The Impact of the Images & Videos

“Allocca explains there are three characteristics of the viral video that cause a spontaneous and rapid growth in views and cultural experience: tastemakers, creative participating communities, and complete unexpectedness (Cohen & Kenny 123) .”

Social networks are large communities of there own with videos that come and go everyday. The most recent video is of the Drake Hotline Bling music video.Drake’s video became an internet sensation for those three reasons listed in the quote. Viral videos have become such a large part of American because the element of surprise and the creativity that comes out of different discourse communities brings out a mixture of entertainment with internet success.

On the more serious side of viral media is the racial debates that come out of viral images. In the article Racist Visual Rhetoric and Images of Trayvon Martin, Lisa Lebduska explores the impact visual performances have on society. In the Trayvon Martin case the most direct influence on the views of the public came from the many ways the media and both sides portrayed Martin and Zimmerman.

“President Obama framed the event’s visual significance when he observed, “My main message is to the parents of Trayvon Martin. You know, if I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon,”directly challenging the racist scopic regime he has confronted throughout his political career (Lebduska 2).”

Discourse communities can no longer argue that an image presented does not change and fuel racial debates. In Zimmerman’s trial the racial fuel that was allowed because of the uncensored distribution of images that show the same two people in multiple different lights.

The issue that I feel is most relevant in this matter is whether the image with ever stay true to its context. A common issue in racially fueled discourse is that a single image can change the course of a trial and erode the justice system as the meme does with politics.

My final thought on the viral video/image is this:

If an image has so much power, why can it not be used for the building up of a more sound culture?

Advice Dog

The idea that a single image is capable of generating so much discourse over such a large scale is amazing. Internet memes have become an indespensible part of the web and woven in our culture. For example, Advice Dog, as seen below, originated from a Mario fan-site, The Mushroom Kingdom and was created in 2006. It started with a picture of a dog’s head with a multicolored color wheel background behind it. From there, Advice Dog developed into many variations of memes.

  

Image result for advice dogImage result for advice dog

Advice Dog                           Advice Lady

As mentioned in the Lauri Greis article, “Studies of transformation are especially useful in tracking how images undergo change in ways unanticipated by the “original” image’s designer and spark unexpected consequences.” (344), Advice Dog shows how an image can be circulated and transform with space and time.  Whether the text changes with the same image or the image changes with the same text, it contributes to a rhetorical collaboration.

According to Cohen and Kenny “to participate in the meme requires an understanding of the linguistic nature of the meme itself.” (89). This can be seen with Advice Dog in which it is typical to combine two completely unrelated pieces of advice together.  The genuine good advice, given at the top, is usually followed by a bad or humorous advice given at the bottom.  While the linguistic nature of the meme is culturally understood by the participants who create and post, each meme has its own identity and its own message.

A Look At Millennial Discourse Communities

The assignment was to write a review about a few strengths and weakness I discovered through researching different genre of blogs. To my surprise, I discovered a prominent theme through all the blogs I found and it was this. There has been a mass marketing strategy towards the millennial generations (Gen-Y) because they are seen as profitable consumers of technology, food, and so on. Many millennials, myself included, are trying to find a niche in a discourse community. A few turn to creating a personal blog, others expand to broader blogs like Elite Daily, while others navigate to find a community. My presentation will explore three blogs that I believe can help pioneer the millennial discourse community and inspire other millennials to connect to the community. It is my contention that the millennial population are surprisingly progressive from previous generations and it is important to cultivate an ecosystem for them to share their ideas. 

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Class Notes 9/24

Reminder each of us will meet with Professor Jill at the times we discussed last week, we have class tomorrow at 2:00 or 2:15pm 🙂

Please review the composing guidelines because blog posts are too general and need to show that you understand the readings. Also, be sure to finish posting class comments, respond to the class discussions, re-read Chapter 3 if you have not yet done so, and come to class with extensive notes on all the readings.

For the first 25-30 minutes of class we will have a lengthy discussion on “Wikipedia’s Politics of Exclusion: Gender, Epistemology, and Feminist Rhetorical (In)acton,” so please read and come prepared.

 

When writing your blog it is important to keep in mind these key points for a good blog.

1. Main idea

2. Your blog should ask a question that aims to start a conversation (get feedback)

3. Stay on track

4. An opinion or interpretation/ analysis–spark provocation

5. Include multimedia (graphics, videos etc.)

6. Unique/thoughtful

7. Relatable

8. Personal narrative

 

Definitions

Patriarchal-the male head of family, tribe, community, church, order, etc.

Exclusion-to shut or keep out; prevent the entrance of

Privilege-a right, immunity, or benefit enjoyed only by person beyond the advantages of most.

Epistemology-a branch of philosophy that investigates the origin, nature, methods, and limits of human knowledge.

Methodologies-a set or system of methods, principles, and rules for regulating a given discipline, as in the arts or sciences.

Subversive- tending or intending to subvert or overthrow, destroy, or undermine an established or existing system, especially legally constituted government or a set of beliefs.

Discourse community- is a group of people who share a set of discourses, understood as basic values and assumptions, and ways of communicating about those goals.

Rhetoric- is the art of discourse, an art that aims to improve the capability of writers or speakers to inform, persuade, or motivate particular audiences in specific situations.

Provocation-something that incites, instigates, angers, or irritates

Digital Journalism

Since the explosion of digital media, writing is more so referred to as the dying art. The shift from print to digital has severely affected writers of every medium. New media, digital media, digital journalism has changed the way stories are told, especially the ones told on the web. Although there are a few affordances that new media has contributed to there are constraints to it as well. One major affordances of digital journalism is it gives an author a chance to create content and have it distributed via the internet to millions of readers.

The world of journalism has changed drastically, journalism is not what it used to be. Nowadays, journalism is one of the most dangerous careers. Many journalist who want to report on foreign news are being tried overseas and many times killed. The ones who report domestically still face many of those problems. Journalists are also facing a hard time because many of the jobs are becoming contract based so there is no reason to have an in house journalist. The way journalist report current events has changed because of new technologies. Long ago, people relied heavily on receiving their news via major TV broadcasting channels or radio now many people receive there news via SMS, Smartphone Apps., emails, online forums, there is so much competition for journalist all around the world. Many of the ways we once communicated has seen a unforeseen change. The way information was once “fed” to readers/listeners has changed the way readers/listeners internalize information and use it. The amount of information that is available out there is terrifying. We are in this era of mass digital literacies, content overload, and big data that companies are spending billions of dollars to access information about their users like never before. Some of the information they pay to access and they become aware of may be detrimental to our health. As I think about the impact that these digital literacies has on the readers/listeners, I can’t help but wonder if our minds are becoming less stimulated and if the information seems mundane to us. It makes me think if we are really ever evolving with the internet. Certain sites have become so ordinary that the user may become disengaged and just passively surf the site. It could possibly affect the “mental” user experience. . .

As I read through “Photojournalism in the Age of New Media” by Jared Keller, I came across a quote that stood out, it read “News agencies are often happy with random snapshots from Egypt and they don’t necessarily need professional, thoughtful content all the time.” It made me think if images needs the content to explain it. For instance what if Frida Kahlo or Andy Warhol or Picasso had content to explain their works. . . would things have been different? Maybe pictures need words and vice-versa.

In essence digital media affects every career possible, each and everyone of us have to conform to the new technologies. Journalists have to wear many different hats than once before and social channels like Instagram and Periscope are making it incredibly easier to “showcase” your craft. It is a constant battle for journalist to create a authentic story that represents their uniqueness. To be honest, I miss the good ol’ days of when journalist strictly reported on current events instead of celebrity gossip and showing viral animal videos. In many ways they have lost a little of their credibility—what made them unique.