Module 11

In the eyes of Kurt Vonnegut Jr, the writing process has two basic parts: an inspired writer and an experienced editor. He says the new writer must be given pointers and tactics from the more experienced writers to give them new perspective when writing. I would agree that all new writers need guidance from other writers to make them more diverse, and give creative ideas that they can make into their own. I do not, however, think this is the only way that writers are developed. I think practice and exploration of one's own natural skill helps to develop personal writing habits and styles, which is important as a creative writer. An example of this would be the University of Iowa creative writer's workshop referenced in the article. I attended the University of Iowa for my undergraduate degree and had the pleasure of using that very writer's workshop during my four years. It definitely developed my writing skills having access to so many different writers' opinions and styles. 

I think the reason this perspective on the writing process is not all-encompassing is because it doesn't call for internal innovation and creativity without input from other sources. This is especially true with the introduction of social and new media, as these platforms are ever-changing and in need of innovation in order to be successful. In order to be seen online and to share a message properly, as all good writers must do, writers must be innovative and top-of-mind. This requires innovation and creativity that differentiates oneself from other knowledge sharing entities. 

Module 9

"A website without multimedia is like a cupcake without icing: Functional but lacking" (Sniderman 2012). Multimedia enhances both a readers understanding and engagement level with what he or she is consuming. Text allows readers to form their own opinion about how something may have looked or happened, but when text is paired with photos, or images, the reader can reference the visual and have a better understanding of what they're reading. When paired with audio, text can evolve based on tone of voice. Multimedia makes text multi-dimensional, which allows us to understand better. 

Because the reader understands better, they are engaged more fully. Multimedia makes the information more tangible to the reader, which deepens their reaction to what is being said. For example, In the article Snow Fall: The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek, the first hand recount of the avalanche by Elyse Saugstad made the situation more real to me, as well as more emotional. I was much more engaged with the story because of the deeper connection I had to the event, as well as those involved (Branch 2012, http://www.nytimes.com/projects/2012/snow-fall/#/?part=tunnel-creek).

The three main types of multimedia are audio, photo, and video. Depending on the situation, each can be equally as effective. If tone of voice is important, audio will be best to use. For example, in the blog http://israelkeyes.blogspot.com/ there are sound clips of interviews from Israel Keyes where he is recounting certain events in which his sociopathic tendencies were put into play, and which Keyes is recounting these events he is laughing. This truly demonstrates his state of mind, and gives the reader/listener a better insight and a deeper connection to the story. On that same blog, there is video of Keyes actually kidnapping one of his victims, which is more powerful than text could be. It, once again, evokes more emotion because of the situation that is being depicted. Video and photos are generally used in the same types of situations, just depending on which is available to depict the subject.

Anonymous. (2014). Acting at random: a study of Israel Keyes. Blogspot. Retrieved from http://israelkeyes.blogspot.com/.

Branch, J. (2012). Snow fall: the avalanche at Tunnel Creek. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/projects/2012/snow-fall/#/?part=tunnel-creek.

Sniderman, Z. (2012, Jul 28). How to: add multimedia to your blog. Mashable. Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2010/07/28/add-multimedia-to-blog/.

Module 8

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/

The function and topics of this blog, according to the author, is that "Seth Godin's riffs on marketing, respect, and the ways ideas spread." When creating a blog, I feel it's important to nail down a few key topics, so that the writer is most likely more knowledgeable about the topic on which he or she is writing. If someone writes about everything, they're not going to be an expert on any of it. With this particular blog, there is a simplicity to the author's writing and posting style. One of the only functions are to scroll through recent posts and look over archived posts. This blog is lacking a separating system based on keywords describing the blog's content. It would be beneficial to readers to be able to sort the posts by topic, so that if readers only want to see his posts about marketing they can do so with ease. Basically the only other functions with this blog is to look at the books Seth Godin wrote, and also to connect with him on different social media sites. These two additions to the blog are great because Seth is using a blog to market himself, and he's doing so by being present in lots of different spaces online, and adapting to the rules of each type of media.

When creating a blog, here are some of my recommended "best practices":
1. Make the blog interface easy to navigate through, so people can see every bit of the site: Users will spend more time on your blog and engage more deeply if you make it easier for them to do so
2. Ensure grammatical correctness: How can you be taken seriously as a writer if you don't know the basics?
3. Stick to a few topics that you're an expert about, rather than guessing on things you don't know much about and trying to pass yourself off as an expert: It's better to be good at a few things and demonstrate true understanding than trying to do a little bit of everything and truly master nothing.
4. Tag all blogs with keywords so they are sortable on your blog and searchable off your blog: The idea of an online presence is to be found, and keywords are the easiest way to say what you want to be found for
5. Post often: people will forget about your blog if you neglect it.

Module 7

Press Release:
Joe Paterno, Penn State football coach, passed away at the age of 85 on January 22nd, 2012. Football fans everywhere bow their heads when remembering "the winningest Division I coach in the history of the sport" (Carey 2012). Joe coached for the Penn State Nittany Lions for 62 seasons and is one of the most iconic coaches in college football history. His impact was demonstrated when "hundreds of students and fans gathered for an impromptu vigil at his statue across from the football field". Although he was part of a scandal and was fired in November 2011 due to his affiliation with sexual abuse within the football program, the "Joe Pa" name will never be fully tarnished. Not only will Paterno be remembered for his positive role within the football program, but also for his philanthropic endeavors. "He and his wife and children gave the university $3.5 million in 1998 to endow faculty positions and scholarships and in support of two building projects." Joe Paterno will always be remembered for his amazing record, as well as the many lives he positively touched (Carey 2012). 

Facebook post:
Lengendary coach of the Nittany Lions, Joe Paterno, dies at age 85 from lung cancer (http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/college/football/story/2012-01-21/former-penn-state-coach-joe-paterno-dead/52737230/1)

Module 3

The article I chose to evaluate the sources of is about social media bots and how individuals as well as organizations are using them to create a perception of popularity and influence. This article is from the New York Times, which is widely accepted as a credible source and is a well-known and world-renowned news site. The author, Nick Bilton, has published 1082 articles in the New York Times, and has his own website, www.NickBilton.com. Nick is associated with the New York Times and has his New York Times contact email listed, as well as his Twitter handle. He is obviously widely published with the New York Times, but is also about to release a book that he wrote, which means he does have publications in peer reviewed situation. Based on all this author information, it seems safe to say that Nick Bilton is a credible source in the areas of technology and business, specifically related to social media topics. 

In this particular article, there appears to be no bias or outdated information, which also lends to the credibility of the article as well as the author. Most of the sourcing for this article was first hand from the author, but there were also cited sources and quotes from Tim Hwang, chief scientist at the Pacific Social Architecting Corporation. A link to their website is provided, confirming that Tim Hwang is associated with their organization, and providing information to prove the credibility of the organization itself. 

Based on the number, credibility, and up-to-date status of all of the sources in and relating to this article, it's safe to say that this is a credible piece of information and that the author of this piece uses proper sourcing and is expert enough in this field to report on the subject.

SOURCES:
http://timhwang.org/2013/05/17/pacific-social-architecting-corporation/
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/04/20/friends-and-influence-for-sale-online/?ref=business
http://mason.gmu.edu/~montecin/web-eval-sites.htm
http://www.nickbilton.com/

Module 2

Only a few decades ago, Americans took most of their information from traditional news media such as television news broadcasts and newspapers. People took this information at face value and didn't feel the need to audit the stories they were given. With the introduction of the internet later came the rising popularity of social media sites. These sites made it easy for anyone with internet access to share anything they like. Since there is no filter on who can share information and how factual the information must be, internet users now have to take the content they see with a grain of salt. It used to be that we knew what we knew based on what other told us, but today we must avoid clerkism, "the practice of uncritically accepting the official version of things" (Kovach, Rosenstiel 2010, p. 27). We now must search for what we know to ensure the information is correct. We must take in content, fact check with a credible source, and check those supporting facts with another source to fully ensure credibility. This falls in line with the Way of Skeptical Knowing questions listed on page thirty two of Blur (2010). These questions help validate information and demonstrate that media consumers must now transition from "trust me" to "show me" (2010, p. 33). 

Social media has grown to be a large part of the media information stream in this digital age, and lends even more to the idea of easy-to-publish content. Americans from preteen years and up are now largely and actively participating on social media sites. I use social media sites regularly for both entertainment and gathering information. From a news perspective I generally use the social media site Reddit, which is a forum style social media site where users can sort through categories of user created posts. Today on the World News section of Reddit, there was a post of a link to a New York Times article about the Presidents statements about specific N.S.A. activity. I believe the article is factual because the New York Times is known to be a credible source and is cited regularly in scholarly articles and presentations. The article also links to a live video of part of the conversation that is discussed in the article. Similar articles are also posted on several other news sites. Social media can certainly be a credible source for information, however it's important to check sources to be sure of the credibility. 

Kovach, B. & Rosenstiel, T. (2010) Blur: how to know what's true in an age of information overload. Bloomsbury USA. Print.

Module 1

As a 21 year old in a digital age, I use new media daily. When I wake up in the mornings, I check my Twitter and Instagram feeds. On my way to work I use Pandora and YouTube for music during my commute. When I get to work I'm constantly using social media sites, and different traditional and mobilized websites to evaluate the current marketing program of my clients so I can make a recommendation on how they should market their business going forward. I also use Facebook to stay in touch with family and friends on a weekly basis. 

Using social media has given me a fuller connection to hundreds of people in the way that I often times know what the people I connect with on social media are doing, who they are with, what job change they just went through, the new puppy they just bought, or any update in their lives that they chose to share on social media. Although I'm more aware of events in more people's lives, I feel that it's a more artificial connection. These messages aren't personalized to me and I rarely start an interaction based on someone's post unless I'm already very close with that person. Social media makes me feel more included in more things, and gives me a sense that I need to be updated with these people that I subscribe to. I constantly have new information to sort through, which makes me feel impatient when I go through all of my Twitter or Instagram feed. I now feel like I demand content, even though I'm not fully engaging with the content I have. I quickly sort through whether something is important to me or worth spending time to read and understand fully. In summary, I feel that the constant access to information has caused me to learn to filter through all of the information I receive on a daily basis in a quicker and less thorough manner. 

Since I don't follow the news very much I'm less affected by the agendas that the news groups have when reporting. I do feel that technology has made me less patient, which is a negative influence. It does, however, give me a chance to voice my opinions to an audience of my peers. This is positive because it enhances my communication skills. It allows me to be a contributor on a higher level, and also has resulted in "the ability of people to engage in discussions and to get additive knowledge and perspectives is... better that in was" (Gladstone 2012).

Gladstone, B. (2012, February 17). The changing nature of knowledge in the internet age. On the Media. Retrieved from http://www.onthemedia.org/story/187775-changing-nature-knowledge-internet- age/transcript/.