Convergence and Media Literacy: Key Concepts and Theories

Convergence

the coming together of computing, telecommunications, and media in a digital environment.

Technological Convergence

refers to specific types of media, such as print, audio, and video, all converging into a digital media form.

Economic Convergence

the merging of Internet or telecommunications companies with traditional media companies.

Cultural Convergence

occurs through the globalization of media content when, for example, an HBO series such as Sex and the City becomes wildly popular among female office workers in Thailand.

Implications of Convergence

the effects that convergence has on media organization, media type, media content, media use, and media distribution.

Media organization

In the world that predated convergence, media content was created and published or broadcast on predetermined schedules by centralized media organizations.

Media type

distinctions between media types is not so clear anymore; listeners can choose how they want to view content, such as in a podcast or video.

Media content

users have more control over what they are viewing; for example, hyperlinked content allows a viewer to explore a story in a nonlinear narrative.

Media use

Fewer and fewer places on the globe are truly isolated; technology is used to reach captive audiences.

Media distribution

The Internet enables audiences around the world to participate in a dialog about global events and issues.

Interpersonal Communication

what was traditionally considered interpersonal communication can also be widely distributed by individuals through online networks.

Globalization of Media

the impact of global media on multiculturalism, or the diversity of culture internationally.

Telecommunications Company

A telecommunications company that also owns a media company can speed the transmission of its own content and slow the content from competing companies.

Nonlinear Narrative

a narrative structure that allows the viewer's choice of links to determine the outcome.

Captive Audience

an audience that is physically present in a location where they are exposed to media content, such as video displays in elevators or at checkout registers.

Advertising Revenues

the income generated from advertisements, which can be significantly affected by how and when media content is consumed.

Mass Distribution

the ability to distribute media products widely through new marketing avenues on the Internet.

Blurring Media Boundaries

the phenomenon where the distinctions between different media types become less clear.

Engaged Public

a future scenario where the public uses digital media and online networks to further interactivity and democracy.

Media Conglomerates

established media companies that may hijack public interests for their own ends.

Global Dialog

the interaction among individuals separated by political and cultural boundaries facilitated by the Internet.

Skill Development

the knowledge and abilities required to participate fully in society, which can be hindered by the high cost of telecommunication services.

Content Control

the increased ability of users to choose and control what media content they view.

Media audience

Audiences in the age of convergence can now more easily and quickly communicate with each other and with those who create and publish mass-communication content.

Media profession

In addition to writing effectively, more newsrooms expect reporters to use video and audio to tell stories.

Attitudes and values

People have come to expect a certain degree of transparency in their communications with each other and with leading organizations, including media organizations.

Mass communication

Media of mass communication refer to any technological means of communicating between large numbers of people distributed widely over space or time.

Mass communication and Convergence

Digital media and online networks have blurred the line between interpersonal and mass communication.

Surveillance

Journalism that provides information about processes, issues, events, and other developments in society.

Correlation

The ways in which media interpret events and issues and ascribe meanings that help individuals understand their roles within the larger society and culture.

Cultural transmission

The transference of the dominant culture, as well as its subcultures, from one generation to the next or to immigrants.

Digital media

Technological platforms that facilitate the creation and sharing of content through electronic means.

Public relations

The practice of managing the spread of information between an organization and the public.

Advertising

The activity of producing advertisements to promote products or services.

Transparency

The expectation of openness and honesty in communication from organizations.

Privacy laws

Regulations that govern the collection and use of personal information.

Social stability

The condition of a society where social norms and values are maintained.

Audience perception

The way in which audiences interpret and understand media content.

Content creators

Individuals or organizations that produce media content for public consumption.

Mass audience

A large group of people who consume media content simultaneously.

Media operations

Organizations involved in the production and dissemination of media content.

Newsworthiness

The criteria used to determine the value or importance of news stories.

Communication tools

Technological means used to facilitate communication, such as emails, blogs, and social media.

Cultural subcultures

Distinct cultural groups within a larger culture that maintain their own unique values and practices.

Entertainment

Performed in part by surveillance, correlation, and cultural transmission, but also involves the generation of content designed specifically and exclusively to entertain.

TV - The Future of Convergence

The enormous popularity of television makes it a powerful instrument for teaching people culture and social norms, with viewing habits changing due to the advent of the remote control and channel-surfing.

Transmission models

The Shannon and Weaver mathematical theory of communication based on a linear system where an information source formulates a message, which is encoded into signals by a transmitter, delivered via a channel, and decoded by a receiver.

Critical Theory and Cultural Studies

Influenced by Marxist notions of ideology and capitalism, it criticizes positivist researchers for misapplying physical science methods to human behavior, emphasizing cultural experience over mere information reception.

Consolidation

The process of traditional media companies growing fewer and much larger through mergers and acquisitions over the past fifty years.

Oligopoly

An economic structure in which a few very large, powerful, and rich owners control an industry or collection of related industries.

Digital native

A member of a younger generation that has grown up with digital media and adapts to rapid technological changes.

Digital immigrant

An individual who grew up in the analog media era and generally has more trouble adapting to new digital technologies.

Digitization

The process that makes media computer readable.

Viral marketing

Promoting something online through word of mouth, usually via online discussion groups, chats, and emails.

Peer-2-peer

The basis of file sharing services, a computer communications model and network where computers are considered equal peers who can send, store, and receive information equally well.

User-generated content

Content created by the general public for distribution by digital media.

Produsers

Audiences who are no longer simply consumers but also produce content.

Citizen journalism

The gathering and sharing of news and information by public citizens.

Behavioral targeting

Advertisers tracking individuals' web browsing behavior to provide ads that closely match the topics of sites visited or searches made.

Cookies

Information that a website puts on a user's local hard drive so that it can recognize when that computer accesses the website again.

Medium

a communication channel, such as talking on the phone, instant messaging, or talking in a chat room (also interpersonal communication)

Synchronous media

media that takes place in real time and require the audience to be present during the broadcast or performance, such as live TV or radio

Asynchronous media

media that does not require the audience to assemble at a given time, such as printed materials and recorded audio or video

Time-shift

a recording of an audio or video event for later viewing

blog

a type of website in which a person posts regular journal entries, with the posts arranged chronologically

Simplified communications model

developed by Wilbur Schramm in 1954 and based on the mathematical theory of communication. it includes a source who encodes a message, or signal, which is transmitted to a destination where the receiver decodes it.

Product Placement

A form of advertising in which brand-name goods or services are placed prominently within programming content that is otherwise devoid of advertising, demonstrating the convergence of programming with advertising content.

Media usage

5 hours focused usage + 6 hours unfocused usage per day

Focused media usage

reading important articles, listening to news

Unfocused media usage

listening to music, 'lean back' TV

Media Multitasking

consuming two forms of media at the same time.

Forms of Communication

different types of communication including interpersonal, group, and mass communication.

Cultural Work of Mass Media

unifies culture (sports, fav movies, tv shows) and fragments culture, creating niche audiences (youtube, teen vogue vs vogue)

Media Literacy

the process of critically analyzing media content by considering its particular presentation, its underlying political or social messages, and its media ownership or regulation that may affect the type of content we receive

Semiotics

The study of signs and symbols

Signifier

what the symbol is (can include words)

Signified

what the symbol represents (context is important)

Framing

The presentation and communication of a message in a particular way that influences our perception of it.

Echo effect

A phenomenon that occurs when people surround themselves with online voices that echo their own, reinforcing their views and the belief that those opinions are in the majority when in fact they may not be.

Media Grammar

The underlying rules, structures, and patterns by which a medium presents itself and is used and understood by the audience.

Print media grammar

Spacing between words to aid reading comprehension, as are page numbering, tables of contents, indexes, and chapter headings. Most newspapers are organized into sections, such as sports, business, and local news.

Magazines

Use sophisticated graphic and design techniques, feature more long-form writing, often with just one or two articles per page and multipage pieces.

Radio + recorded music grammar

Includes volume changes, multiple audio tracks, actualities (edited audio clips from interviews), sound effects, and voice-overs. Recorded music typically conforms to particular stylistic conventions, especially regarding length and music format.

Film + TV grammar

Comprises editing, camera angles, lighting, movement, and sound. An average sitcom is usually shot on a set with less than half a dozen locations, mostly indoors, and uses multiple camera angles; punch lines are reinforced by a laugh track.

Digital Media grammar

Web designers often follow an unwritten rule to have a website logo in the upper-left corner linked to the home page. Icons create a visual, interactive language, with standardized icons for functions like printing, opening documents, playing videos, emailing documents, and zooming in or out on maps.

Implications of Commercial Media

Economic factors and corporate decisions influence news coverage and entertainment creation. Corporate media giants can harm democracy and political processes through poor news coverage, banal entertainment, and incessant advertising.

Media companies

Are businesses that must turn a profit to satisfy private owners or shareholders if publicly traded.

Publicly funded media

Should be funded to reduce dependence on the marketplace and market logic's influence on media content.

Consumer choices in media

Critics assert that consumers have fewer choices than believed due to the concentration of media ownership.

Concentration of Media ownership

Greater ownership concentration results in less diversity of media voices and possible silencing of minority and non-mainstream views.

Cable providers

A provider like Comcast, as the sole provider in many markets, controls content from its NBCUniversal media properties.

Media Bias

A real or perceived viewpoint held by journalists and news organizations that slants news coverage unfairly, contrary to the goals of balanced coverage and objectivity.

Professional Journalism

Professional journalism has a strong culture of what used to be called 'objectivity' but is now referred to as 'fairness and balance,' or the professional duty to cover an issue so that all sides are presented accurately and justly.

Objective Point of View

The 'objective point of view' in television news interviews treats the viewer as an observer.

Framing Bias

A framing bias could affect a journalist's choice of terms, defining someone as a 'terrorist' rather than 'rebel,' for example.

Entertainment Media

Entertainment media play an important role in propagating stereotypes and demonizing certain behaviors. They can also normalize people and activities.

Media Literacy Skills

Developing Media Literacy Skills involves understanding the purpose of media content, considering the source, examining framing, identifying stereotypes, questioning the media ecosystem, and distinguishing between public vs. private ownership.

Public vs. Private Ownership

NBC is privately owned because the government does not own it, but it is also publicly owned because people can buy its stock.

Revenue Streams

Revenue Streams include direct sales (subscriptions), advertising only (money from Ads), and hybrid (subscription and ad money).

1792 Postal Act

The 1792 Postal Act set up the post office and made newspaper services able to send a copy of a newspaper to another newspaper company for free, and to citizens for very cheap.