Post 10: Final Post Assignment

 Monday, December 7, 2020

Final Assigned Post 

Going into an in-depth analysis of media this semester and the impact that it can have on our everyday lives has really been an eye-opening experience for me. I feel like I am walking away from this class with ultimately a better understanding of what causes the rise of new technological platforms and advancements and how they can be both beneficial and hurtful to the overall function of our society. 

I think that society has a very prominent relationship with technology, and I do not think that is shown in any better of a way than it is at this current point in time. With the global pandemic, our culture has had to adapt to a more technologically centered society in the hopes of staying socially distanced for the time being. I think that this current relationship we have with technology is good, I just think that we as a society are losing touch with our humanity, by moving more toward technology. 

In me saying this though I ignore the many advancements that have become with the rapid growth and expansion of modern-day technology. It really is a thing of importance, and our society would collapse if we were to lose it. Recognizing this issue is the only way we can advance together as a society and regain the basic human forms of interaction we once cherished. 

I believe the point I am trying to make, and a point that a lot of people should agree with is that our society walks a fine line when it comes to the incorporation of technology into our daily lives, and we must be vigilant as to not let it consume us.

 

   

Post 9: EOTO Terms and Concepts

 Monday, December 7, 2020

EOTO Terms and Concepts: What I Learned 

A term that I thought was interesting to hear more about is that of a whistleblower. I am familiar with the term as it is used frequently when discussing politics today. It is common to hear about them in media as it always seems as though people within their own organization. The formal definition is as follows: 

A whistleblower is a person, who could be an employee of a company, or a government agency, disclosing information to the public or some higher authority about any wrongdoing, which could be in the form of fraud, corruption, etc. 

I also found it interesting to learn that the U.S. Department of Justice specifically the Office of the Inspector General actually offers rights and protections to whistleblowers, and they are taken from the website as follows:

Whistleblower Rights and Protections 

Whistleblowers perform an important service for the public and the Department of Justice (DOJ) when they report evidence of wrongdoing. All DOJ employees, contractors, subcontractors, grantees, subgrantees, and personal services contractors are protected from retaliation for making a protected disclosure. 

Source:

https://oig.justice.gov/hotline/whistleblower-protection 

Post 8: Privacy TED Talks

 Monday, December 7, 2020

Privacy TED Talks & Online Life 

I think before taking this class I had a solid understanding of the personal information that is collected from me on a daily basis while using the internet. Watching these videos though has opened my eyes even further to the horrifying truth of the amount of personal information that is collected by websites. 

It is honestly crazy to think about the amount of websites I have left a digital footprint on, and even scarier to imagine the type of information that they may have collected from even just a brief visit. I think that this opportunity to be reminded of the information that I am susceptible to share when venturing out into the internet. 

I do believe that we should have more regulations in place that are recognized by the public in order to understand the extent of our online footprint, and what we share with our so-called favorite companies. 

Sources: 

        https://www.ted.com/talks/juan_enriquez_your_online_life_permanent_as_a_tattoo

  

Post 7: Diffusion of Innovations

 Monday, December 7, 2020 

Diffusion of Innovations Theory: Instagram 

 Everett Roger's Diffusion of Information Theory is designed to track the use of technology from its introduction to its inevitable decline. This theory can be applied to the use, growth, and development of an application such as Instagram for example. 

First, the innovators to initially test the application weren't even testing Instagram itself, but its predecessor Burbn. It was not until October of 2010 that Instagram itself was released gaining 100,000 users in its first week of being active. The early adopters would come in December of that same year as Instagram rose to one million total users. The endorsement of this application by the early adopters allows the platform to grow even further and ultimately turning the early adopters into the early majority. The following September the early majority would then turn into late adopters as Instagram reaches 10 million monthly users. The effects of saturation began to set in as in April of 2012 social media giant, Facebook acquires Instagram for approximately $1Billion USD. Finally, we are at the point of maturation, where only laggards remain to discover this vastly popular application. 

Source : 

   https://www.instagram.com/about/us/ 

  

Post 6: EOTO What I Learned

 Monday, December 7, 2020 

EOTO Technology: Learned Information 

The Evolution of Netflix :

Netflix began as the idea of Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph to create a mail-order rental and purchase service for movies. By experimenting with sending themselves videos, the founders were able to determine that a DVD could safely travel through the U.S. Postal Service completely unharmed. In 1999 the company announces its subscription service allowing unlimited access to movies on a monthly payment basis. Following this, an algorithm is added to better recommend to the customer or member, what new movie they may be interested in viewing. After this point in Netflix's lifecycle, the company takes off, and two years later it goes public for the first time on May 23, 2002, at $1.00 a share, substantially lower than today’s rate, averaging at about $490 a share. 

Following this, Netflix would go on to make revolutions in streaming, meaning that customers could access movies without having to receive a physical copy of a DVD. In today's technologically centered society it has been easy for Netflix to become an application that is available across a variety of platforms. Another part of what makes the service so popular is the addition of its own originally directed films and series, allowing the company an opportunity for expanded review and recognition.   

Netflix currently has over about 100 million subscribers worldwide, several dozen awards for their original films, and it seems as though there are no limits as to what this company can provide and achieve in the world of entertainment. 

Sources: 

    https://about.netflix.com/en

 

Post 5: EOTO Technology

Monday, December 7, 2020

EOTO Technology Presentation: The Telegraph 

The communication device known as the telegraph was originally designed & developed throughout the 1830s-40s by Samuel Morse. The system transmits electrical signals by means of electrical wire hung between telegraph stations. These telegraph lines carry encoded messages from one station, which are then decoded on the receiving end, producing the message. The code that is used to transmit these messages was also created by Samuel Morse, and it would come to be known as Morse Code. 

                             

                                                 -Samuel Morse 

The telegraph was designed and created in order to achieve an efficient and potentially universal method of communication over long distances. 

                                                        

After the creation of the machine and once a means of mass distribution of this technology was designed the telegraph held great significance to the “manifest destiny” beliefs originating in 1845. This was the popular opinion of the time that the idea of the westward expansion of the United States was the destiny of its people. The telegraph aided in this expansion as it provided a simple and efficient way of long-distance communication. 

Source:

            Hochfelder, David. The Telegraph in America, 1832-1920. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2012. HPU Libraries, https://hpulibraries.on.worldcat.org/oclc/830022821. Accessed 5 Oct. 2020

Post 4: Eight Values of Free Expression

Monday, December 7, 2020

Eight Values of Free Expression 

Having another chance to take time and read through the Eight Values of Free Expression, I was able to make a decision as to which value resonated with me the most. I feel as though the following value holds the most prominence to me personally: 

4. Individual Self-Fulfillment ( aka Self-Actualization) — see C. Edwin Baker, Human Liberty, and Freedom of Speech

     Free speech enables individuals to express themselves and thereby create their own identify — and, in the process perhaps, find kindred spirits. Freedom of speech thus becomes an aspect of human dignity, human agency, and autonomy.

I can remember this concept of self-actualization from both past psychology and sociology courses both here at High Point, and earlier in my academic career. I feel as though that is also a part of what makes it important. for a topic like this to be recurring throughout so many fields of study, it must hold importance. This is all too true and we can see it prominent in our society today in the way that our nation holds the privilege of free speech in such high regard.

I think that without this important freedom of speech, we would not be able to express ourselves in the way that we do today. Allowing this freedom of speech enables our society to grow as individuals, but at the same time, sharing ideas and experiences that connect us further under the umbrella of humanity.