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#bigdatatelemetrics

Carly Shearman – Week 10

I was told by a little bird that for my final blog post I should talk about Twitter. We, members of the Twittersphere, produce a great mass of data. In fact, we produce so much data that it is called ‘big data’. We are drowning our advertising companies, researchers and other big brother-ish characters in so much data that it is too much data. ‘Big data’ is kind of like content analysis; it produces a great mass of data. We are left wondering though, what does it all mean?

#hashtag research helps us to make sense of what is going on. Woodford (2014) explains that the small hashtag symbol allows us to:

Coordinate conversation around a particular subject (e.g. #bringbackourgirls)

Relatively easily capture and analyse (just click on the hashtag and you become part of a new world specifically designed around one topic)

A major issue with hashtagging is that they only work when you use them (Woodford 2014). Therefore, if I am discussing My Kitchen Rules, people can only be part of a conversation or analyse me IF I use the hashtag. By using a hashtag, we are kind of placing a tracking device on whatever we post.

If we essentially put tracking devices on our content then don’t we want to watch what people could track? My question to you is how much information do you put up on the public domain? A little? A lot?  You would be surprised to know that almost everything you do is traceable. That includes online purchases you make and private messages on Facebook (Gray 2014). How crazy is that?

This week’s lectures and readings were helpful but an article I read really made me understand the world of new media, big data and telemetrics. The article was about Janet Vertesi, a pregnant woman determined to “keep her pregnancy undetected by cookies, bots and data collectors,” (Gray 2014). Sounds like a simple task, right? Wrong! A normal person’s data is worth around 10 cents HOWEVER a pregnant woman’s data is worth around $1.50 (Gray 2014). Why? Because they are an advertisers dream! Baby clothes, baby furniture, prams, bottles, diapers, maternity wear; the baby business thrives on soon-to-be-mums wanting the best for their newborn.

Twittersphere is not all about being tracked and how kind of stalkerish that is but it is about connectivity. According to Harrington (2013, 239) “television is a highly social medium,” and “can be enhanced when experienced alongside others.” Twitter and hashtagging creates a sense of community amongst fans. Social media eradicates barriers of time and space. The art of hashtagging allows people to connect with those outside their ‘friends’ or ‘followers’ and allows them to discuss their opinions about a particular TV program or storyline (Harrington 2013, 240).

Social media is a “second screen” whilst watching television with many people now using social media while watching television (Ericsson 2012). Social media, and more so Twitter, allows us to connect with people outside our living room. Twitter also ensures that marketing companies have the highest chance of success by targeting and profiling people due to what we discuss, share and post.

For my final blog post, I again present you with the confusing facts. Is Twitter good or bad? Are we okay with being tracked if it means we get to have a social forum? Social media and media communications is not so black and white. These weekly reflections have really taught me that. But hey, I guess at the end of the day it is up to us as individuals to decide what we do and do not find acceptable and whether we do or do not want to participate in these new medias.

#thanksforreading

       Reference List

Ericsson. 2012. “TV and Video: An analysis of evolving consumer habits. August 2012” Accessed May 8, 2014. http://www.ericsson.com/res/docs/2012/consumerlab/tv_video_consumerlab_report.pdf

Gray, Sarah. 2014. “One woman’s attempt to hide her pregnancy from big data – it’s more difficult than you’d expect.” Salon, April 29. Accessed May 8, 2014. http://www.salon.com/2014/04/28/one_womans_attempt_to_hide_her_pregnancy_from_big_data

Harrington, Stephen. 2013. “Chapter 18: Tweeting About the Telly: Live TV, Audiences and Social Media.” In Twitter and Society, edited by Axel Bruns, Jean Burgess, Merja Mahrt and Katrin Weller, 237-248. New York: Peter Lang.

Woodford, Darryl. 2014. “KCB206 Internet, Self and Beyond: Week 9 lecture notes.” Accessed May 8, 2014. http://www.dpwoodford.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/KCB206-Big-Data-Lecture_Small.pdf

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Super Social Media - fighting for the greater good

Carly Shearman – Week 9

Ladies and gentlemen, a new superhero is here to save us all! Super Social Media is the advocate of the little people, the equaliser of forces, and the one to uncover all hidden secrets (Sauter 2014). We, on planet Earth have been searching for such an individual for decades now; and he has come. Our new superhero has many different identities; we most commonly know him in uniforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Okay so maybe social media is not a ‘typical’ super hero like the ones that decorated our childhood, however, have you ever stopped and really thought about social media, in depth? Have you thought about its role in social changes and the power social media has? I know that pre-university and pre-this-weeks-topic I had not really given it a second thought! What we all hold in our hands is something incredible.

Mobile devices have helped bring Philippine President Joseph Estrada to justice,  the removal of Spanish Prime Minister José Maria Aznar, the defeat of the Moldova Communist Party and we cannot forget the Catholic Church being outed for “its harbouring of child rapists,” (Shirky 2011).

New media and particularly social media have enabled us (the little people) to:

Gain a sense of unity – with our online peers

Have a place to go to in order to discuss and debate topics that matter to us

Form communities online – without time or space barriers

Enjoy a sense of equality – within a decentralised power structure

Reveal the truth – nowhere for politicians to hide, the internet outs all secrets (big thanks to Julian Assange for this)

Be active members of society – we have the opportunity to share, create and debate (and it is much more accessible than debating at a specific location in the world) (Sauter 2014).

As a superhero, though, one sees the good and the bad.

The villain of this story is Malcom Gladwell, here to bring down Super Social Media. Gladwell (2010) argues that great social changes have “happened without email, texting, Facebook, or Twitter.” Gladwell’s comment is true, but Shirky (2011) reminds him “social media is not a replacement for real-world action but a way to coordinate it.” (Shirky 2011).

As an example, I wish to remind you of our very current fight for marriage equality and social media’s involvement.

Malcom Gladwell argued that we have not had any large social changes like the African American Civil Rights Movement, but I believe this is just as big. We are fighting for the equality of people; whether it is race or sexuality.

Social media has been very well used in debates over same-sex marriages. There are pages, blogs, memes, accounts and more dedicated to gay rights.

Paul Hitlin and Sovini Tan’s article titled In Social Media, Support for Same-Sex Marriage really outlines the importance social media has in representing equality (check it out - http://www.journalism.org/2012/05/17/social-media-support-samesex-marriage/).

Social media’s role in society often goes unnoticed. We are so busy ‘liking’, ‘tweeting’ and ‘messaging’ that we are losing sight of the bigger picture. Our unsung hero – social media – is lurking in the shadows, holding our hands whilst we fight for a better future.  

Super Social Media is helping take us to internet, self and beyond.

  References/Further Knowledge

Gladwell, Malcom. 2010. “Small Change: Why the Revolution will not be Tweeted.” The New Yorker, October 4. Accessed May 1, 2014.  http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/10/04/101004fa_fact_gladwell?currentPage=all

Hitlin, Paul and Sovini Tan. 2012. “In Social Media, Support for Same-Sex Marriage.” PewResearch Journalism Project, May 17. Accessed May 5, 2014. http://www.journalism.org/2012/05/17/social-media-support-samesex-marriage/

Sauter, Theresa. 2014. “KCB206 Internet, Self and Beyond: Week 8 lecture notes. Accessed April 30, 2014. http://blackboard.qut.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_4_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fcontent%2FlistContent.jsp%3Fcourse_id%3D_108110_1%26content_id%3D_5232450_1

Shirky, Clay. 2011 “The Political Power of Social Media: Technology, the Public Sphere, and Political Change.” In Foreign Affairs 90 (1). Accessed May 1, 2014. http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/67038/clay-shirky/the-political-power-of-social-media

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Communicating through Technology: Enable Emoji

Carly Shearman – Week 7

Another week means another blog post. This blog focuses on Naomi Baron and David Crystal’s texts about communication on the internet.

We, as humans in the 21st century, have become so accustomed to the internet’s presence that it is embedded in our way of life. Without giving it a second thought we will pick up our devices to Google, let Mum know our plans, find our way to a destination or show our friends pictures of what we did last weekend (Baron 2008, 3).  The new ways of communication (texting, emailing and the use of social media) is inexpensive, highly accessible, eradicates issues of time and distance and allows us all to become an “author or publisher.” The question many are asking though it whether these communicative methods are “degrading the way we write?” (Baron 2008, 5). One answer is that people are not sweating the small stuff anymore. No one really cares if the comma is in the right spot or if a compound word has been written as two separate words. The primary focus people have is giving a message, whether it is ‘correct’ or not (Baron 2008, 7).

The internet provides relaxed places where we can simply write how we would talk (Crystal 2006, 27). Email, chat groups and instant messages are “time governed.” They are “expecting or demanding” immediate responses. New ways of communication are also ‘disposable’ as emails, texts and even instant messages can be deleted (Crystal 2006, 32). In many ways, internet communications mimics face-to-face conversations.

BUT

Although it mimics face-to-face conversation, it does not replace face-to-face conversation. Talking online is kind of like playing ‘Chinese Whispers’ and often the intended meaning is lost as the Web tries to pass the message on. This has a little something to do with the fact that when you talk online the recipient only receives a block of text (Crystal 2006, 33). Messages need more than text to communicate effectively. Body language plays a massive role in communication and we often forget that. Body language is a fundamental part of how animals, including humans, communicate. The web does not allow for body language and that is probably the largest flaw of online communication. Without body language, people cannot convey sarcasm, emotions or facial expressions.

Super Emoji to the rescue. (Image sourced from http://images.zaazu.com/img/Superman-Superman-man-of-steel-Clark-Kent-smiley-emoticon-001045-large.gif)

Emojis do offer a remedy to our communicative issues. According to Monitor (2011) emojis “play the role that non-verbal communication does in conversation but on a cellphone.” Although emojis do not replace the need for body language they do assist in portraying messages. Mr Roberts state that emojis “let you convey a little more emotion or feelings in messages,” (Monitor 2011) and considering that a lot of our time is spent communication via mobile phones and the internet it “makes sense that people would crave new ways to convey meaning,” (Monitor 2011).

Online communication is an extremely new way to converse compared to face-to-face communication and it is still finding its feet. I have no doubt that within the next 20 years (or even 10 years) the inventors of the world will find another way, much greater than emojis, to eradicate the issue of non-verbal communication online. FaceTime and Skype have already begun this, but are not as widely used as texting or emailing. Give it time and the world of online communication will surprise us all.

      Reference List

Baron, Naomi. 2008. “Chapter 1: Email to Your Brain: Language in an Online and Mobile World.” In Always on: Language in an Online and Mobile World, edited by Naomi Baron, 3-10. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Crystal, David. 2006. Language and the Internet. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Accessed April 11, 2014. http://reader.eblib.com.au.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/%28S%28a3a5nuvi03uslaekaxnl2xcw%29%29/Reader.aspx?p=274901&o=96&u=VsrhfbaARhbWOfxbGgrLoQ%3d%3d&t=1397197904&h=784B3223C2CA7D95BC1212BFCF70CDBE7F2A7444&s=12161000&ut=245&pg=40&r=img&c=-1&pat=n&cms=-1#

Monitor, Kashmir. 2011. “Apple iOS 5 Gets Emoji.” HT Media Limited, December 9. Accessed April 13, 2014. http://gateway.library.qut.edu.au/login?url=http://search.proquest.com.ezp01.library.qut.edu.au/docview/909507425?accountid=13380

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