Lessig, chapter 4: RW, Revived

I thought Lessig's chapter 'Remix' was really interesting. I caught my attention from the first sentence about his friend being an English major (like me!) and starting to question why quotes need to be cited and who is getting upset when material isn't cited. He uses a perfect term which I only had associated with mash-ups and DJ': the Remix. Lessig questions the idea that quotations in papers, studded with information from outside sources, is another form of remix. In that sense, there is a very creative connotation to how one can write. But is it original? I think the evolution of an idea, or as we've learned in English 200, the transformation of an argument with quotes as your support, is a form of creativity. You must come up with the idea and prove it through quotes you are inspired by. Artists may be criticized for using styles other than their own, but it's usually other tools which make art outstanding.

One of the amazing facts Lessig talks about in the section about text is the fact that there are around 100 million blogs world wide. That is an incredible number! There are so many forms of connection and communication. Humans love to talk about themselves, hence the blogs which are diary like. Then there are connections to be made about interests, how-to's, hobbies and the like. Then there are fact/updates from companies...so many resources that allow creative (or sometimes just work) out put able to been seen world wide.

The next section brought up one of my favorite contemporary 'artists,' GirlTalk. (Ok Tangent! I really wanted to mention my favorite remix Bounce That and then saw one of the related video's is GirlTalk's remix 'Shut the Club Down' music video...which is remixes of all of the samples in his song. Pretty Cool/Crazy/I wonder how many people are upset about this now.) Lessig states that GirlTalk remixes, "...between 200 and 250 samples from 167 artists in a single CD. This is not simply copying. Sounds are being used like paint on a palette. But all the paint as been scratched off of other paintings," (70). This is an incredible fact - he is using an hours worth of material from 167 other people. When you think of it like that painting, as paint scratched off other paintings, it seems so miniscule that it's pretty cool that a lot of 'flecks of paint' are able to be put together to create something new. I would be honored to be an artist who is sampled by other artists. I guess it comes back to citing - is it up for Girl Talk to give props to whoever he 'borrowed' or sampled from? Should he be posting a track list with all of the songs and artists he has used in his CD? Or is it enough that he isn't receiving any money for his albums and just celebrated as a DJ when he is paid for gigs like Spring Concert 2009?

Jenkin's 'Photoshop for Democracy'

How is Jenkins using the phrase "Photoshop for Democracy"? Find, post, and discuss an example as it relates to the reading


In this chapter, Jenkins uses "Photoshop for Democracy" as a way to further political statements (and other social statements, I suppose) through the use of upcoming technologies. He says that an idea needs to be furthered through "broad circulation" -- much like an advertisement (207). Some of those same principles are used for that circulation, using images that are " vivid, memorable, and evocative," (207). Such as the political statement featuring President Bush and 'The Apprentance' star Donald Trump, the two were mashed together through video editing to create a statement about 'firing' the President. The idea that the video went viral means that links were forwarded through email, posted on blogs, and featured on news sites. This resulted in more and more viewers reposting and forwarding that message, and also led to more followers for the cause. One interesting aspect about this video is that creator, LoPorto, was desperate for the NBC Corporation to sue them over copyrighted material so that the video would become even more public and possibly global. 


This chapter also talks about being effective with these statements, using public images (such as Donald Trump's executive duties) as media convergence and collective intelligence. These pieces of media already have a certain impact on consumers, so political activists are using those general ideas through media to make others think about their idea in a certain way. 


He talks about Photoshop, in particular, as a tool to create nice quality graphics at a low cost, and allows the public to "manipulate and recirculate powerful images to make a political statement" (221). This is a fairly accessible way for society to create a mixture of pop-culture and political opinion. To me, it seems like the home-version of a political cartoon. You can pair any celebrity snafu with a mistake by the Leader of the Free-World, and it can become popular and discusses around the watercooler. I feel like the people who create this type of art will be younger, more in touch with technology and the program, but the ones circulating would be anyone who is able to press 'FWD' on their emails.

Technology Autobiography

After wrestling with Audacity for a few different sessions, I have a version of my Technology Autobiography that I am excited to share. Through this writing, recording, and editing process, I think I have turned into an official Mac girl -- I had a really hard time on my laptop trying to figure out Audacity, and the most efficient way to edit my piece. I ended up recording it about 3 times, taking bits and pieces of the best versions, and mashing up the phrases as best as I could. I am proud to have figured out the levels and filtering out some of the background noise! However, I think my speaking voice was the most unnatural it could have sounded...I guess I'm not used to hearing myself talk!

I think it will be pretty nerve-wracking hearing my voice over the speaker system of the MacLab...but I do like the piece that I've ended up with. I'm very excited to see what other people come up with and if they choose to use music. Anyway, this is for sure an example of a Technological process, from start to finish!

Enjoy!
--Kate's Technological Biography

Playing with ZoomRecorder

Our File!

Response to Jenkins

Jenkins: Introduction.

Convergence, as discussed in this introduction, is about many forms of media overlapping one another and entering each others forms. We think of 'media' these days as almost anything able to give us information and this spans across both print and electric. Characteristics of Convergence include "circulation of media content" and why someone chooses to spread that media, and less of the technology behind the circulation.

I suppose one way convergence is submersed in our lives is the way we use our phones. Technology has made it so that, the iPhone for example, has everything you need to make something on it (from a text document, mp3 file, or movie) and it can automatically get spread at your command (through email, networking sites, YouTube). We now have the power to be connected at our fingertips and able to spread media, our own opinions, in a flash.