Head start on my petition final assignment!

I'll do a proper blog later on to fulfill my final NMN assignment but, in the meantime, I wanted to share the online petition I have launched.

Since reading the course syllabus, I have been wracking my brain trying to think what might inspire my petition. Thanks to this week's news about Edmonton's imperilled McDougall Church, my inspiration struck early—causing some extra stress in terms of my selfies assignment and my paper for COMM506.

I sing and volunteer with Edmonton's Kokopelli Choir Association, and McDougall has been our main rehearsal and performance venue for years. I also think Edmonton has a terrible record when it comes to preserving our built heritage.

The McDougall issue definitely has its thorny side, but bottom line, we must find a way to save this building. I think we're a smart enough city to succeed in this.

Yesterday I joined the strategy group for Friends of McDougall Church, and proposed that my little homework assignment form part of their campaign. I worked with them on the wording of the petition, and earlier this morning ... voilà! Please take a minute to sign!

http://t.co/QXbWrJOzuy petition launched to save McDougall Church—sign NOW https://t.co/9tbwBIdDBn #yegarts #yegcc @doniveson @FriendsofMcD
— Scott Rollans (@ScottRollans) February 25, 2015

Selfie Assignment: Additional Resources

Image from here.

During our live chat this morning, students asked whether you should focus only on Miriou and Katz only. I said definitely you should refer to all the readings from the module:

1. Lauren Katz, (May 2014). “Say it with a Selfie: Protesting in the Age of Social Media,” http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2014/05/10/311143584/say-it-with-a-selfie-protesting-in-the-age-of-social-media
2. Pamela Rutledge, (2014). “Making Sense of Selfies,” Psychology Today, http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/positively-media/201307/making-sense-selfies
3. Adam Levin, (2014). “The Selfie in the Age of Digital Recursion,”  Invisible Culture, http://ivc.lib.rochester.edu/portfolio/the-selfie-in-the-age-of-digital-recursion/
4. Crisia Miriou, (2014). “The Selfies: Social Identities in the Digital Age,” Proceedings of the Australian and New Zealand Communication Association Annual Conference, Swinburne University, Victoria 9-11 July, 2014, http://www.anzca.net/documents/2014-conf-papers/796-the-selfies-social-identities-in-the-digital-age/file.html
5. Rob Horning, (Nov. 23, 2014). “Selfies without the Self,” The New Inquiry, http://thenewinquiry.com/blogs/marginal-utility/selfies-without-the-self/
6. Browntourage, (Sept. 2014). “A *Different* Selfie Article: Decolonizing Representations of Women of Color,” http://www.browntourage.com/magazine/look-at-me/
7. Lev Manovich, (2014). “Selfiecity,” http://selfiecity.net/#

And, this quote you might find pertinent:

"I think that selfie culture (whatever that might be) has come to the same conclusions about the punctum as Derrida did. It isn’t merely about framing or capturing the perfect picture–we’ve moved beyond the MySpace angle and the bathroom mirror. The selfie is not just about the creation of the self, of picking angles, of making my face look less dysmorphic and strange. Instead it is about attempting to craft a particular kind of punctum, a focal point, a haunting/lingering that stays with the viewer long after she or he has forgotten the studium of the photograph (clothes, facial hair, sand, umbrellas, the hotel balcony)."

And you might want to refer to these articles:

•  http://blog.oup.com/2013/11/scholarly-reflections-on-the-selfie-woty-2013/

•  http://liveyoungandfree.ca/young-living/social-media-self-vs-selfies/

•  http://www.straight.com/life/368086/putting-selfies-under-feminist-lens

• The selfie in the digital age: from social media to sexting. Academic JournalBy: Peek, Holly. In: Psychiatric Times. Dec 2014, Vol. 31 Issue 12, 28G; CMP Medica, LLC Language: English, Database: General OneFile

• The Feminine Art of Failure: queering feminist spectatorship El arte femenino del fallo: queering a la audiencia feminista Debra Ferreday Lancaster University

T'S SELFIE-EVIDENT: SPECTRUMS OF ALIENABILITY AND COPYRIGHTED CONTENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

• Full Text Available
  
  

  Academic Journal

  By: Storella, Alison C.. Boston University Law Review , Dec2014, Vol. 94 Issue 6, p2045-2088, 44p, Database: Legal Source

Instafame: Luxury Selfies in the Attention Economy.

Detail Only Available

Academic Journal

By: Marwick, Alice E. Public Culture. Jan2015, Vol. 27 Issue 1, p137-160. 24p. 2 Color Photographs, 1 Chart. DOI: 10.1215/08992363-2798379. , Database: SocINDEX with Full Text

.

Selfies, personalization and bioethics.

Editorial & Opinion

(English) By: Chadwick R, Bioethics [Bioethics], ISSN: 1467-8519, 2015 Mar; Vol. 29 (3), pp. ii; Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell; PMID: 25655575, Database: MEDLINE

Module 7: #Selfies

Module 7: Identity, Representation & #Selfies (two weeks)

Monday, Feb. 16, 2015 - Sunday, March 1, 2015 Feb. 18: As practise for your Selfie Assignment, tweet two #selfies (in two separate tweets) and include a short critique using the remainder of your character count Feb. 23: As practise on weaving theory alongside your critique for your Selfie Assignment, read Lauren Katz’s “Say it with a Selfie: Protesting in the Age of Social Media” article and Crisia Miriou’s “The Selfies: Social Identities in the Digital Age” paper ALONGSIDE at least the first page of selfies on “Which Picture Would they Use?” at http://iftheygunnedmedown.tumblr.com/. How do you interpet the selfies and how does the representation fit alongside the two articles and the theories of identity raised? Post your findings in a 2-3 paragraph response as a COMMENT on my Module post on the class blog Feb. 27: Tweet your thoughts/reflections/questions about any of this module’s readings Theory of the Selfie Assignment DUE by 23:59 March 1

It's not all about the self(ie)

I have to admit, that while creating this board that oddly terrible song #SELFIE kept jumping into my head (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdemFfbS5H0It). It is a superficial, comedic song that attempts to portray the extreme sense of narcissism that can be linked to social media and of course the #selfie.

The selfie, a self generated photograph, has increased in popularity as technology (smart phones/camera phones) has made self image capturing easier and more socially acceptable.

While the term ‘selfie’ is relatively new, and even recognized as the 2013 word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries, the societal desire to capture portraits and snapshots of moments in time is not.

According to Rutledge, “a selfie is the documentation of a passing moment, not a larger expression.” This statement resonated with me in the way that I think it speaks to many aspects of photography and visual media beyond just the selfie. The act of taking a photo, on a non-commercial basis, is typically motivated by the desire to capture a moment in time or a memory. Birthday’s, vacations and celebrations are frequently documented by photos and even portraits, that create a sense of historical context rather than self-indulgence. This had me wondering if it is the ‘selfie’ that represents the self-indulgence or the way in which it is shared that creates a sense of social dependence. An interesting avenue to explore in Assignment #2 perhaps.

While there is often a negative association with the selfie, Katz brought forward some interesting concepts around using this social tool effectively and for the greater good. The use of signs and posters to generate attention has long been part of cultural norms and the selfie is no different. “Posting a photo of yourself with a message makes a bugger statement than simply tweeting a hashtag or anonymously signing a petition,” (2014).

The Pinterest Board I have created focuses on highlighting a few of the ways selfies can be used in a more positive light with relation to larger context as well as simple moments in time.

Follow Jaylene's board #Selfie on Pinterest.

Lauren Katz, (May 2014). “Say it with a Selfie: Protesting in the Age of Social Media,” http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2014/05/10/311143584/say­it­with­a­selfie­protesting­in­the­age­of­social­media

Rutledge, P., (2014). “Making Sense of Selfies,” Psychology Today, http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/positively­media/201307/making­sense­selfies

http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2013/11/word-of-the-year-2013-winner/

Module 6: Pinterest as Visual Content Aggregator

I have created a habit of collecting TED Talk links from Twitter - thanks to MACT, I am a TED Talk convert - and indulge in some periodical binge-watching.  A TED Talk by Eames Demetrios gave me the thread I was looking for when approaching this week’s assignment, as I find Pinterest beguiling in the positive and the negative.  

Eames talks about the passion of his grandparents (Charles and Ray Eames, creators of the Eames chair) to capture stories of motion/change/evolution in their furniture design.  

(Herman Miller Eames Chair, n.d.)

Eames also shares movies created by his grandparents – the movies were actually compilations of many different yet thematically related motion pictures, laid out in squares, each of equal size.  Eames notes that the intent of this cinematographic style was to allow the viewer to scan these compilations simultaneously in order to derive an overall theme, thereby strengthening the impact of the message on the viewer.  He noted that this was a Gestalt approach, entirely intriguing and not at all dissimilar to Pinterest’s GUI.

(Bobcotton, 2012)

Gestalt theory is derived from the careful arrangement of objects or shapes to represent a “’unified whole’” (The Gestalt Principles, n.d.).  Gestalt theory “attempt[s] to describe how people tend to organize visual elements into groups or unified wholes when certain principles are applied” (The Gestalt Principles, n.d.).  In short, it explains why some people can see Jesus in their toast.

(Powers, 2014)

I find that Pinterest, like Google+, facilitates users storytelling in Gestalt form. According to this infographic, storytelling is compelling to consumers.

(Gillett, 2014)

As a teacher, I am also a marketer, selling concepts that I need my business communications students to buy into so that they can communicate professionally in the business context.  Story pervades in all facets of business, from report writing to sales, strategic planning to accounting (I hope the last is based on a true story).

I have used Pinterest before and absolutely LOVE its visual stimuli – however, knowing I could spend ENDLESS amounts of time on it, I have sworn off for the time being...until now, that is. 

The Sociabilities diagram Jessica embedded on the last slide of her Pinterest exposition PPT was very useful in explaining the process of curating content for an online audience; it is similar to the writing process of planning, drafting, and revising for publication. As such, I decided to base my Pinterest board on the #selfie: in preparation for our next assignment, I’ve developed an aggregate for my thesis as part of my selfie-paper writing process. 

  Follow Lisa's board The #Selfie and Its Spinoffs on Pinterest.

Pinterest's universality in access and application is compelling but can also be overwhelming, much like seeing all of a book's pages at once.  If approached with Gestalt theory in mind, though, one can easliy see the story - not only in the pins but in their overarching theme and message the pinner conveys.

Finally, as a nod to Peter Morin's rant on the misuse of curation, here is a scene from CBC's new comedy Schitt's Creek, Episode 2 - The Drip:

"Heady stuff" indeed (CBC.ca., n.d.).


REFERENCES

Bobcotton. (2014, June 2). Ray and Charles Eames: A communications primer 1953 [blog post]. Retrieved from http://mediartinnovation.com/tag/film/

CBC.ca. (n.d.). Schitt's Creek: Episode 1X02 - the drip [video file]. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/schittscreek/episodes/season1/the-drip

The Gestalt Principles [web page]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://graphicdesign.spokanefalls.edu/tutorials/process/gestaltprinciples/gestaltprinc.htm

Gillett, R. (2014, June 4). Hit the ground running: Why our brains crave storytelling in marketing [blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.fastcompany.com/3031419/hit-the-ground-running/why-our-brains-crave-storytelling-in-marketing?partner=rss

Herman Miller Eames Chairs [photograph]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.thecitrusreport.com/upseen/tag/eames-chair

Powers, L. (2014, May 6). See Jesus in your toast? It's perfectly normal, new study says [blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/see-jesus-in-your-toast-it-s-perfectly-normal-new-study-says-1.2633549

TED. (2007, February). Eames Demetrios: The design genius of Charles + Ray Eames [video file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/the_design_genius_of_charles_and_ray_eames?language=en

Curating a story: Pinterest

Scrapbooking, journaling, and curating on Pinterest. It is a first day for everything. Today, I have found out that curating  on Pininterest is a nice experience: colorful, creative, engaging.

“Curation is the act of individuals with a passion for a content area to find, contextualize, and organize information. Curators provide a consistent update regarding what's interesting, happening, and cool in their focus” (Rosenbaum & Rosenbaum, 2012). Thus, I used Pinterest to “sav[e] and shar[e] stories [I found] around the web” (Perez, 2015), focusing my attention towards materials related to what I liked most throughout the course: digital literature and storytelling. It was fun! #digitalliterature

Follow Adela's board Digital Literature #NMN on Pinterest.

I used this opportunity, to ‘talk’ a bit about digital storytelling. #digitalstorytelling

I found interesting that some consider one cannot write a story on Twitter (using only a few characters), and the word curator  used on Pinterest is a bit exaggerated. For instance, this seem to upset  Harold Koda, an “actual curator” (Tahltan_channel_surfer, 2012): “The very meaning of the word [curator] is starting to change, and that makes me crazy” (Tahltan_channel_surfer, 2012).  I appreciate Koda’s opinion, but I also appreciate that if 70 million users on Pinterest are embracing the change, there is little he can do about it -- especially, in an era when “content is currency” and “creation, optimization, distribution, and curation”(Nicholasbrealey.com, 2015) are key in succeeding online.

References

Nicholasbrealey.com,. (2015). Content is Currency. Retrieved 14 February 2015, from http://nicholasbrealey.com/boston/content-is-currency.html

Perez, S. (2015). Pinterest Appeals To Publishers With New Article Pins, Pushes To Become A Bookmarking & “Read It Later” Service. TechCrunch. Retrieved 13 February 2015, from http://techcrunch.com/2013/09/24/pinterest-article-pins/

Rosenbaum, S., & Rosenbaum, S. (2012). Content Curators Are The New Superheros Of The Web. Fast Company. Retrieved 13 February 2015, from http://www.fastcompany.com/1834177/content-curators-are-new-superheros-web

Tahltan_channel_surfer, P. (2012). a-machine-to-return-the-songs-to-the-land: http://hermitagemuseum.wordpress.com/2011/10/04/an-open-letter-to-everyone-using-the-word-curate-incorrectly-on-the-internet/. Aboriginalcuratorinresidence.blogspot.ca. Retrieved 13 February 2015, from http://aboriginalcuratorinresidence.blogspot.ca/2012/05/httphermitagemuseumwordpresscom20111004.html

Where no man has gone before

I signed up for MACT to broaden my perspective. And, so, this week I find myself signing up for a Pinterest account.

Until now, I have had only the vaguest notion of Pinterest. And, yes, that notion involved fashion and makeup tips, recipes, and cat videos—in short, a no-bro zone. A place where an, ahem, manly man like me would be out of place and possibly unwelcome.

Of course, many of my manliest friends have a weird obsession with cat videos. But, for some reason, they share them elsewhere. Not sure why most guys steer clear of Pinterest.

I had fun creating my first Pinterest board—the bulletin-board metaphor is apt and friendly (although I find it odd and frustrating that there's no easy way to rearrange the pins once you add them). I'm not sure I'll turn into an avid Pinterester, but at least I now know my way around the platform.

For my board I revisited Module 3 (digital literature). I found Sven Birkerts has lingered on my mind over the past month—I feel him looking over my shoulder whenever I download an e-book to my iPad from Overdrive. Since then, I've been a bit shocked and surprised that Birkerts is a very active and enthusiastic Tweeter. So, Birkerts gets referenced in two of my pins.

I had one of the first Macs back in 1984, and I loved the program Hypercard. I was particularly fascinated by The Manhole, an interactive narrative that predates the WWW (not to mention our friend Inanimate Alice). Today, I found a YouTube video of The Manhole, and I'm amazed at how vivid my memories are.

Speaking of Alice, as I slogged my way through her story, I couldn't help comparing it to the much more interactive and immersive work being done by Canada's National Film Board. You can get lost in Pine Point if you're not careful.

And so, without further ado, my board!

Follow Scott's board Pinned Digital Lit! #NMN on Pinterest.

References:

McDermott, J. (2014, February 20). Pinterest: The no-bro zone - Digiday. Retrieved February 13, 2015, from http://digiday.com/platforms/why-pinterest-is-still-a-predominantly-female-platform/

Pinterest-ed

When I first discovered Pinterest I loved it. I used it in a typical way, saving ideas for a new house I was building and planning my wedding.  This exercise was eye-opening because it's helped me realize what a convenient tool Pinterest is for other pursuits, like academic ones. I have used Pearltrees for organizing but Pinterest is also very convenient.

My board is a reflection of the discussion we had around digital storytelling and the impact the internet has had on reading, books and the unfolding of digital literacy in modern society.

Follow Tess's board Digital Books on Pinterest.

One of my favourite pins I found this week was from the visual.ly which compiled an infographic on the Evolution of Storytelling.  It's a wonderful summation of where we've come from and where we are heading to with digital literacy.

Brabyn argued that "The history of printing and publishing, like that of all human progress, is a record of the interplay between technological innovation and social change" and I feel this info graph complements this concept well.  Walker-Rettberg pointed out that only 4 percent of all the books in existence have been digitized which leaves a lot of literature to yet make it online.  Digital storytelling is bringing new generations to reading and as Malloy points out a "generation is growing up reading cybertext on the World Wide Web where commercial sites are intermingled with literature, hyperactivity engenders a diffuse contemplation, and (with a resultant rich chaos) everyone has the opportunity to be a publisher."

Reference

Brabyn, H. (1988). “The Desktop Revolution,” P. 16-19, Retrieved from  http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0007/000796/079609eo.pdf

Malloy, J. (n.d.). “Hypernarrative in the Age of the Web". Retrieved from http://www.well.com/user/jmalloy/neapaper.html'

Walker Rettberg, J. (2012). “Electronic Literature Seen from a Distance: The Beginnings of a Field". Retrieved from

http://www.dichtung-digital.de/en/journal/archiv/?postID=278

Module 6: Pinterest

Module 6: Content Creation with Pinterest

Monday, Feb. 9, 2015 - Sunday, Feb. 15, 2015 Feb. 13: Using the Module’s readings as context and theory, curate a Pinterest board. Your board must be related to ONE of our course Modules (digital literature, twitter fiction, #selfies). You must include 7-10 pins. Each pin must include a description that draws from the Module readings. Remember, you are curating specific and pertinent information artefacts. Cite any references using APA style. Embed your completed board in a blog post on the course blog. Tweet a link to your Pinterest blog post. Use the class hashtag #NMN and always tweet to me @JessL Feb. 15, 7:00 pm: live e-class chat

A journal-keeper at last?

I had my first sip of Facebook kool-aid in 2007, and have been an avid and active user ever since. I work at home, and FB is my office water cooler. It's the place where I catch up on people's lives and activities, and where we swap banter over current events and pop culture. To my surprise, it also became a place where acquaintances turned into friends (as in real-life, face-to-face friends), where I reconnected with more distant friends and relatives, and where I met new people.

More recently, I have also used Facebook extensively to help promote my choir association, Kokopelli, via its Facebook page (currently with 2,449 "likes").

Before this week's readings, however, I had never really thought of Facebook as a narrative tool. But, buried amongst the memes and cat videos, people do use it to share stories. For example, my friends had the chance to follow me and my family over the past couple of weeks during our vacation in Orlando. In cases like this, I do try to craft my narrative for an audience—sticking to photos and updates that (hopefully) people will find entertaining, or at least not tiresome.

In the process of my 7+ years on social media, Facebook has also become my personal journal—even though I've never thought of it that way. Over my lifespan, I've tried and failed several times to keep a regular journal. Now, with some serious technological mediation, I may have succeeded. I can dig my way back through my timeline and get a pretty good sense of who I was and what I was doing in 2008, or 2010.

Facebook even regularly gives me opportunities to enjoy slick personalized video retrospectives—for example, last year's clever "Look Back" videos (created via some mystical Facebook algorithm). And, of course, Facebook adds the ever-present invitation to share them. Got a minute? Here's mine.

For this assignment, I also took a few minutes to examine my current News Feed in search of other people's narratives.

A choir acquaintance has been struggling with school, finances, a bad cold, and some depression. Going through the last two weeks of her feed, I can follow her story—her dark moments, her efforts to raise her spirits. Facebook gives her a place to vent, to process her feelings, and to seek (and find) solidarity and support.

A young parent took his little guy to emergency with mysterious leg pains. In the middle of the night, he shared his story (and his worries) on Facebook, and the next day he posted a detailed update of the happy ending. Again, he's just an acquaintance, but I felt connected (and deeply sympathetic) to his narrative.

I hear all the usual complaints about Facebook—it's a forum for narcissism blended with utter inanity, it's a ploy to harvest our data and enslave our brains—but it works for me.

References

A Look Back. (n.d.). Retrieved February 8, 2015, from https://www.facebook.com/lookback

Kokopelli Choirs. (n.d.). Retrieved February 8, 2015, from https://www.facebook.com/kokopellichoirs

Module 5 - Externalizing thought is good for us

When I saw the task Jessica set for us this week, I decided to focus more on the Facebook posts of a few of those I follow on Twitter. I do not have a Facebook wall and have only a passing knowledge of its GUI and types of content that can be found on Facebook, yet it’s clear that there is a synergetic product yielded from its “gossipy text” (Mickes, Darby, Hwe, Bajic, Warker, Harris, & Christenfeld, 2013, p. 487). Indeed, as many others here have indicated, I was surprised to see that narrative abounded. We need to be heard to feel significant, but we also need to listen and respond to feel significant.

The Cyborogology article spoke volumes to me as a member of Gen X, the last generation to know what it’s like to live without SM. I was intrigued by the argument “that identity-change is something that should be hidden, reinforcing the stigma that generates the phrase to begin with” (Jurgensen, 2012, para. 3). Instead, “we might also think of how it could have also been a foundation of encouragement, assistance, and validation that many of us might have benefited from” (para. 4). This was echoed in one of the 420 Characters narratives:

THE PRISONER OF NOISE stood before the bathroom sink, fingers in his ears, head down, mouth wide open, willing the sounds in his head to spill into the basin - the yelps and booms, screeches, screams and howls, crashes and groans, explosions and roars and babel and bangs. What if they formed a hairball of din, clogged the sink, scared the children when they came in at night to pee? He closed his mouth, went back to bed.

SM journaling facilitates a voice for those who wish to chronicle their evolution. I agree with Jurgensen that we’ve gone from a society that supresses feeling to sharing freely, and it does seem that those wishing to continue with the suppression are finding their power base eroding quickly, if not voided altogether.

One example that of personal evolution being chronicled via online journaling that caught my eye recently is the story of Chevi Rabbit, a U of A graduate who was attacked in 2012 on his way home from campus. As an openly gay man, Chevi was targeted for his appearance and attire. Of course, one would understand if Chevi decided to crawl into a hole and attempt to become invisible. However, the resulting outcry on SM served as a vehicle for Chevi to find his purpose and his voice – he reversed his initial response to hide and brought his career-based daydreams into fruition.

Chevi’s Facebook profile promotes his business as a makeup artist; it also chronicles his evolution from victim to a humanitarian symbol for the Metis culture as well as his intent to become active in Alberta politics.

So yes, Chevi is using SM to chronicle his evolution via FB (1,739 likes) and Twitter (702 followers). But SM response to his assault was the impetus for this, implying an inherent and inextricable link between oneself and the society within which one lives. It took SM to not only motivate Chevi to embark on his evolution, but SM now is the vehicle by which Chevi continues to develop. In that, the Chevi Rabbit story “promote[s] the idea that those embarrassing tweets, or anyone’s embarrassing digital dirt, can be used to validate identity change and growth” (Jurgensen, 2012, para. 7) as echoed in another of the 420 Characters narratives:

HE WAITED all his life for a splashy catharsis, irrefutable evidence that a profound change had transformed him. It took him many years to realize that he had been altered each day by the sun's rising and the moon's movement, by the unfurling of his daughter's tiny hand to grasp his thumb, by the cat on his chest, by the glass of water his wife brought him before bedtime, by the questions his son asked.

Anyone remember the 1997 Jodie Foster movie Contact? One of the more memorable scenes for me occurred when Jodie’s character, Ellie Arroway, gets to finally interact with an alien life form, who notes:

You're an interesting species. An interesting mix. You're capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares. You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone, only you're not. See, in all our searching, the only thing we've found that makes the emptiness bearable, is each other.

As cliché as this may be, the truth is that we are inextricably linked to each other, and it seems that our growth depends on our connectedness. Facebook appears to be a seminal vehicle for this.

REFERENCES

Jurgensen, N. (2012, November 26). Glad I didn’t have Facebook in high school [blog post]. Retrieved from http://thesocietypages.org/cyborgology/2012/11/26/glad-i-didnt-have-facebook-in-high-school/

Mickes, L., Darby, R., Hwe, V., Bajic, D., Warker, J., Harris, C., & Christenfeld, N. (2013). Major memory for microblogs. Memory & Cognition, 41(4), 481-489. doi:10.3758/s13421-012-0281-6

Quotes from Contact. (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118884/quotes?item=qt0379373

An end to my Facebook journey (maybe)

For a while now, I have been considering deleting my Facebook account as I am no longer very active. In fact, my last post was from June 2014. This was actually a bit of a surprise to me and think I felt a bit more active as several friends have tagged me in posts and photos since that time.

I find that the for the most part, the information I receive in my ‘news feed’ is either something I can learn about another way or it’s just not important to me. A quick look at my news feed today has confirmed that this is my typical experience. 

1. Travel Update

2. Movie Trailer 

3. Travel Selfie

4. Weather Update

5. Positive Quote/Picture

6. Travel Advice

7. Funny Picture
8. Life Rant

9. Game Suggestion

10. Advertisement

The majority of my friends appear to write without an audience in mind. It is more about sharing. This sharing comes in the form of helpful advice, informative messaging and interesting videos, however, it does not appear that the majority of my friends use their Facebook space to create a narrative. 

In the minority, are a couple of friends who employ their Facebook space to build engagement related to their personal business. I have a fitness coach friend who uses this medium to motivate others, share fitness tips and also ask for advice. I don’t really see any negative affects from the character restraints. Rather, her posts usually generate a fair amount of activity as they resonate with the audience she is targeting. 

I know someone else who uses his space to post a motivational quote or narrative on a daily basis. With the regularity in the schedule and the consistency in the type of message, I would suggest there is a level of narrative at work within the continuity flowing from consistent messaging rather than a story line or plot. Again, I do not think the character restraint affects the messaging as it is generally well within the quota and these efforts are mostly met with many ‘likes’ and a few comments. 

With the ability to share messages with multiple media at the same time I feel like many people are limited to the lowest common denominator and if twitter is in your mix, you are limited by the 140 character count.

With all of this in mind, and the general lack of interest I have for most things Facebook, I still have not committed to actually deleting my page. Like any form of social media I think I feel I certain sense of connection to my 'network' even if the connection is not as meaningful as many other forms of interaction that occur throughout my day. And deleting my account, almost feels like too much of an end to the brief interaction I have enjoyed over the past 7 years, Strange how quickly a form of new media can become a part of your daily activity. 

A Facebook Story

A book full of stories. From status updates to news feeds, Facebook unfolds stories about the real-world, in real time. The authors all have faces and names, but who had the idea first to make up a story, matters less. It is just like how my grandma use to tell: the story is more interesting than the author. This makes me believe that Facebook is a new form of folklore, a digital lore: “Folklore (or lore) consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales, stories, tall tales, and customs included in the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group.” (Mayor, 2000).

Facebook is a fantastic journey. Challenging and immersive. I am enjoying being part of it, participating in, and sometimes, creating it. I am interacting with some of its authors, who happens to be in my friends’ list. Sometimes we are using one picture or one word to tell an entire story. I enjoy looking up for the story of the day. I am looking for it in the news, in my friends feeds, and in their comments. When I find it, I like to put a little contribution to it: a comment, a thumb up, a share. Facebook is changing its face every day. 

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I don’t remember the foreword or the first chapter, and I cannot foresee how the book will end. I am just enjoying the online storyline.

Reference:

Mayor, A. (2000). Bibliography of Classical Folklore Scholarship: Myths, Legends, and Popular Beliefs of Ancient Greece and Rome. Folklore, 111(1), 123-138. doi:10.1080/001558700360924

Facebook narratives

As the assignment directed, I reviewed my Facebook feed and was surprised to find that there are indeed narratives being carried out by several people I follow.  I knew there was one that has been going on since New Years Eve that I had in mind when I went in to review my feed. A friend of mine and her husband moved to Austria in the fall to teach skiing and work as ski patrol. Unfortunately, Dave had a very serious accident that he was lucky to survive while skiing en piste. His wife has been keeping us updated with posts, almost daily and it has been wonderful. There was also a crowd source funding campaign established for them and this too have been playing out along with fundraisers etc.  Dave's wife is a journalist and a great writer so her updates have been amazing to read, full of emotion and drama. They have ranged from an initial report of the event, and then updates ranging from concern whether Dave would survive the accident, to would he lose his leg and so on, right up to his being released from hospital yesterday. It has been riveting to read and the responses to these posts from friends all over the word range from 150-900. The support for this couple has been tremendous and has also created a very cohesive community that has helped spread the word for the fundraising campaign and keep these two and their families going.  There seems to be no constraint with the word limit of these posts however as the past post by Dave's wife contained 1,195 words.  It is also interesting that they have been using this story to create some awareness around safety and the importance of wearing a helmet.

While I expected this particular friend to have a narrative, I was surprised to find others did as well. I follow several friends who are living on boats, sailing around the world and their feeds too tend to be directed at their friends, keeping them updated on the progress they make, always seeking feedback and thoughts.  While its a great way to stay in touch it helps them tell their story and reach out to the many friends they have.

Meanwhile, another friend lost both of her elderly parents in the past couple of years and she and her siblings have been posting a great deal about their family's life, partly in remembrance of their parents and partly to cope with their loss. The publics role in this story seems to help them recreate memories and in some way keep their spirit alive and well. It too is very effective.

Most of the posts by my friends are the mundane, day-to-day postings of what's going on in their lives but I am surprised when I review to find narratives taking place with meaning.

Module 5: Facebook

Module 5: Facebook and Narratives of Memory

Monday, Feb. 2, 2015 - Sunday, Feb. 8, 2015 Feb. 3: Tweet two reflections on a reading from this Module’s list Feb. 6: Conduct an experiment! Read your Facebook feed and analyse how your “friends” employ their timelines? Can you find narratives? What is the role of “public” in these narratives (are they clearly written for an audience? A specific audience?) How does the format/character constraint affect the narrative?