Digital Divide?

For this last post I struggled to decide what to right about. I wanted to right about the copyright debate as I found this topic really interesting, but as this was the focus of my essay I thought It would be more interesting to direct my attention elsewhere. So I have decided to talk about the Digital Divide in my last post, as this seems quite an appropriate topic for a subject almost entirely devoted to the internet to in fact turn the assumption that everyone uses the internet on its head.

The Digital Divide by Couldry, N. (2000) Found in, 'The Digital Divide' in Gauntlett, D. & Horsley, R. (eds) Web. Studies (second edition), London: Arnold was a very interesting article which got me thinking about the internet and internet usage in a very different way. To be honest throughout this module I have been extremely naive and have thought about the internet and new media technologies in relative terms. I have always considered internet usage in an extremely Westernised way which I suppose is the way anyone like myself would naturally look at the subject. However it is bizarre and shows how dependant our society has become to technology and the online culture when it feels strange to think that there are of course several countries which do not even have the internet.

I am very aware that there are still huge percentages of the worlds population who don't in fact have running water let alone a phone or computer. This is why the Digital Divide is a really, really good angle to end my reflection of the course on, as I have already mentioned. This course has been primarily focused on looking at ways in which different people use the internet, what internet services there are, how they have come about, what is still changing, how the internet is fully integrated into our lives etc. It just highlights how essential the internet has come to our society and our everyday lives when we almost forget that not the entire world is online and sharing those experiences.

In fact there are still people in England who do not have the internet in there own home, my Grandma for sure is one of them. This digital divide is not only global but it is generational and I am sure there are many families who perhaps cannot afford the internet in there own homes. However, I do feel this is perhaps in extreme cases of poverty as I honestly do not believe there was anyone I knew at School who did not have the internet and in fact who did not feel as if they had always had the internet at home!

So in the case of debating whether this Digital Divide is in fact real, as the article implies many politicians may like to believe it is not. It seems impossible to deny that the divide is not there. Whether it be socially or globally, we must remember that in fact NOT everyone is online and indeed even if they are, not everyone is online to the same degree. Some may use the internet almost every minute, have it on their phones. And then there will be those who use the internet once a week, or have never used it.

I admit I tend to look at the internet, and talk about the internet in terms of my own experience of it, and how I think people of my generation use the internet and will go on to use the internet. So perhaps in 20-30 years there will be almost no one in England who does not have or use the internet. But I do not feel the global Digital Divide will not be tackled so quickly, if at all. And perhaps we should not think of it as a necessity but a luxury, maybe this pressure for everything and everyone to be online should be reduced? But in the western society we live in today I find that kind of perspective hard to realise, as the media seem to push us every way possible online!

Digital Media Campaign video- Give Blood! Is My Campaign Video Killing our culture?

We were set the task to create a campaign video about a subject important to us. This exercise enabled us to use social networking and self publication sites such as Youtube in order to generate as much awareness for our campaign as possible.

I chose to make a campaign video about giving blood, as demonstrated by my interviewees- not enough young people seem to know about giving blood, and are actually becoming blood donors. I started giving blood when I was 17, the age you can start at and it is a cause I feel strongly about.

I found this exercise slightly challenging working all on my own and quickly having to learn to use new software and equipment. However I really liked the idea and once I got into it I started to really feel engaged with my campaign. I found it quite inspiring when looking at the website http://battlefront.co.uk/ and the project channel four has initiated to encourage young people to use the Internet to get their voice across. I think I took most inspiration from a video made encouraging people to be an organ donor.

I found this exercise to relate to an earlier topic. Is the internet killing our culture? A lot of the criticisms of the internet here, primarily those of Andrew Keen who would argue yes, the internet is 'killing our culture'. Would deny me the right and publish such a video believing such forms of publication should be reserved for professionals. Amateur publications in his view are full of rubbish and creating a valueless culture where creative works have no authority.

This view seems to ignore the competence of any underground artist or talented amateur who has not yet been discovered and most of all seems to ignore the potential of such self expression for the young people of today. Such works are not intended to have authority and value really they are just examples of creative outlets and experimentation as my own video demonstrates. Emily Bell supports this side of the argument surrounding the internet v culture debate which can be found at http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2007/aug/10/andrewkeenvemilybell

I find Andrew Keen's view to be extremely pessimistic and demonstrates a complete lack of understanding about the internet and it's most popular functions.Youtube and Facebook are great places for this campaign video I have made to be shared potentially globally, to create interest and awareness in the issue. Such platforms act as outlets for issues which are affecting today's youth as well as less serious creative works, the appeal is that anything can be published!

I really liked this exercise, and how it demonstrated uses for social networking and self publishing sites which were not purely for teenage babble but a chance for more serious issues to be touched upon and discussed.

I have currently posted my video to my facebook page and have invited friends to watch it and comment on it. Not as much discussion has happened so far as I had anticipated. But I have had comments from people I hadn't expected, who have had experiences with blood transfusions and also feel passionate about the cause. I guess these things take time to build up interest. I might post it again in order to get more attention for it on facebook.