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Overholser, Geneva. "On Behalf of Journalism: A Manifesto for Change." Philadelphia: The Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. 2009.

Overholser's article follows a June 2005 gathering of journalists and scholars at the Annenberg Public Policy Center, and many of her arguments stem from the discussions at that seminar. While maintaining a realistic and attainable vision of the future of journalism (and practical admission that "journalism as we know it is over"), Overholser argues that journalism is ideally a marshall of democracy and necessary to American freedom and must (and will) continue to exist, just in a new form. By discussing the responsibilities of journalists - as ethical, objective, professional, accountable sources - along with the responsibilities of the public and the government to support journalism in its ideal form, Overholser asserts that "what's needed is wide-open thinking about how consumers use information, and where they are getting it, and how old media companies can fulfill those needs while bringing the best of their traditions onto new platforms."

Overholser's article is comprehensive, realistic, and yet hopeful. Her refreshing outlook is that journalism has changed for good, but that that change is a welcome chance to re-evaluate, throw out the tired and unhealthy aspects of 'old world' media, and recommit to the "core values of the craft." She examines several options for the future of journalism – non-profit status, local ownership, media ownership rules, greater professionalization of 'citizen journalists' by means of agreed-upon standards – and all with the outlook that since the public will demand goof work, journalism will be here for the long haul. Overholser adeptly suggests that the problem with modern journalism isn't in the journalists, but in the public; and we must be encouraging better civics and news literacy education to help the public play their role better. It isn't journalism - the protector of democracy and leader in civic education - that is in danger of death, it is the media news conglomorates, and Overholser seems optimistic that their deaths may not injure democracy much.

"Poll Results – Now that Walter Cronkite has passed on, who is America's most trusted newscaster?" TIME. http://www.timepolls.com/hppolls/archive/poll_results_417.html

This poll by TIME online polled 9409 people asking who America's most trusted newscaster is now that Walter Cronkite has passed on. The results overwhelmingly favored Comedy Central's host of The Daily Show, Jon Stewart.

These poll results demonstrate an interesting shift in America's view of 'trustworthiness.' The fact that Americans place more trust in a comedic news reporter who demonstrates clear biases and includes fictious news intermingled with factual news indicates a significant shift in how we view news. I find this shift in our view of trustworthiness to be closely tied with the idea that citizens now have a right to comment and even influence news (via internet posts and commentary and blogs, etc.). The media culture seems to be shifting from one of serious journalism to a more casual interface that allows comedy and opinion to mix with information and leaves the onus of responsibility on the viewer or reader to discern truth from fiction.

Thesis: As news and journalism shifts to the internet, new technologies will inherently alter the core of journalism  in methods of research and accountability, in distribution models, and especially in how journalism interacts with its audience and learns to utilize 'citizen journalists' and produce more user-driven content.

Newspaper Revitalization Act 2009.<http://cardin.senate.gov/pdfs/newspaperbill.pdf> March 24, 2009.

If it pases, this proposed legislation by Senator Cardin will allow certain newspapers with 'educational' value to restructure as non-profits and benefit from tax-exemption under IRS code 501(a).

This proposal is one of many ideas that are currently on the table to 'rescue' the faltering newspaper industry. According to many sources, this legislation will not suffice to solve the problems of journalism (for a full critique see "Saving the News"), but it may provide a new avenue for some newspapers. Furthermore, the bill may suffice to protect enough investigative journalism to protect democracy, while other solutions turn to helping media turn a profit and meet the needs of the public.

Kramer, Joel. "Lessons I’ve learned after a year running MinnPost." Nieman Journalism Lab. March 19, 2009.

This anecdotal article by Joel Kramer provides insight into some of the challenges to professional online journalism. His brief and readable story of running the online news site, MinnStar, addresses issues such as user commentary, video integration, and start-up costs.

Kramer's most important point for my thesis is his process of screening user commentary with volunteer moderators. As he puts it, "We took plenty of heat from web-savvy readers for this decision. But as readers have watched the quality of comment on respected sites that don’t require real names, many are now grateful for our approach. Recently we published our 7,000th comment. Some sites with looser standards appear to be reconsidering their no-holds-barred policies." This MinnStar policy may or may not be forward thinking, but it is an example of one version of user interaction with news sites. MinnStar doesn't use citizen journalism the way, say, TalkingPointsMemo, does, but according to Kramer, they are exploring possibilities. This demonstrates the lack of an industry standard for harnessing citizen journalists, but emphasizes the growing awareness for policies and methods for intertwining professional quality journalism and usergenerated content.

Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism. "The State of the News Media: an annual report on american journalism."

This annual report from the Pew Project for Excellence in Journalism reports on the state of online jornalism. With substantial charts and research, the overview is an accurate discussion of both where many news organizations stand currently and where they may be (and some are) heading in the furture. The report's thorough treatment of both online content and economic viability address both the demands of the public and the needs of news reporting organizations.

The report provides valuable support for my thesis with its statistic and solid reporting. One particularly valuable section is the survey on "Top Issues in Online Media vs. Media Over All." The chart demonstrates that though the top three news story subjects (election, U.S. economy, Iraq War) are mirrored between online and all media, beyond that the statistics vary. Online, users have more say regarding which issues are covered, it is easy to track exactly which stories are most read, most shared, most commented on; in a print newspaper, information is much more general. This chart exposes how media overall may not be addressing the issues that are actually of most interest to their constituents. And, of interest to my thesis, it supports the idea that as more media incorporates methods for users to share and comment and contribute to media stories, the gap between stories that interest users and ones that do not interest them will widen as sites like Digg bring user approved content back to the top over and over, while stories of no interest to readers die after one day (or hour) on the front page.

Keller, Bill. “Not Dead Yet: The newspaper in the days of digital anarchy.” Lecture delivered at The Guardian in honor of Hugo Young. November, 29 2007. guardian.co.uk

In addition to providing an intellectual analysis of the future of journalism, Bill Keller’s address (appropriately for his audience) begins sentimentally, with anecdotes about Hugh Young, The New York Times, The Guardian and journalism as a profession. But halfway through the address Keller provides the meat of his discussion, which is his educated opinion about the future of newspapers and journalism.

Keller's main argument emphasizes that the differences between the investigative reporting of The New York Times or The Guardian and GoogleNews or Wikipedia's "legions of bloggers." "What is absent from the vast array of new media outlets is," Keller argues, "the great engine of newsgathering – the people who witness events, ferret out information, supply context and explanation." Though Keller rightly points out that opinion and journalism are different, he falsely accuses all internet commentors and 'citizen journalists' of being holed up behind computer screens rather than being active human participants in the world. Certainly there are differences between bloggers and journalists, but what Keller seems to mistake is that journalists must be associated with The Times or The Guardian or The Boston Globe in order to be investigative journalists, or even to "witness events," "ferret out information" or "supply context and explanation."

European Publishers Council. "Hamburg Declaration Regarding Intellectual Property Rights." Berlin: European Publishers Council. June 25, 2009.

This brief statement from the European Publishers Council (EPC) argues for "urgent improvements in the protection of intellectual property on the Internet." Without providing an answer to the problem or even asserting a path toward improvement of the situation, the statement simply places the onus of blame on sites that index their content. Meanwhile, the statement applauds national and internation governments for their efforts to protect international property.

Practically speaking, this statement is fairly ineffectual. Google's response has been essentially, "Go ahead and stop us from indexing your content" – a response that clearly demonstrates how vital news aggregation is to online media. Without offering a solution that will help users find content online while also crediting the correct sources, the EPC doesn't have much weight to throw around. This statement, instead, serves as a thermometer of the rising tension between investigative journalists and news aggregation websites.

Alterman, Eric. "The News Business: Out of Print: The death and life of the American newspaper." The New Yorker. March 31, 2008.

In this article, Alterman discusses the advantages, disadvantages, history, debates, and differing opinions concerning the migration of journalism from print to the internet. He begins by laying the scene, briefly calling on the history of print journalism while discussing current trends and the current bleak state of affairs for print media. The bulk of the article outlines the differences – good and bad – between internet blogging and news aggregation sites and traditional newsroom journalism. Alterman’s main argument centers around the Huffington Post, a political news and gossip website, as an example of the future of journalism. Central to Alterman’s discussion is the role of the reader/consumer of news. Using the contrast between Walter Lippmann and John Dewey's differing ideas of idylic political journalism, Alterman argues that the Internet is the swing from Lippmannesque (boys club, top down media) to Deweyish (public opinion driven, community contribution media) philosophies of journalism. Alterman’s prognosis is gloomy, particularly since he dwells on the fact that many online news sites prefer to aggregate news from print media, heresay and user commentary rather than funding their own investigative journalism.

Alterman’s argument addresses the central theme of my thesis: the difference between traditional journalism and internet-generation journalism. His discussion of 'the mullet strategy' (where websites like The Huffington Post keep a closely edited front page but allow users to fill their subpages with unedited commentary and opinion), is an excellent analysis of how media companies might control but still incorporate public contribtions. Alterman's article also raises an important issue concerning the future of journalism: that The Huffington Post flags stories from other news sources but "shoulders none of the costs" of investigating and writing the story. This issue is indeed central to the discussion, but Alterman's argument falters when he claims that The Huffington Post's hiring of Thomas Edsall, a forty-year veteran of The Washington Post, as its political editor is a "rare" example. For a foward-looking article such as this, Alterman could be expected to see that such hirings might very quickly become industry standard. And as print journalism aficionados move toward 'citizen journalism' sites, their presence will provide credibility and professionalism for the front page, and probably beyond.

McLeary, Paul. "How TalkingPointsMemo Beat the Big Boys on the U.S. Attorney Story." Columbia Journalism Review. March 15, 2007.

This article by Paul McLeary overviews the role the news and gossip website TalkingPointsMemo played in breaking a news story about illegal firings of U.S. Attorneys. The article focuses on the ability of TalkingPointsMemo to bring a story to light in a different way than was possible for traditional journalists. TalkingPointsMemo, McLeary points out, harnessed their online sources effectively to tap a "variety of sources that had been largely untapped by the mainstream press" and to break the story before most traditional press rooms.

The method of journalism outlined by McLeary serves as an example of a possible model for future journalism. TalkingPointsMemo's success with the U.S. Attorney story exemplifies a hybrid method of journalism wherein 'citizen journalism' is combined with an editorial process to create reliable stories quickly and effectively. McLeary points out that sites like TalkingPointsMemo that display a "model of reporting [that] ... straddl[es] the divide between old school shoe-leather reporting and the more aggregate method of Web reporting" are rare, but if the effectiveness continues, the scarcity won't last long.

Kaufman vs. Islamic Society of Arlington, Texas, Islamic Center of Irving, DFW Islamic Educational Center, INC., Dar Elsalam Islamic Center, Al Hedayah Islamic Center, Islamic Association of Tarrannt County and Muslim American Society of Dallas. No. 2-09-023-CV. January 22, 2009.

This court of appeals decision from Texas rules on the case of Kaufman, the author of an online article asserting that Islamic extremists and terrorists were invading Six Flags during their Muslim Family Day. The court decided in favor of Kaufman, arguing that his article did not refer to any of the groups that filed suit against him, and that a 'reasonable reader' would in no way link the groups and implicate the Islamic groups in question with the groups mentioned by Kaufman as terrorist affiliated. The court asserts that "...an internet author's status as a member of the electronic media should be adjudged by the same principles that courts should use to determine the author's status under more traditional media." It's decision classifies Kaufman as an 'online journalist' and argues that his legal rights are thus equal to those of traditional journalists.

Though the court's decision in favor of Kaufman holds little bearing on my thesis, their ruling affects the validity and status of online journalism because it equates it with print and traditional journalism. They argued that a blogger writing without an editor and without performing investigation and substantiation of their claims would not necessarliy be considered an online journalist and would not necessarily receive the same legal rights as online journalists like Kaufman. The questions is, of course, what makes Kaufman a 'journalist'. The court quoted U.S.C.A 552(a)(4)(A)(ii) (West Supp. 2009), arguing that media includes "any 'person or entity that gathers information of potential interest to a segment of the public, uses its editorial skills to turn the way materials into a distinct work, and distributes that work to an audience.'" By this measure, bloggers who discuss news (as opposed to just personal experience and opinion) are certainly included in the realm of online media.

Faculty from the University of Pennsylvania's School of Arts and Sciences, School of Law and School of Medicine discuss emerging issues, ethics and options related to recent advances in neuroscience.

Accenture Media and Entertainment. "The Challenge of Change: Perspectives on the future for Content Providers." Accenture Global Content Study 2008. Accenture: 2008.

This report is the result of a market research firm initiative, in which they surveyed 100 entertainment executives to determine their opinions on the future of revenue models based on digital media. The results of the survey show that the ad-based model is the most popular model for the surveyed executives, as opposed to subscription or iTunes-like services. Though the focus in the report seems to be on forms of entertainment other than music media, it provides a successful context for profit-garnering models in digital entertainment. It also reflects the point of view of those that will ultimately be responsible for shaping the way that media is transferred to the consumer (legally) online.

This report represents yet another perspective on successful provision of internet content (without greater legislation). The importance of advertising on maintaining free content on the internet cannot be understated -- many argue that advertising-based models represent the future of music revenue. Ad-based music models are already being put into place: the music-search engine developed by Google in China, for example. The Accenture report is important, therefore, because it provides data and quotes from industry experts that address the longstanding relationship between advertising and entertainment.

summary

anaylsis

Dancis begins with criticizing how old "plantation epics" misrepresents the African-American slaves during the time.  For example, "Gone with the Wind" and "The Birth of a Nation" give the audience the distorted perspective of many aspects of history, including slavery, the Civil War and the Reconstruction.  However, he argues, many films have been improving this chaotic misrepresentation and begun to accurately portray African-Americans in history.  For example, "To Kill a Mockingbird" is considered "an attempt by Hollywood to make it right, and it works. It is a landmark Hollywood film that vividly portrays racism in the 1930s."  Dancis lists numerous movies that have done a much better job of depicting African-Americans.

Dancis, Bruce. “A Sharper Focus on Black History: After a Flickering Start, Filmdom Has Gotten Better at Portraying the African American Experience.” The Sacramento Bee (2008). <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=keh&AN=2W62W61571901384&site=ehost-live>.

 

This is an article explaining the tactics used by the RIAA in obtaining information and evidence on illegal file-sharing, from information given by an RIAA worker himself. The RIAA hires a third party company, MediaSentry, to track down illegal file-sharers. That company then runs different peer-to-peer file-sharing programs and searches for songs specifically owned by the RIAA. They are then able to track down the specific IP address and the ISP from which the songs they find came from. They do not actually download the song however, using a digital handshake instead to let them know that the song is available for download. This complicates the matter because it is hard for me to believe that the RIAA can use a so called "digital handshake" as their main evidence when no actual download occurred. The fact that the file was in a shared folder and was ready to download does not mean the person themselves shared the file. The court case Atlantic v. Howell is a great example of this situation in which the court rule that "If the owner of the shared folder simply provides a member of the public with access to the work and the means to make an unauthorized copy, the owner is not liable as a primary infringer of the distribution right, but rather is potentially liable as a secondary infringer of the reproduction right." Also in that case the judge stated, "Unless a copy of the work changes hands in one of the designated ways, a "distribution" under ... 106(3) has not taken place," thereby negating the RIAA's claim. However, not all cases are even taken to court, and the RIAA is able to slip by with this lack of evidence by presenting it like it is their primary proof of infringement.

The article then goes on to talk about cases of a more serious nature and how the RIAA deals with it. They start off with the digital handshake but then MediaSentry personnel actually do download the songs in question. This to me seems backwards and wrong that the RIAA downloads the same songs, in the same manner, from the same programs, as the pirates they are trying to catch.

 

This source is a court document from the Atlantic Records v. Tanya Andersen court case. More specifically it is the complaint from the defendant Andersen, and the part that interests me is where it talks about the questionable legality of MediaSentry's investigations. Tanya Andersen is another person who had enough courage to stand up to the RIAA, and like Ms. Santangelo, she is a single mother. However, Ms. Andersen is also disabled and has a young daughter. This is another instance that shows the type of people targeted in these lawsuits by the RIAA and why they are usually so successful in settling cases out of court. They are transforming the way copyright law works into cases that mostly do not make it to court in order to make a lot of money and pretend like their way of justice is bringing awareness to the public about copyright infringement.

The focus of this source is to show the tendency of MediaSentry's investigations to be intrusive and invasive of privacy. By doing so, this also shows that the RIAA are also cutting corners but then try put the blame on MediaSentry when caught. For example, the complaint provides detail about MediaSentry's investigations explaining that without authorization and under the false pretext of being a peer user, they are able to hack into someone's computer and gather information illegally. They then sell the person's IP address to RIAA, therefore allowing the RIAA to claim they did not do anything illegal themselves. This illegal practice has become known over the past months and as a result, some states require private investigators to have licenses and to be registered. This is true in the state that Ms. Andersen calls home and for that reason MediaSentry's investigation is illegal and so are all their findings. This evidence of illegal investigations by a well known partner of the RIAA contributes to the belief that they are trying to transform copyright law to fit what they want, whether it be through legal or illegal ways.

This paper titled “The Effect of File Sharing on Record Sales” is a strong argument opposing the beliefs of the RIAA. The RIAA believe that illegal file-sharing is causing the downfall of the music industry, and that these illegal downloads are causing tremendous losses for artists in America. The reason that record sales are declining, they say, is due to the amount of illegal downloading occurring, so if they stop illegal downloading the music industry will thrive once again. However the RIAA polices file-sharing in a way that results in the person possibly never sharing music again. Their method severely restricts the flow of information, especially because there are instances in which the people they sue are not infringing upon anything yet will not share music again.

This paper maintains that file-sharing in fact helps the recording industry and that file-sharing is not the reason for the decline in record sales. Their argument makes sense to me, mostly because I have thought about it at times before as I am sure others have. They argue that people download songs to see if they like the artist they are listening to and they will be more inclined to buy the whole album if they like what they hear. People do not want to waste their money on an overpriced CD which they have never heard before. But if they download a song off the album and like what they hear, they are more inclined to buy it. If the person does not like the music, they are not going to pay for it anyways, no matter if they downloaded a song or not. People share files, and then discuss the music in chat rooms and servers which enhances the flow of information. Discussion leads to either the person buying the music or not buying the music, but either way information is being passed along. The RIAA is trying to stop this and instill fear in every file-sharer to never do it again or else they will go bankrupt due to all of the legal fees and fines they will incur. In essence they are trying to stop the flow of information as well as convince the world that there are no positive outcomes from file-sharing.

This paper provides evidence through surveys of file-sharers which points to file-sharing being beneficial towards record sales. It also brings up the idea that the reason for record sales declining is not due to file sharing, but due to the lack of popular music. Music produced during those years was not good enough in the eyes of the people to spend money on buying overpriced CDs, and the music that was popular to the people saw an increase in sales proportional to the amount of file-sharing that occurred for a particular song off the album.

This source is the decision in the Atlantic v. Howell case. This case is important in the fight to lower the power that the RIAA has over copyright law because it rejects 2 popular theories that the RIAA tries to use in their cases against file-sharers. This first theory is called “making available” theory of infringement and it holds that if a person has a folder or file which is shared and therefore is able to be downloaded, that person is infringing on copyright even though the file or contents of the folder were not necessarily downloaded. The rejection by the court of this theory is a major blow to the RIAA's strategy and weakens the power that the RIAA has over copyright law. The second theory is called “offer to distribute” theory and had been accepted in similar cases by the court. It means almost the same as the “making available” theory.

One of the most important factors of this case is that Mr. And Mrs. Howell represented themselves against the whole litigation team of the RIAA, and won. The court sided with the Howells, saying that just because MediaSentry went and downloaded a file off of the Howell computer does not mean they personally put the file in the shared folder. The Howell's argued that Kazaa shared their whole hard drive without their knowledge. The courts stated that although MediaSentry had evidence of a file being shared, there was no way it could tell who actually put it in there.

The decision favoring the Howells was a monumental victory for the little guy so to speak and provides hope that the RIAA is not unbeatable, although they try their best to seem so with their intimidation tactics and bullying.

The Sony BMG v. Tenenbaum case is arguably the most high profile file-sharing case in the news today for a number of reasons. First, the defendant, Tenenbaum, is being represented by a famous Harvard Law professor by the name of Charles Neeson. The fact that Neeson was attracted to this case speaks volumes of the potential change to be made in how copyright law runs in the modern world today. Second, this case shows to the common people the true motive of the RIAA. They are trying to make an example out of Tenenbaum, who downloaded seven songs, in order to intimidate everyone from sharing files on their computer. He is a small fish in a big pond to them, and they think that they can use the intimidation tactic of suing him for an exorbitant amount of money all the while instilling fear in those who are thinking of sharing files.

This leads to the reason why I am choosing to use this case as a source: Tenenbaum is not trying to win his case just so the RIAA can pay legal fees that incurred, rather he wants to tackle the organization's legal strategy at its core. He is trying to prove the unconstitutionality of their litigation tactics in order to severely limit their power and effectively hit them where it hurts. Someone is finally accusing them of abusing the law and constitutional rights, and has the legal team to back him as well. There is a major difference between reading court cases and reading the obvious abuse by the RIAA in them, and actually being proactive and trying to defend yourself and others. The people have had enough with the RIAA and their monopoly over copyright law in regards to file-sharing and the music industry and the measures they take to restrict the flow of information that copyright is supposed to encourage. People are not supposed to be so scared of the RIAA that they will not use the computer or send files ever again for fear of punishment. The modern world we live in is changing largely into a digital world, and the RIAA is trying to stop us from moving forward by squashing our hunger for new information with their unconstitutional strategies.

This source is a blog written by one of Prof. Neeson's students in his CyberOne class, who are also helping out Tenenbaum in his legal battle. This source also provides links to the portions of the court case documents themselves which could potentially be very helpful in my paper if I need to locate something specific in the case.

The Virgin v. Thomas case is not being used as a source in my paper for its positive outcome or because it somehow decreased the RIAA's power over copyright law. Actually, Thomas is losing her case, was hit with a 222,000 dollar judgment, and has since sought new legal advisors. What is very important about this particular case is the awareness this case has raised around Internet circles. People have websites devoted to “Freeing Jammie”, donations are being made in her name so she can pay the 222,000 dollars as well as finance an appeal, and awareness of RIAA abuse is thriving more than ever in Internet forums and chat rooms.

The amicus brief submitted by a handful of law professors strengthens the argument that more and more people are gaining knowledge and are willing to fight back against the RIAA. The amicus brief also presents new evidence and questions about copyright law, such as what is fair and what is infringement. For example, they state that the Copyright Act gives copyright owners the exclusive right “to distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending.” Making a work available to the public, they believe, does not constitute distribution. They also make their case and point to reject the synonymy between the words “distribute” and “publication.” They make a convincing argument that is relevant to my topic and back it up with multiple sources.

Before reading this brief I wondered whether the exclusive right of a copyright owner under the Copyright Act actually applied to a computer file. I wondered this because the Copyright Act protects phonorecords and copies which I take to be actual tangible items. There is a gray are for me when I think about Copyright Law and a computer file because a file is not tangible. After reading this brief I feel that this exclusive right cannot apply based off of the Copyright Act, but rather a provision or amendment needs to be made which outlines if and when a computer file is protected.

 

This is a lengthy article that analyzes the RIAA litigation process from head to toe. It is a great source to cite in my paper because of the massive amount of information that it provides as well as fine details that it includes which would otherwise be very hard to find. It is presumably written and put on the Internet by Ray Beckerman, an active lawyer in the fight against the recording industry and their dubious tactics. He goes through each step in the process one by one, gives insight on it and defines terms where necessary, and cites specific cases in which that particular step was of significant importance. He also cites specific people that are fighting against the RIAA in a particular step and then moves on to the next process of RIAA litigation.

The main places that I will potentially cite from this website will come from the information provided on the processes of “ex parte” discovery as well as the analysis given regarding the RIAA's routine motions for dismissal of counterclaims. These are two major reasons for the RIAA's success in recent cases, and this article is trying to convey the fact that with proper knowledge of the way the RIAA litigation process works the RIAA can indeed be taken down. Their frequent use of “Ex parte” discovery is sickening, but if one knows that the RIAA is likely to try and use this tactic, however unconstitutional it is, adjustments can be made and abuse can be prevented.

I also find it somewhat amusing and unbelievable how much authority the RIAA thinks it has, and how much authority the people believe it has. Due to their intimidation tactics, “ex parte” orders, an expensive legal team, and often abusive and forceful pre-litigation letters, the RIAA seems to be in complete control of copyright law in the modern United States. They can do what they want and get away with it, even if most practices are of questionable legality. This source states that while the RIAA tries to dismiss counterclaims brought up by defendants as if they have the authority to do so, they actually do not. For example, they have not been able to cite any legal authority to dismiss counterclaims for legal fees.

Finally, this source provides descriptions on the types of people that the RIAA has tried to sue, further strengthening the idea that change is needed and that the RIAA is getting more and more abusive in their practices each day. Yes it is true that college students are normally who the RIAA target, but it is know that they have also tried to sue children, their guardians, a single mother who did not live at the residence the copyright infringement occurred, and last but not least a person who is actually deceased.

 

This is a great blog that includes an interview with Patricia Santangelo on Good Morning America and it gives great insight on the types of alleged copyright infringers that the RIAA has been going after. Patricia is being sued by the RIAA for something she did not do. This case is very indicative of the intimidation and blackmailing tactics that the RIAA uses against the people they sue. Ms. Santangelo however did not concede to their tactics and took them to court. They tried making her settle out of court so that her name would not be mentioned in a lawsuit, and they told her that a much more severe fine would be in store for her if she went to trial. The RIAA has almost an unlimited supply of money they use this factor to pressure those being sued. But because she did not download anything or do anything wrong, she did not give in to their pressure and did not settle with them. This case is fascinating because of who the RIAA set out to sue. The computer that was found with illegally downloaded songs was not at Ms. Santangelo's place of residence, she is divorced and the computer is located at her previous residence, and she does not have the financial means to pay the lawsuit. Also, before the case she knew nothing about illegal downloads on her computer, about Kazaa, or even what an IP address was.

It is unbelievable to me that the RIAA can amount enough gusto to try and sue this helpless person who has no idea what is going on. It is an awful attempt to make a few more dollars, and an even worse attempt at trying to promote awareness on the severity of illegal downloads. It is not right to go after a divorced mother who has very limited technological knowledge and who could not have possibly been at fault. The RIAA can not possibly be gaining any support when they sue people such as Ms. Santangelo. Luckily, Ms. Santangelo is fighting them, and in doing so she is raising awareness of the intimidation tactics the RIAA uses. Ms. Santangelo is only one person however, and for every one there are another hundred people who give in to the bullying of the RIAA.

    This legal analysis by Fred Von Lohmann of the Electronic Frontier Foundation is empathetic of the McCain campaign’s fair use/YouTube problem, as the EFF has been championing internet freedom and fair use principles for many years.  However, he is highly critical of McCain proposed solution, which would put the burden on YouTube to conduct legal reviews of videos posted by political candidates that receive takedown notices.  He thinks this notion is backwards, since in terms of political speech, amateur commentators are the ones that need special protection from phony takedowns.  Despite the failings of the McCain proposal, he goes on to identify the true problem in these situations: the news media organizations.  He believes it is their responsibility to refrain from sending bogus takedown notices for legitimate fair uses.  As for a recommended response by the public when they don’t, he encourages public shaming of the companies, as well as potential lawsuits for submitting a takedown they knew was illegitimate.  He also supports the claim made by the McCain campaign that it is not incumbent upon YouTube to follow this strict procedure in the case of fair use, which YouTube itself could reasonably determine with human intervention.
    Lohman’s analysis will be useful in that it finds fault with all parties involved in the process: the alleged infringers, the copyright holders, and the host.  He also puts forth a compelling reason why McCain’s solution would not be ideal from a societal point of view.  The actual reason McCain’s proposal was rejected was because YouTube said that their hands were tied in the process; Lohman says that even if YouTube could treat politician's videos differently, they still shouldn’t.  The author is transparent in placing most of the blame on the news organizations themselves.  Other articles refrain from making the obvious claim that if it weren’t for the media foolishly asserting a broad claim to copyright, this wouldn’t be a problem.  Finally, he corroborates the assertion made by the McCain campaign that YouTube does not necessarily need to act with as much immediate speed as it says it does.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Tim Robbins NAB Speech
Renowned actor, director and writer Tim Robbins used his keynote address at the National Association of Broadcasters conference on April 14 to speak out about the "dangerous lack of diversity of opinion" that characterizes the state of broadcasting today. Lambasting the media for their failure to treat the Bush administration's lies about Iraqi WMDs with the scrutiny they had shown former President Bill Clinton's sex scandal, he calls on the nation's broadcasters to do a better job of upholding their responsibilities to the public. The NAB initially refused to make Robbins' speech available (in contrast to other speeches from their 08 convention). Then they released an edited version in which many of Robbins' most critical remarks were cut. This is the full version of the speech! (Approximately 22 minutes.)

Posted by papertiger

 

This book goes over the trends in multimedia that are pushing multimedia services into unprecidented technological formats. There is an in-depth analysis of the multimedia security technologies applied to digital data as prevention of copyright abuse or violation. These various copyright protection techniques inlude digital watermarking, steganography, fingerprinting and data hiding among others.

For the purpose of my project, the book discusses how the ease of communication of digital data is making it a globally accessible commodity. This is why positive internet video sharing service and televisions industry partnerships are being fostered. There is a growing demographic of interenet file-sharing service users who can be reached with multimedia entertainment. The future of these internet hosting / television industry busines partnerships is being forged out of the new technologies in digital data sharing.

Also of interest for my project is that the book also addresses the matter at the root of the uneasiness and friction between multimedia industries like the television companies and the internet video-sharing environment in general. That problem is arising from the polarized interests of intellectual rights owners and interntet end-users seeking free access to information.--"...The development of digital technologies permitting transmission of digital data over the internet has raised questions about how these rights apply in the new environment.  How can digital intellectual property be made publicly available while guaranteeing ownership of the intellectual rights by the rights-holder and free access to information by the user?" (3).

• Lu,Chun-Shien. Multimedia Security: Steganography and Digital Watermarking Techniques for Protection of Intellectual Property. Hersey: Idea Group Inc., 2005

 

Abstract
At the digital poetry conference in 2002 at the University of Iowa, Kenneth Goldsmith presented the aforementioned paper regarding the vision and history of UBUWeb to the present date. He also talked about the process and adventure these avant-garde files and work proceed once they have been digitized, stripped bare, and copied or reworked in new fashions. He even mentions the avant-garde’s fortunate journey into popular culture with rock band Sonic Youth’s 1999 release Goodbye to the Twentieth Century.  Goldsmith begins his talk sharing his favorite email from Meredith who wrote: : “i really enjoyed your site. it made me think about different cultures other than the ones i experience daily living in a small Texas town”. Goldsmith then went to ruminate on the rich fulfillment he received by noting that Meredith’s note,

succinctly summed up everything that I had wished to achieve with UbuWeb: that of a distribution point for out of print, hard-to-find, small run, obscure materials, available at no cost from any point on the globe. Although the technologies of the web are continually developing in terms of sophistication, UbuWeb embraces the distributive possibilities inherent in the web's original technologies: call it radical forms of distribution.

This radical form of distribution is UBU web’s calling card. UbUWeb was launched in November of 1996, and quickly has become a “clearing house of the avant-garde art on the web”. UBUWeb is comprised of the most comprehensive archive of sound and concrete poetry on the web, but also offers an extensive amount of avant-garde film, and recordings from a plethora of avant-garde artists from Samuel Beckett to Marcel Duchamp. It’s humble beginnings began with Kenneth’s own impressive collection of sound and concrete poetry, and from day one he has desired to stay committed to making these resources “available and free” to all. UBUWeb is in existence to keep the avant-garde contemporary with culture with its accessibility on the web.

Relevance
I first came across UBUWeb about two years ago, and since I have had to limit my time spent on the site if I desire to be any kind of productive student/ human being outside of my poetic and artistic interests. It is easy to become lost, like a toddler in Toys ‘R’ US, on UBUWeb. Its clean, and manageable interface gets deeper and deeper in the plethora of seemingly endless works. It is true that many of the works posted on UBUWeb cannot be found in your local library (even University library), and its accessibility is something to fight for and cherish. The ability to preserve and offer such a vast and free library is what excites me most about the web. This “radical form of distribution” is not only fascinating to me, but something I have come to believe is necessary for the education and preservation of culture. Many of the works found on the site are frozen due to the CTEA (Copyright Term Extension Act), meaning they are not scheduled to enter the public domain at the earliest until 2019. Kenneth’s defiance in his conduct of posting the content and eschewing the normal means of being granted permission for most works, is of interest to my research of copyright law, and how UBUWeb is an example of artistic culture  that can be preserved for the good of the general public without harmful exploitation to the copyright holder. The “utopoian-cyber landscape” of UbuWeb is of particular interest, because I argue it is a beacon of the good that comes from media archiving and any laws that could hinder or impede upon this construction are detrimental to the public good.

    

    The article “Italian-Americans in Film: From Immigrants to Icons”, written by Carlos E. Cortés takes a detailed look at the progression of immigrants, especially Italian Americans, in cinema throughout history. The article traces the steps of immigrants or minorities and how cinema affected the way in which they were viewed by society.

    From the era of silent films there has been different portrayals of Italian Americans as well as Mexican, Chinese, and African Americans in cinema. These portrayals were often fairly negative however, although Italian Americans were portrayed in a less than favorable light they were significantly better off than the cruel or barbaric depictions of their minority counterparts.

    The concern about increasing alien presence/influence in the U.S. led congress in the 1920’s to pass a series of immigration laws that would restrict the inflow of immigrants. This also led to need to Americanize or at least hide one’s foreignness in pursuit of the American Dream. Gradually Italian-American imagery began to move away from their violent portrayals in films such as Lady in the Lake (1946) or Force of Evil (1948). Due to the popularity of people like Frank Sinatra and Joe Dimaggio, Hollywood began to see the possibilities for the commercialization of ethnicities.

    In “The Godfather”, the new imagery of Italian Americans begins to take shape in the form of characters such as Vito Corleone and Michael Corleone. The transition from Don Vito to Michael can in many ways stand as a great example of the evolution of the imagery of Italian Americans in Cinema. Vito’s character hold much more true to the traditional Italian values whereas Michael served in WWII and is involved with a traditionally “American “ girl, Kay. The transition from Vito to Michael embodies the way people began to view Italian Americans and their struggles to achieve the American dream.

Jones, Gerard. "Violent Media is Good for Kids." Mother Jones 29 June 2000 04 Apr 2008.

 

This article, unlike most, supports violent media for consumption by youth. The author recounts his youth when he was a quiet, lonely, and reclusive child who was broken out of his shell when he encountered comics about The Incredible Hulk. Reading about the Hulk gave him a fantasy self to support his self-confidence and allow him to do things he could otherwise not do. He later tested this concept on his son who was afraid to climb a tree with his friends by reading him Tarzan comics. For his son, the violent Tarzan comics created an imaginary alter ego to help him overcome personal hurdles. It is noted that all people want to experience fear, greed, power-hunger, and rage but cannot, so experiencing them vicariously through others, is a solution for them. Violent media is also useful to young people by helping them improve their self-knowledge and potential through heroic, combative storytelling. Pretending to have superpowers helps them to overcome a sense of powerlessness. Using this violence as tool is very important to overcome life’s challenges. The author does not deny that many video games may have inspired forms of violence in some kids, but argues that for every one that it hurt, it helped hundreds. The author finally warns that if parents are to shield their children from violent media then they will inevitably be shielding them also from power and selfhood.

This relates to the thesis by discussing how violent media affects the youth. He feels strongly that media such as The Warriors is a vital asset to youth as a method of emotional support. Most people need some sort of system to give them confidence in activities they would otherwise be uncomfortable partaking in. So in the case of The Warriors, the film would be very useful as a means of physical confidence and strength.

Croft, Martin, and Nathalie Kilby. "Mortal Kombat Viral Is Tool For Bullying, Claims Charity." Marketing Week 16 Nov 2006: 3.

 

This article explains how an anti-bullying charity group is complaining about a video game campaign for Mortal Kombat. In this campaign people are directed to a website where they can upload images of their friends to be superimposed on the fighting video game characters. These superimposed Mortal Kombat characters are then sent to that person in the form of a “Death Diss” whereby the character is brutally murdered. The charity Bullying Online worries that real life bullies will upload images of their enemies to this site and it will only cause issues between the two parties in question. It states that the site has already seen examples of people using this viral marketing tool as a malicious way to insult somebody. A complaint about this advertisement campaign was made to the Advertising Standards Authority, the leading groups in controlling advertising. It is unknown if this campaign will cause the dreaded actions Bullying Online is worrying about.

This article relates to the thesis because violent media is being used in a manner that could potentially cause a movement to action by the receiving end of this viral marketing campaign. There are great worries by Bullying Online that such an advertising campaign might enrage somebody so much that they might react very violently against the opposing person. Just as The Warriors caused a few kids to act violently due to the violent media being viewed, there is a concern that this viral marketing campaign could cause the same response.

Keegan, Paul. "Computer Games like Quake and Doom probably won't turn your son into a killer. But what is happening to kids raised on the most violent, interactive mass-media entertainment ever devised?." Mother Jones Nov 1999 04 Apr 2008 .

 

This article revolves around a visit to E3, an annual gaming tradeshow. Its focus is to discuss the different genres of video games, but in particular the violent ones. It then attempts to analyze why these violent games become so popular. Throughout, there is always a hesitant tone as the Columbine shootings had occurred only three weeks prior to this conference. There is discussion of the ESRB rating system and how it is hardly enforced by parents or rental stores. The article proceeds to look at Myst, an extremely popular game that involves no violence whatsoever. Its appeal was solely through beautifully rendered images and fog that the character walks through on its mysterious journey. It is however noted that something seemed to be missing from this experience. That is where real-time 3D comes into play. It is a new generation of cutting edge computer games that render the scenery on the fly, completely immersing the player in the gameplay. This type of play has an appeal due to the adrenaline rush and excitement it causes that more static, slow paced games like Myst cannot match. These types of games undoubtedly engage the player deeply into their digital surroundings. It suggests that playing violent video games for extended periods of time numbs the player to the violence and they create a level of tolerance for violence.

This article relates to the topic by examining super violent video games, real-time 3D games in particular and their effect on players. It is pretty evident that despite their incredible ability to immerse the player in the gameplay, the ones playing are able to keep the game and real life separate. The only times when this is untrue when other circumstances are involved, in the case of Columbine, mental instability in two kids who happened to enjoy these types of games were some other circumstances. Like viewers of The Warriors, most will not become overwhelmed by the violence and will respond absolutely normally. Those who act out in response to the film are doing so because they have issues and not solely because of the violence being seen.

Duncum, Paul. "Attractions to Violence and the Limits of Education." The Journal of Aesthetic Education 40.4(2006): 21-38.

 

This article attempts to examine violence in the media and educate youth on how to act in the real world so violence is not used as a solution to their problems. It cites the following forms of media as sources of violence: television, film, video, and computer games. There are also four different types of violence that can be seen in the media: comic, transgressive, retaliatory, and gratuitous. The author wonders why, from a psychological standpoint, people are attracted to violence. A couple of possible reasons are given such as: exploitation of the worst in human nature or a product of an increasingly degenerate society or maybe just a fashion statement or possibly just finding pure pleasure in the art of violence.

Comic violence is defined pretty clearly by example with any Tarantino film. His film clearly spoofs and parodies other super violent films. Additionally, professional wrestling fits into this category. Transgressive violence is any violence having to do with heroism through violence. It includes superheroes beating super-villains and enjoying the retribution being seen. This category surprisingly also includes a game such as Grand Theft Auto, where you embrace the villain and want to succeed as the villain. Retaliatory violence always has to do with retribution. When you feel bad for a character, you want them to get their revenge. Finally, gratuitous violence is when there is an overwhelming amount of violence that is unlimited in every sense of the word. It is all about grandeur and gore. Startin in the 1960s, media became more and more violent. Now, the line between good and evil gets blurred and the level of gore and shock has increased dramatically in media.

This article relates to the thesis by explaining the different types of violence seen in the media. It points out that gratuitous violence would be the most likely candidate to cause real world violence because the media appeals most to that type of person; however, it is unlikely to cause such actions because the people who would really go on rampages do not get the level of excitement from the film, because they would rather have the real life thrill. This article also explains how people are more aggressive prior to viewing the media than after, further supporting the idea that violent media does not cause violence.

SciVee invites scientists to make their research known by combining their published scientific article with a corresponding video into an online presentation called a “SciVee pubcast.”

Office of University Communications account on Ning.   Press releases, research news, media hits and more.

relationships among people via-social network maps

1.1 Cable, Satellite, and Digital Technologies
Michele Hilmes (University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA)
1.2 Digital Filming and Special Effects
Sean Cubitt (University of Waikato, New Zealand)
1.3 CD and DVD
Anne Friedberg (University of California, Irvine, USA)
1.4 The Internet and the World Wide Web
Jeremy Butler (University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, USA)

Section 2: Production

2.1 The Business of New Media
John Caldwell (University of California, Los Angeles, USA)
2.2 The New Intertextual Commodity
P. David Marshall (Northeastern University, USA)
2.3 Innovation, Piracy, and the Ethos of New Media
Douglas Thomas (University of Southern California, USA)
2.4 Globalisation and Production
Tom O' Regan (Griffith University, Australia)

Section 3: Texts

3.1 The Impact of Digital Technologies on Film Aesthetics
Michael Allen (Birkbeck College, University of London).
3.2 Narrative Equivocations Between Movies and Games
Marsha Kinder (University of Southern California, USA)
3.3 Online Comics and the Reframing of the Moving Image
Scott Bukatman (Stanford University, USA)
3.4 The Myths of Interactive Cinema
Peter Lunenfeld (Art Center College of Design, USA)

Section 4: Consumption

4.1 Interactive Audiences?
Henry Jenkins (MIT, USA)
4.2 Watching the Internet
Dan Harries (Middlesex University, UK)
4.3 Self, Other, and Electronic Media
Tara McPherson (University of Southern California, USA)
4.4 The Future of Film Distribution and Exhibition
Janet Wasko (University of Oregon, USA)

Section 5: Contexts

5.1 Old Media as New Media: Cinema
Lev Manovich (University of California, San Diego, USA)
5.2 Old Media as New Media: Television
William Uricchio (MIT, USA)
5.3 New Media as Old Media: Cinema
Jan Simons (University of Amsterdam, Netherlands)
5.4 New Media as Old Media: Television
William Boddy (Baruch College, CUNY, USA)

film is "hot," provides surplus of sensory data and tends to "do most of the work" for the viewer

Cited by Gitelman Always Already New.

Helmholtz and the Materialities of Communication by Timothy Lenoir, 1994

Cited by Gitelman Always Already New.

Cited by Gitelman Always Already New.

Cited by Gitelman Always Already New.

p. 78 "The cultural data of phonograph records was importantly a matter of representation....In many respects it was their physical quality as standardized, mass-produced goods taht helped to enforce their quality as specific cultural data, even as the culture they representd proved variable and unspecific in the extreme....What I am suggesting is that phonograph records frequently proved transgressive of the very cultural categories that they helped to represent as distinct or specific."

on "ethnic" records see Lizbeth Cohen (1990, 105), Victor Greene (1992) 

The thesis of this article is that for the major recording labels to stay atop the music industry, they will have to embrace both technological and creative risks.

They will need to find ways to reach more users via the internet. Until recently, recording companies have viewed the internet as the enemy rather than an opportunity. They have gone with the strategy of litigating the fans that use peer to peer networks instead of finding a sustainable business model that will put their content online. As a result, sales decreased by a fifth between 1999 and 2003.

More recently, however, the recording industry has made inroads to accepting that the internet and digital technology will shape the music industry’s future. Apple’s iTunes service proved to music executives that the legal download market is viable. With this realization, recording companies are trying to figure out how to change their business model to take advantage of the internet.

Another problem which is just as important as piracy is the recording companies’ inability to develop new artists into strong sustainable brand names. The emphasis on one hit wonders is also to blame for the decline in CD sales. In fact, an internal report at one of the major recording studios found that between 2/3 and ¾ of the decline in CD sales was unrelated to online piracy. By embracing the internet, which bypasses more conservative retailers, the recording companies could gain the confidence to support new, innovative music.

Additionally, when an online business model unfolds, higher quality artists will be more profitable. Currently people buy single tracks much more often than whole albums. However, it is in the recording studios interest for users to spend 12$ on a whole album from one artist than to buy 2 songs from 6 different artists.

 

Importance to Thesis:

This article is important to my thesis in that it helps highlight the strategic mistakes that recording companies are repeating in response to peer-to-peer networks.  Music companies are exaggerating the threat of P2P networks, just as movie studios exaggerated the threat of the VCR.  In fact, the majority of the recent decline in CD sales is due to factors other than online piracy.  In addition, recording companies ignored the new markets that they could reach through online distribution, just as movie studios neglected to see that the VCR would expand their viewer base.  This article thus helps draw two parallels between the VCR and P2P networks, and allows me to apply historical lessons to the current situation facing recording companies.  

 

This source is a summary of different studies and papers regarding the VCR’s impact on consumers and media consumption. I will focus on the paper by Lin, 1995. Lin views the VCR in terms of the emerging “home entertainment culture.” The VCR has altered the dynamic between consumers and other types of media because VCRs expanded the possible forms of media use and consumption. These new uses have redefined the “home entertainment culture,” meaning video viewing and the VCR’s capabilities have become substitutes for other “leisurely family activities.” As a result of these new forms of use and increased diversity of content, the VCR causes higher levels of user satisfaction. Specifically the argument is made that VCR users are likely to be more satisfied with their television viewing experience because of their ability to time shift. The other important point that Lin makes is that VCR users represent a different socio-economic segment that normal “heavy television” users.

Importance for thesis:

This source helps me in making the claim that media companies were short sighted in initially fighting the VCR.  There were two benefits from the VCR that media companies overlooked.  First, the VCR resulted in higher user satisfaction, which led to increased media consumption by VCR users.  Second, the VCR allowed access to new market segments, which due to demographics, was a desirable result.  However, these benefits were overlooked while media companies instead tried to defend their business models and the status quo.

This article explains the current dominance that Apple exerts on our digital music experience and how it could potentially become the epicenter of media consumption. Currently, it is impossible to download, organize and listen to music without iTunes. Furthermore, iTunes has created a “network effect” whereby its immense popularity spurs demand for other artists and advertisers to be on iTunes as well. iTunes is thus cemented as the face of our interaction with digital music. This same relationship could soon exist with video media if Apple gets access to Disney’s large library of movies and TV shows. One analyst forecasts that the iPod will become a “Tivo and a music player that you can take anywhere.”

This scenario, however, may be further down the road. Hollywood still opposes distributing copyrighted material over the internet. Additionally, being the epicenter of digital media consumption is not “itself a business right now.” In the future, Apple may find a way to turn this large audience into advertising revenue, and thus a legitimate profitable business.

 

Importance to Thesis:

This article is relevant to my third argument, which is that Apple represents the way media companies should react and adapt to changing technologies.  Apple, through its iTunes and iPod, took advantage of the changing methods of media consumption.  By anticipating that consumers would need both a device to play their music, and an interface that makes dealing with a large library manageable, Apple made itself the name brand associated with digital music.  The dominant position both iTunes and the iPod enjoy is a testament to this foresight.  Furthermore, the position Apple is putting itself in with regards to video media is a repetition of Apple’s ability to see how peer-to-peer technology has changed the competitive landscape for media consumption.  In contrast to media companies who fight to save the status quo, Apple has placed itself where a business does not even exist, but when it does, Apple stands to benefit enormously. 

 

This article discusses the Disney-Pixar merger and its implications for Apple and the future of online media delivery. As a result of the merger, Steve Jobs solidified himself as one of the most powerful executives in the continuing convergence of media content and online delivery, especially as movie studios now look to extend their digital reach.

Apple stands to benefit from the ability to distribute Disney’s animation studio’s content as well as its array of broadcast networks, namely ABC and ESPN. However, video media has been available online in the form of Pixar short films and more recently since the merger, Disney animated shorts.

As Jobs has already proved the viability of the online delivery of music, video-on-demand makes sense as the next step in rounding out the iTunes platform. By now gaining access to Disney’s video content, it makes developing the video on demand stage easier. Before, Apple was dependent on apprehensive third parties for content, specifically the record labels who doubted the viability of a legal download market. Apple needed large scale support because iTunes would only be successful if there was a large collection of downloadable music. In contrast, the dynamics of video on demand are different in that Apple can start with Disney and add more networks further down the road.

If Apple pursues the video content road, it will likely replicate its revenue model with online music. The majority of Apple’s money is made on sales of iPods, not on sales of legal downloads. Thus, Apple’s strategy was to drive consumer demand for its iPod devices through the access to digital music media. In this vein, Apple will most likely launch a new device, most probably a home entertainment center, to deliver its online video content.

Importance to Thesis:

This article helps support my third argument, which is that Apple has become the example of how media companies should adapt to technological change. By developing the preferred user interface for access to online media content, Apple has positioned itself not only as a technology company, but now as a major player in the media industry. Where 5 years ago Apple wasn’t even involved in media, it now controls the future of content delivery. Thus, by seeing the peer-to-peer phenomenon as an evolution in consumers demanding online media content (both music and video), Apple has put itself in the position to take advantage of the this technological evolution.

 

In this case, a number of different record companies came together to sue Napster. Their claim was that Napster’s peer-to-peer file sharing service was liable for “contributory and vicarious” copyright infringement. The district court ruled in favor of the recording studios and issued a preliminary injunction against Napster. Napster had to police its servers and remove all copyright infringing material. The district court monitored Napster’s progress and after three months, determined that Napster was not satisfactorily complying with the injunction. Then, the district court required Napster to shut off its peer-to-peer servers until it met certain conditions.

The recording companies argued that Napster should have to search for and block all files that infringed on copyrighted material. They transferred responsibility for locating infringing files to Napster. However, Napster argued that this modification to the injunction was vague with respect to how Napster should monitor its servers.

The court ruled with the district court and affirmed the decision to shut Napster down unless it could abide by the modified injunction.

Importance to Thesis:

This case is important to my thesis because it helps develop my second argument, which is that recording companies today are making the same strategic mistakes that movie studios made in response to the VCR.  The first mistake they are repeating is that they are acting as an industry, not as individual companies.  It is evident from the fact that five separate lawsuits were consolidated into this case that all the recording companies decided to deal with the peer-to-peer threat the same way; namely, litigiously.  The second mistake they are repeating is focusing narrow mindedly on the current perceived threat without considering how this new technology may change the competitive landscape.  By modifying the injunction such that Napster must police itself, the recording studios purposefully made it impossible for Napster to comply, which led to its eventual closure.  This indicates that the recording studios strategy was to eradicate peer-to-peer networks entirely.     

 

This graph shows the current concentration of media ownership by News Corp (ie Fox owned by Rupert Murdoch), Disney, CBS, Viacom, and Time Warner. It is a follow up to their famous visualization of 1996.

EPIC video about the state of media in 2014, mentioned at Hyperlinked Society Conference

Columbia Journalism Review
Looking for Light: At The Philadelphia Inquirer, editor Amanda Bennett is trying to clear the air of nostalgia and reinvent the modern daily newspaper.

By Michael Shapiro

This project is a systematic study of why and how it makes sense for commercial companies and noncommercial institutions active in culture, education, and media to make certain materials widely available for free, and also how free services are finding new (sometimes commercial) ways of becoming sustainable.

 

Site includes MP3s of lots of the shows. 

"This British site offers audio files of "English-language poets reading their own work. Some are historic recordings, some have been made specially for the Archive." Browse by poet or name of poem. Includes videos of interviews with selected poets, lesson plans, access to the "Children's Poetry Archive," and links to poetry sites for students and to other material." (via LII)

This article discusses the way in which Italian-Americans have been portrayed in film within the larger context of minority representation in media.  It begins with a statement regarding the announcement made prior to the first showing on television of the first two Godfather films.  The announcement essentially claimed that no particular ethnicity was being depicted despite the fact that the film was taking place (initially) in Sicily, the family is Sicilian, they all have Italian names, and they were speaking in Italian.

The general representation of Italians was simply that of criminals involved in organized crime through their families.  The disclaimer could have been seen as trying to avoid the kind of media influence the film might have, or simply called attention to it.  In either case, it becomes very clear how extensive the effects media can have on the mind and on the belief systems of people, especially regarding minorities.

Immigrant films began in the early 1900’s often focused around the symbolic Italian as the minority.  “Colored” minorities were met with a very different representation than the mildly funny representations of white minorities, but eventually this changed, and the representations were not nearly as harmless as they had once been.

The crime genre started to get big around the Great Depression.  Essentially, in their pursuit of the American Dream, Italian-Americans and Chinese Americans came to be the front runners in media representations.

The American Dream then quickly became twisted into a search for power and money.  Greed and deception, combined with crime and violence became a center for the stereotypes, particularly of Italian-Americans.  It seemed as though everyone Italian had a tie to organized crime. Ultimately, who became known as victims, and who were the victimizers depended on the time during which they were being depicted.

An RSS module that supplements the <enclosure> element capabilities of RSS 2.0 to allow for more robust media syndication.

Contains over one million Associated Press photographs (with searchable captions) in two collections, downloadable as JPEG (jpg) images: North American national, regional, state, and local photos with "the best international photos"; Euro/Asian photos. Also, AP Graphics Database provides PDF-format Associated Press-produced information graphics, diagrams, maps, charts, and logos for newspapers and other print media. Holdings: Photos: 1826 to present. Graphics: 1999 to present. Audio files: 1920s to present.

"The Forum is a non-partisan student organization of Harvard Law School dedicated to bringing open discussion of a broad range of legal, political and social issues to the Harvard Law School campus." The audio of past programs (some dating back to 1954) is archived here.

The WGBH Media Archives and Preservation Center has preserved and described 523 tapes from The Ten O'Clock News, WGBH's in-depth nightly news program. Dating from 1974 to 1991, this collection focuses on news stories relating to Boston's African American community

Price explains the relationship between transnational media and the state's sovereignty.

Means available to the state to solve conflicts include force, technology, negotiation and law. 

This is a very good introduction to both economics and each of the major media industries, namely the Daily Newspaper Industry, Book and Magazine (Print) Industry, the Broadcast Networks, the Cable Industry, Hollywood, Radio, the Recording Industry, the Advertising industry and burgeoning Online Media.

This volume defines all important introductory economic concepts and terms.  It explains why most mergers are unsuccessful (pages 14, 22, 38, 82 and 234), why joint ventures are so common and profitable (page 40), and all of the individual revenue streams of each of the different mediums listed above.  This volume is accessible and very interesting.  Moreover, when read in conjunction with Baker’s two books, it helps illuminate some of his points, specifically how conglomerates can be in the best interest for consumers in some ways while simultaneously detrimental to them as well.  Namely this book gives a fair description of the state of the industry and allows one to draw his/her own conclusions.  It portrays the situation without making overtly normative judgments.

McChesney’s essay can, in many ways, be read as a call to arms.  His goal is clear—he wants to reveal the true nature of the nation’s largest media conglomerates as being corrupt, insidious, and detrimental to the wellbeing of our democracy in order to provoke popular discontent and significant change within the system.  At times, he makes very powerful arguments.  But, sometimes he sounds too much like one consumed by conspiracy theories.  Namely, whenever something might look bad, he interprets it to not only be as bad as it seems, but most likely worse. While this may often be an accurate interpretation of events, after 75 pages of his essay, it begins to see a bit over determined (he never awknoledges that it could be otherwise; he mentions no flaws in his argument or examples of the existence of conglomerates benefiting the consumer, as Baker readily will do).  Nevertheless, McChesney does hit on some very important ideas regarding the media’s integral role in keep our democracy healthy, and the fact that for many people it is not just a question of entertainment.  Ideally, McChesney wants to see the media cease to be an industry like any other.  After all, a TV is not just a toaster that projects a picture.  The essay is well written and a pleasure to read, even if the rhetoric can get a bit tiring.

Baker takes certain ideas touched upon in Bagdikian’s book, The (New) Media Monopoly and analyses them in much greater depth (Bagdikian has published many versions of his book, the first of which appeared when there were 50 major players in the media business… there are now only 5). He uses economic analysis to determine the efficiency of the current system (or lack thereof), and makes various policy arguments for remedying the current problem within our press. The structure is as follows: he illustrates the problem, proves it economically, introduces a policy proposal, compares it to programs implemented around the world, and then discusses the constitutionality of going forward with his recommendations.

Implicit throughout his book is that the media serves a distinct role in society and that given the current influence that advertisers can exercise, they prevent the media from fulfilling the needs of a democratic society. This idea is developed in greater depth in his book Media Markets and Democracy where he analyses a democratic society’s requirements of its press according to 4 different theories of democracy. He values diversity and that the media should work harder to meet the desires of its readers through content rather than from its advertisers by delivering the right readers.

Another key point of Baker’s argument is that advertising disproportionately hurts the poor. He points to the example of an English newspaper that had larger circulation than the other major newspapers combined, but not withstanding this fact, because the newspaper was read by people without a substantial disposable income, there were few (if any) advertisers who would subsidize the paper. Thus, the paper had to be profitable with only subscription revenues, and it eventually failed. Baker gives the case study and then explains why this is so on theoretical grounds and that this phenomenon most likely occurs rather often—advertisers seek a wealthy audience, and thus media products are disproportionately catered to their tastes, in terms of political leanings, interest pieces, and other editorial content.

Argues that since its inception, popular music has been a product of mass media and consumption. The audience of rock music is influenced by the media and their own experiences, particularly the distinction between "street" and "suburban" cultures. Relevant to my paper, many Latino Morrissey fans, especially in the LA area, seem to relate to both identities. He cites class and ideologies, as well as ethnicity, as critical for understanding the contexts of rock music.

This article discusses the way in which Italian-Americans have been portrayed in film within the larger context of minority representation in media.  It begins with a statement regarding the announcement made prior to the first showing on television of the first two Godfather films.  The announcement essentially claimed that no particular ethnicity was being depicted despite the fact that the film was taking place (initially) in Sicily, the family is Sicilian, they all have Italian names, and they were speaking in Italian.

The general representation of Italians was simply that of criminals involved in organized crime through their families.  The disclaimer could have been seen as trying to avoid the kind of media influence the film might have, or simply called attention to it.  In either case, it becomes very clear how extensive the effects media can have on the mind and on the belief systems of people, especially regarding minorities.

Immigrant films began in the early 1900’s often focused around the symbolic Italian as the minority.  “Colored” minorities were met with a very different representation than the mildly funny representations of white minorities, but eventually this changed, and the representations were not nearly as harmless as they had once been.

The crime genre started to get big around the Great Depression.  Essentially, in their pursuit of the American Dream, Italian-Americans and Chinese Americans came to be the front runners in media representations.

The American Dream then quickly became twisted into a search for power and money.  Greed and deception, combined with crime and violence became a center for the stereotypes, particularly of Italian-Americans.  It seemed as though everyone Italian had a tie to organized crime. Ultimately, who became known as victims, and who were the victimizers depended on the time during which they were being depicted.

This page talks about the future of blogs and the new way in which media is going to be transmitted over the internet. It talks about the rise of RSS feeds and how they are overtaking the blogisphere on the internet. The article shows how RSS feeds outnumber almost all other forms of media on the net.

Explores both sides of the following arguments: Does media violence harm society? Should it be censored? Can violence be effectively regulated? What should be done? Does music promote violence?

This article correlates with Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc article. The L.E. Associates distinguished the differences between popular and consumer culture and how consumer culture affects audience society. Richards writes of how the fault of consumer culture traces back to the advertisers as they create economic censorchip.

Naik and Raman define the integrated marketing communcations model and conceptualitize it into today's major media conglomerates. Media conglomerates need mergers in order to get consumers to multi-task with the media. With so many sources of media available, consumers have grown desenitized from advertisement. Each median enhances the contribution of all other media, therefore synergy allows the media conglomerates to have an advantage of directing the consuption of the audience.

This article appeared in the New York Times as media mergers were becoming popular. Lohr explains that the media mergers are able to save corporations money, gain a grasp on a larger audiences, and eventually conseptualize what will be popular in the future. This correlates with Klein's book, of which the Virgin corporation can advertise on their own radio stations, sell their own cds in strategic spots, and cut down costs on overall production.

Persky writes of the market place versus media forum.  They both play off of each other.  However, as companies like Virgin merge and grow into conglomerates, they begin to control both the market place and media forum.  Companies like Virgin are able to control what the consumer views as advertisiments, and what they consume in the market place.  Ultimately, the audience does not have say in what they purchase, therefore a switch from fandom to fadism.

Thoughtful discussion of violence in video games.  Also offers a comparison to violence in other forms of media.  In particular, there is a rich discussion on why violent video games may have less of an impact on youths than other forms of media, and why video games may have a more ruinous impact than other media.

Hirsch argues there are three levels of entertainment production.  Between each set of levels lies boundry spanners which filter what entertainment will be sucessful.  The object of this model is to use the media to filter and minimize the risk of producing an unsucessful artist.

Alger writes of the top media conglomerates and how they influence consumer culture.  He describes the biggest dozen conglomerates, all they own, and how they formed.  He also talks about the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and its influence on private media ownership.

In this book, Evan writes of how the latest media trend is to combine and form mega-conglomerates.  He writes of their business strategies, explaining the practice of synergy.  He also shows how it affects audiences and their cultures.

Provides a brief history of violent video games and discusses potential negative effects of violent video games.  Also provides models and theories relating to the effects of Media Violence.

"Slide is a free downloadable desktop program that indexes photos on your hard drive, automatically groups them into intuitive channels, and plays them back via a unique always-on ticker interface. Because of this innovative scrolling "photo playback" model, you can rediscover and enjoy images you would rarely see otherwise. With just one click members can choose to share any photo or invite both registered and unregistered friends and family to subscribe to entire channels of photos. Simple access controls allow you to manage the privacy of your photos."

report on internet activities of kids in the UK...and their skill sets

October 2005 article..."subject experts were asked for opinions about sections of the popular online, open access encyclopedia Wikipedia, in the wake of "the founder of the online encyclopedia ... admitt[ing] some of its entries are 'a horrific embarrassment.'" Includes ratings and comments on specific entries. From the Guardian Unlimited, the online companion to the British newspaper The Guardian."  found through LII

video on future of technology/culture/society in hands of google and others...first saw at IEEE

Apple's entry in this class of stuff

powerpoint with audio/video overlays.  nice for media rich teaching

info about the helix streaming media server.  plays all of the formats.