Summer Concert Series on Storify

I decided to create a story on Storify to showcase the best concert events of the summer which I have attended so far. Included in the Storify link is information on concerts in Cobourg, Belleville, Niagara-on-the-Lake and Toronto. Bands discussed include The Tragically Hip, Fun., City and Colour, Hedley, Burton Cummings among many others. I decided to discuss summer concerts because the sumer concert season is the best of all, and therefore I would like to give my readers an inside scoop on the best ones. Hopefully you will enjoy relishing in all the great shows I get paid to attend. 

Thank-You and Enjoy.

 

Summer Concert Series on Storify

Response: Twitter Taking Citizen Journalism to New Heights

After writing my post on the growth of citizen journalism because of social media, specifically Twitter, I received some great feedback from readers. I would like to take the time to address these comments, and respond.

All comments I received specifically described the correlation between Twitter and citizen journalism as being very prevalent. One comment stated the impact Twitter had on the plane landing in the Hudson River, being reported firstly on Twitter over media news outlets. Similarly, just over the weekend, another example of citizen journalism happening via Twitter occurred during the plane crash landing in San Francisco, as passengers, in addition to people at the airport, first reported the crash. Individuals took to Twitter to share with the world the tragedy which happened, and pictures of the crash fluttered Twitter. I personally received the information regarding the crash landing via Twitter, therefore millions of others must of found out in the same regards, therefore showing the power Twitter now has in regards to citizen journalism.

In addition, another comment I received stressed the importance of maintaining proper print and television journalism. The reason being is since Twitter is for anyone to use, credentials are worthless as any citizen can report what is going on. I agree with this to some extent, but I feel citizen journalism is the most accurate way to report news. The reason being is that certified news publications such as newspapers and magazines, in addition to television news, allows for far too much bias and corruption to take place. Media outlets are strictly prohibited from showcasing any news that is not approved by an editor. The editor has someone to answer to as well, and the chain continues. Twitter allows for spontaneous news to be delivered to the masses without a filter. Although credentials are non-existent on  Twitter, the idea of information being given by individuals without any filter is what makes citizen journalism on Twitter so appealing. If anything, news outlets must change to adapt to the growth of citizen journalism, as people can now simply refresh Twitter to find all the breaking news occurring throughout the world. Every news outlet now has a Twitter page to adapt to this trend.

I have learned that others feel the same as I do, Twitter is now the most frequently used device to achieve news, and therefore citizen journalism has reached heights only imagined previously, and continues to grow. Journalism credentials are a thing of the past. With the ease associated with using Twitter, news can be delivered by anyone at anytime, anywhere across the world.

*This article is in response to the comments left by individuals on my previous post which you can find here.

How Twitter Took Citizen Journalism to New Heights

The focus of this blog entry will be regarding the emergence of citizen journalism, due to the emergence of social media, specifically Twitter. Citizen journalism, as defined by Bruns and Highfield in ‘The produsage of citizen journalism’,  “refers to an assemblage of broadly journalistic activities (“random acts of journalism”) which are characterized by specific practical and technological affordances: they draw on the voluntary contributions of a wide- ranging and distributed network of self-selected participants rather than on the paid work of a core team of professional staff, and they utilize Internet technologies to coordinate the process.” (Bruns & Highfield, 2012).

The key factors in this definition are centered on random acts of journalism, involving voluntary contributions, and they use of Internet technologies to coordinate the process. Knowing these three key elements, it is clear to see why Twitter has really helped escalade citizen journalism. Being connected to social media sites, such as Twitter, allow you to be mere seconds away from connecting with the entire world. Report news as it happens directly through twitter, with a camera inside the app, and 140 characters to attract the attention of followers to your report.

In his captivating article ‘Reinventing Participation: Civic Agency and the Web Environment’ Dahlgren states when speaking of citizen journalism “In more recent years, the net and its ancillary technologies, such as mobile phones and the platforms for social media, have further extended this transformation” (Dahlgren, 2012). Clearly, the emergence of social media monster Twitter, has brought citizen journalism to heights it has never reached before. More evidence provided by Bruns and Highfield discuss the same stating citizen journalism occurs “through the collaboration of dispersed networks of individuals using a shared underlying social media platform such as Twitter.” (Burns & Highfield, 2012).

Never has a platform provided users with a means to provide citizen journalism with such ease. It pertains to all forms of journalism whether through sporting events, traffic news, crime reports, or political discussion, Twitter allows any individual to reach the masses in 140 characters or less. All the key principles of citizen journalism defined earlier are made easier by the emergence of Twitter. Random acts of journalism occur frequently on twitter as people use tweeting as a response to all of life’s crazy occurrences. Clearly the use of Twitter is voluntary by its users, therefore it meets the standards of voluntary contributions, and finally the technology used to coordinate the process, is Twitter.

Quoted in a 2003 Jenkins and Thorburn article Jonah Seiger, cofounder of Mindshare Internet Campaigns states, when speaking of citizen journalism, “The evolution of the Internet and politics is going to happen a lot more slowly than people expect.”. (Jenkins & Thorburn, 2003) Seiger was absolutely right stating this, as it did not happen simultaneously. The emergence of Twitter as worldwide social media phenomena allows citizen journalism to happen effortlessly on a day-to-day basis, through the ease Twitter provides, connecting to the entire world with a simple flip of the cell phone, allows for politics (among other aspects) and the internet to be intertwined.

In my personal opinion, everyone who owns a Twitter account is involved in citizen journalism. Whether its simply taking pictures of a car crash on your way home, or reporting your attendance to a major event, you are voluntarily providing random acts of journalism. Therefore, since I have a Twitter account, I provide my own personal journalism to all my followers daily, and will continue to do so in order to contribute my journalistic input to society.

References:

Bruns, A. & T. Highfield. (2012). Blogs, Twitter, and breaking news: The produsage of citizen journalism. pre-publication draft on personal site. Published in: Lind, R. A. ed. (2012). Produsing Theory in a Digital World: The Intersection of Audiences and Production. New York: Peter Lang. p15-32.

Dahlgren, P. (2012). Reinventing Participation: Civic Agency and the Web Environment. Geopolitics, History, and International Relations , 4(2), 27-45.

Jenkins, H., & Thorburn, D. (2003). The digital revolution, the informed citizen, and the culture of democracy. (pp. 1-17). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

*Image Courtesy of Purchased Microsoft Office

Podcast: Discussing the Best Concert Venues in Toronto

Determining the best concert venues in any city is going to a be a difficult task, especially in a city such as Toronto, known for its incredible music scene. I selected an article written by Travis Craine titled ‘The Best Live Music Venues in Toronto’ from the website, BlogTO as a starting point in my discussion on the best concert venues in Toronto. The reason I chose this article is because there is no better blog website when it comes to local matters, than BlogTo. Considering this website’s focal point is the city of Toronto, there is no better place to look when finding information on local venues.

Here is the link to the original post written by Travis Craine on BlogTO:

http://www.blogto.com/toronto/the_best_live_music_venues_in_toronto/

This is my podcast discussing the post:

References:

Craine, T. (2010, December 27). The best live music venues in toronto. Retrieved from http://www.blogto.com/toronto/the_best_live_music_venues_in_toronto/

Summary: How People Feel About The Music Industry and Copyright Laws

The issue of copyright laws and the music industry is one which many people feel very passionate about. Music is an art form, which captivates people, and brings out their personal feelings regarding it. In regards to my previous post, Music Industry and Copyright Laws, I received some feedback that I would like to elaborate on.

Mostly, people seem to agree with me in the idea that providing fans with free music, will only increase their chances of buying albums when released. An interesting point brought forth which I did not discuss in my previous point is the increased amount of concerts due to generate more revenue for artists. This benefits both sides heavily. The amount of concerts being showcased is increasing dramatically, as well as the price to attend concerts. People do not seem upset about the increase price of concerts, as they get to see their favourite artists, as well as support them. This is a fair way for artists to generate more revenue, as the fans get what they want in return.

Another comment discusses the amount of exposure artists receive because of the same tool record labels despise, the Internet. This is not only a fantastic point, but incredibly true. Artists can now provide their music on the Internet for anyone to hear, leading to much more exposure. In a sense, artists who complain about piracy can be replaced with those who just want their music to be heard by the masses regardless of profit. There have been countless artists who have become famous due to Internet fame; dare I bring up Justin Bieber? Although this is true, this does not really relate to the issue of Internet piracy.

Although this helps artists get exposure, this does not really stop fans from pirating their music once they have become famous. This is why I believe the way to help resolve this issue is for artists to release free music themselves. The generosity they display by giving away free music will be returned when they release an album through a record label. I think the Internet and music will be intertwined from this moment on. Personally, I think it is a wonderful thing as individuals are able to search for any kind of music they want, rather than having music shoved down their throats via radio stations and television channels. That being said, once people have found artists they appreciate, and listened to the free music given to them, they should support that artists when they sell an album, or do a show in their hometown.

*This response is based off of these comments

Music Industry and Copyright Issues

The new age pirate does not travel on ships, sailing the seas looking for new land to embark, and treasures to steal, but rather exists on the Internet and their treasures include multimedia for which they can share with the masses. As explained by Steinmetz and Tunnell in Under the Pixelated Jolly Roger: A Study of On-Line Pirates “Young people, using computers to download digitized intellectual property, are today’s pirates.” (Steinmetz & Tunnel, 2013, p.60).  The problem with the pirating issue currently affecting the music industry, as stated by Lessing in Ted Talks, is that both sides are reaching an extremist point, expanding the issue and making it more difficult to reach a reasonable solution. The music industry has been given the power to automatically take down any copyright content inappropriately used on the internet, and the young generation which uses the internet so heavily as completely rejected copyright as if it did not exist. These are the extremes currently embarking on the issue of piracy, with a resolution seemingly unattainable.

When I was much younger, and Internet piracy was first occurring, it was an all out war by the music industry on the Internet in order to protect valuable record sales. What followed, was a black eye on the music industry and fans unsympathetic towards the feelings of the artists. Fans felt that the idea of rich music stars complaining about stealing music, resulting in the loss of record sales, was laughable. Therefore, Internet piracy continued and the battle between Internet pirates and the music industry began.

Although it seems impossible for a resolve to be reached in regards to the piracy issue, I would like to provide my own suggestion to help reach a resolution on this issue. As stated by Burkart and McCourt in When Creators, Corporations and Consumers Collide: Napster and the Development of Online Music Distribution  “The Internet provides an enhanced marketplace for record companies, since goods may be copied and transported over the Internet at marginal costs, and unwanted goods may easily be disposed of or delisted.” (Burkart & McCourt, 2003, p.335). The Internet has heavily affected record sales, but at the same time has provided record companies with a tool to distribute new music. Many of my favourite artists have seen this tool, and use it to their full advantage. I believe the way to help both sides meet in the middle on this issue, is regulating the delivery of free music, straight from the artist.

Many artists now provide fans with free albums, straight from their own website. For instance, the rap group Odd Future, has released several albums for free on their website www.oddfuture.com. Providing fans with free music makes them feel appreciated, connecting with the artist. Having provided their fans with free music directly from the source, artists can now sell their major album releases, through their record labels, and use this as a means to convince fans to buy their record. Artists use the free music provided as a way to sympathize to the fans, telling them we have given you all this free music, now please purchase this album in order to balance the situation. I believe this tactic works very well, as when Odd Future released albums through their record company, it sold very well. If you provide fans with free music, they will feel appreciated and in return purchase the music when asked. This is the direction the music industry is leading towards, and I truly believe this will help the two extremist sides meet in the middle.

*Image is of one of the many FREE releases provided on http://www.oddfuture.com

Reference:

McCourt, T., P. Burkart. (2003). When Creators, Corporations and Consumers Collide: Napster and the Development of On-line Music Distribution. Media, Culture & Society. 25 (3), pg. 333-350

Steinmetz, K., K. Tunnell (2013). Under the Pixelated Jolly Roger: A Study of On-Line Pirates. Deviant Behavior. 34 (1), pg. 53-67

Shows I’ve Seen @ The Danforth Music Hall

This is a video montage dedicated to all the phenomenal performances I have witnessed at the Danforth Music Hall. One aspect I really like of this venue, as you will see in the video, is the range of performers at Danforth. They include superstars, such as Rihanna, to up and comers, such as Kim Churchill. Enjoy, and marvel at the awesomeness that is my job.

*Photos are courtesy of @JerryAbramowicz – House Photographer for Danforth Music Hall (Give him a Follow!)

Summary: Evolution of Cyberspace into Social Media

The use of social media in today’s culture could be a lengthy debate with both sides presenting valid points, and in some sense neither being wrong. Social media is so entrenched within our society you now see most commercials on television, the radio or magazines displaying the messages “Like Us on Facebook” or “Follow Us on Twitter”. That being said, clearly people are going to have different views regarding the identity we portray on social media sites.

Following my previous blog post, the feedback I received was mostly positive, but I was left with some wonderful questions to ponder and therefore I am posting this summary in order to discuss the statements I have received. Firstly, I was asked “I think my main question for you is what do you think you will do as the possibility of being anonymous on the internet continues to decrease?” This is an excellent question and caused me to follow up and read the blog of the individual where I found more information regarding privacy on the internet. Upon reading their blog I discovered that Google is now tracking individuals searches through their e-mail addresses. Although it is nearly impossible to avoid being tracked on the internet, there are still ways to stay anonymous. One tip I learned and lean on heavily is the importance of having a single anonymous e-mail address. I currently have several e-mail addresses, but I have one which is completely anonymous and has no relation with myself. No alternate e-mail, fake name, fake information and so forth. The e-mail address I use for personal use is given only to individuals I know and can trust. For various website sign-ups among other forms needed to be completed on the internet, I use my anonymous e-mail and information so there is no affiliation with myself. Anonymous accounts are the easiest way to travel through the depths of cyberspace without being tracked.

Another comment I received discusses the immense benefits of using social media. There are many fascinating benefits from social media, this goes saying without debate. Everyone understands the positives, this is why social media has expanded to the worldwide powerhouse it is now. The importance is displaying the negative aspects of social media sites that are not talked about. Young children joining social media sites for the first time are unaware of the repercussions of having a profile on social media sites. They must be taught this in order to make their own decisions, regarding their own privacy.

Thank-You for all the comments, they were greatly appreciated.

Phil Medeiros

The Evolution of Cyberspace into Social Media

The increasing power of technology continues to improve our day to day lives in various aspects. Our cell phones now act as miniature computers to help provide you with G.P.S. for lengthy car rides, apps for enjoyment and business, as well as various social media streams which allow us to connect with the vastness of the internet. Although at first it seems as though all of these would be positives when discussing the power of cyberspace, as Sherry Turkle sees it, this is becoming a large problem that our generation must face in order to save human relationships. Sherry states in her New York Times article from 2012 “One sees the same thing: we are together, but each of us in our own bubble, furiously connected to keyboards and tiny touch screens. ” It has escalated to the point where young people growing up do not know the proper way to communicate with one another face to face, as Sherry states in the same New York Times article “A 16-year-old boy who relies on texting for almost everything says almost wistfully, Someday, someday, but certainly not now, I’d like to learn how to have a conversation.” This is the increasing issue with technology, and it stems mainly from the growth in social media over the past 5-10 years.

Social media is a way people can stay connected to the globe without having to look further than the apps on their phone. Famous social media sites include Facebook, Twitter and Instagram among many more. The issue regarding social media/cyberspace stems further than just the loss of proper communication, but also creates a lack of privacy for individuals who use them. Although social media has only expanded vastly just recently, it follows a platform which has made cyberspace so popular since its arrival. As She stated in a journal review in 1999 for Contemporary Sociology, long before the emergence of social media, “One key element of online life and its impact on identity: the creation and projection of constructed personae into virtual space.” This seems as though she was almost predicting the possible emergence of social media, but at the time this journal article was written, she was referring to chat-rooms and other platforms of that nature. The problem arising is that these individuals are so focused on their virtual personae, they do not realize the loss of privacy they are encountering. The more information uploaded to an individuals virtual personae, the more their own privacy is threatened. The reason people are so intertwined with social media is because it “gives us the illusion of friendship, without the demands of companionship.” Sherry Turkle hits it right on the head with that last quote from TED2012, people will trade their lack of privacy, for the feeling of friendship they encounter in cyberspace constantly.

Having heard much from Sherry Turkle and her vision of cyberspace and the problems it creates, I’d like to now share my own personal beliefs on how to avoid disrupting your privacy while maintaining key online friendships which people desire. Firstly, there must be a balance of public, private and personal in relation to social media. My personal relationships stay personal, I never advertise personal encounters, share plans with social media or provide my location. Information I share with the public on social media sites is simple information of very little importance such as opinions on sports, movies, music or other events that have occurred. Neither of these involve sharing personal or private information, but rather just generic opinions. When presenting myself on social media, I use as little information as possible. I never provide my full name, never have a display picture of myself, and post no information in my bio regarding who I am. I enjoy staying anonymous, with only close personal friends knowing who the twitter account belongs to. This relates back to Turkle’s argument from 1999 where she states “one has the choice of being known only by one’s chosen “handle” this is how I choose to present myself. The reason why I am so secretive with my identity on social media is the fact that these sites are under constant surveillance. The fact that the information I post is free for anyone to view and interpret, causes me to be very hesitant to post anything which could shatter my image.

To conclude, the internet has provided the world with great tools to stay in touch with one another, and has the power to make such a vast globe seem so small. Although there are many positives, it is important to understand the harm cyberspace, in particular social media, can cause. The decaying of face to face communication is becoming increasingly harmful to our society, and therefore I place importance on keeping personal relationships private and personal, not on the internet for all to see, but regularly meeting with friends and family to engage socially in person. In addition, the invasion of privacy associated with social media sites leads me to keep information I post as vague as possible, keeping personal information to myself, and sharing only basic views and opinions on leisure matters such as sports, music and movies. I think people are getting too comfortable with social media sites, posting way too much information and in turn severely decreasing their privacy.

Thank-You for Reading.

References:

Turkle, S. (1999). Looking Toward Cyberspace: Beyond Grounded Sociology.  Contemporary Sociology, 28(6), 643-648.

Turkle, Sherry. (2012). “The Flight from Conversation” in The New York Times. pp. SR1

Turkle, Sherry. “http://blog.ted.com/2012/03/01/places-we-dont-want-to-go-sherry-turkle-at-ted2012/”

Concert Scene Survival Guide

These are websites which will help you stay on top of the concert scene:

Ticketmaster.ca – The go to place to purchase tickets online for hundreds of concerts happening across North America. Most mainstream concerts will have their tickets sold on Ticket Master.

LiveNation.com – Another site which is vital to individuals who regularly want to attend concerts. Live Nation currently represents a ton of artists in the music industry and their website provides users information on purchasing tickets, and attending shows.

arts.nationalpost.com/tag/concert-reviews/ – In my personal opinion, The National Post has the best arts section of any newspaper in Canada, and therefore their insight on concerts performed throughout Canada is a useful tool in obtaining valued information.

http://concertsto.com/ – Displaying a list of all upcoming concerts reaching Toronto. A great guide to finding lower key shows mainstream outlets such as Ticket Master won’t have information on.

http://justshows.com/toronto/venues/ – A great list containing the location of all the concert venues in Toronto, several of which I actively work at.