Post One: Think Piece
Original think piece post w/ attached update
Post Two: Podcast
Post Three: Flickr
Original Flickr post w/ updated attached
Final Portfolio Flickr Text Sources
Post Four: YouTube
Post Five: HTML
Post Six: Twitter
From the beginning of the semester, the term affordances and constraints have played a large part in the development of each project and the ways in which new media allows versatility in the messages being delivered.
The think piece, being in a basic essay format, had the most affordances. Created using Microsoft Word, it allowed me to express my ideas on cultural appropriation. For this piece, I was determined to shed light on an issue that I take personally. The problem of cultural appropriation is one that is so dominant because many do not see it as an issue worth acknowledging. With each project, I saw more information and ways that the piece could be elevated. The final result is more refined and elaborated on some of my more underdeveloped ideas.
Working with a podcast was an interesting experience. Although there were less restraints than the think piece, finding audio that was not covered laced with strict copyright laws. Finding audio and supporting clips that I could use was the hardest part of putting this podcast together. Also, fine-tuning the audio I created took a lot of practice and time. As the second project, I feel like the podcast allowed more freedom of expression in the music and ability to be heard by the audience. This is very different from every other project because it only engages the ears of the listeners. Being able to pair my voice with the think piece made the message feel more powerful.
The photo project was possibly the most difficult because it required me to understand the value of original content. The constraints of creating images is that for every original created, there are 500 copyrighted pieces. Originally, my idea was to use different females throughout the school with strong facial ques to convey my message. For the final portfolio, I added two additional images with text to send a more concise and connected message.
Similar to the podcast, YouTube has more constraints than affordances. When I was planning this video, my original ideas required more time than was allowed for this assignment. When looking at many popular vloggers and the ways there videos were designed, I noticed that many used the Snapchat app and combined all of the videos to create content that was visible on two platforms. This allowed me to combine two media platforms to give the same message. This also avoided copyrighting issues because all content created on Snapchat is owned by the user.
Using HTML coding felt very similar to formatting and perfecting a document with a basic word processor. There is a constant need for revisions and corrections and a simple error can impact the entire document. This was the process I endured with Notepad. While the constraints mainly surround the learning curve, the affordances are the ability to create a website with a program that is similar to word processing. With practice, coding can be a vital part of my journey through the PTW major.
For the Twitter project, I was very satisfied with how my tweets came out because my audience was primarily young adults and the unintentional cultural appropriators. This piece hit all the points I liked, however I truly understand the constraints of Twitter. 140 characters really isn’t enough.
Overall, each project with all its affordances and constraints, led to the end of the road in Writing with New Media.
