Privacy & Confidentiality

With the rapid growth and advance of new media, there are new problems and threats to privacy and confidentiality. According to the article, "The Wild West of Privacy" by Joe Nocera, there is a privacy crisis looming in the United States. Big Internet companies such as Facebook, Google, Yahoo, etc. are collecting data about us, their users and then sell the data to other companies who would like to learn about our health habits, food preferences, etc. There is a market for consumer studies and with the tools created by big data brokers, it is now easier for them than ever to monitor us.
In addition to these sites tracking our every move, there is a serious privacy concern when taking into consideration social media sites such as Facebook or Youtube. Their privacy settings are continuously changing, and sometimes users are not aware of the news changes and the information that was once private is now public. Despite the privacy settings, some people are just unaware altogether of how to manage their privacy settings on social media sites and end up having personal pictures shared or used on fake accounts.Speaking of identity thief, there have been many cases of information being stolen from online purchases and breached email accounts. Hence, there are a lot of issues concerning privacy and confidentiality regarding new media and is still a looming threat today.

Advice to Baruch College

If I were hired by Baruch College, some suggestions I have regarding new media would be:

1) Using online based homework more often in the classroom. For instance, some classes are currently using Connect or MypearsonLab and I find these sites very useful (for math courses at least) when there are options to give you examples of the current question you are working on, and also refers you to the section of the textbook that is related to the problem. This allows for easier and more effective way of studying and understanding where exactly you need to study from in the textbook. 

2) Encourage participation/attendance in workshops that teach you how to use social media properly, ie. What NOT to put on social media, What recruiters are looking for on your LinkedIn page, etc. 

3) Discussions on Blackboard. From all of the classes that I have ever taken in Baruch in almost four years, most professors do not utilize the discussion board on Blackboard. It can be a very important tool for the professor and students to communicate, as well as for other students to communicate for one another. For instance, the discussion board can be opened up for anyone to start a new thread, and from there, the professor should encourage any questions-and the answer to the question can be answered by either the professor or other students. The discussion board can also be a place where students reach out to other students in the class if they'd like to study together or share notes if they missed a class, etc.

Creativity and New Media

For my example of how new media fosters creativity, I took snapshots of my screen on my phone, while playing the game Clash of Clans. Clash of Clans is an app for both androids and apple devices; it is a strategy game that allows you to choose your army and invade other users' villages. This game allows for a lot of creativity in 1) how you choose to assemble your army for attacking 2) how you choose to defend your village based on the setup of your buildings and walls, and 3) your method of attacking the other villages.

<-- This is my first and current layout of my village. I purposely spread out my buildings in the shape of a square so that it would be more difficult for my opponents to reach the center while my defense towers are attacking their troops.

This is my second layout. As you can see, it differs from my first layout. This game allows you to save up to 3 base layouts and therefore, encourages you to be creative and create different bases in case one doesn't seem to be effective for too long.

 <-- This is my final layout. Although it is not as effective as the first two, I really like this one because it has a cool shape. For the record, I created all three of these layouts on my own. I like how the game gives make a chance to arrange the buildings and walls to my liking.

This is a quick glance of the different types of troops available that you need to train in order to compose your army for attacking. As you can see, there are various possibilities.

 <-- In addition to different troops for your army, you can also choose spells to help your army advance in battle. You can definitely be creative in the type of offense you create.

Lastly, here is a screenshot of the midst of a battle. There are endless ways someone can choose to attack a village. You can start from the side, corner, go straight for the center with air troops, drop poison spells, or a rage spell with golems, etc. Essentially, one of the main reasons why I enjoy playing this game is because it allows me to be creative in my strategies for defending and attacking.

CREATIVITY

Youtube, an example of a new media is fostering creativity by allowing users to upload videos of mash-ups (a video made by editing snippets of other videos and movies). According to the article, "Disney Tolerates a Rap Parody of Its Critters. But Why?" by Brooks Barnes, there have been several instances of mash-ups uploaded on Youtube and has not been removed because it has not violated the copyright laws. By allowing these mash-ups to remain on Youtube, the new media site Youtube, along with Nickelodeon (the company the clips have been taken from) are encouraging others to create more videos for entertainment. A Nickelodeon spokesman encourages this and states that, "our audiences can creatively mash video from our content as much and as often as they like," and even commented on the mash-up saying that it "was a very nice edit job by whoever did the Spongebob mash". Essentially, by allowing these mash-ups to remain for others to view, other users are more willing to go out of their comfort zone and create more creative videos.

Modeling Reality with Virtual Worlds

Virtual worlds have gained a large following in the past couple years, especially with the release of the game MineCraft and other games similar to it. In the reading, "After Second Life, Can Virtual Worlds Get a Reboot?" by Diane Mehta, MineCraft is a popular game for children, especially for children the ages of 5-15 because they are able to explore the virtual world in the game and meet people with similar interests from all over the world in the convenience of their own home. Apparently, within the virtual world, it is easier for them to communicate and express themselves without the supervision of their parents which makes it all the more appealing. In this specific example, MineCraft allows for social connection, entertainment and learning for these adolescents. On the other hand, the drawbacks of utilizing these games/tools for the virtual world can foster an unrealistic expectation of communication and interaction in the real world, and also lead to the lack of interpersonal skills due to the reliance of the internet. Nowadays, we find more and more kids stuffed inside room and in their house, rather than enjoying nature and experiencing the real life situations/feelings that have been replaced by the virtual world.

Children are not the only ones intrigued by virtual worlds, as adults have many uses for them as well. For instance, there are machines used to recreate real-life situations to help PTSD survivors battle their fears as well as other re-enactments. Virtual worlds have the potential to create drastic changes in one's mindset and lives, and even help with one's self esteem. In the article, "No Budget, No Boundaries: It's the Real You" by Ruth La Ferla, the virtual world on sites such as There.com or SecondLife.com, allows for real life people to live out their dreams in the virtual world. As virtual things are inexpensive in the virtual world, many people can buy the things they've always wanted or live in the environment they hoped to--gaining not only entertainment from the sites but also happiness. Of course, the drawbacks are similar to those mentioned above, as the virtual world may lead to unrealistic expectations and when these expectations are not met--it may be dangerous for the people who do not know how to cope with reality. As much as the virtual world promotes creativity and imagination, it can have the opposite effect if used poorly. However, I do believe that virtual worlds can offer peace and happiness to those who are unable to find it the real world, but can also serve as another form of entertainment, comfort and relief. The future of virtual world is bright.

Social Networking Sites

I have looked into four social networking sites: Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and Instagram. My impression for each site differs;

Twitter: Fast-paced simplified way of communicating. There is no time for lengthy rants or long essays. It is mostly about expressing your main idea and making a statement. Things can get viral real quick and the option to re-tweet allows for bigger audiences to see your posts. It is a lot more public than Facebook.

Facebook: Has more options for privacy settings to control who can view your posts. Allows people to be able to fully express themselves (from the long posts I see as statuses). A lot more pictures are shared on Facebook than on Twitter. The comment sections are a lot lengthier and longer in a discussion style compared to Twitter. Facebook also allows for a more personalized profile.

Tumblr: Great for sharing and finding memes and cute comments. Also great for expressing yourself and being able to comment on posts in a discussion style. Has a collection of pictures and graphics ready to be shared.

Instagram: Emphasis on photos and videos. The options to filter the photos are addicting and make really nice pictures. Makes good use of the quote "a picture is worth a thousand words," allows for a more creative way to update others about what you're up to or where you've been.

Blog about Twitter

Since twitter limits you to 140 characters, your posts have to be short and sweet. Compared to a discussion on Blackboard or an in class discussion, Twitter forces you to condense your portion of the discussion and solidify your main point. Twitter also allows for easier communication as a class because you can directly reply to another one of your classmates' comments, whereas, if it were an in class discussion, people would have to wait their turn and some of the things that they might want to say will be lost in the changing of the conversation. However, it is less practical to use Twitter to communicate a necessary long or lengthy conversation, such as your feelings towards a specific person or idea because you will not be able to fully express yourself within the limited characters, and also because it will be difficult for six or seven people to respond to the same six or seven people if they had something to say to each person. Twitter is like a simplified version of Blackboard discussions in my opinion, and it is much easier to communicate in person or on Blackboard if you expect to have a long conversation/discussion about one topic.

Social Networking

Sites such as Facebook, Myspace and other social sites are helpful for a variety of things, such as retaining contact with friends and family, providing updates on your personal life to your followers, and even serve as an intermediary for public issues and debates, hosting events and creating awareness. Of course other social sites such as LinkedIn helps to cater towards a specific social need, such as building a reputation and profile online to attract recruiters and possible job offers. Evidently, there are a lot of positive uses for social networking sites, however, there are also negative or “dark” aspects to these sites, such as the invasion or lack of privacy, as well as the viral spread of negativity and abuse through online bullying/shaming.

For instance, in the article, “Facebook Privacy Is So Confusing Even the Zuckerberg Family Photo Isn’t Private” by Rebecca Greenfield, the article shows how even the CEO and co-founder of Facebook’s sister was unable to manage her own privacy settings on the social media site. Zuckerberg’s family photo was seen by someone that wasn’t on her friends list, and the person decided to post the photo on Twitter. Zuckerberg found out and asked it to be removed immediately because she claims that the photo was a private family photo and was intended for her friends only. This situation shows that there is a lack of privacy settings, or a lack of privacy settings knowledge on social sites that often lead to issues and misunderstandings between one another. If not used carefully, social sites such as Facebook can become an open invitation to strangers following private and intimate details of one’s life.

Another instance of the negative aspects of social sites is found in the article “They’re Back, and They’re Bad: Campus-Gossip Web Sites” by Jeffrey R. Young, which points out the increasingly troublesome problem of online bullying. In universities, gossip web sites have become a popular social networking tool that allows for students to “post anonymous attacks on classmates”. Since the comments are made anonymously and almost anyone with access to the site can view the hurtful comments, the sites become a dangerous weapon for ruining an individual’s self-confidence and self-image and can further lead to life threatening results such as depression or even suicide.

Thus, social networking sites definitely has a “dark” side to it as well as positive uses. Although social media has improved communication and collaboration for online users, it also poses as a threat for others. Nonetheless, I believe that the future of social media remains bright, as there is no quicker way to share and compare information than social networking. It is difficult to meet and maintain contact with everyone in person, but with one click of a button, hundreds and even thousands can see what you’re up to and photos of where you’ve been. Therefore, I do not see social media sites changing in the long run—if anything, they will continue to make sharing information even easier and accessible.