Digital Divide Influenced by New Media Literacy

Literacy has always referred to the ability to read and write, but that definition has changed immensely since the development of technology in the 21^st century. Media literacy is taking the basic definition one step further, as it includes the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media. This new media literacy has become a crutch for many older people in the world because they are immigrants to the new and improved definition of media literacy. These individuals are considered to be ‘Digital Immigrants’ because they did not have the opportunity to grow up with such complex technology. The younger generation is called ‘Digital Natives’ as they have grown up with this technology since day one (Prenksy, 2001, p. 1&2). Digital natives have the responsibility to teach the digital immigrants about this new media literacy in order for them to become successful in this age and time. Media literacy is more then just introducing technology into the ability to read and write; it is an effective and engaging way to apply critical thinking skills to a wide range of issues.

New media literacy involves all the new media skills discussed in my previous blog posts. These skills are ones that the digital immigrants need to learn and excel in, as it is a new and improved way of living. If digital natives teach the immigrants how to use these skills successfully, everyone will be able to use the Internet to the best of their abilities and to its full extent. The Media Literacy Project provides a list of the ways this new media literacy and skills can help the digital immigrants and natives with technology. The list is as follows:

·                     - “Develop critical thinking skills

·                     -  Understand how media messages shape our culture and society

·                     -  Identify target marketing strategies

·                     - Recognize bias, spin, misinformation, and lies

·                     - Evaluate media messages based on our own experiences, skills, beliefs, and values” (Media    

              Literacy Project, n.d.)         

I believe the digital divide between the two generations is slowly becoming smaller due to the constant effect new media literacy has on people’s lives. For example, I have grown up using technology so it is first nature to me, but for my mother it is slightly more difficult for her to understand how to use these new systems. As the years go by and I try to teach her new media skills, she is starting to understand how to use different medias and technology, diminishing the divide between our two generations.

The following image is a description of how the two generations think differently and how new media literacy plays a role in the divide.

References

Media Literacy Project. (n.d.) What is media literacy. Retrieved from https://medialiteracyproject.org/learn/media-literacy/

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the horizon: NCB university press, 9(5). Retrieved from http://bit.ly/IMBu0j

Collective Intelligence

Collective Intelligence is a term that has been around for quite sometime but has taken off with the creation of the Internet. Jenkins et al (2006) describes Collective Intelligence as “the ability to pool knowledge and compare notes with others towards a common goal” (p. 71). I personally believe that this is a great thing, but also has some dangers because of the lack of judgment the new digital natives have with respect to information, as discussed in a previous blog. There are many examples of collective intelligence in media, including: Social Networking, Search Engines and Wikipedia. For starters, social network sites like Facebook and Twitter allow individuals to share information regarding any information they want to discuss. From there, other individuals from anywhere around the world can comment information regarding the same topic or their own opinions. For example, individuals can share their opinion on a movie or a book, and others can share their opinions as well and all this information will influence others. This is where judgment plays a role within gathering information from other people because no one knows the credibility of what is being said or whether it is just personal belief.

In terms of Search Engines, Google and Yahoo take collective knowledge of people all around the world and make it available to everyone who has access to the Internet. This is a relatively new way to integrate people and computers and share knowledge in an easy way about a common topic. I can say from personal experience since I use these search engines on a daily basis, they are a great tool to gain information that other people have and I find it quite interesting to learn about other peoples point of view on a topic I am intending to learn about.

Finally, Wikipedia is a great example of collective intelligence but is one that needs the most judgment since anyone can edit and add information on the wiki webpages. Anyone from around the world can produce intellectual information but those works can be altered from anyone on the Internet. The collective knowledge of random individuals can provide to the webpage and provide valued work or incorrect work. Although these webpages are monitored fairly frequently, there has been webpages found that say all incorrect information because someone is trying to be funny. If people do not check the credibility of what they are reading on Wikipedia, trouble can be caused (Lakhani, Malone, & Pentland, 2007).

The following images are negative examples of collective intelligence on Wikipedia webpages.

References

Jenkins, H., Purushotma, R., Weigel, M., & Clinton, K. (2006). Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the 21^st century. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

Lakhani, K., Malone, T., & Pentland, A. (2007, October 4). Collective intelligence: Summary. Message posted to http://web.mit.edu/comm-forum/forums/collective_intelligence.html

Transmedia Navigation

A new media skill that has become very popular is the idea of Transmedia Navigation. People use this skill all the time but may not be aware of the usage since it is often taken for granted. Jenkins et al (2006) examples that transmedia navigation “is the ability to follow the flow of stories and information across multiple modalities” (p.85). As a university student, this skill is embedded into all things I do that involve technology and I have grown up learning this skill. This skill is necessary in order to participate and obtain the full meaning of living in an information society as media is involved in all aspects of living. In my opinion, transmedia navigation gives more depth to a piece of information, since it is possible to learn new aspects in different forms. For example, if someone is more of a visual learner, learning through movies or action figures allows for a greater understanding. The same goes for kinesthetic learners or auditory learners.

A good example of transmedia navigation that I grew up with was the idea of Barbie. There were action figures of Barbie and all other people that were apart of her life that I could play with and make my own story with. Barbie had movies about her and the life that she lived, as well as games you could play on the computer and many other media platforms connected to Barbie. These different media platforms provided different ways of learning and different ways of entertainment. It is stated “for children growing up amidst convergence culture, transmedia experiences can provide rich sites for exploring, enacting, and learning through imaginative and productive play” (Herr-Stephenson, Alper, Reilly, & Jenkins, 2003, p.15). This is exactly what the idea of Barbie gave to me, it helped grow my imagination and creativity while having fun through different media outlets. Each type of media triggered a different part of my brain and exercised different learning techniques. The following is a short film displaying the evolution of Barbie across all the different media platforms, from the beginning of her existence to today.

No matter if it's for leisure entertainment or learning, transmedia navigation is involved in each and everyone’s lives due to the world we live in. Not everyone learns the same way as discussed before, creating the need for this new skill.

References

Herr-Stephenson, B., Alper, M., Reilly, E. and Jenkins, H. (2013). T is for transmedia: learning through trans- media play. Los Angeles and New York: USC Annenberg Innovation Lab and The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop.

Jenkins, H., Purushotma, R., Weigel, M., & Clinton, K. (2006). Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the 21^st century. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

The Evolution of Barbie. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E3vxMYXC6Y

The Implications of Social Networking

This blog is about the many implications that arise when using social networks. The concept of networking has been previously discussed but in a different view. Using social networks has changed the same people communicate with one another and has changes the way business is conducted. People all around the world who have access to the Internet typically use more then one social networks, whether it be Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and many others. These sites are used to communicate with others around the world, create profiles, share photos, and spend hours catching up on what their ‘friends’ are doing during their days (Kelleher, 2009).

These networks have affected the business place negatively due to the numerous amount of time individuals spend on the Internet. Working people usually have access to a computer, their cell phones or other technology that allows them to access social networks, taking time away from the work they are supposed to be doing to complete their business job. David Kelleher (2009) discusses several concerns that the social networks bring to the workplace because of people’s misuse of these sources. One main concern that has been brought to my attention is the possibility for business information to be hacked into when social networks are accessed at the workplace. Many people do not use the Privacy Settings on social media networks appropriately and do not protect themselves from allowing others to get onto their accounts and obtain information. Once these people who do not have activated privacy settings log on to their social networking accounts at work, hackers can easily infect computers with malicious software to collect any desired software. This negatively impacts a business as it can give away information that is not for the public eye.

Aside from the security issues associated with social networking, they also conflict with the productivity of the business. People spend hours upon hours on social media sites during the day, no matter if they are at work or not which impacts the business in a negative way. If some employees do not work as hard as others and spend time on social networks, it creates a negative working environment since the productivity of the business affects all. The following images illustrates several issues with social networking in the workplace. 

This is why it is ultimately imperative that businesses set rules and regulations around the idea of using social networking when at the workplace. Networking may have positive aspects, but that all depends on where these networks are being used.   

References

Kelleher, D. (2009, October 1). 5 problems with social networking in the workplace. Retrieved from http://www.information-management.com/specialreports/2009_165/social_networking_media-10016208-1.html