From M/Cyclopedia of New Media
- Simen Sjoelli is a second year student at QUT studying a double degree in Media and Communication and Advertising.
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Annotated Bibliography
Convergence - technological, social and lifestyle changes
Jenkins, H (2004). ‘The cultural logic of media convergence’, International Journal of Cultural Studies, vol. 7, no. 1. pp 33-43, viewed 9 August 2004, ISSN 13678779
- This journal article illustrates how convergence is changing the audience’s relations to media, and its impact both to the creative industry and the cultural practises. Jenkins identifies major problems that will shape the media picture in the coming decade, and he argues that for the foreseeable future, convergence will rather be a collaged relationship between different media technologies than a fully integrated system. Jenkins argues that convergence is a cultural shift than just a technological shift:
- Convergence alters the relationship between existing technologies, industries, markets, genres and audiences. Convergence refers to a process, but not an endpoint. Thanks to the proliferation of channels and the portability of new computing and telecommunication technologies, we are entering an era where media will be everywhere and we will use all kinds of media in relation to each other. (34)
- Jenkins offers an insightful account of some of the major tensions and challenges in relation to media convergence. Jenkins illustrates the cultural aspect of convergence by showing how media convergence is both a top-down corporate driven process and a bottom-up consumer driven process. Media companies and consumers are in a mutually learning process: where the media companies learning how to delivery the content across different media channels, the consumers are learning how to adopt this developing technologies in order to interact with other users and to control the flow of media in their lives. The journal also exemplifies how the pace of convergence will be uneven in any given culture because some are more technological educated and will adopt the new forms of media faster than other groups that will struggle more to catch up.
Barr, T. (2000) Newmedia.com.au: the changing face of Australia’s media and communication, NSW: Allen & Unwin, ISBN 1865080497.
- This book offers a theoretical outline of the exponential growth and convergence of information technology, media and telecommunications, and how this no longer should be referred to as an industry, but rather as a phenomenon which has now got into virtually every aspect of our lives and which affect how our modern information society is structured. By this book, Trevor Barr situates the major changes in the new media technologies within the fields of political economy, and institutional and policy studies, and it is especially the notion of convergence that Trevor Barr discuss that are relevant to my annotated bibliography.
- The book offers an insightful description of how the traditional media industries no longer is isolated, but rather how the traditional media more and more are becoming involved with new services such as information technologies and telecommunications. The part of the book that are relevant to me shows how the convergence of media, information technology and telecommunications challenging the old boundaries of media, and puts new forces in the international political economy, as well as the growing marketplace dependence on new, convergent communication services. The book also focuses on the digitalisation, which has a great impact on the convergence:
- …convergence and digitalisation have enabled telecommunications system to become gigantic computer networks with unprecedented capacity to distribute extraordinary quantities of information in many forms. (28)
Williams, F., Rice, R, E., Rogers, E, M. (1988) Research Methods and the New Media, New York: The Free Press, ISBN 0029353327
- Although the book is pretty old in the new media context, it contains some research that is still relevant to the notion of convergence. The book examines how many new media are the product of the convergence of computers and telecommunications networks, and how individuals, groups and institutions can interact with the mass media to develop extended, new relationships. The book assesses how communication can be seen as an interactive process of convergence rather than as a linear transmission of a message from a source to a receiver trough a fixed channel.
Turner, G., Cunningham, S., ed (2002) The media & communications in Australia, NSW: Allen & Unwin, ISBN 1865086746
- In this book, Turner and Cunningham talk about three convergences – convergence of technologies, convergence of industry and convergence of policies. The book focuses on the comprehensive effects of media convergence, and the issues of policy and technology changes and convergence. Turner and Cunningham offer an insightful account to some of the major developments in the phenomenon of convergence - from the first stage which was based on scarcity and saw protection, universal service and public interest, to the second stage which was focusing on liberalisation, competition, efficiency and diversity, and the still emerging third stage will consist of decentralisation of the communications infrastructure.
Appleton, G. (1997) Converging and emerging industries: video, pay TV and multimedia. In The media in Australia: industries, texts, audiences. Ed. Turner, G,. Cunningham, S., (163-188), NSW: Allen & Unwin, ISBN 1864482737
- This book introduces the study of media in Australia from a number of perspectives, and especially interesting for my annotated bibliography is the coverage of the three major instances of converging and emerging industries in Australia: video, pay TV and multimedia. The book offers a thorough description of the convergence of media from the overlapping relationship between video, cinema, broadcast television and pay TV, and how this convergence changed the media productions as well as the changes in the audience. The book also offers an explanation of the structure in the industry and the social changes this new technology entails.
Murroni, C., Collins, R. (1996) New Media, New Policies, Cambridge, UK: Policy Press, ISBN 0745617867
- New media, new policies is a good resource as it introduces the reader to problems and issues concerning the more and more convergent media picture. Most relevant to me is the section about convergence and change. The book addresses problems such as policy making: where it once was a clear line between the media, it is now a blurry, joint media picture. Murroni and Collins argue for a policy change in the overlapping, convergent media. Further, Murroni and Collins suggest that the changing media picture makes established institutions and instruments no longer effective, and too many bodies confuse the consumers.
- New media, new policies lays down an integrated policy programme for the fast growing new generation of convergent media.
- Morrini and Collins suggest that convergence and change cause new problems for regulators. Their studies show that the convergence and change in media blur the distinction between public and private and make current systems of regulation unevenly enforceable across different media.
Gorman, L., McLean, D. (2003) Media and society in the twentieth century: a historical introduction, Melbourne, Vic.: Blackwell Publishing, ISBN 0631222359
- This book provides a general introduction to the media and society, and its changes in the twentieth century. The ‘new media’ section, which combines historical with contemporary media studies, is most relevant to me. This book covers the technological change from a political, socioeconomic and ideological context, which provided opportunities for the emerge of new media – from the move to traditional media, through the convergence of the traditional media to the new media. Media and society in the twentieth century: a historical introduction put forward a comprehensive understanding of the different media to the effects driven by new and innovative technology from a historical point of view. In short, Media and society in the twentieth century: a historical introduction shows where today’s media once was and how the media transformed to multimedia, also, the book shows how corporations operate on cross on different media.
Sreedharan, C. (2004) The “C� word. Poynter Online From this source (accessed 8. August 2004)
- Sreedharan’s article The “C� Word discusses how the media converged long before the break through of telecommunications in the 1970’s. In a historical perspective Sreedharan argues that convergence in media is about layering: news was first presented in the printed media, and as new technology emerged, radio took the concept of printed media and built another layer by adding audio. A new layer was built on as television combined text and audio and added video, and finally, Internet and mobile technology emerged as a multiple media platform with the use of audio, video and animation. As a result, Sreedharan came up with this model:
- Convergence = Multimedia = Print + Radio + TV + Internet =Technology.
- Further, Sreedharan argues that each medium uses the Unique Selling Proposition of another to add a layer to its coverage. This article is useful to me because it presents the issue of convergence in a slightly different perspective, and that the notion of convergence in the media has been a long going process.
McQuail, D. (2000) Media policy: premature obsequies?. In Media Power, Professionals and Policies. Ed Tumber, H. (19-34) London: Routledge, ISBN 0415196698
- Media policy: premature obsequies? explores aspects of media policy from the history of press reform to the media convergence. McQuail argues that not only the press but communications in general are increasingly non-policy areas, and he examines the longer-term prospects for media policy in general. Although media policy is not directly linked to my topic, it offers a comprehensive account on how the convergence of media makes it increasingly problematical to maintain traditional compartmentalisation of media sectors. Further, McQuail argues that the death of old policy contours is caused by the new and converging technologies, which undermine the foundations and purpose of media policy.
- McQuail states that whether or not media policy will or should converge, its boundaries should be redrawn.
Jenkins, H. (2001) ‘Convergence? I diverge’, Technology Review, Cambridge, Vol. 104, Iss. 5, pp 93, ISSN 1099274X (accessed 11. August 2004)
- Convergence? I diverge. looks at the ongoing media convergence process that is occurring at numerous intersections of media technologies, industries, content and audiences. Jenkins looks at social aspects of media convergence and argues that we are entering an era where media will be everywhere, and we will use all kind of media in relation to each other. Further, he argues that new media will emerge, and we will adopt new creative genres that will exploit the potential of those.
- Following this, the article identifies the five processes of convergence:
- Technological convergence: The digitalization of all media content.
- Economic convergence: The horizontal integration of the entertainment business.
- Social or organic convergence: Consumers’ multitasking strategies for navigating the new information environment.
- Cultural convergence: The explosion of new forms of creativity at the intersections of various technologies, industries and consumers.
- Global convergence: A result of the international circulation of media content.
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Simen Sjoelli 22:49, 12 Aug 2004 (EST)
