OSP: Clay Shirky - End of audience

Media Magazine reading

Media Magazine 55 has an overview of technology journalist Bill Thompson’s conference presentation on ‘What has the internet ever done for me?’ It’s an excellent summary of the internet’s brief history and its impact on society. Go to our Media Magazine archive, click on MM55 and scroll to page 13 to read the article ‘What has the internet ever done for me?’ Answer the following questions:

1) Looking over the article as a whole, what are some of the positive developments due to the internet highlighted by Bill Thompson?

The network connects us to other people, it provides a great source of information, it can be used for campaigning and political action, to draw attention to abuses and fight for human rights. It’s a great place for gaming and education, which can also be used to make a lot of money (for a few people) as well as a place where you can meet your friends.

2) What are the negatives or dangers linked to the development of the internet?

But the bad sides are also hard to ignore. A lot of bullying and abuse takes place there. There’s pornography that you don’t want to see, and illegal images of child abuse that you might come across. Extremists and radicals can use the network to try to influence people to join their cause, and fraud, scams, rip offs and malicious software are everywhere. Then there’s the dark web.

3) What does ‘open technology’ refer to? Do you agree with the idea of ‘open technology’?

The idea of ‘openness’ lies at the centre of this debate: I believe that if we want an open society based around principles of equality of opportunity, social justice and free expression, we need to build it on technologies which are themselves ‘open’, and that this is the only way to encourage a diverse online culture that allows all voices to be heard.

4) Bill Thompson outlines some of the challenges and questions for the future of the internet. What are they?

We know you care about privacy – and why wouldn’t you, I certainly do. So how can the network deliver that? We know you care about other people around the world, and want a fairer, more just world – so how can the network help there? We know you want to understand the world and engage with it, so how do we deliver news media that can operate effectively online and still make money?

5) Where do you stand on the use and regulation of the internet? Should there be more control or more openness? Why?

As of right now I do not believe that the Internet is widely regulated enough, as regulation is split between each individual site and company that operates on the Internet with no general legislation

Clay Shirky: Here Comes Everybody

Clay Shirky’s book Here Comes Everybody charts the way social media and connectivity is changing the world. Read Chapter 3 of his book, ‘Everyone is a media outlet’, and answer the following questions:

1) How does Shirky define a ‘profession’ and why does it apply to the traditional newspaper industry?

A profession exists to solve a hard problem, one that requires some sort of specialization. Newspaper executives are responsible for deciding what goes on the front page. In these cases, the scarcity of the resource itself creates the need for a professional class there are few libraries but many patrons, there are few channels but many viewers.

2) What is the question facing the newspaper industry now the internet has created a “new ecosystem”?

Newspaper executives are responsible for deciding what goes on the front page. In these cases, the scarcity of the resource itself creates the need for a professional class there are few libraries but many patrons, there are few channels but many viewers.

3) Why did Trent Lott’s speech in 2002 become news?

This would have been a classic story of negative press coverage altering a political career-except that the press didn't actually cover the story, at least not at first. Indeed, the press almost completely missed the story. This isn't to say that they intentionally ignored it or even actively suppressed it; several reporters from national news media heard Lott speak, but his remark simply didn't fit the standard template of news.

4) What is ‘mass amateurisation’?

Mass amateurisation is a result of the radical spread of expressive capabilities, and the most obvious precedent is the one that gave birth to the modern world: the spread of the printing press five centuries ago.

5) Shirky suggests that: “The same idea, published in dozens or hundreds of places, can have an amplifying effect that outweighs the verdict from the smaller number of professional outlets.” How can this be linked to the current media landscape and particularly ‘fake news’? 

The influence of fake news and misinformation has been amplified by the Internet, due to the combination of audiences' lack of trust in traditional news outlets and the lack of regulation as to what can be posted by anybody. 

6) What does Shirky suggest about the social effects of technological change? Does this mean we are currently in the midst of the internet “revolution” or “chaos” Shirky mentions?

Shirky suggests that the social effects of technological change fully manifest themselves much later after the actual changes in the infrastructure have taken place, using the example of the printing press. 

7) Shirky says that “anyone can be a publisher… [and] anyone can be a journalist”. What does this mean and why is it important?

The Internet enables anybody to publish their content and work for an audience of millions to see. This contradicts the traditional model of professional work where producers of media would gatekeep the ability to disseminate their content to the public through occupations such as one of a journalist.

8) What does Shirky suggest regarding the hundred years following the printing press revolution? Is there any evidence of this “intellectual and political chaos” in recent global events following the internet revolution?

Shirky suggests that the printing press revolution ushered in an era of intellectual and political chaos that only hit a plateau around the 1600s, as the ability to mass produce texts, such as the Bible, enabled the spread of religion. In comparison, the rapid evolution of the Internet has had a significant impact on society that could be considered greater than the 

9) Why is photography a good example of ‘mass amateurisation’?

Shirky discusses the traditional practice of photography as having been gatekept by the scarcity of resources available and ability to display work to an audience through industry connections and exhibitions. However, the Internet has allowed amateur photographers to have both of these things in abundance through blog posting and social media. The technology used to produce photography has also become better and cheaper with most people being able to take high quality photos with their mobile phones. 

10) What do you think of Shirky’s ideas on the ‘End of audience’? Is this era of ‘mass amateurisation’ a positive thing? Or are we in a period of “intellectual and political chaos” where things are more broken than fixed? 

I believe that both sides of Shirky's discussion of the modern Internet and "end of audience" are true and not mutually exclusive at all. While the democratisation of most forms of work and content creation is ultimately a positive aspect of the Internet that has allowed people with skill and talent to be discovered without the influence of the professional industry, there is undeniably an effect of political polarisation that has been caused by social media's discussions of society in the West.