Copyright is this weeks topic. In class we watched the documentary called, Copyright Criminals, and our main focus was on Rethinking Copyright in our Remix Culture. If there’s one concept that has suffered more damage than just about anything else as a result of the web and the ongoing explosion of digital media, it’s copyright.

Generally speaking, remix culture can be defined as the global activity consisting of the creative and efficient exchange of information made possible by digital technologies that is supported by the practice of cut/copy and paste. Today, Remix (the activity of taking samples from pre-existing materials to combine them into new forms according to personal taste) has been extended to other areas of culture, including the visual arts; it plays a vital role in mass communication, especially on the Internet.

To understand Remix as a cultural phenomenon, we must first define it in music. A music remix, in general, is a reinterpretation of a pre-existing song, meaning that the “aura” of the original will be dominant in the remixed version. After doing some further investigating and researching I discovered that there are three types of basic remixes based on its history. The first remix is extended, that is a longer version of the original song containing long instrumental sections making it more mixable for the club DJ. The second remix is selective; it consists of adding or subtracting material from the original song. This is the type of remix which made DJs popular producers in the music mainstream. The third remix is reflexive; it allegorizes and extends the aesthetic of sampling, where the remixed version challenges the aura of the original and claims autonomy even when it carries the name of the original; material is added or deleted, but the original tracks are largely left intact to be recognizable. However, it is noted that the extended, selective and reflexive remixes can quickly crossover and blur their own definitions.

Lastly, vering off in a different direction, other than remixing songs/music, I  now turn to social media advances. Pinterest is the latest Web addiction for millions. Pinterest has been around for almost two years, but has seen a meteoric rise in interest over the last couple of months. In December, Pinterest became one of the Web's Top 10 social networks, according to tracking firm Hitwise. Pinterest is a visual bulletin board for the Web.

The service allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections. The site's mission statement is to "connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting." It thrives on beautifully simple images of ideas for the home. Users of Pinterest curate themed image boards, populating them with media found online using the "Pin It" button, or uploaded from their computer. In essance, users are copying there favoiate online images from; places of interests - how to ideas - favoraite clothing items and post them their boards. This is a legal site,however; tiptoes around the idea of copyrighting/copycating.

Pinterest Copyright Content:

Content creators on sites such as iStock have expressed concern over their work being reused on Pinterest without permission. Getty Images said that it was aware of Pinterest's copyright issues and was in discussion with them. Pinterest has a notification system which allows copyright holders to request that content be removed from the site. One journalist questioned the "safe harbor" status of Pinterest. A "nopin" HTML  meta tag was released by Pinterest on February 20 to allow websites to opt out of their images being pinned. On February 24, Flickr implemented the code to allow users to opt out their photos.

http://remixtheory.net/?page_id=3

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/story/2012-01-17/how-to-pinterest-mark-smith/52615856/1

Rethinking: Love

There is an estimated total of 54 million people in the US and about 40 million people are using online dating. In the same manner, there are about 20 million eHarmony users and 15 million Match.com members. Men dominate the online demographics coming in at 52.4% users and 46.7% are women users.

We're moving more of our social lives online and updating these sites at the speed of technology, but what about our romantic lives? In last class period we watched a documentary called Second Skin which made us think twice about how we find our soul mates. Some may find their true love in high school, others in college or even at a sporting event or at the bar; however, there are a few brave souls who find their match maker through the wonderful world of the web...online dating.

With the rise of the Internet and profound changes in contemporary lifestyles, online dating has gained enormous popularity among aspiring lovers of all ages. "Online dating used to be something that people turned to when they were giving up on offline dating," says Sam Yagan, CEO and co-founder of OKCupid, a site that has the largest registered user-base of 18- to 34-year-olds in the US.  "It is now a tool that people are turning to, to complement their offline dating, to meet other people you might not meet in your day-to-day life."  However, online dating has become increasingly common and popular. Dating is evolving.You fill out a questionnaire, fed it into the machine, and almost instantly received a card with the name and address of a like-minded participant in some far-flung locale—your ideal match. There are numerous chat rooms, sites, and other social media that creates such opportunity. Technology is getting much more exciting and has created different themes which draws in potential daters.

I do not have any experience in the online dating world and I do not for see myself to ever use such a site in the future. I think I would be too scared to put myself out there like that. I am not a fan of online relationships, though I have heard from people its working for them.The Internet though, appears to be an easy way to find love, the associated dangers may sometimes exceed the benefits. Giving your personal information to a complete stranger is dangerous. There are people who search for naive and innocent teenagers so as to take advantage of them. Apart from teenagers, women are targeted by these online 'predators'. Lying is one of the most common things that one resorts to in deceiving the naive Internet users. One can lie about anything like age, height, etc. Online relationships are breeding grounds for fantasy. If one party resists moving a relationship into the real world, for whatever reason, it will never progress. Honestly, I would rather meet someone in the real world than in the virtual world. 

http://www.statisticbrain.com/online-dating-statistics/

http://news.discovery.com/tech/online-dating-tech-evolution-111018.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/may/01/online-dating-untangling-the-web





I recently watched the documentary, Money for Nothing. After watching this documentary I have realized that independence is being threatened by a shrinking number of record companies, the centralization of radio ownership and play lists, and the increasing integration of popular music into the broader advertising and commercial aspects of the market. Also, this documentary has opened my eyes to perceive the music industry as a world that maximises profit. As long as the numbers increase and the media is happy its a win win situation.

Furthermore, live music was once threatened by records, recorded music felt threatened by recordable cassette tapes, now it's MP3s and illegally downloaded music that has taken over how people consume music. When Napster exploded into the media spotlight in 2000 with lawsuits from musicians such as Metallica, people began to realize how the Internet has changed music forever. Suddenly, with the advent of Napster and other programs like it, music could be shared and swapped between fans like never before. Listeners and consumers had taken control of their musical tastes and were stealing the business away from the corporations who once dominated the music industry for decades. The main idea that record industry realized was that it needed to adjust to the new market and embrace how the Internet has changed music and not fight it. The record industry realized that fans no longer wanted to be limited to buy an entire album for a single song, and so most albums were broken down into their constituent songs and made available for individual download. Personally, I agree with this argument, for instance, I wanted the Adele CD but realized I can down load a couple of her hits for free instead of buying the entire CD. The future of music seems tied to the future of digital distribution of media. As high speed Internet has become increasingly prevalent, many musicians have realized they can record and produce their own music on relatively inexpensive hardware and music programs.

 

Commercialized radios are well known for over playing popular songs repeatedly. In the same manner, radio stations have no variety for their stations. Granted I only listen to the radio for a short segment of a time; however, I am constantly hearing the same song every hour and it gets very annoying.  I do believe the radio kills record business because stations continue to play the hottest single over and over until it is sicken by the viewer. Personally, I know there are some songs on the radio when are played I have to turn the station because the song is over played. Word to the wise: this is not creative nor is it interesting and is losing viewers slowly.

Lastly, advertising is the secrete/hidden key to give artists more exposure to their views, followers, listeners, and fans, surely, than MTV. Have you noticed any familiar tunes popping up in commercials? Advertisers have been borrowing popular tunes to plug their products for years but lately it seems like every commercial has a recognizable tune. Advertisers do this to make you think of their product. If the tune is catchy, it gets stuck in your head and if the commercial does the trick you will think of their product when you hear the song. Music always had accessory roles: a soundtrack, a jingle, a branding statement, a mating call. It is well known that popular music is used to sell well-known product. The advertising industry has a dominating effect on breaking music and exposing it to a whole new audience. However, this can be a negative effect because people might relate a particular song to a child hood memory and when the advertising industry attaches it to a product, that memory is ruined. All in all, the market will do whatever it takes to increase its sales. I think popular music and advertising make a beneficial partnership.

Amy Selk

COMM 108 – Media & Society

Date Due: 2/2/2012

Name of interviewee: Jeanie Malchow

Age: 51

Birth place: Fond du Lac

Relation: Aunt

Date interviewed: 1/29/12

Place interviewed: via phone

Can you describe your childhood and popular media that you and your family used?

-My dad always read the newspaper and as a family we watched the 5 o’clock news with Walter Cronkite. He was considered the most trusted man in American. My parents always watched the political debates in support of the political elections. My siblings and I also listened to the top 40s with Casey Kasem while we lay in bed before we fell asleep. The Partridge Family, The Brady Bunch, and Dark Shadows were three of my favorite TV shows while growing up as a child.

What is your earliest memory of television?

-When I was 8 and we purchased our first black and white TV; however, this TV only had two channels and had no remote. Previously, we would entertain ourselves by playing board games or playing outside with friends.

What was the telephone like when you growing up? What was it like to have a “party line?”

-In our household we only had a rotary phone which was a turn the wheel style phone. We also had a party line which we shared with another family. I remember this type of phone had a long cord so you could not walk away. I hated the party line. If someone was on the line, you could listen to their conversation, and had to wait patiently for them to get off the phone in order to use it.

Can you share an experience of going to the movie theatre?

-I didn’t go to the movie theatre until I was a teenager, which is when I started working because my family could not afford it. On the other hand, I did go to the outdoor theatres. At the outdoor theatres you had to play a flat fee per car, in which case, you could pack as many people in the car. I remember people were shoved people in the trunk and piled friends in the back seat.  

How has the media benefited your life?

-Media has made life more convenient and simpler. I can communicate a lot easier to long distance family via cell phone, texting, email, Skype, aol (instant messaging), and Facebook. Currently, my family and I have 2 computers, all four of us have a cell phone, we have cable TV (HD), and we recently disconnected our home land line. Another way advance technology has benefited my life is due to online banking. I pay bills on line, and require direct deposits for my pay checks. 

How has the media impacted your life negatively?

-I think it has negatively affected my life due to the separation it can cause between the members of my family. Technology can definitely divide a family and lose that close nit connection between one another. I also think the media has made the information more negative because broadcasters and producers are always finding a way to make money by delivering an interesting hot juicy gossip instead of informing the public the actual facts and figures.

           

Media more than anything else has significantly impacted our daily lives the most. In the same manner, media tools have profoundly changed our lives and how we interact with one another and the world around us.

            First, how we get our news and information has drastically changed. Instead of actually reading the hard print copy of a newspaper or even logging into an online newspaper website, I look at the stories my friends and other people post via Twitter or Facebook. Friends are increasingly becoming people’s trusted sources of information, even more than search engines. My aunt mentioned that they had to wait to receive the latest updated news; nevertheless, news now travels faster than ever communicated through advanced media technology.

Secondly, my aunt and I were born in two completely different generations. People still mostly rely on newspapers to learn about what was happening in the world; likewise, things changed when the Presidential debates was on air. It was clear that people who heard the debates on the radio favored the words of Nixon, but those who saw the composed, handsome Kennedy favored him. TV has become the way in which people around the world see the world. This is extremely different to how my aunt was raised. Moreover, in contrast to the black and white TV my aunt grew up with, now kids are watching their favorite shows in high definition screens. For example, my dad just purchased a 46inch flat screen SONY (HD) TV with surround sound for our basement. This type of entertainment system is what any child dreams about…it’s practically having a home theatre in your household. Next, the qualities of programs have also sunk drastically because of the diversity offered. The amount of channels has literally jumped from several to several hundred, rather than only having two channels in compare to my aunt. Reality television doesn’t rely on writers or actors, and an unimaginable quantity of sports is broadcast-some, like darts and poker, aren’t even really sports. But with so many channels offered it’s possible to cater to all tastes. Lastly, if I missed my show on TV I have the luxury of watching it either on line or on DVR. These options were not available to my aunt during her childhood years.

            With this in mind, media has made it un-stressful to keep in touch with long distance friends and family. There is so much connection that can happen through social media such as; Facebook, Skype, and twitter. People certainly still meet others at social venues like clubs and parties, but it is easier than ever to discover people who share interests through social media, whether that means via groups on Facebook or following people on Twitter. Furthermore, it can also unite people with common interests and/or beliefs through groups and other pages, and has been known to reunite lost family members and friends. The best means of communication for some of my family is via email, others via phone, and some via Facebook. My entire family; aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, and nephews all have a Facebook account. Some check it more than others; however, we all stay connected through our family page. In the same manner, Facebook has helped me stay connected with my high school friends; where we have the option to chat at once, coordinate plans on holidays or get-togethers, and catch up with one another since I do not have the ability to go home much due to being a college athlete. One of my favorite features of Facebook is it reminds me of my friends birthdays and events. This is helpful tool for me because I am terrible at remembering birthdays so Facebook helps me along the way. In conclusion, these social media devises have affected the social life and activity of people in various ways and also allow users to continuously stay in touch with friends and relatives wherever they are in the world.

            There is one topic in which I argue against media and that is replacing text books for laptops. There has been multiple discussions to transition public schools' from printed textbooks to electronic materials. If I had an option to choose laptop or text book, I would choose a textbook because it is easier to read and reference. If laptops did replace textbooks that just means that, each district will have to figure out the total cost of buying the devices, training teachers, setting up the devices, making sure they work for blind students, maintaining, insuring and protecting them from theft and damage, and providing uninterrupted internet connectivity with internet filters. Personally, a student from Wisconsin, these are all new costs that should be addressed at a time when school districts aren’t facing financial crises and laying off teachers.

In every era, cultures go through numerous changes, and in recent years ours has been more impacted than anything else by media. Media is providing yet one more means of engaging and communicating with people around us, and if used effectively can give all of us greater choice in how we live and what happens in our world. All in all, I thought this was a very interesting and intriguing assignment because I enjoyed listening to my aunt talk about her life without the advance technology like today has to offer.