NDM Story #26 Facebook app lets you view anyone’s hidden photos

http://metro.co.uk/2014/12/30/facebook-app-lets-you-view-anyones-hidden-photos-5003545/

A new browser extension, available now on the Chrome web store, boasts that it will let you view the hidden photos of ‘anyone on Facebook’ – whether they’re your friend or not. Facebook users currently have the ability to ‘hide from their timeline’ any unflattering photo that they don’t wish others to see. What many people don’t realise is that ‘hiding’ a picture doesn’t remove or block the photo in any way and the Picturebook app takes advantage of this loophole to find those hidden photos. Picturebook’s description is, therefore, slightly misleading. No app or browser extension is truly able to change the privacy settings of someone else’s photo and if you untag yourself from an unflattering photo, Picturebook won’t be able to find it.

I believe that the Picturebook app is a scheme and does not benefit anyone in any way. It is misleading and does not actually change an individuals privacy settings if their pictures are on private correctly. It is also a privacy concern as it encourages people to peer into others photos which they thought were hidden from others.

NDM Story #25 News Corp UK suffers £3.5m loss after £51m profit the year before

http://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2014/dec/17/news-corp-uk-suffers-35m-loss-after-51m-profit-the-year-before

Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper and publishing division suffered an operating loss of £3.5m in the year up to June 2014 compared to a £51m profit the year before. One stand-out feature was the plunge in the profitability of the Sun, where operating profits were down to £35.6m from £62.1m in 2013. Similarly, earlier this month, News UK made much of Times Newspapers having returned an operating profit of £1.7m, but the accounts reveal that it suffered a pre-tax loss.

• The Sun’s revenues fell 5.5% to £489m
• 225,000 subscribers had signed up for online packages, which it regarded as a success, but it did not compensate for the continuing decline in print revenues
• The company incurred further legal costs of £17.1m due to the activities that resulted from its post-hacking decision to set up the management and standards committee (MSC)

In my opinion, I believe it is interesting how a news corporation can have such a drastic turn over in the period of on year. It however shows that the company itself has encountered in activities that resulted in legal costs and also other newspapers may be more popular. 

MM conference notes

John Snow:

• Go for two news sources rather than relying on one
• Brand is important and news to be strong
• We are in the golden age for journalism
• Twitter is beneficial for journalism 

Destiny Ekaragha:

• Films that inspired her include 'the breakfast club'
• Created/directed small films entered in films festivals such as 'tight jeans'
• Involved in directing upcoming film 'gone too far'- comedy about two brothers

Pete Fraser's 9 key words:

• Research
• Logistics
• Planning
• Evidence
• Equipment
• Reflection
• Ideas
• Production
• Feedback

Jake Wynne:

• Worked with stars such as Robbie Williams, Paul Weller and the Spice Girls
• His commercials work has included spots for BMW, Nike, PlayStation and Nescafe

Owen Jones:

• Passionate about the economy
• Believe the rich get richer
• Pluralist approach

News on the Tweet

1) The combination of newsbrands and Twitter helps keep us informed and opinionated. Each helps the other to grow its audiences and influence.Twitter therefore becomes more popular and used when users go on the social networking site to look at news pages as these are always kept up to date. Twitter users stated that newsbrands on Twitter helps them to 'to be aware of what is going on in the world, to pass the time and to be connected to people I am interested in but don't know.'

2) In turn, Twitter is good for newsbrands because by users following news companies on Twitter, they gain more followers and publicity. The newsbrands then have a larger audience interested in them and it can therefore boost their subscribers. Statistics show that 40% of users check Twitter frequently to see what is going on with their favourite newspaper brand.

3) The report suggests that old and new media 'are not, in fact, in direct competition, but often work extremely well together to enhance both the media eco-system and the consumer experience.' According to the report, enhancements take place in four different ways. These include: knowledge, opinion, gossip and banter and community. I do agree with this as I feel both Twitter and newsbrands work together in order to benefit one another.

4) Besides serious news, there is also gossip and banter of celebrities, political scandals, sports etc all for entertainment purposes. Examples of tweets from journalists include:

• 'Neil Ashton @neilashton • Nov 5 Arsenal are toast: In all seriousness now, what are the sales figures like for this kind of stuff?'

• 'Camilla Long @camillalong • Feb 16 Favourite story all weekend has been Del Boy killing the British sheepskin coat industry. LOL'

• 'Lucy Tobin @lucytobin • Feb 17 Excellent: a University has spent £20,000 building a mock pub for students to investigate why people get drunk.'

• 'Caitlin Moran @caitlinmoran • Jan 11 The most amazing thing about the story of President Hollande having an affair is that he apparently only has one pair of shoes.'

5) In my opinion, I believe that the increasing amount of gossip and banter is not actually harming the reputation of news and journalists. Instead, it enhances them as 'jokes' and 'funny quotes' are more likely to be shared and re-tweeted, gaining more publicity. However, I do believe it is important on which journalist or newsbrand does this as people who are taken very seriously would not be likely to post and gossip or banter on Twitter and that in turn could damage their reputation as they may then be seen as unprofessional.

6) The report suggests that trust in Twitter has actually been enhanced due to journalists. Statistics show that 39% of users felt that 'journalists on Twitter are a trustworthy and faster source of news, 48% said I feel I have a more personal connection with journalists I follow and 69% stated Twitter gives me access to journalists I wouldn't otherwise connect with.' The users on Twitter therefore increase due to the public finding journalists to be trustworthy. However it also increases journalist profiles as more Twitter users have access to them through the social networking site.

7) In my opinion, I believe that new and digital media developments such as Twitter have had a positive impact on traditional newspapers to a certain extent. Whilst the social networking site has allowed users to have greater access to newsbrands and increased their profile of subscribers and followers, it could be argued that this also encourages the decline of traditional newspapers. This is because people are less likely to buy print newspapers and pay money for them as they can easily access the news through search engines on the internet and social sites such as Twitter. It can be seen as more convenient as people gain quick access to the internet through computers, tablets and smartphones wherever they are, as oppose to going to the shop to buy a traditional print newspaper.

NDM Story #24 Does the Sun really speak to more people than Russell Brand?

http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2014/dec/05/the-sun-speak-more-people-russell-brand

The Sun has stepped up its attacks on Russell Brand in recent days but in many ways the comedian is now much more influential than the paper. The Sun sells 1.9m newspapers a day, according to the latest ABC figures from November. This is considerably more than the 48,000 copies Brand’s latest book, Revolution, had sold up to 22 November, according to Nielsen. However, Brand dwarfs the paper’s reach on the majority of the world’s favourite social media sites. He has 8.6 million Twitter followers, which is 13 times more than the Sun. He also has 1.2 million more Facebook followers.

• The Sun sells 1.9m newspapers a day
• Russell Brand has has 8.6 million Twitter followers
• He also has 1.2 million more Facebook followers

The fact that Russell Brand is more popular than The Sun on Twitter is an interesting debate. It may be because Russell Brand is quite a comedian, therefore may attract a larger audience. Also, he is a controversial character and Twitter have not taken him off Twitter for his controversy. It is debatable that this is because they want popular users to remain on Twitter, encouraging people to use Twitter.

NDM Story #23 Paper: Facebook's new app curates news stories from old media in 'distraction free' format

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/facebook-launches-new-newscuration-app-named-paper-9096521.html

Facebook has announced a new mobile app named Paper that could see the social network control a significant portion of the digital news market. The app will launch on 3 February for the iPhone in the US and promises a 'distraction-free layout' by pulling in new stories from various media publications. In terms of visual style and navigation, Paper appears to be similar to news-curating app Flipboard. Users navigate through Paper with a series of swipes; going from left to right to flip through stories, and pulling up or down to expand or shrink content.

In my opinion, I think that Facebook have created this app as it competes with the current market and apps that are dominating android and apple. The app is similar to Flipboard which has a unique style of flicking through news and also links to other things such as social networking sites.

Globalisation

Media Magazine 47: The case study issue

1) The Google glass article introduces the concept of Google glass and the features it holds. The positives and drawbacks of the product are also explained along with the limitations. The article is also linked to globalistion and the theories which relate to Google glass such as Stanley Cohen's moral panic.

2) A positive effect of globalisation outlined in the article is the opportunity that Google have given to rural areas to have access to the internet. One example is a rural area of New Zealand, where Google launched their Project Loon in June 2013. Large balloons fitted with radio antenna devices were released into the air to float above, offering people living there the ability to access internet for the first time. If successful, Google planned to release many more balloons and provide other rural areas with this opportunity such as East Asia and Africa

3) A negative effect of globalisation outlined in the article is the concentration of ownership and the possibility that smaller companies have little or no hope of staking a claim on the global market as they won’t be able to compete. Moreover, only a limited number of companies dominate the global market and in the main only distribute the majority of the world’s wealth amongst themselves. The FT500 for 2013 shows Google placed in at number 15 on the list. It was also in the top 10 companies featured on the list, eight of these are American owned.

4) Moral panic: An instance of public anxiety or alarm in response to a problem regarded as         threatening the moral standards of society - Stanley Cohen

    Techno-panic: Moral panic that centres around fears regarding a specific contemporary -
Marwick 2008

5) There are several concerns regarding data and privacy with Google glass. The article states how someone wearing Google glass can easily walk around and take pictures of or film people and the general public without anyone being able to realise. This is a major privacy concern as permission for someone to be filmed or have their picture taken is not given. Also, Google glass can record all the sound it picks up and can come with facial recognition software, therefore people can be identified even in a large crowd.

6)  In my opinion, I do not believe that globalisation is something we should be worried about, however it is something that we need to be aware and careful of. Globalisation is not something that we can stop or control but we can build our knowledge on new developments around the world and be cautious of things like Google glass which have privacy concerns. The 'global village' that theorist McLuhan speaks about is something we should embrace as long as it leads to positive impacts. 

Globalisation and new/digital media

1) Has the increased globalisation of news improved the audience experience? 

One way in which increased globalisation of news has improved audience experience is through the wider availability of international channels on Television. For example, we can view live footage in other countries such as China or India while sitting in the convenience of our own home in the UK. Our multi-ethnic society pays more of an interest in news around the world. We have greater access to international news online also, as international newspapers such as India Times are available to view and most are free.

On the other hand, it can be argued that news companies only show audiences news that is interesting instead of what is important. Alain de Botton argues that news corporations only show us a snapshot of footage of natural disasters in other countries for example. Audiences are only shown dramatic images and are not given much information. This then means that we do not have much sympathy towards those who are being affected and do nothing about it. It can therefore be argued of whether news institutions are to blame for this.

2) Is our news influenced by American cultural imperialism? What example can you think of?

On one hand, it can be argued that news focuses on American culture widely in the UK. An example is celebrity news/gossip. A majority of American celebrity news is released in the UK. This could be because American celebrity news is more interesting and consists of more scandals, which gives British institutions more viewers and audiences.

On the other hand, British news is said to be less bias then American news. Therefore, British news is more likely to focus on the values it currently holds as it is admired by audiences. If they took on too many traits on American news then British institutions may find themselves losing viewers.

3) Has globalisation benefited or damaged major news institutions?

It can be argued that globalisation has benefited major news institutions as companies have greater access to content around the world. For example, news institutions do not need to rely on citizen journalism if there is a disaster in America and their company is based in the UK. Instead they can spread out journalists and reporters from their company around the world so footage can be gathered and reported by the institution.

On the other hand institutions can be challenged due to globalisation. One example is the Ferguson case in America. The shooting of Michael Brown by a police officer broke out into protests in Ferguson and across the US. The protesters used social media to organise their demonstrations.They used Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr to spread the word about planned protest locations, sending text messages with announcements and collecting donations and supplies. Two of the main organisers prepared for the protests by sending out tweets with information and calls to action. The two reached more than 20,000 followers each with their Ferguson updates.

The development of new/digital media means the audience is more powerful in terms of consumption and production. Discuss the arguments for and against this view

Technology has grown and developed over the years, as has new and digital media. Due to this, I believe that audiences are more powerful in terms of consumption and production. This is because they have greater access to new and digital media e.g. through the internet, tablets, smartphones etc. Therefore, freedom of speech and opinions are expressed by audiences more. Also, traditional print media has been in decline while online news continues to grow and increases.

Traditional print media has been in decline for the past few years while online news is increasing. This has lead to the decline of newspapers as news online has become much more easier for audiences to consume and can sometimes be more convenient. More newspaper institutions have switched to online news where they provide customers with the latest stories from their newspapers. This means that audiences no longer have to go to the shop to purchase a newspaper, but can in fact have a digital copy which they can read from their computer, smartphone, tablet etc online. This is beneficial for consumers as they can read their news to their own convenience, whether they are at home or outside, they can easily search the news on the internet. There is also an increase in apps which can be downloaded on smartphones and tablets. News institutions such as BBC, The Guardian and Metro for example have their own apps where news stories are provided for audiences who download them. Although most news found online is free, some institutions have pay walls. This means that consumers have to subscribe and pay a monthly free to read a certain newspaper online. This can be a disadvantage for certain companies such as The Time and Sunday Times who have a pay wall. They can sometimes find profits to be low because consumers have a choice and can easily access free news online such as the BBC. However, audiences can argue which news institutions they find to be reliable. Moreover, it is debated over whether news online is a premium product compared to traditional print newspapers due to pay walls. Although print newspapers are commonly paid for, they are much cheaper and tend to cost under £1 for a newspaper, whereas subscription online can be higher.

There has also been a rise in citizen journalism throughout the years. This means that news institutions have become more dependent on citizen journalism in order to provide evidence for their news stories. For example, the general public have filmed disasters on their phones, which have then been sent and used by news institutions that show the footage on TV and online. This creates a sense of realism (Baudrillard) for audiences as the footage is shaky and unclear, as oppose to it being shot steadily on a  professional camera. It makes audiences relate to the news story more as they see the perspective of someone who was actually there when the incident took place. This has also contributed to the decline of journalism as institutions use citizen journalism footage as oppose to professional footage by journalists as audiences prefer it. Also, it saves news institutions costs as they do not need to pay a journalist to work for them. An example of citizen journalism is the death of Ian Tomlinson which was carried out by a police officer. A member of the public filmed the incident, which The Guardian then released soon after. This created major controversy over the case as the police officer resigned, therefore was unable to face punishment. Similar to this, the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson was also carried out by a police officer. This lead to protests which had over 20,000 followers on Twitter. Protesters also used social media to organise their demonstrations.They used Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr to spread the word about planned protest locations, sending text messages with announcements and collecting donations and supplies.

Alain De Bottton recently spoke about the fact that news institutions expose stories to audiences which are more interesting than important. For example, if there is a natural disaster on the other side of the world then news institutions will show shocking images and then go on to another story before giving important details or even communication to audiences about how they can help. It could be argued that this is a reason why we as audiences have no sympathy for those who are affected because we are not educated enough by the news and it is their responsibility. Alain De Botton also mentioned that celebrity news such as Taylor Swift is more important to news institutions and receives more coverage in news stories. Moreover, Galtung and Ruge created a set of news values in which they believe news institutions use to determine which stories should receive coverage in their news stories. These factors include: elite nations or people, predictability, frequency, amplitude and immediacy etc. News stories that cover the most factors would be prioritsed by the news institutions.

User generated content (UGC) has also increased within the past years, giving audiences more power to create their own media products. Audiences now have blogs, in which they share their activities and opinions. YouTube is also used more where anyone can sign up and make an account. Users then post videos and can even go viral without having to be signed to a company e.g. singers can gain thousands of views and subscribers without having a record deal. Moreover, audiences are able to share their opinions and debate among themselves through comments which they can leave on news websites e.g. The Guardian. However, if the institution find comments to be inappropriate, they can be removed. Baudrillard's theory of hyper reality suggests that audiences believe they have more power than they actually do, however fail to see that the ruling class still hold power over us.

Marxists believe in capitalist society, where the bourgeois exploit the proletariat. In the world of news, institutions and companies remain dominant and have power over their audiences, who have no control. An example of this is the fact that audiences feel more powerful as they can comment on articles found on online news. Although audiences can comment what they want, the comments are still regulated by the news institutions and they have the power to take it down if they find it inappropriate. Also, although audiences have more freedom and power to create their own media online, they still use websites such as Google and YouTube which are owned by dominant corporations. A theorist who agrees with this is Pareto as he stated that ''a minority of (media) producers always serve a majority of consumers. This ties in with Pareto's 80/20 rule, where he stated that 80% of wealth is owned by 20% of the population.

The main pluralist belief is in a equal society. In recent years, Rupert Murdoch famously said ''the internet has given readers much more power.. The world is changing and newspapers have to adapt.'' As new and digital media grows, the internet has most definitely given audiences more freedom of speech and opinions. People are able to make videos and upload them on YouTube, without even having to sign any deals or get in touch with famous people, they can still gain several subscribers and gain hundreds of views. An example is an online fashion and beauty blogger called Zoella. She currently has just under 7 million subscribers and her videos have 307,946,467 views. After becoming so popular through her YouTube channel, Zoella has now released her own book called 'Girl online' which sold 78,000 copies in the first week. She has also won several awards such as the Radio 1 Teen Award for best British vlogger and was asked by Bob Geldof to sing on the Band Aid 30 track Do They Know It's Christmas. The fact that anyone can set up a channel or blog and start sharing their stories, can lead to big opportunities if you gain enough fans and there is no need to be recognised by a large company anymore.

To conclude, I believe that audiences have power to a certain extent. Although technology and new and digital media has grown, institutions and companies still have control over regulation and the things that remain or are taken down on the internet. I therefore believe that the ruling class have greater power over audiences due to their dominance. This relates to the Marxist belief of hegemony as the elite remain the ruling class in society and hold the power.

NDM Story #22 Digital journalists have great chance to develop much-needed transparency

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/sep/05/digital-journalists-have-great-chance-to-develop-much-needed-transparency

Digital media outlets can improve the quality of journalism by using new tools such as the CSI-style verification of social media posts and by allowing the reader not only to comment but to correct articles, media researcher Kellie Riordan argues. These methods are being used by both traditional media outlets such as the BBC and digital natives such as the US business site Quartz, which launched only in 2012 but is already competing with the Economist and Bloomberg.

I believe this tool encourages citizen journalism as readers can alter texts and articles.

NDM Story #21 YouTube star takes online break as she admits novel was ‘not written alone’

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/dec/08/zoella-bestselling-girl-online-written-siobhan-curham-zoe-sugg

YouTube star Zoe Sugg has announced that she is taking a break from the internet after admitting that she did not write her bestselling debut novel alone. Sugg took to her Twitter account, where she has tweeted "I’m taking a few days out and off the internet because it’s clouding up my brain. Thanks for understanding." The fastest-selling debut novel ever, was not written solely by the popular YouTube video blogger, or vlogger, as readers had been led to believe. After sustained pressure over whether or not the book was ghostwritten by Siobhan Curham, who is named in the acknowledgements, Sugg posted a statement on Sundaylate Sunday afternoon, saying that, “for the doubters out there, of course I was going to have help from Penguin’s editorial team in telling my story, which I talked about from the beginning”. “Everyone needs help when they try something new,” added Sugg. “The story and the characters of Girl Online are mine.” It has also prompted some backlash on Amazon, where reviews of the novel now include the comment that: “I was considering purchasing this book, but today I have seen that the publishers have admitted that it was ghostwritten. I feel like this is cheating young girls out of their pocket money.”

• 2.61 million followers on Twitter

• It sold 78,109 copies in its first week

In my opinion, I do not believe that Zoe has gotten enough credit for what she has achieved. Writing a first novel is not easy, however she could have been more clear of whether she wrote it alone or not as it seemed that she did.

NDM Story #20 How Ferguson Protesters Use Social Media to Organize

http://blogs.wsj.com/dispatch/2014/11/24/how-ferguson-protesters-use-social-media-to-organize/

Protesters in Ferguson, Mo. and across the US are using social media to organise their demonstrations. The protestors await the grand jury’s decision on whether to indict police offer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of teenager Michael Brown, They are using Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr to spread the word about planned protest locations, sending text messages with announcements and collecting donations and supplies. Two of the main organisers are preparing for the protests by sending out tweets with information and calls to action. The two reached more than 20,000 followers each with their Ferguson updates.

This article challenges Botton's belief that the news is used for social control. It is not the actual news corporations who are trying to have control in this article, but in fact the public who are fighting against it. Their protests have gained over 20,000 followers by using social media.

NDM Story #19 Sun+ signs up 225,000 paying subscribers

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/nov/24/sun-plus-paying-subscibers-news-uk

The Sun has signed up 225,000 paying subscribers to its £2-a-week digital service Sun+, almost double the number reported a year ago. The publisher said that the figure has been stripped of any subscribers on a free trial, with the vast majority paying £7.99 a month. The company has spent tens of millions of pounds buying internet and mobile highlights rights to prime sports events, its deal with the Premier League alone is thought to have cost at least £30m over three years.

• News UK’s tabloid, which went behind a digital paywall on 1 August last year, reported it had attracted 117,000 paying subscribers in December 2013.

• In October, the Sun fell below 2m sales for the first time since 1971, with 1,978,324 average daily sales.

• About 2%, or 5,000 subscribers, have a quarterly or annual package.

This article reinforces Botton's view that the media is used for social control. The fact that Sun+ have made their online services cheaper and more accessible to the public, more people have been encouraged to subscribe. However this is an example of how the news will provide stories which prioritse less important news such as celebrity gossip and showbiz etc. 

Alain de Botton on the News

1) I agree with Alain de Botton's views on the News to a great extent. Botton states that the news does not focus on things that are important, but in fact focus on less important things. He uses the example of natural disasters that occur in the world and the fact that the news does not create sympathy for these stories. This is the reason why us as audiences can go to sleep so easily and not worry about those who have been affected. To contrast, Botton uses an image of Taylor Swift with her legs revealed which he states would be more important for news organisations to put on the front of their news as oppose to global warming, which is a serious factor affecting us. Botton also uses an interesting quote that 'the hierarchy of news has broken down.' By this, he means that the unimportant news is now at the forefront of news, whilst more important but perhaps less fun news is in the back and is given less importance. Overall I strongly agree with Botton's view on the news as most news corporations sell their news in this way to audiences.

2) Marxism and hegemony can be linked to Botton's view on the news as he shows elite people such as Prince William who is carrying his baby's car seat and celebrities such as Natalie Portman taking her son to the park who receive attention from the news. Although they are doing every day activities that most parents do anyway, it still means that things such as flu's spreading and children in less developed countries dying gain less coverage. The reason they gain less coverage is simply because they are less important and people only care to read about elite people. The point is that elite people stay in control and the centre of attention while others do not get much attention from audiences and are therefore classes as less important, encouraging hegemony as the elite continue to stay in control. News companies are concerned about making profits, as oppose to providing important, knowledgeable news.

3) Pluralism and new technology could challenge Botton's views on the news as citizen journalism is increasing, especially on the internet. This means that footage is published online and reaches social networking sites such as Twitter and YouTube and is shared among audiences. Citizen journalism tends to focus on things that happen to normal people, instead of the elite. For example, the Ian Tomlinson is a great example of citizen journalism having an impact on the elite as his case was further investigated after the police denied killing him. I believe citizen journalism will only continue to grow and in fact news companies need citizen journalism in order to provide efficient evidence for their stories in most cases that they did not capture themselves.