Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
On Multimodality and New Media Literacy
One of the reasons I’ve been studying different forms of media for so long is because I am interested in how the world works. A lot of my theoretical research boils down to advocating media literacy in less advantaged groups. There are data that shows those with less access technology are at a disadvantage of staying informed or being able to reach specific goals. This said, the first half of Gunther Kress’ Multimodality (Routledge 2010) seems to be leading up to advocacy of new media literacy. He notes three features that mark our contemporary media landscape – forms of knowledge production, forms and principles of text making composition, and social and semiotic blurring. These concepts stuck out at me because they recognize that new media literacy entails not only being able to navigate technology but also becoming a participant in authoring and composing new media as well as understanding how society is negotiated through communication.
I kept returning to Kress’ explanation of how simple grammar can signify positions of power under a lens of social-semiotics. He writes that the first part of the question “I wanted to ask, could I have an extension for my essay?” distances the speaker from a weak position of not being able to complete a task by putting in the past tense. Furthermore, when this question is auditory, there is nuance in inflection and tone that give the receiver of the message cues of its meaning. I would say this translates into atheistic design choices as well. Kress touches on the concept that choices in color, form and mode are part of sign making and meaning making in multimodal communication. Kress only mentions creativity in passing but it is fairly obvious that a good design by the sender can incite interest of the end of the receiver. For that reason, if a message is to be welcomed by a specific group, the sender needs to be aware of their audience, its culture and the signs that are meaningful within it.
Kress writes that he has a problem with the notion of universals like the ‘universals of language’ or the ‘universals of communication.’ He writes that “the universe of cultures and of cultural difference on our small planet is too vast for such generalization.” While I agree with the whole of this, it does not mean that we cannot make sense of different cultural modes of communication and meaning making, especially when concepts of globalization makes virtually everything so accessible and leads to repurposing. This is to say that there can be one end message – say new media literacy for example – but the way the message is presented can - and needs to - change for each intended audience. The message sent to inner city kids advocating media literacy may differ from the message intended for rural citizens which shouldn’t be the same campaign for the elderly.
I kept returning to Kress’ explanation of how simple grammar can signify positions of power under a lens of social-semiotics. He writes that the first part of the question “I wanted to ask, could I have an extension for my essay?” distances the speaker from a weak position of not being able to complete a task by putting in the past tense. Furthermore, when this question is auditory, there is nuance in inflection and tone that give the receiver of the message cues of its meaning. I would say this translates into atheistic design choices as well. Kress touches on the concept that choices in color, form and mode are part of sign making and meaning making in multimodal communication. Kress only mentions creativity in passing but it is fairly obvious that a good design by the sender can incite interest of the end of the receiver. For that reason, if a message is to be welcomed by a specific group, the sender needs to be aware of their audience, its culture and the signs that are meaningful within it.
Kress writes that he has a problem with the notion of universals like the ‘universals of language’ or the ‘universals of communication.’ He writes that “the universe of cultures and of cultural difference on our small planet is too vast for such generalization.” While I agree with the whole of this, it does not mean that we cannot make sense of different cultural modes of communication and meaning making, especially when concepts of globalization makes virtually everything so accessible and leads to repurposing. This is to say that there can be one end message – say new media literacy for example – but the way the message is presented can - and needs to - change for each intended audience. The message sent to inner city kids advocating media literacy may differ from the message intended for rural citizens which shouldn’t be the same campaign for the elderly.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
where is my mind?
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Attends Own Funeral Services
Letter to the Editor and Open Invitation to the People of Hamilton County
May 16th, 1904
Dear Fellow Residents,
I, Stephan R. Patten, am a great man. As a founding father of Valier, Illinois, I have paved the way for commerce and industry and to have bestowed upon our society a place on the map. I, as the rest of the community will be agreement, will be sorrowed at my passing for a number of reasons which I will now state. I am renowned in Valier as a charitable gentleman blessed with the fortune to advance this community in the ways of business and education. I have made contributions to those less fortunate townspeople in order for their sons to attend the nearby universities in St. Louis and Carbondale. Insomuch as these students recognize my kindness and generosity, they return to Valier to try their own hand at business and oft start fledgling factories, and while none have been as successful as I, it furthers the opinion of this town of outsiders to be the foremost community that traveling politicians and businessmen seek out on their journeys between Chicago and Memphis.
As older generation and my peers may be aware, the Lord has chosen not to bless me with any sons to carry on the family name and business, unless you count young Stephan, who we had to lay to rest at the fragile age of two in our modest family plot that has providence to be otherwise barren. However, my wife and five daughters shall inherit my wealth and I mistrust their decorum to demonstrate dignified taste in such matters as burial as not to squander hundreds dollars on unnecessary grandiosity such as gilded casket handles and opulent flower arrangements.
As any great man should have it, my death ceremonies should take place in a venerable and noble manner. Considering this factor, I shall be extending my eightieth birthday celebration to honor my death. In this manner, I will be privy to the good, kind things the people of this town have to say about the prestige I have bestowed upon this town. The ceremony will be restricted to family members only, however every townsperson is invited to festivities immediately following provided they bring a covered dish to share and be prepared to impart a short speech about the effectiveness of my generosity and demeanor upon their life.
Forever yours in life and death,
Stephan R. Patten
May 16th, 1904
Dear Fellow Residents,
I, Stephan R. Patten, am a great man. As a founding father of Valier, Illinois, I have paved the way for commerce and industry and to have bestowed upon our society a place on the map. I, as the rest of the community will be agreement, will be sorrowed at my passing for a number of reasons which I will now state. I am renowned in Valier as a charitable gentleman blessed with the fortune to advance this community in the ways of business and education. I have made contributions to those less fortunate townspeople in order for their sons to attend the nearby universities in St. Louis and Carbondale. Insomuch as these students recognize my kindness and generosity, they return to Valier to try their own hand at business and oft start fledgling factories, and while none have been as successful as I, it furthers the opinion of this town of outsiders to be the foremost community that traveling politicians and businessmen seek out on their journeys between Chicago and Memphis.
As older generation and my peers may be aware, the Lord has chosen not to bless me with any sons to carry on the family name and business, unless you count young Stephan, who we had to lay to rest at the fragile age of two in our modest family plot that has providence to be otherwise barren. However, my wife and five daughters shall inherit my wealth and I mistrust their decorum to demonstrate dignified taste in such matters as burial as not to squander hundreds dollars on unnecessary grandiosity such as gilded casket handles and opulent flower arrangements.
As any great man should have it, my death ceremonies should take place in a venerable and noble manner. Considering this factor, I shall be extending my eightieth birthday celebration to honor my death. In this manner, I will be privy to the good, kind things the people of this town have to say about the prestige I have bestowed upon this town. The ceremony will be restricted to family members only, however every townsperson is invited to festivities immediately following provided they bring a covered dish to share and be prepared to impart a short speech about the effectiveness of my generosity and demeanor upon their life.
Forever yours in life and death,
Stephan R. Patten
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