Thursday, September 27, 2007

HW 13: Blogs will change your business

During my time reading "So What?Who Cares?: Saying Why it Matters" (Graff 88-97)and "Blogs will change your business" (Kline and Burstein 221-233), I observed very many interesting facts. While reading "So What?Who Cares?" my opinion came to knowledge that the impact that the impact of blogging on communication is phenomenal. In order for a person to read one's articles, or journalism they need to make the readers become interested and engaged with it. It is always important to answer the questions so what and who cares. By giving people this knowledge. it shows them that the writer is familiar with what they are talking about and it shows them that the are caring about it. There were many examples in the book that expressed different ways of going about documenting answering these questions. A format that was revealed on page 91 of They Say, I Say is "This interpretation challenges the work of those critics who have long assumed that .", this is a way to formally fulfill someone with the knowledge of who cares about this particular subject. In the chapter "Blogs Will Change Your Business", there are many comparisons of why blogging has an affect on communication. Stephen Baker and Heather Green mentioned about blogs on page 222 " You cannot afford to close your eyes from them, because they're simply the most explosive outbreak in the information world since the Internet itself." This is stating that although some people may disagree with blogging, it doesn't matter they are not going to go away (well not anytime soon anyway). They have also exclaimed that they are going to affect each and everything, no matter what it is, so beware.

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

HW 11: Applying Graff, Chapter 6 to "Making Global Voices"

For this assignment I chose to view the blog Isaac Mao Continues to Blog , the website being http://isaacmao.com/meta/. While I spent time viewing the blog, I made some observations that the interview with MackKinnon had stated. He is a Chinese blogger that is very well known outside of China because his blogs are scripted both in English and Chinese. On his site, he mostly talks about controversies and issues that are going on in China. His last post was made on September seventh of this year, and he was talking about the World Economy Forum. As I was reading this I noticed that there was a lot of grammar mistakes and a lot of his wording was very weird. The presentation of the blog was very plain and boring. The background was a simple white along with the simplicity of black lettering. The only eye-catching thing about his site was the yellow heading, other than that it was not catchy to me.
Rebecca had mentioned some interesting things about Isaac's posts during her interview. She mentioned that the rules for blogging in China are very strict, if someone sets up an account on Mao's blog they must be careful of what they write. Their post may not be submitted due to word usage, considering that many people have gone to jail in China for disruptive displays on their blogs. Rebecca's perspective on this blog allowed me to agree with her. She had mentioned that Mao's site had been temporarily shut down for a little while, because he was documenting the Great Chinese Firewall and stated how he personally thought it worked. Apparently he had revealed to much correct information about the system (unknowingly) and was in trouble with the government. He allows people to view important information on his site and he needs to be careful about it. The way that this blog was portrayed in the book, to my understanding was correct. She had portrayed this blog to be important and that is the perspective I gathered from it.
Some people may disagree with my argument and it may look a little like this... Although all people do not think that Mao's blog is important , some of them may dispute my claim that a few things that he states may be valuable to some people.

Thursday, September 20, 2007

HW9: Applying Graff to Huffington.

When reading "Three Ways to Respond" and "Punching Holes in Faded Mirrors" there were very many situations that I observed. Huffington stated some very important facts throughout her interview... She stated on page 344, " The site won't be left wing or right wing: indeed it will punch holes in that very stale way of looking at the world." She is stating that her site www.huffingtonpost.com will make a difference in society and make people comprehend reality. She explained the blogosphere in comparison to 9/11, stating that to make an affect on something one has to be pit bull natured and relentless. In order to make someone believe one another, a majority of people must claim the same statement to be in fact true. In comparison to the interview in chapter four of They Say, I Say states " There are many great ways to respond, but there are three most recognizable ways: agreeing, disagreeing, or some combination of both." It is listing the same kind of comparison that Huffington was stating. There are ways of being persuasive in the media, and people have to figure out a way of telling the reader to agree with what they are stating.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

"My So-Called Blog"

After reading the chapter "My So Called Blog", it is important to allow middle school aged children to express themselves by writing on the internet without their parents monitoring them. By letting children express their feelings it helps them become more independent and allows them to mature on their own. It is most important as a teen to share your feelings and emotions with your close personell. During this time period in a person's life it is the most difficult. People are often undergoing very emotional and physical changes, being able to talk to friends openly is very important. It is good for children this age to widely spread and share their stories with anyone. It is a good opportunity for them to compare and contrast their feelings or experiences with someone else. There is also the question of why they wouldn't want their stories to be personal and secretive by having their private diary? Why do they want to share their stories and opinions with everyone else??? While reading this chapter it caught my eye where EmilyNussbaum says:
"Peer into an online journal, and you find the operatic
texture of teenage life with its fits of romantic misery,
quick-change moods and sardonic inside jokes. Gossip
spreads like poison. Diary writers compete for attenti-
on, then fret when they get it."(Kline and Burnstein 351)
This is a way for people to interact with one another and express their true inner-self. This gives them more self-confidence and allows them to feel more secure about themselves. It allows them to be more social and make more friends. It improves their independence level at a faster rate, say by allowing them to make plans with friends on their own. It is a very sufficient way to increase people's mental and technological skills. It prepares them for the real world, and that might be what parents are afraid of...

"I Blog,Therefore I Am"

During my time reading this chapter, there were very many interesting comments and concerns I came across. I disagreed with some and agreed with others. I did in fact agree with the understanding that you cannot always trust the media to deliver truthful facts to us. In the chapter it states that "old media" (including malls, newspapers, and books etc.) are coming to an end. I didn't particularly agree with this statement. I agree that it may not be as popular as it used to be, but the economy is changing. The "new media" offers new choices to people and they will take advantage of it. As it states on page 238 "Change, in other words, comes to the world on the world's terms, constrained by the limits of our political economy and human nature." It is trying to state that change happens when the time is necessary, people know when it is time for something new and advanced to take place. We will still use the old ways, but in different matters. If we never had the old ways of technology and media, the new ways would have never been able to come into play.

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Interest Statement

When it comes to social computing there are three technological terms that come to my mind. Social networking services are very popular amongst the teen population, along with instant messaging and e-mail. This is a way to interact with anyone you know, especially if some of your friends or family live, or have moved far away. Whenever I am on the computer there are three sites that I visit very often. I am always checking my myspace page and facebook page whenever I am online, then I always find myself checking my e-mail.
Everyone should be treated equal, no matter who you are. That is why I am interested in three main categories of empowerment groups. The first group that I would like to research in depth would be overcoming sexism. Every person knows that there are certain things that females can do that males cannot, and vice versa for males with females. But beyond that, they should be look upon at the same level. Another category is overcoming racism. Basing a person on the color of their skin is not right, it shouldn't matter if someone was pink, purple, blue or polka-dots everyone has good qualities about themselves. Last but not least comes overcoming homophobia. It should not matter what one's preference is in liking someone of the same sex or opposite sex. Someone who is gay or a lesbian may think that it is weird for someone to like someone of the opposite sex, so it doesn't matter the person's preference in my opinion.
I would like to look furthur into this on countries such as th U.S and Europe.

Victoria's Secret



On this assignment I chose to look up Victoria's Secret. I decided to come up with a hypothesis, and make up my own promise before going onto the website and seeing the real results. The promise that I came up with is that "Buying products from Victoria's Secret will make you feel and look sexier." As I was researching to see whether or not my hypothesis was correct I found many other things that caught my eye. I observed a crowd of half naked woman in a make-up ad with a caption next to it stating "The sexiest women in the world wear very sexy make up." Very Sexy is the name brand of the make up, and the ad makes it out to be that if you buy that make up you will look just the same as they do. Many of the brands of their products also portray the background of looking just so; for a few examples the name of their haircare products is so sexy, the name of a perfume that is sold is sexy little things, glamour by victoria's secret is the name of a bra collection they have and there is many more products I could list that portray the same idea. In other words, my prediction of Victoria's Secret promise was beyond correct.


I have purchased many items from the store Victoria's Secret and I feel as if their promise does apply to me. Many of their items are very comfortable, durable, and sexy so I strongly agree. If you have ever walked into the store or searched for the website online, it implies without even having to look that their products are all about looking and feeling great.


If there are any questions about this blog look up http://www.victoriassecret.com/

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

HW 2: Toward A More Paticipatory Democracy

Throughout the time I spent reading this chapter many issues arose about whether the media is truthful and reliable. It is said that many bloggers have uncovered more stories that news stations, and newspapers. Political blogs are also referred to as collective organizers. The question is, are they trying to cover something up? There are some things that will not be broadcasted over the air or published in magazines, but blogging on the other hand doesn't like to lie to people. They have uncovered stories locally and globally such as the War in Iraq, they have posted on websites all of the soldiers caskets and have revaled astonishing facts that would have never been discovered elsewhere. People are now begginnig to trust blogging more than any other source. Statistics show that 31 million people view blogging websites in one month, versus 5.7 million online news viewers. The public is "thirsty" for real information and blogging is the way to go. Blogging is bringing us "back to the future" by filling in the blanks of political coverage. Political blogs have turned into more of a participatory sport rather than a spectator one. Blogs in politics are tools to help engage more diversity throughout the nation and world. Blogs now have more acces to high quality information, so their viewing rates are increasing. If there were no internet politicians could rarely have campaigns, because there would not be enough success. It is thought to be that political blogging is bringing an end to the "unchallenged" authority to the media, setting an agenda for politics.
When the mass media informs us with information, it may not be right but they are very successful in telling us what to think about. Bloggers provide people with information they may never have gathered elsewhere. Bloggers go above and beyond when covering stories. They are truthful and honest unlike some other sources. New criticism journalists are creating new voices, opinions, and issues in the political society.
This chapter infromed me with a lot of new important information about the political blogging world. There are a lot of issues that the world is oblivious to, due to unrevealed information over the news or in magazines. If there was not blogging, we may never know what is truely happening out there.

HW 1: Burnstein's 12 Keys

While reading Burnstein's 12 keys, I found many things interesting. He had very many interesting observations and points. I thought that key number 4 " Blogs will coexist with other media for a long time to come, and there will be continual interactions and cross-fertilization" was very interesting and caught my attention. I am looking into becoming a journalist, and if I can make a blogging site that may become largely viewed and catch people's attention than maybe one day my success can turn into something more. In this perspective I will have the ability to fill society with knowledge that may not be found anywhere else. By allowing others' to have this knowledge people may become more involved with the environment and may also be more aware of what is "really" happening in the world today. I will have the ability to coincide with other people about issues that may taking place not only locally, but globally as well. Another objective that I thought was important was key number 11 " Blogs will continue to be important in politics for a long time to come", because the media other than blogging has a tendency to forget to tell society issues about politicians. Blogging is a way that citizens can communicate with one another, and view information that is valid and proven to be correct. In politics blogs can certainly become very influential to people. Although it is said to be that blogs may become less important in the 2008 presidential campaign, I personally think that people may become more interested. The way that society is right now, no one knows whether or not anyone is telling the truth. News channels, magazines, newspapers and any other published company are more likely to be lying because the more viewers or buyers they have the more successful they are. They can easily change a story that has been studied, so they gain more profit. Whereas a blogger is less likely to perform an act like that, due to the fact they do not get payed for what they are posting. Either way, Burnstein has researched very interesting topics about blogging.