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 21st century.
Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
The
Evolution of Barbie. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E3vxMYXC6Y
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