New Media Literacies as Social Skills
Jenkins (2010) does well in stating that "the new media literacies should be seen as social skills, as ways of interacting within a larger community, and not simply an individual skill to be used for personal expression" (p. 20). In essence, all literacies and teachings are meant to connect the learner with his/her society and help build a connection within that society that will benefit both the learner and society as a whole.
These teachings tend to be the responsibilities of caregivers but must now become a joint responsibility with school educators. New literacies and social media are growing at an proficient rate and require both trainings and discussions to allow society to benefit from, or not be susceptible to, its many offerings.
I believe that this weeks readings provided sufficient evidence, particularly in statistical evidence, of the impact of media advertising. Opinions and decisions are being shaped by the content that is becoming more and more difficult to avoid. The goal of any advertisement - to sell a product - is becoming easier to accomplish due to the expansion of media outlets coupled with an audience who has yet to fully grasp an advertisements effects. This, to me, was a key element of the readings/assignment for week 8.
Works Cited
Jenkins, Henry, et al. Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the
21st century. Mit Press, 2009.
Facebook does not make a physical product that you can buy at a store. They create software using algorithms. The product they sell is people and their data to advertisers. On Facebook, human beings are the product. This is "information slavery" because you are working (updating your profile and status for free, giving them more information about yourself and devaluing your privacy in the process)for nothing. When you are cognizant and conscious of what they are selling, you can avoid them and other similar social media creations.
ReplyDeleteI don't know that I would go as far as to look at this as information slavery, but I do understand the points that both of you are making here. One of the common things discussed with media and technology is a respect for privacy. However, if you go into a sporting goods store such as Dick's, the people there are going to try to sell you sporting goods. If they happen to have a particular brand in the story demonstrating a product, it is most likely going to be a sports good product. They're going to assume that you are there to buy a sports good product, and rightfully so. You'll probably even get mail from Dick's assuming that you want to buy more products that are similar. The internet does the same thing, except that it's recording information about the variety of digital stores you walk into. I think that many people are overly concerned about this because the positives of it do make our experience on the internet better.
ReplyDeleteI agree, opinions are becoming more and more difficult to avoid and be influenced by. If you are on social media, that's what circulates, opinions, and the more you see them backed up with evidence, the more you believe they are facts.
ReplyDeleteDisturbs me a little how the ads that show up on my Facebook page seem to be profiling me or choosing me as a potential consumer. What cost am I really paying when I engage on these sites. But I know it was only a matter of time before advertisements became a prominent feature on social media pages.
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