The Role Of Algorithmic Media On Audiences And Society

Weber highlights the dual position of mass media, which operate both as transmission vectors and as actors. The philosopher argues that the emergence of media monopolies, especially in television, transformed information into “pre-formation” (Phillips, 2011, p.170). Indeed, journalists and reporters used to process raw data, analyze it, and provide their readers with more or less relevant keys to enable them to form their own enlightened outlook on the content presented. With the advent of information technologies, the focus has shifted towards less analysis and a larger volume of “news”: “Transparency here would equate with immediacy of meaning and accessibility of comprehension” (Phillips, 2011, p.163). News TV channels offer a constant loop of raw data over raw data. They provide only superficial critiques of the material that they offer to their viewers: ”as you say, not so long ago the notion of information ‘implied a process of alteration’: it was developed to take into account the inevitable aleatory effects of space and time in the transmission of data.” (Phillips, 2011, p.170). Social media has intensified the thirst for fast circulating, humongous volumes of material, which is doubly mistaken for information and transparency: “it [social media, author’s note] can stimulate the expectation that ‘then’ is

In “Worship At The Altar of Convergence”, Henry Jenkins discusses the concept of convergence, where both old and new media collide. Jenkins describes convergence as the flow of content between multiple media platforms, industries, and the migratory behaviour that is present throughout the media audience (2). He explains that convergence is a necessity because it describes technological, industrial, cultural and social changes that are present in our technological society. That being said, Jenkins analyzes the relation between media convergence, participatory culture, and collective intelligence.

Over the last century, the way the world shares information and communicates has been continuously evolving. Such milestones in the development of communication and media over the last one hundred years include traditional media such as the telephone, radio and television. “New technologies have developed so quickly that executives in traditional media companies often cannot retain control over their content.” (Lule 2017). However, with the recent forms of new media such as the creation of the internet in the 1980’s and more recently social media such as Facebook and YouTube information can now be shared and absorbed at accelerated rate.

As time goes on, social networking sites can influence millions of people without thinking about the consequences. Foer wanted the readers to understand the full impact of Facebook by mentioning that “No other company has so precisely boasted about its ability to shape democracy like this-and for good reason. It’s too much power to entrust to a corporation” (75). The author found it peculiar that Facebook wanted to boast about their success, and the amount of influence that they have. Foer meant by “the ability to shape democracy” is Mark Zuckerberg is allowing Facebook to change the Democratic Party and he does not deny this accusation. He is able to reshape democracy due to the excessive use of algorithms. The people controlling the algorithms are allowing it to pick videos or post pictures that could have social pressures which can influence a person to sway from their original stance. Algorithms should be posting videos at random and should pick related videos if the users asks for it; that way, the user knows what they want and it will be their chose if they want to continuing watching the same videos. Facebook could be sneaky and can be inhumane when it comes to human emotions. Resulting in another treacherous scenario because Facebook does not care, “Whether the information is true or concocted, authoritative reporting or conspiratorial opinion, doesn’t really seem to matter much to Facebook. The crowd gets what it wants and deserves” (Foer 76). Foer mentions something that can be tremendously petrifying to the world and it is that Facebook does not care whether or not a piece of news is genuine on their site. The word “concocted” means made up and Facebook does not filter or check out the sources that make up facts that millions of people read. By ignoring their obligation to check out news like a journalist does, they allow the crowd to get what they want, even if it is fabricated.

There has been a data surge in the previous decade achieved by online social networking such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, among others, which guarantees the new age of digital life. Be that as it may, social information is traded off, it is being seized by particular financial interests, it prompts a key movement in the relationship amongst examination and people in public good and it encourages new types of control and reconnaissance. It investigates how we perform basic examination inside a bargained social information system. The master, global lineup of agencies investigates the points of confinement and difficulties of social information research so as to imagine and grow new methods of doing the new practice. At its center, this accumulation contends that we are seeing a key reshaping of the social through social information mining (Redden 2015).

“Media change does not necessarily result in equilibrium. It sometimes creates more than it destroys. Sometimes, it is the other way around. We must be careful in praising or condemning because the future may hold surprises for us” (Postman 29). Media critic Neil Postman published those words in 1985 in his book, Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. Yet, as we find ourselves in 2015, his insight seems written for today. In our age where society is still elusively trying to grasp and figure out what place new media and technology hold within our lives, and where debating the merits and flaws of an increasingly technological society seems to be a hot-button issue, Postman had already commented on such

A rhetoric for contemplation; what is social media’s magnitude that encompasses an individual’s everyday life? As the unabridged ecosphere verves on with their day- to- day living: from wakening out of bedstead to arrive promptly at work, to getting up late and hastening to class, surely in that time frame we are predisposed or rather attaining some form of social media alongside with them. In apropos towards the aforementioned, it ventures to further differentiates itself in numerous approaches of entertainment. Which then emanates to concentration, is the hysteria for social media categorically advantageous? Such can be consequential from the previously quantified emphasis of confab; in repudiate, disputably not, regarding speculation as: miscommunication/clarification, Fabricated Representativeness, and the evolution of Propaganda.

3. Flew, T. (2008). New Media An Introduction. South Melbourne. 3rd Edition. South Melbourne: Oxford University Press.

Madrigal says “We’re not going to stop using algorithms. They’re too useful. But we need to be more aware of the algorithmic perversity that’s creeping into our lives.” Algorithms are problem solving operations by a computer based on a sequence of specified actions and they restrict the amount of information the user sees.

In order to understand the importance of the comments made on social made, we need to understand the intended message of the artifact. This artifact is the YouTube video, which is also the main medium for the message. Other media that will be addressed in this essay is twitter, Buzzfeed, and other common social media,

TVI is “the era of channel scarcity, the mass audience, and the three-network hegemony” (Pearson [Jenner, 2]). TVII is “ the era of channel/network expansion, quality television, and network branding strategies” (Pearson [Jenner, 2]). TVIII is “the era of proliferating digital distribution platforms, further audience fragmentation, and…a shift from second-order to first-order commodity relations” (Pearson [Jenner, 2]). While these distinctions are made, they are not necessarily set in stone. Hence the introduction of TVIV. Netflix “draws into question the previous notions of multi-platform as television, due to its independence from more traditional modes…” (Jenner, 3). Michael Curtin argues that there is an alternative means of understanding the current television trend, that of matrix media. “The matrix era is characterized by interactive exchanges, multiple sites of productivity and diverse modes of interpretation and use” (Curtin [Jenner, 4]). The entrance of Netflix as both a television producing and streaming system has led to the argument for TVIV, which “can be understood as an era of matrix media where viewing patterns, branding strategies, industrial structures, the way different media forms interact with each other or the various ways content is made available shift completely away from the television set” (Jenner, 4). Netflix does fit into TVIII’s guidelines in many ways, but its format is different from the existing

Social media can be seen from completely different aspects and points of views. A major role in these different opinions plays mostly the age of the beholder, because social media made an enormous change in the last 50 years. One very important aspect in our today’s society is to get as many information as possible in a very short time period ("Impacts of social media”) Through social media and especially social networks such as twitter and Facebook, the information gets spread extremely fast. There are for example reporters who search on those networks to get information for their news and articles. (“Impacts

This essay explores the different relationships between social media platforms and the government to provide insight into the different ways the government uses media masses to further their agendas and how its good business is used for political gain. This essay also discusses the different ideologies and fallacies individuals have of the media’s role in society. This essay wasn’t written to persuade one either way, but rather to bring the important relationship to light, so with better understanding people can make wiser decisions as voters, consumers or investors.

This dissertation aims to identify and explore the use of the different social media platforms, focusing on the impact that the rise of social media has had on journalism practices. In addition, this paper will examine the public’s responses to the news that they receive through social media platforms. Examples of social media platforms that this dissertation will include are; ‘Twitter’, ‘Facebook’ and ‘YouTube’ as scholars claim that these are the most frequently used sites in the 21st century.

Old media like broadcasting, print, and film created a consumer culture in the public. Participants would consume the media they could find, and that was the extent of their engagement with a piece of media. But during the digital age, participatory culture has exploded. Participatory culture is a concept coined by Henry Jenkins where consumers take part in both the consumption and the production of media. The advent of computers facilitates a low barrier of entry for creation of digital media and its propagation. With the availability of personal computers and consumer level software to manipulate media as well as the popularity of the internet to spread content, fans have become more engaged with the media they consume. In turn, participants can create forms of that media that comment and expand upon the original content. Participants who used to only consume media now have the avenues to become producers of media. In this essay, I will explore participatory culture through the lense of Lev Manovich’s Five Principles of New Media: Numerical Representation, Modularity, Automation, Variability, and Transcoding.