Social Technology meets Remix Culture

Since our last two class topics have been Social Technology and Remix Culture, I thought this was an interesting news item to share, which illustrates both: "Tebowing."

What is "Tebowing"? Well, it started when Denver backup quarterback Tim Tebow got his first start of the season last week, and rallied his team from a huge deficit for an improbable overtime win. Tebow knelt in peaceful prayer while his teammates celebrated wildly around him.

It's the kind of sight fans have experienced before, players expressing their faith while the audience watches passively from home. But we're talking about The People Formerly Known as The Audience now, right?

That image struck a chord with folks around the country. It inspired one man to grab the URL tebowing.com and launch a web site. On that site, every manner of American has now uploaded photos of themselves "tebowing", kneeling in all sorts of places from Army barracks to HazMat sites, family 'tebowing', bowing on boats and in ballet class, and in the cockpit. The distance between inspiration and personalization, between imagination and action, is shorter than it has ever been - and what a remarkable example of photo remixing using social technology.

Read: Tebowing sweeps country

Photos: Tebowing

The People Formerly Known as The Audience

Here is the original, now-classic post by Jay Rosen about the People Formerly Known as The Audience

Clay Shirkey: How Social Media can make history

Here's one of the most forward thinkers in Social Media from a 2009 talk.

DTC375 visit to KGW Studios

A note on APA style

After reviewing this past week's literature review assignment, I can see that it would be helpful to offer a review of key elements of APA style, which is essential for the reference section of your team projects. Learning and using proper APA style will also help you in every research paper you ever write, and make it easier to read research papers.

Purdue University has an Online APA Style Guide that is extremely helpful and easy to use, organized by the type of citation (in content versus reference section) and then is also divided into authors (single vs. multiple), books versus periodicals versus online citations, conference papers, etc. I strongly encourage you to use this online guide as you prepare your project's references section.

Two of the most common citations you'll make in your reference sections are for journal articles, and for articles retrieved/found online. Here are the models for these two common sources:

Journal article, APA style:

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number), pages.

Harlow, H. F. (1983). Fundamentals for preparing psychology journal articles. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 55, 893-896.

Article retrieved online, APA style:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Date of publication). Title of article. Title of Online Periodical, volume number(issue number if available). Retrieved from http://www.someaddress.com/full/url/

Bernstein, M. (2002). 10 tips on writing the living Web. A list apart: For people who make websites, 149. Retrieved from http://www.alistapart.com/articles/writeliving

Why 31% of Phone-and-text Users Prefer Texting

Is the phone call a dying mode of communication?

Here's the study we've referenced in class a few times, from the Pew Research Center, which found that of Americans with text-enabled cell phones, 31% preferred texting to talking on the phone to someone as their preferred communication method. An earlier Pew study found the majority of teens preferred texting to talking by phone.

We've talked in class about Marshall McLuhan famous assertion that the medium affects the message. Orality, Print and Electronic media each have their own textuality, as noted in Dr. Grigar's handout that we've reviewed.

Think about what is lost, and what is gained, in a text message exchange versus a phone call; and, why and when someone might prefer texting over speaking by phone. The attached links suggest some answers.

KGW Live @ 7 episode

The mission of KGW's "Live @ 7" is to be 'not your normal local newscast' but news with an updated edge, and web / social elements. Please review this episode in advance of our field trip to KGW to watch a live production of the show.

We will meet at 6:30 p..m. on October 12 at KGW Studios, 1501 SW Jefferson St. in Portland.

Steve Jobs: In His Own Words

Steve Jobs' commencement address a few years ago to Stanford, shortly after doctors told him of his cancer, has been called the "Gettysburg Address of commencement speeches." An innovator who rarely granted interviews, Jobs' comments in this 15-minute address are worth viewing as we reflect on the passing of one of the brilliant digital thinkers of our time.



And here's a link to the full text

Journalism example: Nonlinear / Multimedia Storytelling

Here's an example from several years ago that shows how digital media can be combined in creative ways to more effective report a news story than in conventional media formats like print or television.



The Minneapolis Star Tribune created a web experience where users could explore the city's bridge collapse, entering and exiting the story wherever they pleased (rather than a story experience controlled by the reporter or the newspaper).

The project also does a great job of effectively combining multiple media formats, from images and maps to text and powerful video interviews, again with the added strength of allowing the user to choose how they navigate through the story.

13 Seconds in August (Minneapolis bridge collapse)

Non-linear / Multimedia Storytelling

The National Archive Digital Vault is a remarkable example of taking a physical museum, constrained in time and place, and making it available to 'virtual visitors' at any hour from anywhere in the world. And, once inside this virtual online museum, explorers can chart their own path - a true non-linear experience, created by Second Story, an interactive media company based in Portland, Oregon.