
Three, Fake news can mislead the reader.

Do take into account that because of online news we in Malaysia know exactly what's happening half way across the world in real time.

As stated by Jim Brady, the editor of the Washington Post.com
I think the argument about bloggers vs. journalists has been over for years. We've all co-existed just fine for a while now, and the truth is, the distinction is less relevant every day. There are thousands of journalists who now blog, and there are lots of bloggers who are trained journalists." (Jim Brady, 2008)

Brain McNair believes that online media is an evolution of traditional media. McNair states that journalists, journalism and traditional media will not experience any form of death, because they are needed on so many social, political and cultural levels worldwide. (McNair, 2009)
For your account;
www.thestar.com.my
www.themalaysianreserve.com
317words



  1. Digital Dilemmas: Ethical Issues for Online Media Professionals (Media and Technology Series) by Robert I. Berkman | LibraryThing. 2011. Digital Dilemmas: Ethical Issues for Online Media Professionals (Media and Technology Series) by Robert I. Berkman | LibraryThing. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.librarything.com/work/789357. [Accessed 07 June 2011].
  2. Online Media: Legal, Business and Content Issues - Summer Schools in Europe - Directory of summer courses. 2011. Online Media: Legal, Business and Content Issues - Summer Schools in Europe - Directory of summer courses. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.summerschoolsineurope.eu/index.php?action=showcourse&id=400. [Accessed 07 June 2011].
  3. The Onion - America's Finest News Source. 2011. The Onion - America's Finest News Source. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.theonion.com/. [Accessed 08 June 2011].
  4. Kress, G & van Leeuwen, T 2006, "Reading Images: The Grammar of Visual Communication," 2nd edn, Routeledge, New York
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Tuesday, April 26, 2011

New Media what? Oh NEW media!

Labels: , , , , , , , , , at 9:03 AM

Is new media the only media?
Seeing as to how our new generation flips a webpage faster than an actual newspaper page, it might seem a valid argument. 


Still, how valid is it really? After all, newspapers and CNN have been around a lot longer than TheStarOnline hasn't it?


Well, according to Jason Shultz of Marketing, Interactive , more and more companies are spending on ads or internet videos. In addition, many sites provide interactive services. Spending on these sites will grow 389 percent, to $12.2 billion, in the next three years.(Shultz,2008)

With the internet being so easily accessed now, this isn't surprising. At the touch of a finger, smart phones are connected to the internet, wherever you are. Provided of course, you have a connection.


Twitter, is another phenomenon,  a series of short messages called "tweets" are sent back and forth like a conversation. Just like in Facebook you can tag your friends using the "@". 

This diagram is a perfect example of how we are influenced by social media. 
Personally, I do find this to be true. No matter where I go, I'm surrounded by social networking.
Foursquare, Facebook, Blogger, Emails and Twitter are right in my hand.

So, is new media taking over? Definitely. 
Will it replace traditional media? Don't think so.



Now, we know for sure new media is taking over. Or at least, making a big splash right now. McNair states that journalists, journalism and traditional media will not experience any form of death, because they are needed on so many social, political and cultural levels worldwide. (McNair, 2009) 


According to Adam Ostrow, old media still triumphs over new media, in 2008, the highest rated media outlet was ABC news network. The survey was run over a 3 year period. With that said, media consumption habits are quickly changing. New media is however performing better than other.(Ostrow, 2009)

  • Blogs are now used by 24% of Internet users, up from 13% in 2006
  • Social networks are now used by 26% of Internet users, up from 17% in 2006
  • Videocasts are now used by 11% of Internet users, up from 6% in 2006


Slower growers include:
  • Business news sites: flat at 8%
  • RSS feeds: growing from 5-7%
  • Podcast: growing from 5-7% 

 The above chart shows the decline and rise of media usage in 2006, 2007 and 2008. 

Now in my opinion, I believe that even with the rapid progress shown by new media, I believe that it has actually caused traditional media to improve and progress even further, as with sites like TheStarOnline, ABC, CNN, and Al-Jazeera, all have stepped it up and created websites with breaking news. Shorter than the actual news pieces but every bit as informative. Besides that some traditional media outlets have even created app's for smart phones and you can access the sites quicker. Some even have tweets you can subscribe to, thus creating a immediate response from the receiver of the tweet. Instant and at your fingertips.
A good example is BREAKING NEWS & BBC NEWS. Both are twitter links. Click! 

On the side of bloggers, we can definitely agree that they have an upper hand when it comes to speed. They can publish an article much quicker than a news publication. According to findings by the Project for Excellence in Journalism, barely 12 % of Internet users find blogs a trustworthy news source. (Walden, 2007). To make sure they keep up, bloggers have started to adopt a higher standard of journalism. 

At this point in time, it does seem that new media is taking over the world. And I for one am pleased at the speed we can get information today. We live in a fast paced world and we do have a demand to meet. With that said, I do feel that somehow, traditional media won't be phased out just yet. We all enjoy flipping a page and reading news off a paper. Plus it doesn't hurt the eyes.
849words

REFERENCES.


Is New Media Taking Over?. 2011. Is New Media Taking Over?. [ONLINE] Available at: http://videos.webpronews.com/2007/10/17/is-new-media-taking-over/. [Accessed 26 April 2011].


Stats: Old Media’s Decline, New Media’s Ascent. 2011. Stats: Old Media’s Decline, New Media’s Ascent. [ONLINE] Available at: http://mashable.com/2009/01/29/stats-old-media-decline/. [Accessed 26 April 2011]




Is New Media Taking Over?. 2011. Is New Media Taking Over?. [ONLINE] Available at: http://videos.webpronews.com/2007/10/17/is-new-media-taking-over/. [Accessed 26 April 2011].


Traditional Media vs. New Media – Times they are a changin’…quickly - Blog Center - Share - Versant . 2011. Traditional Media vs. New Media – Times they are a changin’…quickly - Blog Center - Share - Versant . [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.versantsolutions.com/share/blogs/?id=2147483820. [Accessed 26 April 2011].


MediaShift . Distinction Between Bloggers, Journalists Blurring More Than Ever | PBS. 2011. MediaShift . Distinction Between Bloggers, Journalists Blurring More Than Ever | PBS. [ONLINE] Available at:http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2008/02/distinction-between-bloggers-journalists-blurring-more-than-ever059.html. [Accessed 26 April 2011].


McNair, B 2009, ‘Journalism in the 21st century: evolution, not extinction,’ Journalism, Vol. 10, No. 3, pp. 347-349.


Glaser, M 2008, ‘Distinction Between Bloggers, Journalists Blurring More Than Ever,’ online, retrieved 26 April 2011, from http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2008/02/distinction-between-bloggers-journalists-blurring-more-than-ever059.html


Walden, R 2007, ‘The Blogger as Journalist: Codes of Ethics in the World of Blogging,’ online, retrieved 26 April 2011, from http://web-journalism.suite101.com/article.cfm/the_blogger_as_journalist
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Monday, April 25, 2011

c. Blogging communities and Methods to build them.

Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , at 7:52 AM



THE QUESTION:
c. Explain briefly types of blogging communities & methods to build blogging communities. Then, discuss the structure of  one blogging community in brief, eg. Global Voices.

MY ANSWER: 

All bloggers are part of an online community which is a group of people who interact with each other via the Internet. (Tuomi, 2001)
In Malaysia, we have www.lowyat.com.my, its a popular site for people to find just about anything. You can research about your iphone, computers, cars and chat with dealers. You can even buy clothes and books from lowyat. Its extremely that you cannot find something on lowyat.

Also take into account SPILL a website purely for movie bloggers. As for other blogging communities, we have Nuffnang and Advertlets, the 2 biggest blog advertising communities in Malaysia.

Globally, there are sites such as MyBlogLog and Technorati. Both are sites in which can convene.


Nuffnang
Advertlets

--

How does one build a blog community?

  • Have a website that is relevant to a specific field in blogging. (Rowse, 2009)


Take for example SPILL, it common denominator is the topic of movies. Movie buffs and movie bloggers can convene on Spill and comment, discuss and even debate movies.

  • Start with comments. (Rowse, 2009)


People love having opinions, so ask them what they think. Make them feel important and let them have a say. It brings the reader into the topic and makes them a part of the group. Ask questions in your post and interact with your readers. 

  • Make sure you have a "Join As Member" option. (Rowse, 2009)
Once a reader joins, make sure they have constant updates. This way, they won't lose interest and will instead become a long term reader or member. Loyalty from readers is crucial.



  • Be a part of the community yourself. (Rowse, 2009)
Get involved, join in to what the readers are doing. Don't play God and just tell them what they should do, take an active role in the blogging world as a whole. 

  • Reader centred post. (Rowse, 2009)
Have post that speak to the reader, when they read it; it should feel as if someone is speaking to them. This creates a sort of intimacy with the reader, usually this is lost through mediums of mass media. Have a interactive manner of blogging. Ask questions and expect some answers.

One example of a Malaysian blogging community thats been buzzing alot lately is Churp Churp.



Churp Churp can schedule post, tweets and even provide bloggers with jobs. This platform brings bloggers together by providing direction to bloggers through "assignments" or jobs. And through tweets, bloggers can contact each other even easier, quicker and more efficiently. 


REFERENCES


  1. Schwartz, B 2007, "Building Your Blog Community," online, retrieved 25 April 2011, from http://searchengineland.com/building-your-blog-community-10556
  2. Tuomi, I 2001, "Internet, Innovation and Open Source: Actors in the Network,"First Monday, Vol. 6, No. 1, retrieved 25 April 2011, from http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/viewArticle/824
  3. Rowse, D 2009, "8 Tips for Building Community on Your Blog," online, retrieved 25 April 2011, from http://www.problogger.net/archives/2009/02/28/8-tips-for-building-community-on-your-blog/
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