ARTS2090 Essay: Are digital and networked media dismantling the “publishing industry”? Is it being replaced? If so, what is replacing it? If not, what is the publishing industry becoming, and how is it doing so? Are there new difficulties and complexities or expenses involved?

Introduction:

The nature of publishing has drastically changed since the invention of the internet. Initially used as method to distribute information more conveniently, it has evolved and has seemingly integrated itself into contemporary media practices. Through the convergence of media, people have been empowered to create their own content, while at the same time viewing it, and collectively determining the shape of the digital world. However, these new digital platforms have potentially dismantled the publishing industry. Shirky (2009) argues “the incredible difficulty, complexity, and expense of making something available to the public – has stopped being a problem” hence leading to the idea that the publishing industry is being replaced by the unknown digital world. Just through observation, the distribution of traditional media such as newspapers has noticeably plummeted and is seemingly being replaced by their online publishing counterparts. As much as this fact proves Shirky is only partly true in his argument about the replacement of the traditional publishing industry. Online content is adding to traditional streams of publishing and creating even more content to be given out to the public. While the internet has eliminated the difficulty of distribution of media content, it is possible that it still requires traditional media technologies. This paper therefore studies whether the publishing industry has been replaced or if publishing is merely complemented by online content while exploring what effects these changes have made. The publishing industry will largely focus on the practices that are being dismantled in print journalism but will also look at other mediums of publishing that are being transformed due to the coming of the digital industry.

How is the publishing industry dismantled or replaced?

Shirky’s (2009) argument does hold true as complex methods for distributing and producing media content has never been easier due to the rise of digital media platforms. In both circumstances, the public and the publishing technologies that they use reshape and therefore dismantle traditional print journalism. In addition, one of the integral roles of print media is the printing and distribution. Both of which are superseded by the internet through online news companies that expand the channels of distribution and voluntary citizen journalism made more prominent through free blog hosting websites like Wordpress, Blogger and even Twitter. In fact online technologies are more popular with the public and professional news sites because texts can be customised and be sent out immediately. Information is also easily accessible regardless of the audiences’ location. Networked and digital media give the average user greater opportunities to voice their opinions and attract a global audience for little cost and this is perhaps one of the big reasons why the traditional media industry is being dismantled by those that aspire to inform the public (Rainie & Wellman 2012). These citizen journalists, bloggers, vloggers or tweeters provide a public check on the government and take on the role of the Fourth Estate, a role that was previously exclusive to traditional media forms.

Furthermore, the printing press or even buying air-time to promote a product in television or radio comes with huge costs. Greenslade (2014) recently reported that “daily newsprint newspaper market is falling at a rate of more than 8% a year”. Moreover as newspaper sales decline companies compensate by increasing prices to breakeven for their costs. Online publishing alleviates these costs by extracting the process of printing press and distributing it.  As news publications venture into online territory, following the potential audiences that inhabit these virtual spaces, this provides convincing evidence that print media is dying and leaving digital publishing to develop. Therefore the need for a printing press or processes to physically publish the content is left out dismantling the existing publishing industry.

This transition from print to online journalism could be better illustrated through the Actor Network Theory (ANT) (Banks 2011). Rather than focusing on either social or technological factors in determining the dismantling of the publishing industry (Banks 2011). It is best to look at the different actors at play in the industry. In order for print news to flourish, it needs the reporters writing articles, editors to sub-edit and audiences to view the material but also computers, paper and the printing press are equally important in delivering the news. However, as previously mentioned, the technologies that distribute the published information are replaced by online means. As a result of this technological change, social behaviours involved with the publishing industry are altered and therefore dismantle print journalism. Web 2.0 or the emergence of user generated content and social media have decentralised the power of traditional news companies and have allowed users to become producers catering to their own niche audiences, who could potentially be creating content themselves (Crawford and Lumby 2011). The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA 2011) attribute the transformation of the media environment through the: “digitisation of content...which are blurring the traditional distinctions between broadcasting and other media across all elements of the supply chain, for content generation, aggregation, distribution and audiences”.

By applying ANT, it is evident that the traditional publishing industry is being dismantled as the actors that play a role in this networked industry are either weakened (reporters sharing content creation with the public), replaced (means of distribution) or omitted (the printing press) by new and digital media. However this does not mean that traditional media platforms are being replaced entirely. They are arguably being complemented by their digital counterparts through media convergence.

ANT mind map of the digital and publishing industry

Not replaced but converged:

According to Jenkins (2004) online technologies will decentralise the media power from traditional media proprietors such as the BBC or CNN. Instead of looking at the digital media as the medium that will bring about the demise of print, radio or television, perhaps the existence of networked and digital media are also complementing the old publishing industry rather than competing with it entirely. Nightingale and Dwyer (2007) discuss the idea that both traditional and new media are being integrated with each other to expand the possibilities of content and interaction. Traditional media is being ‘internetised’ (Nightingale & Dwyer 2007), print and television for example use online enhancements such as giving twitter handles or allowing audiences to participate in communication with the publishing industry, through live comments and suggestions. Furthermore, Jenkins (2006) argues that transmedia storytelling and the convergence of publishing technologies enriches the information the audience attains. The publishing industry as a whole is decreasing the barriers for new actors to participate and enact change in the publishing network (Jenkins 2004).

Publishing models have been restructured to fit digital media in order to stay relevant and while transmedia content proves the migration of audiences can dismantle the publishing industry, technological convergence could also argue that both new and traditional publishing are sharing their audiences with each other. Digital and networked media both add and dismantle the publishing industry.

What is the publishing industry becoming and how is it doing so?

As previously mentioned, the publishing industry is not being wiped out of existence instead it is surviving through adapting the digital publishing industry’s model. Cyberspace is an untapped potential for economic innovation, media industries will therefore have to face ‘deconstruction’ and ‘disintermediation’ (Nightingale & Dwyer 2007, p.23). As digital media offers increased reach and richness of information, newspapers and magazines have to employ unexplored and digitised tactics in order to keep the print publishing industry afloat. This coincides with Shirky’s (2009) claim that: “nothing will work, but everything might. Now is the time for experiments, lots and lots of experiments, each of which will seem as minor at launch as craigslist did, as Wikipedia did, as octavo volumes did.”

For example, print book publishing has transitioned into a more digital format through e-readers such as the kindle or iPad. Online news stories generally allow people to share noteworthy articles online, but also the ability of the internet to store and archive media content within small devices becomes an attractive commodity for users. Newsworthiness is now defined by the individual and no longer monopolised by news companies as they actively seek out content of their interests. The industry has also altered so that multimedia platforms in news articles such as photographs, visuals, videos and sound grabs are included in articles as to engage the attention of the audience. What is interesting is that publications now heavily focus on the pursuit of attention as Goldhaber (1997) suggests that it has become a scarce resource. Sharing views and ‘likes’ have never been as important as before leading one to believe that the publishing industry is becoming more personalised through Web 2.0 practices.

The digitisation of magazines, books and news articles has therefore become the rational evolution of the publishing industry. Additionally, smartphones and other smart devices provide evidence of digital information becoming physically accessible and easily navigated with the point of a finger. Multiple stories can viewed at the same time and as the use of networked technologies become more popular, individuals are multitasking and multithreaded (Rainie & Wellman 2012). It is much more accurate to state that traditional media is not being replaced but weakening as the media is striving for a more communicative and symmetrical relationships with their viewers.

On the other hand there are some instances that show that digital industries are replacing print publications. While for the most part, individuals are not intermediated and are directly affecting content.  Sites like YouTube, iTunes and Amazon, replace old print publications by becoming popular channels which distribute the content to the audience (Dix 2011). These digital and networked media therefore takeover the route of print and traditional media by using high speed internet to connect and distribute information in a timeless and placeless space (Rainie & Wellman 2012).  To a large extent, new media are destroying the inefficiencies of old publishing processes whilst simultaneously giving them more opportunities becoming a more diverse publishing industry. 

Are there new difficulties and complexities or expenses involved?

Unfortunately with this new integrated publishing industry, new problems arise. The biggest problem of digital publications, especially digital news companies is creating revenue from the untapped potential of the seemingly free virtual world. As every form of content is becoming digitised the risk of sharing this content for free increases. The prevailing issues of online piracy and peer-to-peer sharing become the new complexities involved with an evolved publishing industry. It is interesting to note that audiences feel more entitled to the information given in the internet, and thus expect and desire for information to be free. This makes it more difficult for ‘paywall’ subscriptions, native advertising and other techniques to create streams of revenue for the online industry to implement. Shirky (2009) notes that “walled gardens would prove unpopular” since it voluntarily cuts off the communication between the publishing industry and the user. Native advertising on the other hand provides content which seamlessly advertises a product through the same platform. For example a New York Times article advertised the television show ‘Orange is the New Black’ by showing the patterns of female inmates in US prisons (Deziel 2014). The problem with this form of revenue stream is that articles published may be disingenuous about the purpose of being written. News journalism provides the role of the Fourth Estate, but when advertising is in play the news agenda may become corrupted (Nightingale & Dwyer 2007).

Furthermore, online news organisations now run in 24 hour segments, meaning critical and long form journalism is being replaced by the competition to be current and trending at all times. This therefore alters the way articles are written, fact checking is not as thorough and therefore publications have a higher risk of distributing false or biased information. The need for hastily written reporting means that quality is severely affected (Meyer 2010). To bring in more audiences, online content competes for the audiences’ attention, meaning the need to sensationalise events (such as click bait) is greatly amplified by digital publishing. Equally, due to information overload, audiences cannot absorb the vast amount of information available to them and therefore a dependence on digital media is created, which could become a potential problem to how they conduct themselves in the real world. These consequences suggest that while new technologies are arguably improving the condition of the publishing industry, this does not mean that it completely solves the problems of the industry itself.

The digital world has a number of problems to deal with

Conclusion:

To a large extent Shirky’s (2009) claim holds true, as one cannot deny that digital and networked media have altered traditional media processes and practices. However, to say that the digital has completely replaced print might be overestimating the power of new technologies. These technologies add to the experience of the traditional publishing industry and help keep it alive. Certain aspects such as distribution and digitisation dismantle the industry but allow opportunities for networked individuals to become actors that influence the publishing industry themselves. Regardless of these changes, the dominant digital publishing industry will face new challenges in terms of profit-making and content creation. By continuously experimenting with the social and media climate, the publishing industry can hope to evolve.   

References

Australian Law Reform Commission (ACMA), (n.d.). Media convergence and the transformed media environment. [online] Available at: http://www.alrc.gov.au/publications/3-media-convergence-and-transformed-media-environment/media-convergence-and-transform-0#_ftn2 [Accessed 6 Nov. 2014].

Banks, D. (2011). A Brief Summary of Actor Network Theory » Cyborgology. [online] The Society Pages. Available at: http://thesocietypages.org/cyborgology/2011/12/02/a-brief-summary-of-actor-network-theory/ [Accessed 6 Nov. 2014].

Crawford, K. & Catherine Lumby, 2011, The Adaptive moment: A fresh Approach to Convergent Media in Australia, JMRC, UNSW, Introduction and Section one, p.1-18.

Dix, A. (2011). Or … is Amazon becoming the publishing Industry? | Alan Dix. [online] Available at: http://alandix.com/blog/2011/05/30/or-is-amazon-taking-over-the-publishing-industry/ [Accessed 6 Nov. 2014].

Goldhaber, M. (1997). Attention Shoppers!. [online] Wired. Available at: http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/5.12/es_attention.html [Accessed 6 Nov. 2014].

Greenslade, R. (2014). Latest ABCs show newspaper market decline running at 8% a year. [online] the Guardian. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2014/jul/11/abcs-national-newspapers [Accessed 6 Nov. 2014].

Jenkins, H., 2004, The Cultural Logic of Media Convergence, International Journal of Cultural Studies, vol. 7, no. 1, p.33-43.

Jenkins, H. 2006. Convergence culture. New York: New York University Press.

Meyer, L. (2010). The Newsroom on Steroids. [online] Niemanwatchdog. Available at: http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/blog/?p=1634 [Accessed 6 Nov. 2014].

Nightingale, V. and Dwyer, T. 2007. New media worlds. South Melbourne, Vic.: Oxford University Press, p.19-36.

Rainie, H. and Wellman, B. (2012). Networked. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.

Sebastian, M. (2014). Native Ad Production Values Keep Growing With 'Orange is the New Black' Promo. [online] Adage. Available at: http://adage.com/article/media/york-times-runs-native-ad-orange-black/293713/ [Accessed 6 Nov. 2014].

Shirky, C. (2009). Newspapers and Thinking the Unthinkable Clay Shirky. [online] Available at: http://www.shirky.com/weblog/2009/03/newspapers-and-thinking-the-unthinkable/ [Accessed 6 Nov. 2014].

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Data friction and Infrastructure globalisation

This week’s readings introduced the concepts of data friction and infrastructural globalisation which was coined by Paul Edwards (2010). He uses the study of weather and climate in order to contextualise the two complex theories which complement the study of publishing.

Data friction is defined as the effort required in managing pre-existent data into new and feasible sources of information. In the readings, Edwards (2010) uses previously recorded atmospheric information and contextualises the information according to the time and place. Through this he can attempt to publish a history of global weather patterns. The old data is then repurposed into potentially being useful to climatologists and bringing a light to a different aspect of knowledge.

There is “friction” in consolidating both forms of data together. Interestingly this theory observes epistemological (theory of knowledge) aspects of publishing rather than the ontological (the way things are). In order evolve our pre-inherited knowledge we seek to combine and readapt them in order to enter new paradigms of thinking. This alludes to the idea that the creation of information is constructed by rearranging the information that we currently possess (Burr 2003), to oversimplify constructionism.

Other than historical climate data, this can be applied to publishing. The data that we as journalists collect from interviews, research, and even filming is edited and rearranged in order to create new information to be given out to the public. Single sound bites, gives us information in that one particular aspect, but when it is rearranged amongst several others, one can create a news story or even remixed song. I understand that data friction is created when two things don’t make sense to each other at first sight, but if done correctly you open yourself to new knowledge.

News is applies both data friction and infrastructural globalisation

Furthermore, Edwards (2010) discusses this idea of infrastructural globalisation. It is defined as a mechanism to obtain data globally and in turn helps to develop global methods of thinking Edwards (2010). When the term “global thinking” is stated, I immediately thought of the influence of the internet in bringing about “shared and synthesised” knowledge, which could help make sense of certain aspects of research (Castree 2010).  With the internet, our ability to connect with an array of information and being exposed to different perspectives and cultures reshapes our current linear way of knowing. With networked information we develop new knowledge at a global scale.

News, for example, used to focus on stories based on their proximity, but today’s celebrity, political and sports news have become more focused on international stories. Because of the internet (John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight for instance), I now have the ability to expand my knowledge about the condition of student debt in America. This has become one of the consequences of globalisation, the expansion and the restructuring of local to global knowledge. With this medium we can therefore come to an agreement on what should be universally known. However, a problem could be that, Western countries still hold the monopoly in affecting information. Are we really expanding our knowledge or are we just adhering to cultural imperialism?

I believe that the emergence of diverse news companies overcoming data friction is truly globalising knowledge.

References

Burr, V. (2003). Social constructionism. London: Routledge.

Castree, N. (2010). How We Make Knowledge About Climate Change » American Scientist. [online] Americanscientist.org. Available at: http://www.americanscientist.org/bookshelf/pub/how-we-make-knowledge-about-climate-change [Accessed 20 Oct. 2014].

Edwards, P. (2010). ‘Introduction’ in A Vast Machine: Computer Models, Climate Data, and the Politics of Global Warming Cambridge, MA: MIT Press: xiii-xvii

Image: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/ed/CNBCHD_20140409.png/290px-CNBCHD_20140409.png

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The visual, the body and the social body

As I have previously discussed in last week’s blog entry, visualisation is making the invisible visible. This is done by giving symbols, pictures or any visual representations for complex concepts. Therefore one can argue that visualisation can simplify messages or data and makes them more accessible to the public. Adding to the previous week’s topic, this week’s readings focus on visualisation’s relationship with the social body.

Polar bear stuck on ice cap

When the issue of climate change pops up in public agenda, the picture of polar bears being stuck standing on floating pieces of ice immediately occupies my mind. In fact, it is definitely the picture that a Metro (2008) article decided to go with. I do get why they use this particular imagery to convey their message on climate change. Firstly, climate change is the reason for melting the ice caps in the North Pole. Secondly, polar bears are indigenous in the North Pole meaning that climate change is directly affecting the size of the bears’ habitat. And lastly, because we have this information, it the picture is urging people to act on the growing issue of climate change.

The use of a visualisation is more effective than showing data as it is. This is because visualisations, especially this one, put the issue into perspective. People develop more personal connections with things that they see. By showing the immediate effects of melting icecaps, the image intends to provoke empathetic and emotional reactions to those viewing it, as they are witnessing the devastation that climate change brings. People see animals like the polar bear as majestic creatures and unique, once they are put into a context where they appear to be under threat of extinction, people begin to invest more into the issue. While the picture grabs the viewer’s attention, the rest of the article informs them, and gives them a motivation to act. 

These visualisations have certainly been effective on inciting emotion from me. This shows that visualisation has great effect in influencing how we as the social body react. Since the polar bear on a floating piece of ice has become a common image for climate change, the society have become familiar with the consequences of drilling, and releasing greenhouse gases. Visualisation does not only serve the purpose of giving us a better understanding of complex issues but the way those messages are presented and interpreted can therefore enforce, the way we feel and act within society.

References

Metro, (2008). Struggling polar bears put on endangered list. [online] Available at: http://metro.co.uk/2008/05/15/struggling-polar-bears-put-on-endangered-list-137306/ [Accessed 22 Sep. 2014].

Image: Walk, Ansgar (1996), Polar bear on ice flow in Wager Bay, 

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Eisb%C3%A4r_1996-07-23.jpg

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Visualisation and VJing

The lecture and readings in this week conceptualise the idea of visualisation. Simply put, this visualisation is the process where an ‘invisible’ idea is made ‘visible’ by creating graphic representations of the subject (Kosara 2008). Bar graphs or pie charts for example visually conceptualise data that could be difficult to interpret like presenting the number of people that wear hoodies in class (just to give an odd example) (Kosara 2008).

The readings included the term vjing as part of the process of visualisation. Vjing is an audio visual performance art, usually performed in clubs and concerts. The artists use pre-existing playlists of audio and video tracks to combine them into their own pieces (Wikipedia 2014). Video synthesisers take the audio and use it to create rudimentary visuals and patterns that flowed and synchronises with the music. Tools would later on allow people to manipulate videos and music simultaneously. What’s interesting is that these are usually performed live. What does this form of visualisation make visible though? Video manipulation is said to have many techniques and aesthetic qualities that help in the understanding of different forms of learning. Video conceptualises the “disorder and fragmentation of music” that goes on in these live performances. Interactivity can also play a part in allowing audiences to grasp more complex concepts (Gates 2009). Other forms of vjing help visualise complex ideas, from revealing “spatial, social and technological architectures” while also being able to express psychological spaces (Gates 2009). Indeed, the world of live video mixing is enabling us to visualise and therefore understand complex concepts much better.

While the degrees of visualisation that are brought about by VJ are vast, are there concepts that just cannot be visualised? Are there types of data that the world of vjing cannot comprehend? Can all invisible constructs be visible?

Even though other forms of visualisation are limited, graphs are subjected to taking into account a few variables to visualise data, (a bar graph is limited by the x and y axis) (Kosara 2008). However, given the information about the ability of VJ as a performance art that can explain complex issues such as psychological matters. It appears that new publishing technologies and processes are shining a light and revealing those invisible and abstract theories. The reading brought about another idea which could possibly suggest why VJs able to conceptualise such difficult matters. Contemporary visualisation are no longer limiting themselves to the audience’s sight, but also through sound, VJs can make a synesthetic experience which could offer profound insight to their audiences (Gates 2009).

(This video helped me visualise the idea of vjing)

References

Gates, C. (2009). Vague Terrain 09: Rise of the VJ | Vague Terrain. [online] Vagueterrain.net. Available at: http://vagueterrain.net/journal09 [Accessed 15 Sep. 2014].

Kosara, R. (2008). What is Visualization? A Definition. [online] eagereyes. Available at: http://eagereyes.org/criticism/definition-of-visualization [Accessed 15 Sep. 2014].

Wikipedia, (2014). VJing. [online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VJing#cite_note-1 [Accessed 15 Sep. 2014].

Video: Jack Conte (2008) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXpn8thEGbE 

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Attention and commons

Like my previous blogs, I’ve struggled to finish typing sentences without being distracted by Facebook notifications or interesting YouTube videos. I get why some people deliberately cut themselves off the internet while doing an assignment but I fear my attention span is already too far gone after being exposed to the beauty that is the internet. This, including the readings, made me realise that social media and other websites have sought for the territory of our attention (Goldhaber 1997). Therefore through the internet, we have divided our attention with the different functions given to us by new media technologies.

First let’s look at attention. Due to the new media and publishing technologies, the world has entered an age of information overload. In fact we have “exceeded the capacity of information that we can absorb and retain” (Boyd 2010). If I wanted to learn about a particular event or skill through a ‘how to’ tutorial then I would simply type the keywords on Google and attain that information within seconds. However this information may not be retained for the long term and then we would have to search for the same thing again. This suggests that the internet has impaired our data retention and attention spans. Since we can only do so much with our time, businesses now perceive attention as a scarce resource (Goldhaber 1997).

The second concept in the readings studies commons. The commons allows people to share information and publish content in a public space. The internet provides the medium for the commons. It allows people to contribute their ideas in a much larger online community (Walljasper 2011). Those viewing the information could either consume the knowledge or add to the data that was published. Furthermore, the amount of collaborations that the internet allows gives way to new forms of publishing. Perhaps the greatest part of the internet is being able to publish and consume without any restrictions to the user. While I do believe that access to information should be available for everyone, where does the internet draw the line? News articles in the internet are free and peer to peer sharing is allowing artistic content to be free to the public. Should all information be common or should some become private? Regardless of the answer, more people are finding ways to share private information to the public, thanks to the internet.      

Through the study of attention, we can discover the nature of commons and the publics that use them.  As our attention spans have lessened, we have greater demands from the commons to have information that is easily absorbed. Due to the various information offered by the internet public knowledge and experiences become vastly different. Information is important to the public but I think that the problem with contemporary commons is that the public using the internet is becoming less engaged with information as it is so easily accessible.

References

Boyd, S. (2010). The False Question Of Attention Economics. [online] Stowe Boyd. Available at: http://stoweboyd.com/post/764818419/the-false-question-of-attention-economics [Accessed 30 Aug. 2014].

Goldhaber, M. (1997). Feature. [online] Archive.wired.com. Available at: http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/5.12/es_attention.html [Accessed 30 Aug. 2014].

Walljasper, J. (2011). The Commons Moment is Now. [online] Common Dreams. Available at: http://www.commondreams.org/views/2011/01/24/commons-moment-now [Accessed 30 Aug. 2014].

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Archive Fever

The first image that I imagine when confronted with the idea of archives is that of a room stacked with boxes containing folders of numerous files. I usually allude to evidence rooms in police precincts as they contain vast amounts of information to be accessed later by the detective. Archives are mediums that store data that could be useful in the future. In this sense our memories of events can count as archives. However as media rapidly evolves into the digital age, archives are becoming more digital. Whether we are using social media, emails, blogs, YouTube and a variety of other websites we are leaving more traces of our personal lives online, “we are miniarchivists ourselves in this information society” (Parikka 2013).

by: Hgrobe <http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:AWI-core-archive_hg.jpg#filelinks>

Derrida argues that those who can create archives have the ability to determine the culture within the society. He also presents this idea of ‘Archive Fever’ which is the “to have a compulsive, repetitive, and nostalgic desire for the archive, an irrepressible desire to return to the origin, a homesickness, a nostalgia for the return to the most archaic place of absolute commencement” (Derrida 1996 p.91). Put more simply, we have a human tendency to record our experiences and memories into archives because we deemed a certain event in our lives poignant.

Archive fever has certainly become more prominent in the digital age as different forms of digital publishing are forcing society to record everything. And when I mean everything, I mean everything. Twitter for example has become a site, where people would openly express their thoughts, activities, photographs almost every minute. This information overload and this desperate need to be remembered and to remember is part of the reasons why I try to refrain from using Twitter as much as possible. Ogle (2010) alludes to this change in attitude with archiving, that “if it’s not recent, it’s not important”.  A problem with websites like twitter, where real-time experiences are captured every minute and made permanent in the internet, could be the vast amount of information stored in the web.  As our personal archives become richer, a majority of it is neglected as it becomes harder to look for in our internet histories.

However this does not mean that archive fever should be treated as an illness. Archiving allows us to digitally enhance our lives. Facebook allows us to stores photos and tags can be used to easily search for related content. The internet has allowed us to store more information than ever before and has made our capabilities to remember experiences in our lifetimes much easier to access. As Derrida mentioned “there would indeed be no archive desire without the radical finitude, without the possibility of forgetfulness” (Enszer 2008). We archive because it is our means to stay connected to society and the world.

References

Derrida, J. and Prenowitz, E. (1996). Archive fever. 1st ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Enszer, J. (2008). Julie R. Enszer: Archive Fever: A Freudian Impression by Jacques Derrida. [online] Julierenszer.blogspot.com.au. Available at: http://julierenszer.blogspot.com.au/2008/11/archive-fever-freudian-impression-by.html [Accessed 25 Aug. 2014].

Ogle, M. (2010). Archive Fever: a love letter to the post real-time web. [online] Mattogle.com. Available at: http://mattogle.com/archivefever/[Accessed 25 Aug. 2014].

Parikka, Jussi (2013) ‘Archival Media Theory: An Introduction to Wolfgang Ernst’s Media Archaeology’ in Ernst, Wolfgang Digital Memory and the Archive Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press: 1-22

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Assembling Publishing Publics

This week’s readings focused on the concept of Actor Network Theory (ANT) which was developed by Michael Callon, Bruno Latour and John Law. To be honest, this was a theory that was very difficult to learn and having spent a few hours reading and rereading, I think I might just have the gist of it.

Previous concepts that have tried to conceptualise how networks are formed have usually employed narrow focus on either technological or social factors. The problem with these theories is that they don’t fully capture the nature of publishing (Deluki 2009). Social determinism can lead to technological changes and technological determinism can create social changes. Therefore ANT suggests that all actors/actants (whether human, non-human, technology) have an equal role in the function of a network and should be conceptualised in the same means (Wikipedia 2014). This is what is known as a principle of generalised symmetry.

What really helped me grasp this concept is the example that Goguen (2003) provided:  

“Newton did not really act alone in creating the theory of gravitation: he needed observational data from the Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, he needed publication support from the Royal Society and its members (most especially Edmund Halley), he needed the geometry of Euclid, the astronomy of Kepler, the mechanics of Galileo, the rooms, lab, food, etc.”

While we typically associate the theory of gravitation with Newton, ANT suggests that other actors have as much to do with the discovery as Newton himself.  Each actant is a nodal point where if it is excluded from the network, the network will fail (Banks 2011). From this, we can determine how networks are formed and what actors hold it together.

In relation to publishing, both social and technological factors affect the nature of this network. Let’s use YouTube videos as an example of a publishing network. In order for videos to be recorded , commented and published you need the technological components like, a camera, a comment page, hyperlinks, and a computer (with internet access) to view the published video. However, for this network to function, you need social actors that drive the video like the vlogger, advertisers and the audience (that comment, share and like the video). ANT suggests that each actor plays an equal role in making this network successful, but this is where I disagree.

The flaw of this theory is that it does not account for the different power relations between each actor in the process (Banks 2011). While the audiences can help determine the value and the popularity of the video through likes and views, the publisher/vlogger has ultimate control over the content. Without the existence of the internet to view the video then the network will fail. What is put in the front page of YouTube is technologically determined through algorithms based on “watch time” (Jarboe 2011) and who you’re subscribed to. However, without the people utilising these machines, the network ceases to exist, therefore human actors play a much more powerful role in determining the nature of the network. This puts into question whether technological components should even be assigned agency into the network.

I am not saying that technical and social actors cannot coexist in the publishing network but disregarding power, class, culture imbalances can be problematic for the theory. I will therefore be very cautious about applying ANT into conceptualising publics and publishing, not until I get a much deeper understanding of the subject.

References

Banks, D. (2011). A Brief Summary of Actor Network Theory » Cyborgology. [online] Thesocietypages.org. Available at: http://thesocietypages.org/cyborgology/2011/12/02/a-brief-summary-of-actor-network-theory/ [Accessed 18 Aug. 2014].

Goguen, J. (2003). CSE 275: Chapter 6. [online] Cseweb.ucsd.edu. Available at: http://cseweb.ucsd.edu/~goguen/courses/275/s6.html [Accessed 18 Aug. 2014].

Jarboe, G. (2012). YouTube Algorithm Change: 'Time Watched' Key to Higher Video Search Rankings. [online] Search Engine Watch. Available at: http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2218696/YouTube-Algorithm-Change-Time-Watched-Key-to-Higher-Video-Search-Rankings [Accessed 18 Aug. 2014].

Wikipedia, (n.d.). Actor–network theory. [online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actor-network_theory [Accessed 18 Aug. 2014].

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