ARTS2090 Modes of Publishing, Distribution blog post

‘Digital Network Media make no essential difference to relations between publishing institutions and society.”

Information is distributed in such a scattered way in this day and age that we cannot comprehend a single way to map the directional flow of it. But one thing that is sometimes pushed to the back of our minds is how our reliance and thirst for knowledge and information allow the information provider a power over the receiver. However seeing as there is an over supply of information from all directions, it is now the receiver that has the power to choose what he or she want to believe or not. This is why I would have to disagree with the above statement in saying that the interaction between publisher and society is not affected by digital network media. In this response I will discuss what would classify as a relationship between publisher and society in terms of power in communication. I will also discuss an example where there is no digital network media involved in the communication process and another example where it is a key aspect.

Before we get into it though, we should try to understand what ‘Digital Network Media’ would be considered as. From my understanding of the statement it would be the communication network as it is today, a complicated multidirectional network with the application of the many to many communication concept. Quite simply it is the new age of the distribution of information. Therefore we see the internet being a huge part of this digital network media. Social networking, peer to peer file sharing and just publishing alone by a person at home using a regular computer or laptop with internet access are all part of this idea of digital network media. The most important aspect of this is that the communication is in digital signals which differ from analogue signals in that it allows for the multidirectional flow of information more easily to the ‘Society’ rather then the corporate media powers when the distribution of information was mainly in analogue.

Now that we have understood that, we now need to understand ‘Publishing institutions’ and ‘Society’. Again according to my understanding, a publishing institution would be anything that is able to publish and control information. Whether the institution controls and manages bulks of information or little bits is questionable but for now we can think of it as a place that publishes information in the bulk. For old media where there were no digital networks that allowed for the communication, we can see newspaper press’ or all print publishing companies as being a publishing institution as it allowed for the information within that print medium to be accessible to all public. Print publishing pretty much encompasses a lot such as magazines and flyers but apart from print we have television networks and organisations in charge of visual advertisement such as billboards etc. In a more digitally networked media environment, we can say some big publishing institutions would be Wikipedia, youtube, facebook etc.

But now we come to the question of the ‘Society’ that receives this information from the publishing institutions. Society, according to Wikipedia is a group of people that are connected in some way, either through a network, or roles or status. In this case we would think it is a group of people that have in common, the consumption of the media that the publishing institutions provide, the participants so to say. But it can also be taken as all the people of the world or more along the lines of public. We can take either of these meaning of ‘Society’ and apply them to the statement. So then to my understanding, society is another important node in the distribution network of information.

This brings us to the relationship between publishing institutions and society. So based on the fact that the digital network media allows for more interaction of the previous supposed passive receiver of information, the relationship is of passing back and forth of information. In a one way distribution network, there is the consumption of information without necessarily interacting with the other nodes. According to Foucault, when a relationship of communication is formed between partners, it has the potential of one having power over the other as long as there is the capacity to modify the information wether intentionally or accidently, (1983, p215). Propaganda has been a big practice using media, especially during the 1990’s when broadcast media was able to reach masses and wrong information could be easily repeated due to owned and controlled media. It was through this that the power holders were able to manipulate truths and warp a person’s sense of reality according to Larry Tye in The Big Think’ in The Father of Spin: Edward L Bernays and the Birth of Public Relations (1998, p52).  Megan Boler points out in ‘Introduction’ in Digital Media and Democracy: Tactics in Hard Times, many cases where propaganda can easily be seen in play, when news reports leave out essential details or change statistics to exaggerate or under report major events or just from repeating the story constantly leaves an impression of urgent importance regarding the issue when something else may have been just as important if not more, (2008, p2-4). With the arts of perception management, (Balnaves, Donald, Shoesmith, 2009, p138), people are easily brainwashed as the impact of advertising in the early television days evidently shows.

This is not to say that there is no use of tactical media and perception management in the digital network media that we now participate in. On the contrary it is used more thoroughly to enforce opposing opinions held by the public. And with the quantity of similar content but from different sources is more likely to be believed and followed then repeated footage on mainstream news channels on news. However it is the power relationship that changes. The public is now able to enforce their view through blogging, citizen journalism etc. They are now able to impact on the rest of the public just as much as the dominant media players. Where it took access to big publishing institutions like record companies to get exposure for a music artist, the DIY capabilities of youtube are able to have the exact same impact. Therefore there is no longer that dependency of the society on the publishing institutions for information, instead Boler would argue that that dependency is reversed with dominant media being very dependant on the public contribution to the flow of information as it is made public, (2008, p14).

Propaganda has been used for centuries by the power holders, whether they are the state leaders or sovereignty. But the impact is that much greater when there is a medium such as television and newspaper to publish content to the masses easily and quickly. An example of this is very thoroughly encompassed in the 1997 film Wag the Dog by Barry Levinson about the faking of a war by government representative using a Hollywood producer to make real life footage and dramatic emphasis in order for the media to be saturated with it when just days before it was saturated with a scandal regarding the president. The media that is represented in the film is that of dominant publishing institutions where digital distribution was not a part of it. Also the public was seen to be passive receptors as the outcome that the government was aiming for was successful. But something like propaganda can never really be considered a real aspect of media as proof of behaviour modification is based on the information received by the public is based more on observation then anything solid. Most importantly though, this film shows the relations between publishing institutions and the society as it is in the midst of one way media. Off course it doesn’t go to say that all members of society are influenced like so but in an age when there is no contradictory publications proving things the dominant media have said as untrue then majority are likely to concede to the lies as truth.

Citizen journalism takes a turn with publishing news content. Society plays a big role in what is exposed of world events. A publishing institution like youtube which is internet based, thus very dependant on the digital network media to even function blurs the borders between the institution and the society. While it doesn’t completely eliminate them as the big bosses are still able to control content to some degree but the fact that it is user generated content which sometimes gets aired on dominant media forms or otherwise most likely has a larger viewer base due to its global reaches is able to point out the drastic change in the relationship between institutions and society. It seems now that the society has power to influence itself. But not only that the vast amounts of content of different point of views allows for a user to acquire different perspectives on a particular issue instead of being fed the one biased story.

When there is a difference in the power relations between publishing institutions and society in the two examples I have discussed above then it is most definitely affected by the digital network media and its role in the distribution of information. Just the directional flow of information is enough to signify that difference with the way a publishing institute interacts with society.

Balnaves. M, Donald. S.H, Shoesmith. B, (2009), ‘Media Theories and Approaches’: A Global Perspective, Palgrave Macmillan, New York.

Boler. M, (2008), ‘Introduction’ in Digital Media and Democracy: Tactics in Hard Times, Cambridge, MA: MIT press.

Foucault. M, (1983), ‘The subject and Power: Afterword’, Chicago University of Chicago Press.

Society, (last updated 2^nd of June), Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society

Tye. L, (1998), ‘The Big Think’ in The Father of Spin: Edward L Bernays and the Birth of Public Relations, New York: Henry Holt.

Wag the Dog, (last updated 1^st June 2010), Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wag_the_Dog.

Reflections Paper

Our group has chosen inspiration cluster 1 for our project. Looking at the articles, I have a clear understanding of the Wabi Sabi theme that would be required in our projects. Looking at the first article, “Makeshift: Some Reflections on Japanese Design Sensibility” by Sara Chaplin in 2006, i have derived the concept of impermanence and imperfection. You could relate the object or art as something makeshift which has temporary function. The beauty of the object comes from these concepts rather then the typical aesthetic appeal of a finished product that is made to last. The focus of the object on its functionality also gives it its redeeming qualities.

The article also talks about how the rebuilding of these objects due to there impermanence attract attention time and time again. However most of what Japanese makeshift culture allows is for making objects from everyday natural and available objects. A natural made Shampoo from local plants holds more value then a store bought one. These ideas can be incorporated into my design by using textures of natural material like bark or wood for the interactive page and its components.

The concept of Wabi Sabi comes from appreciating the lack of something instead of feeling the deprivation. So it allows for spiritual freedom without the ‘material bounds’. In my projects, the use of natural elements will emphasise the lack of a typical material life.

The second article, “Design Principles of Wabi Sabi” by Andrew Juniper in 2003 looks at the concept of Wabi Sabi in the context of art. It relates Wabi Sabi art to natural phenomenon because that is a great example of something that is imperfect, impermanent, natural and utterly magnificent creating a sense of awe. A few examples in this i can think of are sun sets, fog; autumn leaves falling, rain fall or more clearly the water droplets. I would like to bring these senses of natural phenomenon into the projects, especially the second as it relates to external activity changing things on the interactive page. Natural Phenomenon as Wabi Sabi art will be my greatest inspiration for my projects but incorporating actual phenomena into the design will need to be thought out carefully.

The natural aura of a Wabi Sabi expression is due to its organic makeup, whether partially or whole. The physical decay of these natural objects brings out the beauty. Thought should be given to its form. This sense of art would be fun to incorporate in my project as it is abstract art without a given expression. It’s just for others to see. The irregularity emphasises its natural form. The idea of composing the artwork with materials at hand will allow for exploration of different compositions of the projects. It almost becomes experimental as long as there’s a function and the focus is only on the function.

The third article, “Esthetics” by Richard Kostelanets, 1989, looks at the composition of music in the context of Wabi Sabi. Kostelanets talks about how the expression should be formed by the observer and not the composer. It would require a ‘quiet mind’. When the composer composes a piece without purpose, the awareness by the observer increases due to lack of expectation and dictated understanding. A self made understanding is formed. This would be a good technique for our projects as it leans toward an abstract composition. In my projects, I can put forth textures, functions and imagery of natural phenomenon without trying to express anything. Therefore the observer would be free to deduce their own meaning. Of course this may be a little difficult as i already have assumed some aspects of feeling and meaning I want the observer to come to, so these expectations need to be eliminated.

Week 6

Well It is worrying to think that my video didn’t meet the expectations of the markers,  hope i didn’t fail. I had many technical difficulties plus lack of time and resources so naturally video wouldn’t be the best. i just hope i get a pass. As for thinking about it as a piece of work for our portfolios well, video making has never been my strength so i don’t think i’ll be adding any video until i get enough practice with it and make something worthy of being put in there.

As for CSS design. Well i’ve done so many roll over buttons but it will be interesting to see how exactly their coded in the css and html. I was thinking of trying to do the excercises on notepad on my pc, atleast that way i won’t be so behind in the tasks, and then i can also play around and experiment at home. Sheesh i really need to get a mac.

Oh by the way, does any one know of a recent media use issue that has been in the news alot lately?

A little late week 5

Ok so i remeber the reason why i forgot to do week five blog was because i was excited to go to melbourne. Hmm it was an interesting trip but i wasn’t thinking about media production. Well i made a few videos of the sites and cool photo slides, maybe that counts.

So web design, HTML and CSS. It has been interesting. I had a fair idea of what css was when we were getting our multipy pages set up at the beginning of the first semester last year when everybody was making their sites cool and i had no idea how to. That was when i had a few looks at the CSS pages but it all seemed like mumbo jumbo to me until after a while when i realised how its all about linking to design files and altering the design of the content. Atleast its more abut designing things on photoshop etc rather then sitting there describing the colour and all that of an image.

So I only got a chance to work on the week 5 excercise at the beginning of week 6 because i don’t have a mac computer and therefore i don’t have smultron. But i got the basic idea of it. So my room is designed and linked and so is my Martin Luther King Jn. However things seemed to be out of place so i hope i can fix things up.

We’ll see how it all goes.

Week 4

Wow I forgot how annoying it is when poducing media doesn’t go the way you plan. Usually i’m adaptable in that situation but with the limitations for the video excercise there was only a small number of ways of gettin it right.

Final cut pro is new to me. Editing film is new to me. Filming is new to me.

Filming was interesting, it would have been fun if the weather had been better and there would have been more diverse people willing to be filmed but oh well. Unfortunately i had a few dramas where a lot of my footage did not work so i was limited to my footage of uni students and just fell short of the 1 minute by 2 or 3 seconds. I worked around it as well as i could. But there are still some weird problems in my movie which i hope to be rid of by next week.

I had a lot of help because of my inexperience with this. Julia Tan helped out with filming a lot. Matt tried to help out with technical problems in editing but luckily the tech support lady fixed it as much as it could be fixed. Despite all the problems it was a great learning experience and it’s still going so i’m still learning so it will help even more when i’m going to be working on the final video. Hopefully by then i’ll get a better tape.

Apart from the video assignment i found working on html fun. Probably because it was familiar territory and the software wasn’t too difficult to get the hang of. And its always fun when things work the first time which my bit did. Can’t wait to get creative with it though with CSS.

So yeh…

Week 3

It’s about time that i’m seriously thinking about the video excercise due in week 5. I’l be starting filming next week.

So what have i got planned, hmm well that all depends on the responses i get from the people that i film. Most obviously i will have a lot of uni students in my montage because they are the people i have easy access. I’ll try to access a middle aged audience also but what i’m most excited about is doing a few kids if i can get their parent’s permission. It would be really interesting to hear who these little children find as radical, renegade and rebellious. of course i’ll have to shape my question carefully but i probably will expect a few answers to include Ronald Mcdonald or one of the wiggles.

Obviously it’s all going to be objective shots but atleast all the limitations will allow for contrast between the characters emphasising the contrast in their opinions.

I do have a basic idea as to how i want the final montage to look like, lets hope i can fit it all into 1 minute but it all depends when i have all the footage and get into the editing of it on final cut pro.

I’ll be updating as i go with the video.

Week 2

It is so true when they say that as media consumers we forget the processes behind the media such as the techniques and technology behind that super cool movie we all love. Ofcourse being a media student makes you aware of these many complicated processes. Like for example when i watch a movie i always wonder to my friend what software they would have used for that particular special effect or what particular techniques the producers would have used and i would always get a blank stare from this non media student friend of mine.

Having done a bit of film studies i have learnt some of the many techniques movie makers use to produce a reality that is beyond reality. But what gets me most is the fact that we can go to places that we have never physically been to through cinema. Yes i guess the dark room and the huge screen may add to that affect but bringing the world to my eyes enables me to have expctations of what this or that place would look like.

The process of subjectivity and objectivity are really interesting to think about where the person is put in the scene and is viewing it themself or seeing it from what need to be shown to understand the storyline. A particular scene from slumdog millionaire got my attention on this topic:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDC47NsoRE0

Its a very abstract yet neat and tidy mix of subjective shots and objective shots. Sometimes seeing busy trainstation from the protagonist’s view and then seeing the entire scene but that one particular part where he sees the girl he is looking for how things slow down, the background noise is quietened into a soft hum. It really puts the audience in that position looking down for he’s beloved. Sounds corny but that’s my take on it.

Very very late week 1

Hmm so looking back at what has been discussed of week one all i can think about is how do i create media that is so original that it brings the big bucks…joke ofcourse. But it is something to think about. Wouldn’t it have been great to have come up with the idea of facebook or google?

All fancy dreams aside media for me is the world it self, not part of the world but the world. Why do i think that? because evrey where you turn your consuming media. We hear music in the shopping centre, Listen to our ipods on the train or read newspapers for the less inclined to figure out how a mp3 or ipod works.

Different types of communities have their different types of media or their different uses. One community may be more artistic then facebook obsessed, like the rural towns of Aboriginal culture. They live through their art which is the media they consume and produce the most. I think my interest in media started with the culture that has arisen from using media. Contemporary media has always been interesting to me but what i want most of all to do is influence tthe culture of media, bring my creativity to new media to attract more users. I want to bring awareness of real world issues to people and media is the best tool to do so.

So lets keep dreaming…

I AM…

Well…

 my name is anaam and my world (for the time being) revolves around media. Why? because that is what i’m studying and that is the industy that i will penetrate as soon as i graduate.

So gradually i will express my opinions, my learning etc on the scope of media over time. So lets see how that goes.