NEW MEDIA BY MCLUHAN.

By Kidendei Segereti

The  use  of  the  term  “new  media”  is  of  course  relative.  When  McLuhan analyzed  television  and  automation  these  were  the  new  media  of  his  time.  At any  given  point  in  time  there  will  always  be  new  media  or  perhaps  more accurately  newer  media.  The  term  “new  media”  as  it  is  used  today  refers  to  a class  of  media  that  are  digital  and  interactive  and  hence  differ  from  the electric  mass  media  that  McLuhan  (1964)  addressed  in  UM. 

What’s  new  about  today’s  “new  media”  is  that  they  are  digital,  they  are linked  and  cross  linked  with  each  other  and  the  information  they  mediate  is very  easily  processed,  stored,  transformed,  retrieved,  linked  and  perhaps most  radical  of  all  easily  searched  for  and  accessed.  This  is  why  I  believe that  McLuhan’s  stunning  analysis  of  the  new  media  of  his  day,  namely electric  mass  media,  and  their  total  transformation  of  education,  work  and society deserves and requires an updating.

To  better  understand  the  ground  in  which  today’s  media  interact  we  will investigate  the  transition  from  the  non-digital  electric  media  to  the interactive  digital  media.  Although  McLuhan  included  computing  and automation  in  his  analysis  of  media,  which  are  certainly  digital  media  they were  at  the  time  of  the  publication  of  UM  isolated  figures  operating  in  the ground  of  electric  mass  media.  Also  the  computer  in  McLuhan’s  day  was  not as  interactive  as  today’s  because  one  had  to  submit  a  job,  which  included both  the  program  and  the  data  as  part  of  a  batch  with  other  jobs  and  wait many  hours  for  one’s  output.  The  slightest  error  in  one’s  input,  such  as  a missing  comma,  would  result  in  another  delay.  With  the  emergence  of  the microcomputer,  the  Internet,  email,  the  World  Wide  Web  and  cell  phones  a new  communication  and  information  ground  emerged  that  was  truly interactive and which changed the figure of each and every medium. The  emergence  of  the  “new  media”  ground  presents  us  with  two  motivations to  re-analyze  the  media  that  McLuhan  studied  in  UM.  First  of  all,  the  old media  became  the  content  of  the  “new  media”  and  hence  to  understand  the “new  media”  we  must  understand  the  old  media  in  the  new  ground.  The content  of  the  “new  media”  will  be  the  old  media  such  as  speech writing.

A second  reason  to  reexamine  old  media  is  that  the  ground  has  changed  from electric  mass  media  to  that  of  the  interactive  digital  media  and  therefore  the effects  and  impacts  of  the  old  media  have  changed.  Radio,  television  and  the movies  are  not  the  same  in  2007  that  they  were  in  1964  when  UM  first  hit the  presses.  They  have  undergone  some  technical  improvements  like  large flat  screens  for  TV  and  Dolby  sound  and  computer  animation  for  the  movies, but  that  is  not  the  real  story  of  their  changed  impact.  The  real  story  is  that the  ground  has  changed  underneath  these  media  and  their  place  in  our culture and their effect on society have changed.  Understanding  the  interaction  of  a  medium  with  other  media  has  always been  an  important  part  of  the  approach  McLuhan  pioneered,  which  is  at  the heart  of  media  ecology.  Understanding  these  interactions  becomes  even more  critical  with  the  “new  media”  because  of  convergence  and  the  fact  that the  links  between  media  are  even  stronger  with  digitization.

Glocalization

  Glocalization is a combination of the words "globalization" and "localization" used to describe a product or service that is developed and distributed globally, but is also fashioned to accommodate the user or consumer in a local market. This means that the product or service may be tailored to conform with local laws, customs or consumer preferences. Products or services that are effectively "globalized" are, by definition, going to be of much greater interest to the end user.

Yahoo! is an example of a company that practices glocalization. It markets a portal that is viewed worldwide and offers different versions of its website (and related services) for different users. For example, it provides content and language variations in some 25 countries including China, Russia and Canada. It also customizes content to appeal to individuals in those locations. 

  

Challenges to Glocalization

To expand into new markets, you need to successfully understand and adapt to the existing local environment. Each culture is different due to their customs and history, one of the hardest part of globalization is understanding your new market and how to be successful in it. A major part of succeeding in this is to be aware which of the four categories of society your target market falls into, is it a

1.   Traditional society such as Arab countries and Japan- these societies value collectivism, religion, tradition and heritage. This means that there is a large emphasis on hirachy and centralized power. This makes it hard for the management in the new country to make decisions and changes effectively and efficiently as they have to go through multiple levels of management before they are approved. In a traditional society it is also very important to network as there is pre-existing channels.

2.   Rational society like Germany- these countries have individualistic values rather than collectivistic but their ideology is still shaped by their past history In these countries the needs of the individual come first which makes it easy to adapt to which creates a welcoming market for new products and companies.

3.   A materialistic society which is commonly characterized as ex-communist countries. This category is relatively new and was created due to the shift in culture caused by an increase in economic opportunity and mainly consists of emerging markets which makes it a perfect market place for businesses to break into as they have no existing channels.

4.   Or a post modern society, this is the largest category of society which consists of countries such as New Zealand and most of western Europe. These countries are defined by having a mix of everything, they are individualists, tolerant to change and multicultural which makes their market welcoming to new products and companies.

It is important to note and understand that countries are constantly evolving and may switch societies, for example the Chinese culture has changed from being a strictly traditional society to being a materialistic society, this is a result of emerging economic opportunities.

WILBROD REGINA A BPRAM 42683

The Impact of Globalization in the Developing Countries

                         

Globalization is a process of global economic, political and cultural integration. It has made the world become a small village; the borders have been broken down between countries.

Negative effects of globolazation for developing country business

·         The growth of international trade is exacerbating income inequalities, both between and within industrialized and less industrialized nations

·         Global commerce is increasingly dominated by transnational corperation which seek to maximize profits without regard for the development needs of individual countries or the local populations

·         Protectionist policies in industrialized countries prevent many producers in the Third World from accessing exports market.

·         The volume and volatility of capital flows increase the risks of banking and currency crises, especially in countries with weak financial institutions

·       Competition  among developing countries to attract foreign investments leads to a "race to the bottom" in which countries dangerously lower environmental standards.

·         Cultural uniqueness is lost in favor of homogenization and a "universal culture" that draws heavily from American culture

Conversely, globalization can create new opportunities, new ideas, and open new markets that an enterprenuer may have not had in their home country. As a result, there are a number of positives associated with globalization:

·         It creates greater opportunities for firms in less industrialized countries to tap into more and larger markets around the world

·         This can lead to more access to capital flows, technology, human culture, cheaper imports and larger export markets

·         It allows businesses in less industrialized countries to become part of international production networks and supply chains that are the main conduits of trade

For example, the experience of the East Asian economies demonstrates the positive effect of globalization on economic growth and shows that at least under some circumstances globalization decreases poverty.

Also, the role of developing country firms in the value chain is becoming increasingly sophisticated as these firms expand beyond manufacturing into services. For example, it is now commonplace for businesses in industrialized countries to outsource functions such as data processing, customer service and reading x-rays to India and other less industrialized countries (Bhagwati et al, 2004). Advanced telecommunications and the Internet are facilitating the transfer of these service jobs from industrialized to less industrialized and making it easier and cheaper for less industrialized country firms to enter global markets. In addition to bringing in capital, outsorcing helps prevent "brain drain" because skilled workers may choose to remain in their home country rather than having to migrate to an industrialized country to find work.

Further, some of the allegations made by critics of globalization are very much in dispute—for example, that globalization necessarily leads to growing income inequality or harm to the environment. While there are some countries in which economic integration has led to increased inequality.

KYEJU DIANA  BARM 42589

BY KIDENDEI CEGERETI

Increasing accessibility and the ability to communicate with thousands of citizens quickly has made the internet a tool of choice for individuals or organisations looking to spread a social message far and wide. Independent activists the world over are using the internet and digital tools to build their community, connect with other similar-minded people outside their physical surroundings as well as lobby, raise funds and organise events.

The Tools

The tools used by digital activists are vast and the list changes constantly in line with the rapid general evolution of technology.

  Online petitions.

Websites such as Change.org and MoveOn.org are hubs of online activism, where people can communicate with others worldwide regarding their cause. MoveOn.org initially grew from a small petition that two Silicon Valley entrepreneurs sent to some family and friends in the late ‘90s, asking for their support in telling the White House to “move on” from the Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky scandal to more pressing issues facing the country.

Social networks. 

Sites with high usage numbers such as Facebook and YouTube have proven beneficial in spreading a message, garnering support, shining information on a subject that might otherwise be overlooked by mainstream media. Protests in 2011 in Tunisia and Egypt against their respective governments were in part organised and promoted via Facebook.

 Blogs. 

Essentially a form of citizen journalism for the masses, blogs provide an effective means of non-filtered communication with an audience about any topic and have been used in numerous online campaigns.

Micro-blogging. 

Micro-blogging sites such as Twitter are used to help spread awareness of an issue or activist event. Twitter's hash tag function, which allows people to have their tweets contribute to a multi-user conversation by typing a keyword or phrase preceded by a hashtag, is used frequently as a digital tool for spreading a message. The Chinese equivalent to Twitter, Weibo is subject to scrupulous government censorship however people circumvent this blockade by using code words when writing about issues that might be government-sensitive.

 Mobile phones. 

Controversy surrounding the 2007 presidential elections in Kenya led to the introduction of a company which developed a piece of software that allowed people to send texts and pictures of violence following the elections which were plotted geographically on a Google map. The software has since been used to plot activity in disaster zones following earthquakes in Haiti and New Zealand and flooding in Australia and the USA.

 Proxy servers. 

As a means of circumventing government intervention when it comes to online protesting, many people employ proxy servers, which act as intermediaries between a user and a site, thus essentially circumventing national restrictions on any site. In 2009, student protesters in Iran took to social media to voice their concern over the contentious reelection of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. This led to a cat and mouse game of the government trying to identify which media were being used by the protesters to communicate (social networks and then eventually proxy servers) and shutting them down.

New media

 most commonly refers to content available on-demand through the Internet, accessible on any digital device, usually containing interactive user feedback and creative participation. Common examples of new media include websites such as online newspapers, blogs, or wikis, video games, and social media. A defining characteristic of new media is dialogue. New Media transmit content through connection and conversation. It enables people around the world to share, comment on, and discuss a wide variety of topics. Unlike any of past technologies, New Media is grounded on an interactive community.

Most technologies described as "new media" are digital, often having characteristics of being manipulated, networkable, dense, compressible, and interactive. Some examples may be the Internet, websites, computer multimedia, video games, augmented reality, CD-ROMS, and DVDs. New media are often contrasted to "old media," such as television, radio, and print media, although scholars in communication and media studies have criticised rigid distinctions based on oldness and novelty. New media does not include television programs (only analog broadcast), feature films, magazines, books, or paper-based publications – unless they contain technologies that enable digital interactivity.^[4]Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia, is an example, combining Internet accessible digital text, images and video with web-links, creative participation of contributors, interactive feedback of users and formation of a participant community of editors and donors for the benefit of non-community readers. Facebook is an example of the social media model, in which most users are also participants. Wikitude is an example for augmented reality. It displays information about the users' surroundings in a mobile camera view, including image recognition, 3D modeling and location-based approach to augmented reality.

History

In the 1950s, connections between computing and radical art began to grow stronger. It was not until the 1980s that Alan Kay and his co-workers at Xerox PARC began to give the computability of a personal computer to the individual, rather than have a big organization be in charge of this. "In the late 1980s and early 1990s, however, we seem to witness a different kind of parallel relationship between social changes and computer design. Although causally unrelated, conceptually it makes sense that the Cold War and the design of the Web took place at exactly the same time."^[4]

Writers and philosophers such as Marshall McLuhan were instrumental in the development of media theory during this period. His now famous declaration in Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man (1964) that "the medium is the message" drew attention to the too often ignored influence media and technology themselves, rather than their "content," have on humans' experience of the world and on society broadly.

Until the 1980s media relied primarily upon print and analog broadcast models, such as those of television and radio. The last twenty-five years have seen the rapid transformation into media which are predicated upon the use of digital technologies, such as the Internet and video games. However, these examples are only a small representation of new media. The use of digital computers has transformed the remaining 'old' media, as suggested by the advent of digital television and online publications. Even traditional media forms such as the printing press have been transformed through the application of technologies such as image manipulation software like Adobe Photoshop and desktop publishing tools.

Andrew L. Shapiro (1999) argues that the "emergence of new, digital technologies signals a potentially radical shift of who is in control of information, experience and resources" (Shapiro cited in Croteau and Hoynes 2003: 322). W. Russell Neuman (1991) suggests that whilst the "new media" have technical capabilities to pull in one direction, economic and social forces pull back in the opposite direction. According to Neuman, "We are witnessing the evolution of a universal interconnected network of audio, video, and electronic text communications that will blur the distinction between interpersonal and mass communication and between public and private communication" (Neuman cited in Croteau and Hoynes 2003: 322). Neuman argues that new media will

BY PROTAS LEVINA   BAPRM 42657

TYPES OF VIRTUAL COMMUNITY

Internet message boards

An online message board is a forum where people can discuss thoughts or ideas on various topics. Online message centers allow users to choose which thread, or board of discussion, users would like to read or contribute to. A user will start a discussion by making a post on a thread. Other users who choose to respond can follow the discussion by adding their own post to that thread. Message boards are not conversation based because user responses do not have to take place right away. Whenever the user revisits the message board, he/she can make a response. Unlike a conversation, message boards do not have an instantaneous response and require that users actively go to the site to check for responses.

Anyone can register to participate in an online message board. A message board is unique because people can choose to participate and be a part of the virtual community, even if they choose not to contribute their thoughts and ideas.

Online chat rooms

Shortly after the rise of interest in message boards and forums, people started to want a way of communicating with their "communities" in real time. The downside to message boards was that people would have to wait until another user replied to their posting, which, with people all around the world in different time frames, could take a while. The development of online chat rooms allowed people to talk to whoever was online at the same time they were. This way, messages were sent and online users could immediately respond.

Virtual worlds

Virtual worlds are the most interactive of all virtual community forms. In this type of virtual community, people are connected by living as anavatar in a computer-based world. Users create their own avatar character and control their character's life and interactions with other characters in the 3-D virtual world. It is similar to a computer game, however there is no objective for the players. A virtual world simply gives users the opportunity to build and operate a fantasy life in the virtual realm. Characters within the world can talk to one another and have almost the same interactions people would have in reality. For example, characters can socialize with one another and hold intimate relationships online.

This type of virtual community allows for people to not only hold conversations with others in real time, but also to engage and interact with Business based virtual worlds also may provide various enterprise features such as Single Sign on with third party providers, or Content Encryption.

Social network services

Social networking services are the most prominent type of virtual community. They are either a website or software platform that focuses on creating and maintaining relationships. Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace are all virtual communities. With these sites, one often creates a profile or account, and adds friends or follow friends. This allows people to connect and look for support using the social networking service as a gathering place 

.WILBROD REGINA A BAPRM 42683

How Internet is changing political campaigns.

                                

The internet plays many major roles and this can be positive or negative and the following is how it can change political campaigns that are either done within or outside our countries.

Speed

The speed of political communication enabled by the internet is changing political campaigns in a way that previous technologies were unable to. Both radio and television allow for the live transmission of a political message or political event but both of these technologies depend on the audience being present to receive this message. An event streamed via the internet is just as live as the radio or television broadcast that accompanies it, yet is also easily accessed immediately and in perpetuity following the event via any one of dozens of free video streaming services.

Versatility

Some technologies are more versatile than others. A campaign spot on the radio requires a strong voice, an easily understood message, and perhaps the judicious use of sound effects. A 30-second TV commercial on television allows a campaign to reach voters with visuals, sounds, and perhaps text on the screen, too. A campaign flyer or direct mail letter can communicate a campaign message in text and might even add a few photos or graphics design elements to make it memorable.

Ease of Use

It’s not that the old ways of political communication were particularly difficult to use. To understand a speech at a campaign rally one need only open eyes and ears to the message being amplified over a public address system. A newspaper or campaign flyer is enormously easy to use, and a radio is not so difficult to tune in. There’s nothing difficult about hitting a button on a TV remote control, either. But none of these technologies come close in terms of ease of use to the internet. For one thing, the internet is a technology that is incredibly mobile. A smartphone is internet enabled and can be carried in a pocket – try that with your big screen TV! While a newspaper is fairly portable, it is also out of date by the time it is printed, let alone by the time it is actually purchased by a potential voter. A radio is easy to tune in but it is not easy – or usually possible – for one person to be listening to two stations at a single time. Online? It’s easy. A window for a streaming music site can be open while another window with the campaign website is open on the same screen.

BY KYEDU DIANA 42589