Blog #11 : EOTO Reaction

This week within my Media Law and Literacy class, we were able to learn from our peers through Each One Teach One. The first time our class was assigned this task, I thoroughly enjoyed being able to present information I researched to my peers, so I was excited to receive the opportunity to participate again. I presented the topic of Mainstream Media, and basically explained what it is and how it influences our modern world. Due to my prior research on Mainstream Media, one of my peer’s presentations on the topic of propaganda resonated the most with me. 

While researching for my own presentation, I learned that MainStream Media was first introduced in the United States during World War I. It was utilized to spread propaganda in a widespread manner  to the citizens at that time.  During wars, propaganda can be considered very dangerous, and may even be considered a weapon. Propaganda during wars illustrates the “enemy,” or other nations and countries, in a poor light, in order to create a false image within the minds of our citizens. This must be one considered one of the most frightening aspects of propaganda, as some of the ideas propagated are meant solely to mislead and depict things that are not often reality.  Essentially, the reason for propaganda is to try to promote specific views to the mass population. While in middle school, I was first introduced to the idea of propaganda, as I studied the Holocaust. I learned about all the propaganda the Nazi Party developed to spread their discriminatory methodology to the citizens of Germany. Propaganda was one of the most important tools the Nazis used to shape the beliefs and attitudes of the German public.  The whole purpose of this propaganda was to influence the minds of Germans concerning what their future should look like. 

Although negative and war associated propaganda is typically what we are introduced to, there is also plenty of positive propaganda that attempts to spread a beneficial message to the public. For example, there has been an immense amount of propaganda to spread the message regarding the consequences of smoking. This is meant to try to create a positive change and influence individuals to quit smoking within our society. Personally, I see two different types of positive propaganda in my own life very frequently. The first may be seen on YouTube or TikTok in the form of advertisements. One example of this propaganda is a short film clip which persuades the audience to stop vaping. It is mostly published online due to the fact that its audience is young adults and teenagers, who are also the largest demographic that is impacted by vaping.  The second type of modern propaganda that I commonly see is on digital signs on major highways. These usually have common slogans that are trying to persuade drivers to stay safe, whether it be to warn of impaired driving or fastening your seatbelt. 

Overall, I believe it was interesting to learn a little more about propaganda, since it was a part of the beginning of MainStream Media.  I also thought it was helpful to enhance my knowledge of the topic in a different setting. Although propaganda is portrayed differently in today's world, it is very interesting to learn about the different types and the traditional forms. Its influence is also something to consider if we were to see our country enter a war again.  Essentially, all types of media are clearly connected in some manner. 

Blog #8 : Privacy

Privacy is defined as “the state or condition of being free from being observed or disturbed by other people” (Oxford Dictionary). Privacy can be easily defined, but it can be questioned whether or not it is a real occurrence in modern society. This is due to the fact that in today's world, true privacy does not exist very often. Nearly every aspect of our lives are being watched, whether by the government or technology software. 

One of the most frightening things I learned about privacy was from a Ted Talk by Juan Enriquez. He began his talk with the topic of tattoos and how they can hold a lot of symbolic meaning about a person through sharing the individual’s story visually. Now, there is nothing to be frightened about with physical tattoos, but electronic tattoos are a legitimate concern. Electronic tattoos are very similar to body tattoos, in the sense that they visually tell a lot about a person. There are electronic tattoos connected to every person that uses the internet, from your family and friends to yourself. We all understand that celebrities often lose their privacy once becoming famous, with even the smallest aspects of their lives being collected and distributed. This same collection of information has been happening to us over the past few decades. Sources such as Facebook, Twitter, Google, cell phones, and even GPS have been collecting information about us. This is nearly impossible to avoid because technology is so heavily integrated within our lives. Yet, the best way to look at electronic tattoos is from the Greek story of Sisyphus. Sisyphus was condemned to roll a rock uphill, for it to only fall back down eternally due to his poor actions. This rock can be compared to our electronic tattoos, for we will have them going up and downhill for a very long time. It is imperative to be cautious of what activities we are engaging in online so it does not damage our reputation. 

Unfortunately, those who do not use technology are also not safe from this invasion of privacy. Today, there are trackers that can scan license plates and follow each and every place we travel. They can collect information about you whether you are going to visit a therapist or an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. Catherine Crump held a Ted Talk on this tracking, that is essentially an unknown track of almost every move. License plate scanners are nearly everywhere, and yet the general population is typically unaware of what they look like or the fact that technology like this even exists. They are most commonly found within police cars or simply stationed on streets. They can track each place you visit and even track who is traveling with you. This information is said to be collected in case of a legal matter where this information would be necessary. Now, the question that is commonly asked is: What can the government do? Yet, they clearly do not care that they are invading our privacy, since they are playing a large role in collecting our information. Although it is said this information is only used to help with legal matters, it is not certain that the government is not abusing their power. 

One of the most basic solutions to help with privacy issues is to completely remove technology from one’s life. Yet, this is a very difficult concept, due to the fact that technology is quite integral in today's world. From phones to cars, there is technology within every single aspect of our daily lives. One small solution that could help is using Apple technology. It is claimed that if you were to use an Apple product to communicate with another user of an Apple product that your information would not be collected. Apple claims to know about the privacy invasion and has been putting forth efforts to keep users safe. One other precaution to take is to try using a third party communication source like Whatsapp. These third party messaging sites can help block the collection of our data. Despite taking these steps, it is clear that in today's world no one is safe from privacy invasion, and it will only continue to get more significant in the future. 

Blog #7 : The Diffusion Theory

 

The Diffusion Theory was created to help analyze and understand how new ideas and technology spread. This theory was created by professor Everett Rogers in his published book Diffusion of Innovations. I was introduced to this theory through a lecture that my professor held, where he explored Apple products through the Diffusion Theory. Once introduced, I realized that most of the technology that I am familiar with has been through each stage of this theory, and therefore I decided to look into my most commonly used app Snapchat through the lens of the Diffusion Theory. 

Nearly twelve years ago, Snapchat began as merely an idea when founder Evan Spiegel was sitting in his class at Stanford talking with his friends. So the question is how did a small conversation with friends lead to one of the most popular apps with nearly 360 million active monthly users? Perhaps because it was different from any other type of social media at the time. It was a social media creation that was most similar to face-to-face communication, for the whole purpose was to send pictures back and forth. In a 2013 interview with The Telegraph, Spiegel explained why he believed the app was so popular with the young users, “Snapchat changed that perception of deleting something as bad,” he said. “Online, typically you delete something if it’s bad or if it’s really embarrassing.”

This was the main reason that people became users of Snapchat. Young people wanted to try this new and unheard of type of social platform to communicate with others. When Snapchat was created in 2011, it was originally named Picaboo.  Yet, after the switch to the name Snapchat in 2012, the app’s popularity began to rise. The early users of Snapchat were all teenagers, which is how and why the platform became so popular. Young adults love social media, and during this time, they were moving away from Facebook due to parents and adults heavily utilizing this app. With the help of teeneagers connecting on Snapchat, the app had 10 million users within just the first year. In 2013, Snapchat created an update that offered a feature to not only communicate with one another, but post a story that all their friends could view.  By August 2014, 40% of 18 year olds in the US were using Snapchat on a daily basis. In 2015, Snapchat released Snapchat Discover, where you could say the “late adopters'' of the app came into place. Further, the MainStream Media outlets began to join the app, such as National Geographic, Vice, and ESPN. Influencers and celebrities could also post within Snapchat Discover, creating a place where all current events could be explored. 

Despite Snapchat’s huge popularity and growth, there are some downsides of the technology. The real downside is that Snapchats disappear. Stories on Snapchat only last for 24 hours and Snapchats sent between users disappear after opening. This leaves room for illegal activity, since nothing is being stored. One of the biggest issues is child pornography, due the fact that most users are teenagers. The “disappear feature” in Snapchat has allowed for illegal activity to occur without consequences in many situations. It also has deceived young adults into thinking that sending explicit pictures is not as serious a matter, due to the disappearance of Snapchats after opening. 

The majority could agree that the positives of Snapchat outweigh the negatives. It has established a new form of digital communication unlike any other messaging platform. It does not have any censorship within the app, which allows one to post anything for friends to see. This app gives users complete freedom to express themselves in whatever way they please. It also gives more privacy than most other applications, since you can only become friends with people on the app if they know your username. Snapchat’s cost to benefit analysis is also very impressive, from an app that was developed to just allow others to communicate, it has now grown to a strong company. In 2014, shortly after the launch, Snapchat made only $3.4 million and lost $500 million that same year. Yet, despite the company’s loss, they continued to advertise and create updates, which led to generating $4.1 billion in revenue in 2021.

It is clear that Snapchat can be named a historic technology advance, initiating from a small conversation within a Stanford classroom and growing to a multi-billion dollar technology company. Snapchat is something that all of you have heard of and the majority use on a daily basis. This app has been extremely influential within young adults’ lives, creating connections and relationships unheard of prior to its development. Overall, Snapchat is an extremely successful piece of technology, and will most likely continue to experience growth in the future.