Response 1 – MarcD

1. I. What is New Media?

   Describe the hallmark characteristics of New Media.  How do you think this changes who has the power to “define reality” via the media?  Give an example of where this might be the case. (2-3 paragraphs)

There seems to be a wrong impression about how to define New Media .  In fact many people wrongly think that Media are things like newspapers, tv, radio, and the internet.  Those are vehicles within Media but Media itself is more like an abstract area where information is transferred from people to people.  The author of the article “What is New Media?”, Vin Crosbie, describes the three types of media (One-to-One; One-to-Many, and Many-to-Many) to be like land, water, and air.  He describes the vehicles such as phones, speeches, tv, social networks, etc. to be more like modes of transportation like cars, boats, and planes.  Just like land, water, and air have different characteristics that allow some vehicles and limit other vehicles to travel in, on, or through them, the three different types of Media each have special characteristics (hallmarks) that allow or limit control of information and how many people can send or receive it, and how it is transferred.  Looking at these characteristics helps people tell the three types of Media apart and especially tells who has control of information, who has the power to define reality, which can help people recognize when they are being manipulated and also help them give valuable opinions and input to information sent out.

If Media involves a conversation between one sender and one receiver, where both share the power of the content, what is said or written, then you are likely dealing with “One-to-One Media” (aka “Interpersonal Medium”).  This type of Media has been around for centuries and the vehicles can be natural, like talking face-to-face, or involve technological devices (inventions) such as mail, email, phone calls, etc.  This type of Media allows the content to focus on both people’s interests and needs.  If Media involves a message sent and controlled by one person to a group, and if the vehicle is sometimes nontechnical, like a speech or church sermon, and if the content really can’t be tailored to each group member’s interests then we are talking about “One-to-Many Media” (aka “Mass Medium”).  If Media involves content and information that can be sent by many and received by many and if all the participating senders and receivers control what messages are sent then we are talking about “Many-to-Many Media” (aka “New Medium”).  A hallmark or characteristic that makes “New Media” different from “Interpersonal Media” or “Mass Media” is that the vehicles by which the information travels must be some form of technology, such as social networks, multiplayer video games, apps, and filesharing sites.  Because everyone has equal control of the content of information in this newest form of Media, New Media has only been around since recent times, a lot of the technology is interactive, such as interactive video games.

To summarize, the modes of transportation for moving information have evolved from face-to-face conversations, to speeches, to technology such as phones, tv, radio, internet, etc.  New Media vehicles have to be some form of technology.  The power to define reality, in other words the people who control the message has evolved over time too.  Media began with people having conversations with both participants having equal control over what information gets conveyed.   Over time the originator of the message gained all of the control of the information when it was sent out to many people.  In recent years however, an equal amount of control of the conversation has been given back to the many recipients via interactive technology devices , and this information can travel quickly.   That is an important hallmark of New Media.

II. New Media Strategies

After reading the article, answer the following questions (you should cut/paste the questions from exercise 1 into your post, then your answer of solution B or B copying the full answer, then  your explanation for why this is the correct answer; for exercise 2, just post the single problem you are choosing and follow with your brainstorm/solutions)

Exercise 1: Which is the new media solution?

Problem: A disappearing language

Ian Larson wanted to help preserve the Passamaquoddy language from extinction.

• Solution A  Create a taskforce from a select group of Native American language experts, and ask them to write down a dictionary of words and their definitions. Enter these definitions into a database and build a Web site that allows anyone to search for terms and hear their pronunciation. Hire a high-profile Web designer and marketing firm to ensure that as many people as possible learn about this resource.
• Solution B  Distribute laptops with video cameras to schoolkids in the Passamaquoddy community, and ask them to record their grandparents telling stories in Passamaquoddy. Upload these to a Web site along with the grandparents’ definitions of particular words used in the story, and make these words searchable via a tag cloud.

For Ian Larson’s capstone project about preserving the Passamaquoddy language I believe the New Media solution would be Solution B because it involves the use of technology such as cameras and websites and the information seems equally controlled between members of the community such as school children and their grandparents, and the person who is asking the questions . Solution is not New Media because it is not Many-to-Many Medium, it is experts sending information one way to receivers without their input.

Problem: Neglected ruins

Evan Habeeb wanted to make people aware of the beauty of abandoned buildings.

• Solution A  Assemble a film crew and visit abandoned homes, factories, and other buildings. Bring lights to illuminate these spaces dramatically, and record ambient sounds like dripping water. Edit the footage onto a DVD to create a compelling account that documents these relics for posterity, and distribute copies to historical societies across the state for their collections.
• Solution B  Build a Web site that allows adventurers to print stickers they can leave behind in abandoned buildings they explore. Create the stickers so they can be scanned by a mobile phone to reveal a Web site built to feature photographs taken by those explorers.

For Evan Habeeb’s project on the beauty of abandoned buildings I think Solution B represents New Media because it is very interactive in terms of control and input from everyone visiting the buildings. And technology is the way information is transferred, such as printed stickers, scanners, cell phones and websites. That is a hallmark of New Media, using only technology. Solution A is not New Media because even though a lot of technology is used the information is not controlled by the receivers, only those sending it, and a hallmark of New Media is for everyone involved to have equal control of the content.

Problem: Misunderstanding computer animation

Ryan Schaller and Jason Walker wanted to help people understand the many layers required to create a computer-animated film, including wireframe, textures, and light effects. As a case study, they created an animation depicting a cartoon archeologist digging for ancient artifacts.

• Solution A Design and build a touch-screen interface that allows viewers to “rub” away layers of the film with their hands to reveal previous stages of the animation as it plays.
• Solution B  Create an iPad application that documents each stage of the animation process, using stills from the archeologist film as illustrations. Explain techniques such as ray tracing, motion capture, and morphing. Include links to companies that create animation software such as Autodesk.

With Schaller and Walker’s project on animated films I believe Solution A is the one that embodies New Media because the people receiving the information, the viewers, are controlling their learning about how computer animated films are made by interacting with the touch screen. Solution  B is more like Mass Media because the sender controls the information by creating an app that explains things to the readers, but the information is not really tailored to each reader’s specific interest or questions they may have about how to make a computer-animated film.

Problem: A broken fountain

Danielle Gagner wanted to renovate the waterfall fountain under the skylight in the middle of the University Union, which had fallen into disrepair.

• Solution A  Repurpose the existing plumbing to irrigate a garden planted in the former fountain. Research the types of plants that would grow well together at different levels of the fountain, and meet with dining hall staff to find out what herbs or vegetables they might add to salads and other offerings. Then plant these in collaboration with the sustainable agriculture club on campus, and invite students to pick the resulting parsley, strawberries, and other fare from the garden for their lunch.
• Solution B  Use Google Image Search to download photographs of natural bodies of water such as streams, rivers, and the ocean. Combine these with nature footage from sources like National Geographic and the Discovery Channel to create a multichannel video installation that projects images of flowing water and rippling waves onto the fountain, which has been covered with theatrical screening. Supplement the moving images with the sound of a babbling brook emanating from surround-sound speakers mounted on the ceiling.

With Danielle Gagner’s project on fixing and reusing the school fountain I say that Solution A is an example of Many-to-Many (aka New Media) because it involves technology with agriculture such as irrigation and farming and many are involved in the processes of finding and using information through technology. Even though Solution B sounds more “high tech” and people may think it is New Media, I don’t think the qualities that define New Media of everyone controlling the information and everyone’s specific needs and interests being met are there with the video images of flowing water and the speakers sending off water sounds are as valuable as finding out what plants people need for food.

• Solution A Design and build a touch-screen interface that allows viewers to “rub” away layers of the film with their hands to reveal previous stages of the animation as it plays.
• Solution B  Create an iPad application that documents each stage of the animation process, using stills from the archeologist film as illustrations. Explain techniques such as ray tracing, motion capture, and morphing. Include links to companies that create animation software such as Autodesk.Problem: A broken fountain
• Danielle Gagner wanted to renovate the waterfall fountain under the skylight in the middle of the University Union, which had fallen into disrepair.
• With Schaller and Walker’s project on animated films I believe Solution A is the one that embodies New Media because the people receiving the information, the viewers, are controlling their learning about how computer animated films are made by interacting with the touch screen. Solution B is more like Mass Media because the sender controls the information by creating an app that explains things to the readers, but the information is not really tailored to each reader’s specific interest or questions they may have about how to make a computer-animated film.

Exercize 2: Invent your own Many-to-Many Solutions

The spatial dimension of sound are underappreciated. An audio installation idea that may make listeners more aware of their 3D sonic environments would be like the electronic piano one of my professors is building and he let students help him. It involves building a high tech electronic piano using an old piano and some electronics.  Maybe something could be added to the design to enhance the sound experience that could be controlled by the listener; something like Windows Sonic Headphones (part of Windows 10) that people use for video games and movies.

Spatial sound is an audio experience that enhances sounds for the listeners and makes sounds seem to flow around you, over you, and under you in three-dimensional virtual way.  Perhaps this technology could be added to new instruments or for concerts instead of just for video games or movies.  And maybe it can be controlled by audience members who are wearing headphones at a live concert or musicians who are playing instruments.

III. Theater of the Oppressed

How does media oppress people in this article, and how does Boal try to give that power back to people? How does he use humor to do this? (2-3 paragraphs)

How can New Media accomplish similar goal?  give a few examples. You can add projects we review in class, but you might want to start by trying to think of some yourself. (2 paragraphs)

In the article, From “Theatre of the Oppressed” there was a time when the Brazilian media oppressed the masses by forbidding interactive theatre perhaps because it threatened their power by encouraging people to think about revolting.  Augusto Boal was introducing theater techniques that brought the audience on stage to participate and add their ideas to his plays that had controversial themes about politics and government oppression.  Boal’s plays were very nontraditional and he broke down the spectator-actor barriers, allowing the spectators to act in scenes and even change some of the play’s content at time by acting out solutions to social problems they were asked to come up with as they sat in the audience.  The audience no longer sat back watching but were given power to think and participate in Boal’s productions. “Maybe the theater in itself is not revolutionary, but these theatrical forms are without a doubt a rehearsal of revolution.  The truth of the matter is that the spectator-actor practices a real act even though he does it in a fictional manner.” (Boal, 345).

The military government of Brazil wanted to silence Augusto Boal’s influence on the ordinary, oppressed people so much that they incarcerated and tortured him and then threw him out of the country. Boal’s methods of engaging the spectators and encouraging them to participate in plays that touched on political issues of the day.  The ordinary people who were attending the performances were no longer passive spectators but they became actors by joining in the plays.  This unusual experience allowed the audience to practice rebelling against authority and that sparked people’s considering participating in an actual revolution against the abusive and oppressive government.  “Perhaps the theater is not revolutionary in itself; but have no doubts, it is a rehearsal of revolution!” (Boal, 352).

Some of Boal’s productions were not focused on broad social injustices, but on smaller problems such as how to deal with a cheating spouse where the audience roll play’s their solutions to the problem.  Some acted out kicking out the husband, some acted out pretending to be sick to keep him from abandoning the wife, and some acted out having the wife leave.  A lot of his plays did not allow for any dialog, only acting in silence.  It must have not have been a typical relaxing night out watching a play.  It must have taken a lot of concentration and paying attention by the audience, not to mention that at any time they could be called on to be in the play.  It must have been entertaining and even funny to watch because no one knew what to expect.

New Media can accomplish similar goals as Augusto Baol by stepping out of the box and trying new things. It is risky to spend a lot of time and resources to build a prototype of an innovation that can be incorporated into New Media, but sometimes the general public are really interested.  So many forms of communication are interactive these days, even education has gone from a teacher standing up in front of the class and lecturing to the class.  Now in education there is a lot more interactivity and embracing of New Media in terms of communication between teachers to students, and students to students.

Many professors are now incorporating the New Medium and taking on the responsibilities of facilitating how information is transferred throughout a course, which must be a challenge and require new skills.  In elementary school 15 years ago the teacher had all of the power and there was not interaction, but at the University of Maine we are seeing some of the control of content being shared with students through the vehicles such as websites and other interactive educational tools.  Instead of students relaxing and passively taking in information presented by one teacher we are now actively participating in each class and taking more ownership in our learning, similar to the spectators and actors both participating in Augusto Boel’s productions.  In both examples, Boel’s theater plays and certain college courses the transfer of information is travelling in several directions.

Response 1b

1. Topic: Net Neutrality
2. Topic Strategies: A) Contact Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate) without having to take off work and go into a government building like the State House to sit through a hearing and get your turn to tell your story. B) Create a central online forum, like a web page or Facebook account for individuals and small business owners to tell their story about why open access to the internet is important for them.  C)Provide this online forum for Congress to watch the videos during a special hearing before early April, which is their deadline to stop the cancelling of Net Neutrality  D) If this works maybe they could use this kind of online forum of videos for other legislation to be shown on big screens in the State Houses across the US so everyone gets a chance to be heard by their politicians, especially those who don’t have the time or money to travel to the State House.
3. My project idea involves providing a way for people to testify before the senate about net neutrality by submitting short videos explaining why issues are important, in this case why the internet should remain net neutral. People are busy and can’t always take time away from school or work to travel to the state house of their local government to go and testify before a hearing. People could also practice their speeches and polish them and avoid being nervous to speak in public by submitting a video. The videos could be effective because it will be more personal with people in their own homes or businesses, instead of sitting behind a microphone in a State House. In this example they could give their opinions virtually about how changing the laws of net neutrality will change them personally or change things for them professionally. This past November 17, Ajit Pai, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and who happens to be a former Verizon lawyer, announced plans to cancel Net Neutrality laws. Right away Tim Berners Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web, and some Attorney Generals wrote to the Senate about how they disagree. Last week the FCC informed the Senate that they plan to cancel Net Neutrality and gave Congress 60 days, by early April, to stop it by creating a “Congressional Review Act”. My idea would be to create a virtual platform for people to upload their videos which Senators and Congressmen can view to help them enact the “Congressional Review Act” and stop the cancellation of Net Neutrality. Net Neutrality is important because it prevents internet service providers like Verizon, Comcast, and AT&T from slowing down or blocking websites and apps. Without Net Neutrality these big companies will call all the shots and decide which websites, content and apps get blocked or slowed down, especially if they are websites from competitors or they have different political views. Net Neutrality is important for small business too because startups and entrepreneurs who rely on the internet for customers may not be able to get off the ground if they are endowed to big internet companies like Verizon. Individuals and Small Business owners could benefit from a central online location, such as a web page or Facebook site, that could be viewed by Congress (both the House of Representatives and the Senate) before a special vote takes place to stop the cancelling of Net Neutrality by the FCC.