Organise

The State of the State

For as long as it has existed the media and all its entities have entwined itself within the world of politics and governments across the globe. As media expands its mediums the reach that politics expands to is subsequently increased daily. With this comes a greater thirst and demand for individuals to know more up to date information regarding their government. Through the media governments have had to increase the transparency of their own goings. This has led to a freedom of access and increased recognition of political actions. Lessigs (2009) demonstrates the act of a transparency government through the example of the US governments ‘transparency projects’. This entails data being presented to the public in the form of a website that is regularly updated on policies, information and transactions.

But is this always a good thing?

As Lessig expresses, in his Against Transparency (2009) article, audiences are not necessarily capable of process the quality and quantity of information that is presented and available to them. The new age of media brings about such a range of available information that audiences are often so inundated with trivial information that the most important facts are left unnoticed.

New media, in particular, social networks has allowed for a further level of transparency between politics and the public. The personal information that the public is privy to about politicians has increased greatly with every politician having their own FaceBook and Twitter accounts. These live feeds have allowed for news to be accessed and published 24-hours a day. No longer are the 9-5 work hours an accepted time frame for news coverage.

As Bob Ellis discussed in his 2010 article Sleepless in Canberra, this 24-hour news cycle is causing a high demand for political updates. However it is also posing the threat that if one is not consistently in the media’s eye then the unit becomes irrelevant to the public. This is yet another reflection on the short attention spans that today’s audiences posses.

Lessig also expresses that there is a great sense of a lack of control due to the availability and spread of news whilst using social networks. Once a piece of information is on the internet it is forever accessible. Whether it is a grammatical error, a misconstrued idea, a poorly shot photograph or an ill-advised policy, every piece of information made available to the public can always be traced back. Politicians must now be actively conscious 24-hours a day of their public and private image, an issue that past politicians were not highly subjected too.   

Another discussion that has risen with regards to the transparency of actions within governments is the framing of conflicts. Paul Mason’s blog highlights the impact that new media forms have had on public revolutions. Mason goes on to discuss the difference in the current War on Terror vs. the Cold war, urging that the current scheme is not nearly as effective in ‘solidifying elites against change”. You just have to turn on the news to find the newest revolution against a corrupt government that’s driving force has come about through new media entities largely because the old are controlled by the government.

Governments and politicians need to display transparency in their work however they must remain careful that the public is not inundated with trivial and unimportant facts.

References


Mason, Paul (2011) ‘Twenty reasons why it’s kicking off everywhere’, Idle Scrawls BBC, <http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/paulmason/2011/02/twenty_reasons_why_its_kicking.html>

Lessig, Lawrence (2010) ‘Against Transparency: The perils of openness in government.’<http://www.tnr.com/article/books-and-arts/against-transparency?page=0,0>

Ellis, Bob (2010) ‘Sleepless in Canberra’ The ABC, Drum Unleashed <http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/35116.html>

Transversally

Main theoretical Concepts for the week -

Transversality in its entirety is the action of grasping as much from infinity as we can.

Framing is the act rejecting infinity as much as we can in favour of known given structures.

What this means in the real world

This week we are investigating how new technologies in particular the internet have caused major changes in traditional industry practices especially in the publishing and music fields.

In the past publishing materials has been exclusive to those whom are qualified to produce such materials. However with the movement towards online technology this is no longer the case. Social networking sites such as FaceBook, Twitter, MySpace and networking blogs have transcended the sharing and receiving of information. 

The ability to employ transversal thinking is critically important to innovation in media and culture practices. The publishing and music industries have been instrumental in facilitating the change. The intertwining networks within the media industry have created a more efficient and effective way of music production and distribution.

As Casey (2011) states in her work the new music industry is here. The industry isn’t changing but rather it has changed to accommodate to those around it. Furthermore the very concept of what makes a professional musician has changed (Paul, 2012). No longer is it vital to for a musician to have a recording contract or even be able to play an instrument, rather it is about how you can put yourself out in the cyber world (Byrne 2007).

The music industry has experienced great change due to technology advancements but it is certainly not dying, not even close (Casey, 2011). The reach that the music industry extends to is growing daily with musical downloads increasing beyond any physical record sales can only dream of.  The increase in intertwining networks will only prove to fuel the music industries power over the invention of media technologies.

Media is both a powerful assemblage and a forefront in the innovation of exciting and groundbreaking technologies.

Refrences
 Byrne, D (2007), David Byrne’s Survival Strategies for Emerging Artists—and Mega Stars [Accessed 15/4/12] http://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/magazine/16-01/ff_byrne?currentPage=all

Paul (2012), I’m a Successful Artist. And Here’s Why Things Have Never Been Worse, [Accessed 15/4/12] http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/permalink/2012/120214cracker

Casey, T. (2011), The New Music Industry Is Not Coming, [Accessed 15/4/12], http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/the-new-music-industry-is-not-coming.html