Tragedy, User Generated Content and Commercial Interests

‘It’s going to be a part of everyday life- creating and sharing media will be a thing that normal people will do all the time, every day, and it doesn’t seem strange.’ – Jimmy Wales (List, M et al 2009)

It’s not really debatable that most people of my generation are fairly addicted to the internet and social media. I myself am constantly checking my phone and utilising the social networking sites available to me to connect to other people. I would not say that I am addicted, however I do think that the internet has become a part of my everyday life and routine. Reflecting on the fact that producing and sharing media is such a thoughtless part of my day, I decided to check the screen time application on my phone. This application allows you to see the total hours per day you spends on your phone and also the categories of applications you are utilising. Unsurprisingly my most utilised app was Instagram. However, what did surprise me was the fact that I spend more than double the amount of time on Instagram compared to any other application.

In ‘New media: A critical introduction’ (List, M et al 2009), the authors assert assert that networked media developed through the need for communication alongside the pressures for commercialisation, ‘the tension between culture and commerce’. A major aspect of this is the way in which new media has flipped the concept of consumer and producer on its head, through allowing the consumer to become the producer. Personally, while I have previously analysed the implications of user generated content, particularly on the traditional media sector, I have never pondered the commercial aspect of it. How this kind of autonomy could have been created through commercial interests or how user created content could contribute to commercial gain for the company. The notion of certain use of the internet to be considered ‘free labour’ (List, M et al 2009), I found particularly disturbing solely because I’d never considered this. As while the internet has created this landscape where new media platforms are flourishing and two way content creation and sharing is easily facilitated, the author argues that these platforms have an ‘economic and material basis’ (List, M et al 2009). The internet marries both commercial and individual creative interests.

In light of the recent horrific tragedy that shook the world; the terrorist attack in New Zealand, I have been utilising social networking sites in order to obtain information. Social networking has allowed for personalised understanding of cultural events as media production becomes two way and consumers are able to produce media. For example, I was first made aware of the tragedy through Instagram as my cousin posted on his story. I am half kiwi and therefore feel quite personally connected to the tragedy and social networking allowed me to connect with family members in New Zealand. Later in the day many people were posting personal opinions, condolences but also sharing traditional news articles and broadcasts. This aspect of the content production made me realise how traditional and new media can work together but also the commercial aspect of user involvement in networked media. Nonetheless, I think that user generated content was integral in my understanding of the New Zealand terrorist attack and new media allows for easily accessible up to date information.

Reference:

Lister, M et al 2009, New Media: A Critical Introduction, Routledge, 2009