NDM News Story 49: Online harassment of women at risk of becoming 'established norm', study finds

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/mar/08/online-harassment-of-women-at-risk-of-becoming-established-norm-study


A study carried out in Australia proved that about 50% of women receiving harassment online would report it, and of those women who would report harassment, 76% of them were women under 30. The harassment ranged in severity, going from unwanted contact to blatant sexual harassment. With the overwhelming amount of harassment, this may induce social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook, to take a bigger role in preventing such things from happening. After this study, Twitter claimed that they would push further to tackle abuse and threats while Facebook also released a new feature that would offer support to people who seem to be at a risk of committing suicide.

• Nearly half the 1,000 respondents in the research by the digital security firm Norton had experienced some form of abuse or harassment online. 
• Among women under 30, the incidence was 76%.
• The online quantitative survey was carried out with 1,053 women in Australia aged 18 and over in February this year.
• Seventy per cent of women said online harassment was a serious problem in 2016 and 60% said that it was getting worse
• Harassment is overwhelmingly taking place on social media, which facilitates 66% of cases – three times as many as by email (22%) or text (17%).

Online safety and security is becoming a pressing issue with many offenders believing that harassment is ok when it is online as their identity would never be found out. However as women are starting to gain confidence in reporting harassment, this issue seems to be slowly taken care of as pressure has been put upon social media sites where the majority of online harassment occurs.

NDM News Story 48: More than 9 million Britons now use adblockers

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/mar/01/more-than-nine-million-brits-now-use-adblockers



The great convenience of blocking unnecessary and unwanted sites has made the number of Britons who use such software, greatly rise over the past year. The most likely people who use adblocking software was mostly 18-24 year olds with the group who used adblocking software the least was 45 - 54 year olds. With this rise in adblocking software, people speculate that there needs to be a balance between monetising the media while avoiding irritating consumers but as adblocking is rising, it proves that companies are far from finding this. However, web publishers have also begun to push back by not allowing content to be accessed unless the adblocker is removed.  

• More than 9 million British web users say they now block ads
• more than a fifth of all those over 18 years old who use the internet.
•  22% of British web users over 18 years old are currently using software to strip ads from digital content
• This equates to about 9.2 million of the 41.8 million UK adults who regularly use the internet.
• June last year showed that just 15% of UK web users were blocking ad

The method of monetising media through adverts is gradually losing its great effect of  making money through this method as more and more people are choosing to download adblocking software to avoid the irritating adverts. Eventually, if there isnt a new way of making consumers view the adverts, companies would need to think of a new way in order to make money.

NDM News Story 47: Facebook wants you to film birthday messages for friends

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/feb/23/facebook-film-birthday-messages-for-friends

Facebook has released a new way to allow people to wish each other a happy Birthday. This new method, called 'Birthday Cam' allows people to film a 15 second clip wishing their friends on Facebook, Happy Birthday. A banner that suggests to film a video appears when someone is about to type a birthday message on someone's wall.  People are anticipating that this would only be another annoying way of wishing someone on their birthday and will clog up their facebook page.

• The videos, which can be up to 15 seconds long and adorned with special birthday frames, then get posted on the recipient’s wall.
• The new feature, dubbed “birthday cam”, is launching first on iOS
• It kicks in as you’re about to post on a friend’s wall on their birthday, and puts a small banner below the text entry box suggesting instead that you record a birthday video.

This is a fad that will definitely be short lived as this feature is only available on someone's birthday. Also, there aren't any special features on the video so people may not have much interest in looking at the videos. Also, this seems to be very similar to snapchat, which will also hinder this feature from reaching popularity as people would prefer to use snapchat.

NDM News Story 46: Facebook sets up 'social VR' team to explore virtual reality beyond games

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/feb/22/facebook-social-virtual-reality-beyond-games-mark-zuckerberg

Facebook has released the news that a social VR team would be hired to explore the potential of virtual reality technology beyond games. Facebook will work closely with Oculus and other to explore this possibility. The company admits that its work in VR is “still early, and there are a lot of hardware and software challenges that we still need to solve”, but Zuckerberg is prioritising this as one of the most important areas in need of research.

• Already, millions of people watch 360 videos on Facebook every day. 
• More than 20,000 have been uploaded, with hundreds more added daily.
• HTC has confirmed that its Vive headset will cost $799

This has great potential to become a very popular form of communication and social interaction as it will make on line relationships a lot more realistic. However this may eventually lead to a greater moral panic, as people will decreasingly become less social outside their virtual reality lifestyle. This is already proving to become a great issue with young people in particular being addicted to the internet and social networking sites, but by including virtual reality into the picture will make people more likely to stay home in order to communicate with someone.

NDM News Story 45: Mobile operator Three to introduce adblocking

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/feb/19/mobile-operator-three-ad-blocking

With the current rise in companies that offer ad-blocking services, Three have also decided to offer ad-blocking services to customers by striking a deal with an Israeli company, Shine who provides ad-blocking technology.  This is not an attempt from Three to eliminate advertisements but to give customers more control and choice in what they receive. The three primary reasons of introducing ad-blocking software are that as customers pay data charges, they should not receive ads, Some companies advertise elicit content without permission and that customers should only receive relevant information.

• The move is cause for serious concern for digital publishers and advertisers, which are already dealing with a rising number of people who block advertising when they use their phones.
• The company, which has 9 million UK customers
• “Irrelevant and excessive mobile ads annoy customers and affect their overall network experience,” said Three UK chief marketing officer Tom Malleschitz.
• The Internet Advertising Bureau warned that Three’s move could result in publishers being forced to charge users for content they currently enjoy for free.

I think this is good strategy for Three as it has been proven to be a successful method by other companies however, this poses a larger threat to the on-line advertising business who would soon be unable to receive any revenue from the advertising on mobile websites.

NDM News Story 44: Independent owner considering closing national print titles

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/feb/11/independent-owner-considering-closing-national-print-titles



The Independent is considering terminating their print form and relying on their online title only. Although the decision has not been officially made, it seems that it is very likely that it will happen in the near future as the national title that supports the Independent has been sold to Jonston Press, who seeks to invest more in the website. People working for the Independent are taking the situation in a positive manner by expressing their surprise about how long the Independent lasted.

• The likely decision has been prompted by Lebedev’s decision to sell the i, the cut-price national title which provides financial support to the Independent, to Johnston Press, the owner of the Scotsman, in a £25m cash deal.
• He offered the 150 full-time Independent and i staff, supported by casuals, little to assuage their fears of closure. 
• The independent was launched in 1985
• The Independent’s paid circulation is 40,718 while its Sunday sister title sells 42,888 copies. 

As people are trying to find the cheapest ways of finding news as well as looking for convenience, online news is the most ideal. I think the independent is making a very logical decision to rely purely on the website as they would not have to waste any funds on newpapers that are often not bought as people prefer to read the news on their devices.

NDM News Story 43: Twitter's US users fall by a third in two years - report

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jan/29/twitters-us-users-fall-by-third-two-years-report



Despite its initial popularity, Twitter and Vine are steadily losing an audience which can be evident in the several figures provided by a third party analysts, 7 Park Data. However, Twitter's data reports the complete opposite, claiming that they have actually risen in audience numbers. There are, however, reasons to explain the discrepancy such as Twitter taking account the bots and automated accounts or 7ParkData only using information that people have willingly given up. 

• Twitter’s own numbers, which report a 25% growth
•  Twitter was installed on 36.1% of US mobile devices, Vine was installed on 5%. Today, that has fallen to 25% and 2.9% respectively.
• The company’s weekly active users, the number who open the app each week, has fallen too, from 15% to 10.5% for Twitter and 1.7% to 0.8% for Vine.
• Twitter’s penetration falling from 30% to just over 22%.
• Twitter itself reports that 80% of its active users are on mobile

I think that a decrease in popularity for twitter and vine is inevitable as new social media sites are constantly being created. Therefore, people are more likely to stop using old forms of social media and flock to the new forms.

Media and collective identity

1) Read the article and summarise each section in one sentence, starting with the section 'Who are you?'

Who are you: The media influences as to construct an image of who we would want to be.

I think, therefore I am:  Social position was, at one point, much more important than being an individual, and it was what our success was based on.

From Citizen to consumer: Edward Bernays said that people purposefully conditioned themselves to become a passive consumer from an active citizen and that with this, advertisers aimed to sell products by promoting a positive self image.

The rise of the individual: The concept of individualism become popular and people rebelled against conformity as they wanted to show their different and unique points.

Branding and Lifestyle:  Branding associates personality with a product and we, as the audience, attempt to find products that match our personalities.

2) List five brands you are happy to be associated with and explain how they reflect your sense of identity.

Apple: Apple products are created for numerous purposes and has many functions, converged into one device, whether it be an iPhone, computer of watch. I think it shows how I seek convenience.

Converse: Shoes which are comfortable yet stylish shows how I like to wear things that look good but are also comfortable for daily life.

H&M: Clothing is often affordable and comfortable which is all thats needed from clothing.

Vans:Shoes which are comfortable yet stylish shows how I like to wear things that look good but are also comfortable for daily life.

Kipling: Kipling bags are mostly for casual use, but they are also very effective due to the many pockets and compartments that most bags have. The material is also very durable, which shows that I like to use the same style for a long while.

3) Do you agree with the view that modern media is all about 'style over substance'? What does this expression mean?

This expression means that people worry more about the outlook and appearance of their product rather than the effectiveness of its purpose, and I think that recently, this statement has been proven to be very true. Many people have a great focus on items that are trending in fashion whether it be clothing or digital items, and that the function of the item no longer matters. I think, to a certain extent, the style and branding of items, in some sense, shows other people the type of person you are and people carefully choose the things they own to portray a certain image to society. Although, there is a proportion of people who think its more about substance over style, it is evident that the media is entirely comprised of different forms of promoting style rather than substance.

4) Explain Baudrillard's theory of 'media saturation' in one paragraph. You may need to research it online to find out more.

The media has conditioned society to think a certain way and act a certain way. As we are completely overloaded with the media's dominant ideologies, we can no longer distinguish between the real value of commodities and the great value that the media conveys.

5) Is your presence on social media an accurate reflection of who you are? Have you ever added or removed a picture from a social media site purely because of what it says about the type of person you are?

I think my presence on social media greatly reflects who I am but only to a certain extent. I think this is because with social media sites such as Facebook, people get to see your likes and interests through what kind of pages and posts you like. However, it is difficult to see my personality through my presence on social media. I haven't removed or added pictures purely with the intent of showing people what kind of person I am, but it is common with many people as they only want certain aspects of their character to be shown publicly.

6) What is your opinion on 'data mining'? Are you happy for companies to sell you products based on your social media presence and online search terms? Is this an invasion of privacy?

Personally, I have no issues with data mining as greatly filters out what kind of things I would want to see and what kind of things I wouldn't want to see. I think it would be a great time saver when the time comes where there is something particular that I would like to buy or watch. I do think this is an invasion of ones privacy, however, unless someone is doing something that is inappropriate or illegal, there aren't any major effects for anyone.

Identities and Film: blog task

2) Complete the Twenty Statements Test yourself. This means answering the question ‘Who am I?’ 20 times with 20 different answers. What do they say about your identity? Write the 20 answers in full on your blog.

Social groups and classifications (SGC) 

Ideological Beliefs (IB)
Interests (I)
Ambitions (A)
Self Evaluations (SE)

1. I am female (SGC)
2. I am 18  (SGC)
3. I am in yr 13  (SGC)
4. I am studying media   (SGC)
5. I am studying japanese   (SGC)
6. I am studying english    (SGC)
7. I am a buddhist  (IB)
8. I am a K-pop fan  (I)
9. I am short  (SGC)
10. I am Sri Lankan  (SGC)
11. I am an older sister  (SGC)
12. I am a daughter (SGC)
13. I am a niece (SGC)
14. I am cousin  (SGC)
15. I am a granddaughter  (SGC)
16. I am a sixth form student  (SGC)
17. I am a friend  (SGC)
18. I am British  (SGC)
19. I am living in London   (SGC)
20. I am doing my media homework

This probably shows that I am a type of person who identify's with different social groups but would prefer not to openly reveal any other personal information.

3) Classify your answers into the categories listed  on the Factsheet: Social groups, ideological beliefs, interests etc.

4) Go back to your favourite film (as identified in the lesson). What does this choice of film say about your identity? Are there any identities within the film (e.g. certain characters) that particularly resonated with your values and beliefs?

My favourite film is a film called Miracle in Cell No.7, which is a South Korean film about a father with a mental disability who is wrongfully convicted of murder. While in prison, he bonds with other prisoners who do everything in their power to help him meet his daughter again. With all the characters in the film having extreme personalities, it is hard to identify with, however, I do have great sympathy for the protagonist who felt completely powerless in proving himself innocent due to his mental impairment, and that he only cared about being able to see his daughter again. This may show that the pleasures I receive when watching films are predominantly for diversion than self identity.

5) Watch the trailers for the five films highlighted as examples of gay/lesbian representation in mainstream film. How are LGBT identities constructed in the trailers and how are audiences encouraged to respond to these representations?

LGBT identities are represented as something that is completely condemned in society. Due to this, Oscar Wilde's preferences are shadowed by the people around him, with a character saying, "It's not whether there is anything wrong, its whether or not there appears to be something wrong" which implied that Wilde will be accepted as long as he hides his true demeanour. Although LGBT identities are criticized, audiences are encouraged to believe that to love someone of the same sex is completely natural and that one should not be afraid of being themselves.

In Philadelphia,  LGBT identities are represented as something despicable and vile as people want to completely avoid the protagonist as well as have him fired from his job due to his sexual orientation. There are many instances where it is evident that people did not want to have any association with LGBT identities such as when the lawyer did not want to be around the protagonists as well as when the protagonist was asked whether he wanted to be in a separate area, while in the library. However, audiences are encouraged to be the difference in the world of discrimination and prejudice as the audience may decide to identify with the lawyer who ultimately decides to help the protagonist.

LGBT identities are considered as something that must be hidden from friends and family, however, it suggests that the acceptance of LGBT identities varies within different cultural backgrounds. From the trailer alone, audiences may be encouraged to believe that LGBT relationships cannot progress further into marriage and will always be something that is unrealistic when thinking about the future.

Due to this being a recent film, LGBT relationships are represented as a complete normality and unlike The Wedding Banquet, it shows that the relationship can progress to marriage and even to the extent of building up a family. The family relationship is also portrayed equally to heterosexual marriages with children which normalizes LGBT identities. However, the movie does explore the issues and conflicts that can arise after building a family with a LGBT couple, such as the children being curious about their birth father and the situations that follow from it. Although comedically analyzing such problems, audiences, overall, are induced to equalize LGBT relationships to heterosexual relationships.

In the film, it seems that LGBT identities are completely separated and alienated from the general public. This accentuates the detestation that most LGBT identities receive often, however, as they are shown to be very heavy in numbers, this may signify that despite being marginalized,  the community is growing and has become a great force that can support miners. This may show audiences the brutal reality that the LGBT community have to face which may encourage them to be more accepting of the community

NDM News Story 42: Fine Brothers spark fury with YouTube trademark attempt

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-35459805



Popular You Tube video creators, the fine bros, have received heavy backlash from the viewers after announcing an attempt at trademarking and licensing the react format. Furthermore, they announced that they will open a licensing scheme called react world,. where other people may use their format and graphics. However, the You Tube community reacted very negatively towards this decision with the channel losing a vast number of subscribers from their You Tube channel.

• The format is hugely popular on YouTube, and countless content creators, including US chat show host Ellen DeGeneres, have produced videos in this style.
• Since their announcement on Tuesday, the Fine Brothers have lost more than 170,000 followers from their YouTube channel.
• "I can't remember a channel that lost so many subscribers this quickly. At one point they were losing 10,000 an hour," said Jon.

I think this decision is very selfish of the Fine Bros as this stops anyone from reacting to anything through a You Tube video. As the Fine Bros can only react to a limited selection of popular content in the media, some other content with an alternative and smaller audience would not be able to receive a reaction.

NDM News Story 41: Google pulls adblocking app for Samsung phones

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/feb/03/google-pulls-ad-blocking-app-for-samsung-phones



After breaching a term in the contract, Google takes down an ad blocking app that allows ads to be directly blocked in Samsung's internet browser, days after the app was released. The term they broke was "interferes with, disrupts, damages, or accesses in an unauthorised manner the devices, servers, networks, or other properties or services of any third party including, but not limited to, Android users, Google or any mobile network operator" Google earns a large proportion of their revenue from advertising that is accessed through Samsung's web browser which would overall lead to a great loss for Google

• The app had reportedly racked up 50,000 downloads since its launch on Monday
• The Next Web reported that the app’s developer, Rocketlabs, had received an email from Google Play saying it breached section 4.4 of an agreement Android developers must sign

This seems like a poorly executed plan from Google as they completely forgot about their advertising revenues and created an ad blocking app in order to follow in Apple's footsteps. Although Google may have thought that they would receive more customers for Samsung by doing this, ultimately, it will lead to a greater loss than gain. 

Identities: Feminism and new/digital media

1) Summarise this example for the rest of the class in one paragraph

Ched Evans: Jean Hatchet led a petition preventing footballer, Ched Evans from being signed to a new football club after he was convicted of rape. Hatchet, who describes herself as a radical feminist, gathered roughly, 160,000 signatures in September 2014 and her campaigns are said to be the fastest growing online petitions, that greatly swayed the minds of football club bosses. 

As the footballer, did pay fro his crimes and served his punishment, i do no think that he deserved such severe treatment from people online and radical feminists such as Jean Hatchet. It is valid and expected that Ched Evan would receive heavy back las, however, this campaign to prevent Ched from having a career in football is to harsh for someone who has already paid his punishment.

Caroline Criado-Perez: The article describes the life of feminist campaigner, Caroline Criado-Perez who, after campaigned for reinstating Elizabeth Fry on the £5 note. With the news of Elizabeth Fry being wiped off the £5 note while being replaced by Winston Churchill, Criado- Perez, refused to have an all white,male lineup on the English Banknotes. Despite being dismissed by the initial Bank of England governor, Mervyn King, new governor, Mark Carney offered whether it was acceptable for Jane Austen to be put on the bank note instead. Following her appearance on News at Ten,talking about sexual assault and rape, Criado-Perez began receiving a number of sexual and death threats, but she still keeps a positive attitude, believing that there are more people who are against such crude behaviour than the trolls who exude this kind of behaviour.

This incident is definitely a pure witch hunt as the people who threatened and harassed Caroline Criado-Perez were doing it purely out of contempt towards Criado-Perez. The campaigns that the feminist carried out were, however, highly necessary. By ridding Elizabeth Fry of the £5 note, there would be no females, representing the community, meaning that only men would be represented on symbols of wealth and prosperity. Furthermore, talking about rape and sexual assault is also a completely valid campaign as people need to be aware of staying safe.

Caitlin Moran:  After the great abuse that Criado-Perez received, Caitlin Moran decided to start a new way of campaigning, by starting a Twitter silence which would be a very contrasting method to what feminists normally use to get their ideas heard. This trend would highlight the fact that women do not have a voice in society however, this method seemed to be very ineffective with many people voicing this ineffectiveness on Twitter, most notably, conservative Michelle Malkin.

Although, it was a valid cause to support fellow feminist, Criado Perez, the twitter silence was completely ineffective with many people not even noticing that the silence was to convey a more important message.

Identities: Feminist theory and blog task

1) How might this video contribute to Butler’s idea that gender roles are a ‘performance’?

The music video greatly contributes to Butler's idea that gender roles are a 'performance' as Beyonce presents the typical woman in an over-exaggerated manner, which somewhat mocks the conventional image of a woman. This suggests that although she is shows to have the key attributes of what is expected of a woman, this is purely to serve as entertainment for the audience watching her music video and that there is no truth to these typicalities of a woman in modern society. Also, by taking on a man's role of fixing a car in the beginning of the music video, Beyonce is further displaying the fact that she is using a male role in a sexualised way to attract a larger audience which once again proves that the video is supporting Butler's idea that gender roles are a 'performance'.

2) Would McRobbie view Beyonce as an empowering role model for women?

 McRobbie would definitely view Beyonce as an empowering role model for women however, this would only be to a certain extent. McRobbie may not view Beyonce as an empowering figure for women as throughout the music video, Beyonce is reinforcing the old traditional stereotypes of a woman as she is shown to be a housewife who has nothing better to do than do the chores and wait around for her husband. Moreover, she is shown to fail at menial tasks and cry at the absence of her husband. This is a very negative image of women that is portrayed as it suggests that women aren't independent and that they are highly reliant on men. However, it can be interpreted that this video satirizes how women used to be in the past and celebrates how far women have come, being much more powerful and independent than what they once were. Furthermore, Beyonce acts as a great example of women who feel comfortable in their own skin and uses her confidence for her own advantage which may empower other women to be more confident about their body.

3) What are your OWN views on this debate – does Beyonce empower women or reinforce the traditional ‘male gaze’ (Mulvey)?

In general, I think that Beyonce is a very empowering figure who promotes women's great success in the music industry. She exudes confidence and determination to flourish and has reached success through virtuous means unlike many celebrities in recent times who have gained fame through scandals. Although she sexualizes herself by having many revealing stage costumes and acting seductive in many of her music videos, as Beyonce has control of what she wears and how she acts, I think this form of sexualisation is empowering Beyonce, making her feel as if she has power over men. If focusing on this music video, it is undoubtable that Beyonce is reinforcing the traditional male gaze as she is displayed in a way for men to lust after her and there are no aspects that show Beyonce proclaiming woman as powerful and maybe even the superior gender. This music video can only be viewed as empowering if the audience interprets the music video to be a satirical video of the primitive stages of women.