Blog Assignment 3

After reading Cristina-Georgiana Voicu’s article, “The Impact of New Communication Technologies in the Social and Journalistic Environment,” I was able to connect many ideas presented in the article to what we have discussed in class. The article explains how new communication technologies are influencing society, especially in relation to democracy and politics. Voicu writes about how we are now in a society “that has become dependent on highly complex electronic information and communication networks,” which we have thoroughly examined in class. She goes on to write that many different types of changes – such as institutional and ideological/value changes – in addition to the presence of technological and economic systems, create this said society. All of these different factors come together to create an entirely new society.

This article also provides different paradigms used to expound social transformations in our information society. These are helpful in understanding the various viewpoints on these technological and social shifts. In addition to talking about more general concepts, such as explaining what changes led to the creation of our current society, Voicu also addresses more specific issues, including how new communication technologies can cause political issues. She goes into how these technologies increase the ability of individuals to express themselves in public, but also limit their participation in political communication; this fragments public space into “partial spheres” that have no relation to one another.

What this fragmentation does is create passivity in citizens, causing dominant elites to take over, which then increases the already present asymmetry in public space. Voicu goes into detail about current debates about the Internet, how new practices in communication are affecting democracy, and the pros and cons of the Internet regarding the political realm. She concludes the article by stating that those who are involved in political and media scenes will be able to diversity interactions with voters using the Internet, reinforcing the point that the Internet is the ultimate possessor of power. This article is a great one to read to get a basic understanding of the general ideas of new media technology before applying those concepts to a real life situation that applies to us all – political matters.

           

Voicu, C. (2013). The Impact of New Communication Technologies in the Social and Journalistic Environment, Scientific Bulletin of the Politehnica University of Timisoara. 12(1/2), 5-16.

Blog Assignment 2

            Out of the three network laws we discussed in class – Sarnoff’s Law, Metcalfe's Law, and Reed’s Law – I would say that I agree with Sarnoff’s Law the most. I state this because I think it is the most basic law and that it is not making too large of a statement. It makes sense that the value of a network would increase linearly as the number of people on it rises. If a lot of people are watching television station or listening to a radio station, that television/radio station's value is going to increase. It is very understandable and to-the-point. The other two laws are fine, but have more critiques. I know there are critiques for Sarnoff’s Law as well, but I believe it has fewer than the others because it is a more conservative statement. More people are going to agree with a law that makes the most sense, is the most accurate in its findings, and produces the least critiques; I believe Sarnoff’s Law fits this description. And although it may not be the most applicable nowadays, I do still think it is the most coherent.

            Five years from now, I think that people will be getting their information largely from the Internet. Books, newspapers, and other printed materials will still be around, but I do not think they will be utilized as often. Information that is on a computer, tablet, or smartphone will probably be the most-accessed information. And when we are using these devices, we are usually on either the Internet or on applications. Television will most likely continue to be popular, but I am guessing that more people will access it via their computers. We seem to be heading in a direction that is leading us away from printed materials and towards online materials. Although that is sad to me (I love printed materials, such as books), the future seems to be full of more computers, tablets, smartphones, and other such devices.