New Media Politics What is New Media Digital

New Media Politics

What is “New” Media? • Digital, require computer technology • Examples: Internet, websites, digital games, interactive fiction, apps, software, etc. • NOT(? ): radio, television, film, books • Integration of images, words, sounds • Interactive • Other considerations: format, medium, skills

Internet: Early Expectations Democratizing media • Consumers-producers • Global Village Eliminate prejudice New Yorker cartoon by Steiner, 1993

Two Problems • Digital Divide Economic , geographic, and social inequality in knowledge about, access to, and use of information and communication technologies (Wikipedia) Implication: Who benefits from digital tech? • Persistence of prejudice

Digital Divide, internationally Internet Use in 2008 Visualized (Graham, Hale and Stephens)

Digital Divide, within the U. S. National Broadband Map Pew Study, 2012

Implications of Digital Divide • Education • Jobs • Politics & Activism • Entertainment …and more

Persistence of Prejudice

Implications • Engage critically with digital media • Become thoughtful producers

Material Access Call to Action Equality in material and infrastructural conditions Functional Access Knowledge and skills necessary to use tools Experiential Access Tools are relevant to people’s lives, People involved in creating, designing, planning Critical Access Develop understanding of benefit and problems Transformative Access Transforming technology as well as society