Weekly Written Analysis 5

Twitter mania seems to be worldwide, twitter among other new media types are becoming available to citizen journalists to use in their reporting in the Republic of China. With the introductions of these new media types, China is on the verge of social change. However, will the Communist party allow these changes for example some sites were forced to shut down temporary or face charges. In addition, the Chinese have not allowed twitter interface yet so twitter’s have to post through the UK.
This article is about new media types including twitter to the Republic of China. Citizen journalists feel they have a type of added security with twitter, for example they can leave a digital trial to be followed, if for some reason they are detained or arrested for their use of social media when reporting issues that are sensitive. Twitter’s impact is minimal at the present time since the Communist Party can cut internet to entire providences. However, this did not slow its use over cell phones, since this is already a main form of communication among the Chinese. Twitter has yet to become popular with the government even though they like to surf the net. Some predict that the internet restrictions will relax and sites forced to close will reopen after the 60th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China.
So as long as twitter keeps making waves in the social pond of the People’s Republic of China than the government will have no choose but to recognize this type of media and maybe support or even start to use it. As long as the traditional media keeps falling short to fulfill their proper role and responsibilities then citizen journalists will continue to report on sensitive topics, civil unrest, to corrupt politicians.



References
Kuhn, A. (July 24, 2009). Twitter Seen As Tool for Social Change in China. NPR.org
Websites. Retrieved July 27, 2009. From the internet source listed
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106963768

Weekly Written Analysis 4

Lycanthropy, myth or fiction this age old fascination has been around for decades. Many people have been enthralled with were-creatures and their roots can be traced back to ancient times. This fascination has even become an issue topic of The United States Congress, with new biotechnologies present in our world today. In addition, the entertainment industry has made movies, TV series, to pull revenues from people’s fascination of the were-creature.
This article is about pop culture’s fascination over at least a century’s time span of the were-creatures and the werewolf in particular. The fascination spans across the entertainment industry, our world leaders, scientists, and the common man, making this fascination global in scale. This long hairy history of myth is now a reality, in new breakthrough’s in today’s biotechnologies. In addition, the Human-Animal Hybrid Prohibition Act is just one of the current topic discussions Congress has discussed this past month.
As stated by the article “When it comes to the whole werewolves, werecats, and werepanthers thing, people are getting tired of the vampire scene.” (Weeks, L. July 17, 2009) So for now it seems that werewolves are pop culture’s favorite myth at the moment even putting the long lived myth of vampires on the back burner, but for how long that’s the real question. Will this fascination with were-creatures remain strong or die out after a while. Will Congress pass or reject the Human-Animal Hybrid Prohibition Act to end advancements or increase them in the new biotechnologies making this myth a reality.





References
Weeks, L. (July 17, 2009). You Sexy Beast: Our Fascination With Werewolves. NPR.org
Websites. Retrieved July 21, 2009. From the internet source listed
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106728088

Assignment 1-3 Journal Article Analysis

Popular culture contributes vast amounts of revenue to the economy. Popular culture encompasses a wide assortment of things, but as for its impact on the economy the focus is primarily on two main sectors with each of these being made up of three sub-categories. The first main sector is the information sector and the three sub-categories that make the information sector are 1- companies affianced in producing and distributing information and cultural goods, 2- companies providing the means to broadcast and circulate particular goods including data infrastructures, 3- in addition, those that process data. Examples of the information sector are as follows; cable TV, films, broadcasting, the sound recording industries, newspapers, radio, periodicals, and books.
The second main sector is the arts, entertainment, and recreation sector and the three sub-categories that make up the arts, entertainment, & recreation sector are 1- companies involved in the production of promoting and participating in live performances, events, and exhibits for public viewing. 2- Companies that maintain and exhibit items and sites of historical, cultural, and didactic interests, 3- companies operating establishments providing services to clientele to partake in recreational behaviors such as seeking amusement, hobbies, and relaxation time. Examples of the arts, entertainment, and recreation sector are as follows museums, spectator sports, performing arts, art galleries, movies theaters, touring buses, gambling, helicopter rides, dinner cruises, cruise ships, etc…
The information sector, are companies that have based their industries to utilize types of media for production or distribution to consumers. The six major players in this sector are General Electric, Disney, News Corporations, Time-Warner, and Viacom of these six major players they are made up of smaller companies forming a conglomerate company. For example the five corporations making the conglomerate Viacom is Paramount, Famous Music, DreamWorks studios, Nickelodeon cable programming, and MTV. The article states, “Consumers spend more money on entertainment that they can see and hear than they do on print-based media or sound recordings.” (Cusic, D. & Faulk, G.K. 2009)
The arts, entertainment, and recreation sector are establishments providing consumers with services ranging from amusement, gambling, recreation, performing arts, sporting events, and historical items and locations. The information sector and the arts, entertainment, and recreation sector, main interactions are in sporting events other areas of interacting are minimal. Unlike the Information sector this sectors organizations are made up from private individuals, partnerships, and individual investors within the sub-categories. The article states, “Most spending in this sector occurred in amusement, gambling, and recreation, which made up fifty-five percent of the sector output.” (Cusic, D. & Faulk, G.K. 2009)
In conclusion, popular culture and the economy are directly related by consumer’s tastes in services, products and goods provided by organizations within the information sector and the arts, entertainment, and recreation sector in a market-based economy. Trends show themselves in consumer spending, the article states, “In still other words, consumers vote for the most “popular” cultural items with their pocketbooks (or credit cards).” (Cusic, D. & Faulk, G.K. 2009) However, the marketplace is characterized by free trade of goods and services; in addition, it is still unregulated, and cultural products can be identified as being directly expressed in the attitudes, creative originality, opinions, morals, and ideas of the consumer in a market-based economy.



References

Browne, R.B. (2005). Profiles of Popular Culture A Reader. Madison Wisconsin: The University of Wisconsin Press

Cusic, D. & Faulk, G.K. (2009). Popular Culture and the Economy. The Journal of Popular Culture, Vol. 42 No. 3, 2009, Wiley Periodicals Inc. Retrieved from
ohiolink.edu.olinkserver.franklin.edu database.
http://0- journals.ohiolink.edu.olinkserver.franklin.edu/ejc/issue.cgi?issn=00223840&issue=v42i0 003

Petracca, M. & Soprapure, M. (2007). Common Culture Reading and Writing About American Popular Culture Fifth Edition. New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

Weekly Written Analysis 3

Google is the household name product used by millions when performing web searches. Now they plan to expand their product services and create a new operating system founded off the Linux system, and place it on the market, which is already dominated by Microsoft and Apple Mac operating systems. The new system is called Chrome OS (open source), which is based off there new browser called Google Chrome for the web that has been recently unveiled, The twist is Google is putting a GUI (graphic user interface) to the already existing Linux, which is the alternate version of DOS for Windows and Apple Mac.
This article is about Google’s unveiling of their new Chrome OS (open source) operating system. Moreover, the new operating system will not be available until 2010 and only on laptops at first. In addition, to the new operating system Google has just released its new web browser called Google Chrome to operate on there new operating system and it is also adaptable to Mac and windows system as well. However, with Google, placing this open source operating system on the market there is likely not going to be a fee, which means Google will create low competitive pricing in a Microsoft and Mac dominated market base. Since the Google’s revenues is generated from another source, which is online advertising. In addition, analysts are saying that the new operating system will increase the competition between Microsoft and Apple Mac. However, this is no obstacle to Microsoft and its plan to release its new operating system Windows 7 sometime in October.
However, is Google’s new software going to be the future of computing or just another operating system? Will its popularity catch like the open source web browser Firefox created by Mozilla or be lost in the unveiling of Windows 7?


References
Brockman, J. (July 9, 2009). Google Looks To Web For Future Of Computing. NPR.org Web Site. Retrieved July 12, 2009, from npr.org Web site: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106423277

Assignment 2-1 Weekly Written Analysis 2

Is http://www.bookglutton.com/ , a new fad in book reading or just another site like http://www.goodreads.com/ with a facelift and some new features? Its co-founder created the website so she could keep it touch with her friends that had moved, giving them ability to discuss the books they read together. However, its popularity is spreading to teachers, and about one-hundred, and twenty-thousand users per month. Stated by Professor Jessamyn Hatcher after asking her class to use the site while reading a book for class, “They’d been having these conversations in the margins all night long, and I think this allowed our conversations to be deeper.” (Sydell, L. July 2, 2009). Is it the beginning of a new change in how we read books or just another fad that will flare across the scene and die out in a few months?
This article is about a new website called BookGlutton.com and how it enables readers to discuss the books they are reading with friends and other user on the internet while you read instead of waiting until you are finished reading. Even though this technology already exits, this particular site seems to the new trend in pop culture, and teachers are using the resource to its advantage. Although some people are not so enthusiast for fear of losing the strong attachment of reading the old-fashioned way, and others feel since your reading on screen you should have the options to click through or search a name for further reference. However, within the next decade these problems will be resolved.
Even though the older sites are not mentioned, the point the author is trying to make is this site seems to be popular for the moment. However, is this popularity going to be a temporary success or a trend that is here to stay? Only time can tell if chatting while you read becomes the future style of book reading.


References

Sydell, L. (July 02, 2009). Chat While Reading: The Future Of Books? NPR.org Web Site. Retrieved July 06, 2009, from npr.org Web site: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106150832

Icon Analysis

Beetle Bailey, created by Mort Walker on Sept. 4, 1950, when America entered into the Korean War. This is also the last comic strip personal approved of by William Randolph Hearst. The theme is on an American Army post, and Beetle Bailey accidently joined the army and he is not very good at being a solider, but that is what gives this strip its humor, beetle’s antics. Clint Eastwood, icon of masculinity and only actor to be leading man for five decades. Clint Eastwood is known for his rugged cowboy roles, to Detective Harry Callahan, an accomplished director, and Mayor. Bob Marley, icon in Reggae music twenty million copies sold worldwide. Ten times platinum Bob Marley is still the most widely revered and well known performer of his time to spread Jamaican music and the Rastafarian movement to worldwide audiences.

I choose these icons because they are from my childhood and remain as icons still today. As a child, I remember reading the Beetle Bailey comic strips and generations later this comic is still around. Again as a child, I watched Clint Eastwood’s earlier movies and continued to watch them through out my lifetime. I believe I have seen all of his movies. Bob Marley, I remember hearing about him growing up, and heard his music through out my life, and still the lyrics are empowering to listeners.

To me Beetle Bailey is still humorous comic strip today. Representing the lazy, slacker, type you sometimes find within our military branches. Clint Eastwood can be considered a role model for our youth, and a contributing member to society. Bob Marley is a musical legend of his time. Beetle Bailey, Clint Eastwood, and Bob Marley are all pop cultural icons in there own right, and have been able to maintain there iconic status still today.



References

Image of Clint Eastwood provided by bing.com. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from internet link source listed http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Clint+Eastwood&FORM=BIFD#

Image of Bob Marley provided by internet source listed. Retrieved July 6, 2009, from
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Bob+Marley&FORM=BIFD#

Walker, M. (July 6, 2009). Beetle Bailey comic strip. Arcmax Publishing Comic / King Features Syndicate Inc... Images provided by bing.com. Retrieved July 6, 2009 from internet link listed http://www.arcamax.com/beetlebailey