Mixed Media Creative Essay Network Media

With the phenomenal pace at which network media is developing and constantly changing the part we play within society, it is important to consider what it is we must be doing to adapt to this change by identifying how it affects us in our day to day lives as well as our identities within the world. As discussed by Adrian Miles, Network Literacy is ‘being comfortable with change and flow as the day to day conditions of knowledge production and dissemination, and recognising that all of this may change, and appear differently in 6 months. What underlies such change, however, are the principles of distributed content production and sharing, folksonomies, trust networks and having access to skills that let you collate and build with these varieties of content and knowledge.’ It is this excerpt that I wish to explore in this essay today with the ideas that are at the forefront of my own understanding of Network Media, which I believe are significant when considering how this constant flow and change of communications today are affecting us.

 

First I would like to address the fundamental change that society has undergone through the movement from Print Media to Network Media. Before the rise of the Internet, the main vehicle for communication and knowledge production was print media such as books, essays, magazines, newspapers and such tangible objects.  The culture of print is a lot more than reading and writing however, and is a ‘deeply imbedded knowledge that comes from many years of teaching and learning’ (Miles, 2007). Knowing that each book has a beginning middle and end; that each page has two sides; that writing flows from left to right and from the top to bottom, that we navigate using page numbers and chapters – knowing all of these things and utilising them in the process of reading a book shows a very complex and implicit understanding of print literacy, and the ability to consume such information efficiently (Miles, 2007). Network Media on the other hand, although similar in many ways, has vastly changed the role of the consumer and their participation in communication. To be Network Literate doesn’t mean knowing how to use a computer or surf the web, it means to be able to ‘participate as a peer in the emerging knowledge networks that are now the product of the Internet’ (Miles, 2007). In this day and age, it is imperative that we are aware that we are no longer merely consumers, but also sharers and that each time we re-tweet, post or share we are contributing to the great network of communications. The dissolution of the distinction between consumer and contributor is of vital importance to understand if one would like to participate – to be ‘network literate’ means to be sharing just as much as we are consuming.

 

When I consider this topic, I believe that because it has emerged as such a significant part of current society it is imperative that it is cultured and cared for by future generations so that it heads in a positive direction. It is evident that the younger generations are participating in Network Media more than ever before, however, this does not mean that they understand it and are participating as ‘peers’ (Miles, 2007). The problem that we face with integrating this topic into early education however is two-fold. Firstly, the area is moving at such a phenomenal pace that by the time students leave school their knowledge on the topic becomes irrelevant, having been replaced by newer systems. Secondly, it is also important to consider the long-standing traditional teaching systems that are still held by a majority of schools today that do not accommodate for such subjects. As Miles discussed on the Network media blog forum, Schools are like Factories – unaccommodating to the natural learning abilities of children and although it appears it’s perfectly doable to create a more effective education approach, it is not often attempted.

David Buckingham’s paper on behalf of Ofcom “The Media Literacy of Children and Young People” discusses children’s ability to ‘access, understand and create communications in a variety of contexts’ (Buckingham, 2005). The conclusions of the research suggested that there are many gaps in network literature that need to be addressed in youth education.  A particular need is to assess children’s ability to evaluate Internet content, their awareness of commercial strategies in the media, and about media production in the home and learning progression in media education (Buckingham, 2005). Validity on the web is as Miles described ‘trivial’ and it is very easy to forget this when utilising the Internet. George Downing, a fellow Network Media student, discusses validity in his blog and highlights how when our pre-disposition to a certain style or format of factual presentation is emulated in websites and blogs, our initial reaction is to believe it. Some eccentric, yet prime, examples he uses to prove his point constitutes of a YouTube video telling the audience how to charge an iPhone using an onion.

The younger generations are being brought up surrounded by this media and it is imperative that they are aware of the consequences that could be faced if they do not evaluate the information they are receiving appropriately. The agent of change has moved sources of knowledge from solidified, researched publications to a forum of public opinion and free speech for anyone.

So we come to the question, how do we teach Network Media when it is changing at such a rapid pace? Well as Miles pointed out in our first week of the course, we learn through doing. The reason we media students have been keeping a blog throughout the duration of this course is for exactly that reason, and it has become evident over this time why this is actually a vital proponent of becoming Network Literate. The answer I believe is true for this is addressed in Miles’ article Blogs in Media Education. Miles states a few ‘salient points’ to keep in mind when thinking about Network Media. The first is that we have spent years building our Print Literacy skills so why should it be any different for a new medium? It is important to consider that although print literacy is the basis upon which blogging is composed, one must stray from the known boundaries of print literacy and forge the pathway for ‘post-print-literacy’ (Miles, 2006). This means that just like essay writing, it takes time and practise to learn how to successfully write a blog as well as be network literate which can only be achieved through doing rather than theoretical work. The second ‘salient point’ to keep in mind is that if practise in being network literate is not included throughout the learning process of it, how could the student not treat it as something of a ‘rote activity’ and really not appreciate the value in learning the skill (Miles, 2006). When it comes to addressing the issues of the technology moving so quickly and constant change in the topic, with constant practise and only through doing will one be able to keep up with and continually learn how to become network literate. If one is being taught theoretical knowledge, it would be close to impossible to become successful within in this topic. Learning through doing is the only way to go.

 

So keeping all this in mind, I believe the key to the future of Network Media is in the youth of today, and only by implementing their Network literacy abilities in school along with their print literacy abilities will they prove solid success in their networked abilities outside of school. If the education is started early and people allow themselves to – rather than lose touch with technology and the media world – keep up with it and learn and grow with the development of the area, many doors will open for the future of humanity and the Network media realm. For myself, as a professional moving into the field of media, it is necessary that I am able to keep up with the ins and outs of the area also. There is no spending 3 years on Network Media and then stopping and telling people you are very educated on the topic, because education on Network Media is constant and never-ending – there will always be more to learn. There is no set knowledge, and no limits to where these networks could take us. For the time being, we are still limited by applying our print media knowledge to Networks rather than allowing divergent thinking to take us off course into the unknown. Once this begins to happen however, I personally believe that I would like to see the youth who are our future, emerging themselves in the new technological era so that we have the best people to forge this new pathway into the unknown.

 

 

References

Buckingham, D 2005, “The Media Literacy of Children and Young People,” Centre for the study of children and young people, University of London: London

Miles, Adrian. “Blogs in Media Education: A Beginning,” Australian Screen Ed. 41 (2006): 66-9

Miles, Adrian. “Network Literacy: The Path to new knowledge” Screen Education Autumn. 45 (2007): 24-30