Bringing Meaning to Internet Chatter

People endlessly chatter online about their cats, who's hot and who's not, whether a politician should be revered or reviled, and a million other things. But what does it all mean? Can Internet posts be used to tell us meaningful things about ourselves and the society we live in. One author says yes. NPR reports.

Questions...

•Is the Internet a reflection of our habits, preferences and beliefs, or is it more like a Fun House Mirror?

•How are online anonymous online messages the truth? How are they not the truth?

•Why can we see things in the aggregate (macro) that we really can't see on a case-by-case (micro) basis?

•Does the Internet make political dialogue more polarized and angry, or are other factors causing this?

(Anti-) Social Media

To Your Humble Blogger, the Internet seems like a wide-open frontier town. People from many different places engaging in many different activities, some legal, some not. Most people are peaceful, but some aren't. In other words, pretty much anything goes on this digital frontier.

National Public Radio recently ran a story in ISIS, the violent Iraqi organization that is spreading its message and finding recruits through social media. Here is the report.

Questions...

•Does the Internet make centralized power more powerful, or does it encourage a decentralization of power? Examples?

•In Functional Analysis, what is the linkage function? How is the linkage function at play here?

•In Functional Analysis, what is the affiliation function? How is the affiliation function at play here?

•Are there any other Functional Analysis concepts from Chapter 2 that apply here?

•To what degree should social media companies police what is said or shown on their sites?

•Whose standard of freedom of speech should be the guideline for social media companies? Why?

'Simpsons' at the Bowl

The Los Angeles Times had a nice article over the weekend about the upcoming "Simpsons"-themed Hollywood Bowl concert. Here's the link.

***Tips for an enjoyable evening at the Bowl...Bring in food and have a picnic...Take a look at the Hollywood Bowl Museum near the bottom of the hill...Bring a light jacket because it can become breezy and cool after sundown.

Choose Your Own Field Trip

I think we will have a field trip to the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media & Communication at Cal State Northridge. But before we get the details done, we will break out the classroom clickers to find out which media majors are most popular among Mass Comm 101 students.

Questions...

•Who else has used classroom clickers?

•How might they be used in Mass Comm 101?

Can Libraries Exist Without Paper?

On a theoretical level, nearly everyone likes libraries. But as the world moves away from books on paper, are they still necessary or desirable? National Public Radio reports on the decline of full-time librarians in Chicago public schools.

Questions...

•Are libraries obsolete?

•What should libraries become in the digital age?

•What do libraries do besides lend books? What other services do they provide?

•How is a library a gatekeeper?

•What new services would you recommend for the GCC library?

Sign Up for the LA Times Field Trip

We will have two tours of the Los Angeles Times on Sept. 11. Both tours are identical. Choose between the 9:45 am tour or the 11 am tour. Sign up for the field trip through Doodle by going to this link. There is no signup for the afternoon field trip to the Los Angeles Central Library.

Sign up for the field trip only if you intend to go.

Office Hour Change

On the first two Tuesdays of each month, Your Humble Blogger's office hour will be 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. due to conflicts with faculty meetings. Any other changes in office hours will be posted on Club MediaNote.

DIY Stardom

Your Humble Blogger has lost track of all the TV personalities who populate the hundreds, or thousands, or (maybe even) hundreds of thousands of shows on the tube. But can he recognize all the personalities who have sizable audiences on social media? YHB doesn't have a clue.

Almost by definition, social media stars are stars only to a narrow segment of the public. But can they make a living off that? Can they--just like Old Media stars--go on tour, connect with screaming fans, and be generally adored?

Apparently so. The Los Angeles Times reports.

Questions...

•Who are some social media stars that your parents probably don't know about?

•What is "crowdsourcing"? How is social media crowdsourcing entertainment?

•What is "disintermediation"? How are social media stars an example of disintermediation?

•Are there gatekeepers involved with social media stars and stardom? If so, who are these gatekeepers?

FYI: Here is the Official Music Video of Jack and Jack, the internet duo profiled in the Times article.