Convergence Culture

Convergence was explained ''The flow of content across multiple platforms, the cooperation between multiple media industries, aand the migratory behaviour of media audiences who will go almost anywhere in serach of the kinds of entertaşnment experineces they want.'' by Henry Jenkins(2006). Moreover Jenkins added convergenge is a word  that manages to describe technological, industrial, cultural and social changes depending on who's speaking and what they are thinking about. Forexample mobile phone combine all these desciption. Nearly twenty year ago mobile phonewas using just calling. afterthat 5 year later we can send message on mobile phone.one after another was added this amenities radio, photo, video, internet etc. on the other hand  very smart phone include television , video camera, watch, navigation, computer photgraf machine music player and lots of machines speciality

However Jenkins demonstrate to quote from Nicholas Negropnte's Being Digital that drew a sharp contrast between ''passive old media'' and interactive new media'' predicting the collapse of broadcast networks in favour of an era of narrowcasting and niche media on demand. However George Gilder dismissed such claims and he said that The computer industury is covering with the television industry in the same sense that the automobile converged with horse, the tv converged with the nickelodeon, the word-processing program converged with typewriter, the CAD program converged with the drating board, and digital deskıp publishing converged with the linotype machine and letterpress. Jenkins is saying television did not kill radio. in other saying ''old media'' can be develop but this prosess is more hard and long than ''new media''. Forexample cable tv has radio and television channels on box and some televevision channel is launching tv show on radio frequncy in current world.

References

Jenkins, H. (2006) Convergence Culture Where old and new media collide new york and london new york uni press

Henry Jenkins Convergence Culture

"Welcome to convergence culture, where old and new media collide" (H Jenkins 2006 p.3).

Convergence culture is explained by Jenkins as a "flow of content across multiple media platforms", he also tells us that his book is about the relationship between three concepts - convergence media, participatory culture and collective intelligence.

Jenkins argues that the days when devices were created for solely for one purpose are long gone. He uses many examples throughout his introduction to reinforce his case e.g. he talks about how cell phones are not simply devices that can make phone calls any more. They allow the consumer to surf the internet, download/listen to music, stream live music events and use cameras for photo and video purposes. In fact the simple purpose of making a phone call seems to be the least focused on attribute on the device. He reinforced this claim with his own experience of when he went to stores looking for a cell phone that just made phone calls and was told they don't make them like that anymore. This is what Jenkins called a "Cultural Shift".

In his book Jenkins speculates that the way consumers are utilizing media it will end up that all media artefacts will one day be rolled into one black box he calls this "The Black Box Fallacy". Jenkins believes that we already live in a society where devices are already so close to being everything in one. Although he does state that old media will never die, just the way in which we access it and enjoy it through the technological mediums will change.

"Delivery technologies become obsolete and get replaced; media, on the other hand, evolve." (H Jenkins 2006 p.19).

The fact Jenkins emphasizes during this introduction is that convergence is coming and there is nothing anyone can do about it, so we will have to get accustomed to it.


References:

Henry Jenkins (2006) Where Old and New Media Collide, Introduction "Worship at the Altar of Convergence" p.1-25

Image: http://kelger.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/technological-convergence.html

Convergence Culture

The rise of convergence in the media industry could arguably be one of the most important creative movements in history, if not the 21st century. What was once exclusively the domain of a select few in the industry, it is now possible for anybody to create, publish and critique their own productions though a single device.

“...Convergence culture, where old and new media collide, where grass roots and corporate media intersect, where the power of the media producer and the power of the media consumer interact in unpredictable ways.” (Jenkins: 2006, 2)

Media platforms are being revolutionised, as their ‘all-inclusive’ nature develops. Where even a decade ago, it was essential to use many separate devices to create a respectable production, it is now possible to do everything, right down to editing, on a mobile phone. The portable and all inclusive nature of modern phones allow us to capture much more of the world practically, and simply. BBC World News recently experimented by filming an entire report on an iPhone. [2] Essentially, this makes the camera, lighting, sound and accompanying crew redundant, by a device that can fit in the palm of said crew's hands. The fact that the worlds largest broadcaster is showing interest in convergence is significant. It closes the gap between what a major corporation can produce, in comparison to the average person. 

Today, the PC has become a window to the world, both gripping and insightful. Web surfers can download and share music, television shows, games and books, without moving from their chair. The nature of convergence culture, and the internets influence on it is perhaps best reflected by one of its early examples. ‘Bert is Evil,’ a simple joke image, edited in a bedroom, slowly became an international controversy due to its misuse and provocative nature. 

References:

[1] Jenkins, Henry | Convergence Culture: Where old and new media collide | 2006, NY University Press

[2] BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/blogcollegeofjournalism/posts/Filming-for-TV-on-iPhones-in-Nepal-a-balancing-act-worth-the-risk 

[3] Image 1: http://nikkikavanagh.wordpress.com/2012/08/28/convergence-culture-convenience-culture/

[4] Image 2: http://convergencecultureblog.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/bert-is-evil-consequences-of.html

A Convergence Culture in a Technological Expanding World

My first thoughts on Convergence Culture were simplistic to say the least, the basis being old media combining with new media to create an all new beast altogether. However, Henry Jenkins opened my eyes to a different view entirely. Jenkins talks about old and new media being linked through different mediums, ocassionally helped along by human interference.

In the theory of new media not clashing with old media, we could look at a recent news story that broke  in 2011 via social networking site Twitter. The story I talk of is that of Manchester United footballer Ryan Giggs' super-injunction on his alleged affair (The Telegraph, 2012). In this instance the new media helped old media progress around otherwise blocked channels to produce a story that they wanted to tell.

Jenkins states that, 'old media will never die... What dies are simply the tools we use to access media content.' (Jenkins, 2006) For an example of this we can look at how we have received music over the years, vinyl, cassette tape, mini disc, cd, mp3, and so on. These tools have advanced to something that we can receive now that has no physical prescence.

Jankins also mentions 'The Black Box Fallacy', which is a theory that a 'black box' could control all mediums that we need. Many of us hae these 'black boxes', just think of your laptop, it contains your music, videos, internet, news and more.


It could be said that Jenkins believes that there will never be an 'Ultimate Black Box' and there may never be, although we are getting very close to it.

Take the soon to be released next generation of gaming consoles, the Xbox One boasts of being your entire media centre for your home. It includes a blu-ray drive, along with applications for television, music, live events, internet, social networking, phone calls, video calls, forums and much more. The iPhone 5 also has applications for everything that I've previously mentioned, although it has a smaller screen.
Our technology is evolving rapidly, although I believe that old media will always have a part in our culture as this is truely a convergence culture.




REFERENCES

Jenkins, H. (2006) Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York and London: New York University Press.

The Telegraph (2012) Ryan Giggs: Timeline of Injunction Debate [Online]. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/9095887/Ryan-Giggs-timeline-of-injunction-debate.html (Accessed: 7 June 2013)

Convergence Culture

We live in a world which is ever changing. One spectacular creation which is advancing faster than anything else is the media. For millions of people today the media and the internet are idols, they worship the content and communications which are available to them at the click of a button. Mobile phones are no longer devices which only allow you to make calls and send text messages. They are now equipped with cameras, MP3 players, organisers, games, internet explorers and libraries full of books. This is an example of converged media.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0fqH4r61zk 

Jenkin's writes, that convergence culture is 'where old and new media collide.' (Jenkins, 2008, Pg. 2) Just as the automobile converged with the horse and cart and the television converged with radio, the smart-phone converged with the telegram. 'Convergence is an old concept taking on new meaning.' (Jenkins, 2008, Pg. 6) New media do not abolish old media, they intersect and become a new advanced media. Convergence is 'the idea that because of progress of technology various different types of media such as the television, newspapers and radio are combining into a single media, for example, television and computer technology are increasingly becoming the same thing.'  (Online: Youtube, 2013)

        
In his book Jenkins talks about the 'Black Box Fallacy.' It is the idea that all media content will flow through the 'black box' in our living rooms or the little black box in our pockets, i.e. mobile phones. (Jenkins, 2008,) Ray Kurzweil, a director of engineering at Google said 'so what used to fit in a building, i.e. computers, now fits in your pocket i.e. mobile phones, what fits in your pocket now will fit inside a blood cell in 25 years.' (Online: YouTube, 2013)

                                          Figure 1

An important note is that new media are not being banished. 'Rather, their functions and status are being shifted by the introduction of new technologies.' (Jenkins, 2008, Pg. 14) If we think about it, spoken words have not been killed by printed words and the radio has not been killed by television. Old media forms have been required to synchronise with new media, therefore making an even better and more advanced media with more to offer active consumers. (Jenkins, 2008)
In a few years the incredibly advanced media we have today may be just a thing of the past as more shifts in technology will take place and who knows what the future holds.

Books:
Henry Jenkins, 'Convergence Culture: Where old and new media collide', 2008, NYU Press

Websites:
Laurence Bolton, 'Convergence Media', 2013, YouTube [Online] Accessed on 8/10/13 Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUlRbx8sX2A
CommKh, 'Convergence Media', 2013, YouTube [Online] Accessed on 8/10/13 Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NM8dLz-nmlw
Hudson Millar, 'iPhone Convergence' 2013, YouTube [Online] Accessed 8/10/13 Available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0fqH4r61zk 

Images:
Figure 1 - http://www.convergencecatalyst.com/blog/2012/04/02/technology-manifestation-cycles-for-true-convergence/ 'Technology manifestation cycles for 'True Convergence', posted 2/4/2012 [Accessed: 8th October 2013]

Media is continuously growing and is becoming more important in our generation. It is world wide and with the click of a button we can share anything with anyone who has access to media products such as a computer. Jenkins wrote 'when people take media into their own hands, the results can be wonderfully creative; they can also be bad news for those involved' (Jenkins 2006) This was the case for 'Dino Ignacio' who Photo shopped the famous Muppet's character 'Bert' into a picture Osama Bin Laden. The picture was later used in anti-american protests in the middle east. This shows the sheer magnitude of the media and how a photo a boy created in his room could spread across the world and be perpetrated in such a serious manner. Others have used media to perform talent and as a result have become internet famous and made careers out of it. This once again shows how media has developed and how crucial it can be for some people.

Media is always expanding as well as media products such as mobile phones and game consoles. When you buy a phone you don't just buy a phone. You also buy a camera, video camera, mp3 player etc. This is what Jenkins calls 'Convergence media' also the phone usually becomes outdated as new versions are constantly being created leaving consumers with the feeling to constantly upgrade.

With the emergence of new media forms we can interact with each other differently. Jenkins writes 'Anthropologist Mizuko Ito has documented the growing place of mobile communications among Japanese youth, describing young couples can remain in constant contact with each other through out the day, thanks to their access to mobile technologies. They wake up together, work together, eat together and go to bed together even though they live miles apart' (Jenkins 2006) It has changed our relationships with friends and family and it means we can interact with them from across the world thanks to such new media forms such as Face Time and Skype.

The way we live is constantly changing due to the constant evolution of new media forms. Jenkins explains that a student doing work may have a word document opened, as well as surfing the web, downloading music etc. Our everyday tasks now usually include media in some way. Media convergence is ever growing and will continue to grow and to improve and continually out date it self.

Bibliography

Jenkins H. (2006). Convergence Culture: Where old and new media collide. New York: NYC Press.

Convergence Culture

[1]My initial understanding of 'Convergence Culture' is where Old Media and New Media cross paths. Jenkins describes it as the "flow of content across multiple media forms". He also mentions that the media audiences will go 'almost anywhere in search of the media experiences they want'. An example of this would be when we hear of an interesting news broadcast on the television, then reach for our pockets for our mobile phones to check what other information about the story is available on the likes of Twitter and Facebook. 

    This brings me onto my next topic where Jenkins mentions the 'cultural shift' from the original purpose of a device like a mobile phone to its uses now in 2013. In the book Jenkins explains this through a nice and easy to understand metaphor in which he explains it as "an electric equivalent of a Swiss army nice", meaning we no longer use our mobile 'phones' as just phones. They can be used for an abundance of different purposes. Jenkins explains his frustration about this in his book, where single functioning phone are no longer manufactured, he mentions how he was laughed at and told the "nobody wants them". This is a great example in the 'cultural shift' from a decade ago.

    

[2] The mobile phone network O2 carried out a survey on how we use our mobile phones in this New Media age. They found that our main function we use our mobiles for is browsing the web for 24 minutes per day, making phone calls is 5th popular at 13 minutes a day.

This survey shows that we prefer to use our mobile phones more for browsing the internet, social media, music and games more than a 'phone', which ironically is the name of the device. I believe that making calls will fall deeper down this list as New Media continues to develop.

References:
 [1]  Convergence Culture: Where Old and New  Media collide - H. Jenkins, 2006
 [2]  Statistics and Image available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2333261/We-spend-MORE-time-phones-partner.html
Image: http://i2.cdn.turner.com/money/dam/assets/121126031324-inv-12-old-vs-new-media-monster.jpg 


  

Convergence Culture

Convergence Culture, as described by Henry Jenkins is the flow on content across multiple platforms. I understand there to be a Cultural shift as consumers are encouraged to seek out new information and make connections.

We know that the media industries are undergoing a Paradigm shift which often happens. We can assume that new media is going to push old media aside. Though this assumption has been pushed aside by another digital revolutionary, George Gilder, who has dismissed these claims and states that "the computer industry is converging with the television industry in the same way that the auto-mobile converged with the horse and cart". (H. Jenkins, 2006, Page 4)

From reading this first few pages of this book and relating to the first given example regarding Dino Ignacio, we can understand the ease at which someone can spark an international controversy. How he could use such a big media icon (Bert) so publicly and link it to something as far-fetched as Bin Laden's life. We would be perplexed by the amount of Global coverage that Ignacio received.

The New Orleans Media Experience (October '03) had 3 plain messages :
1. Convergence is coming and you better be ready
2. Convergence is harder than it sounds
3. Everyone will survive if everyone works together.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TvXsVY695E

Jenkins continues to talk about the "Black Box Fallacy" and that "old Media will never die". He says that the way in which we access old media will die, such as 8-Track and that there is a pull toward more specialized media appliances which coexists with a push towards more generic devices.

"Media convergence is more than just a technological shift, it alters the relationship between existing technologies, industries, markets, genres and audiences." (H. Jenkins, 2006)

References 

1) Convergence Culture, H. Jenkins, 2006
2) Image URL - http://mas110sem22012-lab13.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/media-convergence-essay.html

Convergence Culture Where Old and New Media Collide

"Convergence does not mean ultimate stability or unity" (H Jenkins 2006 p.11). Then, what does Convergence culture mean?

Jenkins explained that convergence culture refers to the "flow of content across multiple media platforms" and argues against the idea of it being mainly understood as a "technological process" combing multiple media functions into one single device (ibid p.3)

Convergence, which Jenkins describes as a 'cultural shift' is when one device has many other features in addition to its original function. In the past, a device would have had one function and fairly little/no additional features, whereas now the devices evolved and carry out other tasks along side its original function. Jenkins uses a very good example in his novel to support his argument. It is undeniable that we have and are still witnessing the clear evolving and development of mobile phones. Year after year mobile phones are carrying out more tasks, you can almost do anything on your mobile phone, to the point we actually forget its original function. Jenkins requested a mobile phone with no additional features (camera, mp3 player etc) and was unable to obtain one as companies stopped producing them claiming "nobody wants them" (ibid p.5). This is an excellent example demonstrating clearly his argument about the cultural shift and the media convergence which we witness today. 

Jenkins also argues that the "old media never die" (ibid p.13) and what actually dies are the "tools that we use to access media content". What Jenkins means is that old media won't disappear, though it changes/evolves and is used in different methods, but still for the same reason, for example, obtaining news online is the same as the news we read on the newspaper, but how we access the media is the only difference. 

References:

Henry Jenkins (2006), Convergence Culture Where Old and New Media Collide, Introduction: "Worship at the Altar of Convergence" pp.1-25

Images: 
1)
http://www.muymovil.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/evolition-of-mobilephoneEdit_thumb555.jpg
Accessed on the date of 08/10/2013

2)
 http://soulclassy.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/newspaper_business_internet_4118851.jpg
Accessed on the date of 08/10/2013 

Convergence Culture

Convergence is the act of old and new media colliding and intersecting with each other in ways which brings together different mediums of delivery into one device. In the past a mobile could only do one thing, call other mobiles. Mobiles now encompass many different forms of media including internet, gaming, video ect. Jenkins definition of convergence is much more complex than this. He uses the term to refer to the ever changing trends in the media world, its relationship with participatory culture and the idea of collective intelligence.

When people are asked to describe the current media landscape they often respond by making a list of the latest technology and tools. Jenkins believes we should focus more on emerging trends and cultural practices rather than focusing on the hardware which would facilitate this convergence. He states that because these practices cut across many different media platforms and cultural communities that they suggest something in the way we live in relation to present day media. He is suggesting that the way we participate or consume this media has an effect on our everyday lives.

"We are entering an era when media will be everywhere. Convergence isn't something that is going to happen one day...Ready or not, we are already living within a convergence culture." (Jenkins, 2008. p.16)

Jenkins is making the point that media convergence affects the way on which we consume media, for example a student doing coursework may have a word document open, browse the web, listen to music as well as a variety of other tasks all at the once.

New forms of media are being put out at an alarming rate, so fast that we barely have time to assess the cultural impact one piece of technology has on us before the next iteration is released. Marshall McLuhan (1969) echoes this thought suggesting that "Media are often put out before they are thought out" (Jenkins, 2006) Jenkins states that old media doesn't necessarily die, what dies is the tools we use to deliver these forms of media, the media itself evolves.

Bibliography

Jenkins, H., 2006. Eight Traits of the New Media Landscape. [Online]
Available at: http://henryjenkins.org/2006/11/eight_traits_of the_new_media.html[Accessed 7th October 2013].

Jenkins, H., 2008. Convergence Culture: Where Old And New Media Collide Revised. New York: NYU Press.

Henry Jenkins: Convergence Culture

Henry Jenkins states in his book Convergence Culture: Where old and new media collide that it "is about the relationship between three concepts-media convergence, participatory culture, and collective intelligence"(H.Jenkins 2006 Pg 2). Each of these three concepts are thoroughly looked over through his introduction to his book but there is one in particular that he seems to cling onto more and that is media convergence.

Media convergence is not old media getting thrown away and never seen again because we love the new media so much, in fact it is nothing of the sort. It is like the old media is staying and helping the new media develop, we are not losing the old media at all, we are just simply receiving it in different ways with new tools that are helping shape the ongoing media convergence. Jenkins describes convergence as "the flow of content across multiple media platforms"(H.Jenkins 2006 Pg 2) but then he goes on to state that "sooner or later, the argument goes, all media is going to flow through a single black box"(H.Jenkins 2006 Pg 14). So is that the case that we will end up consuming all our media through one black box? Gaming, news, TV, communication etc all rolled into one device? The closest devices to this black box theory are the newest mobile phones and upcoming games consoles. Mobile phones these days are being created to do everything and it seems like their main function in making and receiving calls is only a small added extra where as their ability to surf the internet and play games is more important and a stronger selling point.

The Media convergence is happening and it is all around us and if we do not accept it we will be left behind.

REFERENCES:
Convergence Culture: Where Old And New Media Collide, Jenkins H, 2006, New York University Press.