Post #6: EOTO #1 Reaction

After listening to all of the presentations for EOTO #1, the group that stuck out to me the most was the one which discussed the history of cassette tapes, carrier pigeons, printing press, and social media. 

Casette Tapes

Cassette tapes were first invented by Lou Ottens for Philips Company in Belgium in 1962. It was used for analog media and diction, but later was converted for music coverage. Cassette tapes became popular due to the convenience and portability of them along with the help of Sony Walkmans and Boomboxes. They were arguably the first technology that allowed people to share music, recordings on a larger scale. 

The first cassette tape created by deceased, Lou Ottens.

Later on, piracy started to become a big issue because of how easy it was to get access to them, resulting in sale drops of vinyl records. Along with vinyl records, cassettes became to common back then that they were killing the vinyl sales. To end this, music companies came out with exclusive music on vinyls and cassettes. 

However, the introduction of CD's started to hurt both cassettes and vinyl sales because of the similar benefits of a cassette and better audio quality. 

Carrier Pigeons or "Messengers"

Carrier pigeons were first used in ancient times in Egypt by the Greeks and Romans, being the first source of communication. They then spread to journalists in the 1860's for reporting news from far cities during both World Wars. 

The most well-known pigeons include: Cher Ami who was awarded for bravery on the battlefield in the Croix De Guerre, GI Joe who was awarded the Dickin Medal, and Commando who was also awarded the Dickin Medal. 

Printing Press

The oldest printed book was around 868 AD and block printing was around 600-900 AD. By the 1000's, a moveable type of printing was invented. Johannes Gutenberg designed the very first printing press in the mid 1400's, but was replaced by the rotary press in the 1800's. 

The printing press impacted the news industry, making it more accessible to the public. Information then began to spread and reached the scientific community. By famous works being printed, it strengthened the renaissance.

Social Media

Facebook was founded in 2004 by Zuckerberg, Saverin, Moskovitz, and Hughes. The original version called Facemash in 2003 let Harvard students rate female attractiveness, but soon got shut down and turned into what we now know as Facebook. It then expanded to Yale, Stanford, and similar universities. By June 2004, more than 250,000 students from 34 schools had joined.

In addition, Instagram launched in 2010 by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger. It was created to share photos and experiences more easily. The "influencers trend" began on Instagram and from there influencers built large followings and promoted products/services. 

Although it has its perks, social media definitely has its downsides. Facebook brought privacy concerns, cyberbullying, and misinformation. Instagram brought harmful effects on teens mental health such as depression and anxiety by promoting unrealistic body images. 

Perhaps I found these topics interesting because they have shaped the world of communication into what we know today. They have all played a role in different ways in society whether it be scrolling on social media and keeping in touch with friends or allowing us to get our news more quickly because of the printing press. 

Post #4: Privacy = Violated

Technology as a whole is an excellent source of communication to stay in touch with friends and family. Without it, we wouldn't be able to receive updates about the latest information and news occurring in the world on a day-to-day basis. 

But like anything else, there is no doubt that technology definitely comes with its flaws, the biggest being an invasion of privacy. 

How do these issues affect you? Your friends and family?

The invasion of privacy issues raised in these videos affect not only me, but my friends and family too in ways that are very scary. The fact that the in-person conversations that I have with others are always listened in on by the government through my phone or other source of technology is honestly frightening. It leaves me scared whenever I mention wanting to buy, for example, a new pair of shoes and then suddenly an ad for the same pair of shoes appear on Facebook. 

I feel uncomfortable that my privacy is continuously violated everyday, whether it be the government constantly listening or hackers making their way into my social media accounts and pretending to be me to my followers in order to get their information too. 

I also found it interesting that in the video with Juan Enriquez he brings up the idea of digital tattoos. Digital tattoos shape your reputation depending on the digital footprint you leave online. Enriquez compares physical, body tattoos to that of digital tattoos and argues that they provide as much information for a person as body tattoos ever could. A common way of contributing to your digital footprint is through allowing a website to install cookies on your device. 

A protest back in 2014 to fight back against government surveillance.
 

What should the government be doing about these issues?

To help in improving privacy issues, the government should implement more regulations on companies like Google Home and Amazon Alexa that are other sources of technology that are always listening to people's conversations. Such regulations should be laws that protect individual data privacy, require companies to only collect data for their own purposes, and most importantly spread awareness to educate the public about the dangers of privacy invasion. 

What can we do to protect ourselves from invasions of our privacy?

Although the problem of invasion of privacy will probably never be fully resolved, we can ensure we are protected as citizens by making our social media accounts private instead of public and installing software like two-factor authentication and other authenticator apps so people can't hack our personal accounts.

 

These apps make it to where you need extra stuff to log into your accounts, making it almost impossible for people to be able to hack your accounts even if they have your password. 

As a society, we must demand for more laws and regulations regarding technological privacy as it is a right that everyone deserves to have as human beings. 

Post #5: EOTO #1 (The Invention of Magazines)

 The Earliest Known Magazines

Magazines were said to have started in the early 17th century once the printing press became used in Europe. The earliest known magazine was the German magazine, translated to Edifying Monthly Discussions. It was invented by Johann Rist, a poet in Hamburg, Germany in the 1600's. This inspired other publications of journals in Europe such as Denis de Sallo’s Journal des Scavans, The Royal Society Philosophical Transactions, and Francesco Nazarri’s Giomale de letterati. In 1672, a Frenchman named Jean Donneau de Vize published Le Mercure Galant that included news, short stories, and poetry. After this, more publications like this became very popular and increased enthusiasm for education.

The 18th century came and brought many women who enjoyed literacy and caused the record of reading numbers to go up. As a result, numerous women were then inspired to write their own work of literature for female readers. It also helped magazines to thrive because of the high number of female readers who used the magazines as a source of knowledge and entertainment, leading to the publication of the Athenian Mercury, a magazine especially written for women in 1693. 

Magazines in Britain

During the early 18th century in Great Britain, there were three major influential magazines that were published in the time period and were read regularly: Robinson Crusoe, Review,  Tatler, and Spectator. Publications such as these were published either daily or several times a week. They were supplied just as fast as newspapers but the content itself was similar to that of a magazine. The Review was written about domestic and foreign affairs and contained opinion-based political articles. The Tatler and Spectator, to quote, “emphasized living and culture and frequently used humor to promote virtuous behavior.” In 1709, the creation of the Female Tatler and the Female Spectator in 1744 became popular because of the amount of female readers that the Tatler and Spectator got.

 

Magazines in America

The year 1741 was the launch of American magazines from American Magazine by Andrew Bradford and General Magazine by Benjamin Franklin. The magazines quickly became rivals since they debuted a few days a part from each other. Unfortunately, the two magazines' fame lasted only a few months as the cost to read them was very high. 

By the 1830s, publishers started making cheaper magazines from a decrease in the cost of printing and mailing publications in hopes of attracting a wider audience. Magazines began to transform into amusement based rather than reason. They also shifted from being targeted to the elite class, but instead sent out family magazines, children magazines, and women magazines since the magazine business had grown. One of the earliest women magazines was Godey’s Lady’s Book, printed in Philadelphia between 1830 and 1898. The magazine sought out female readers and employed over 150 women.

The first and most successful magazine in the United States was The Saturday Evening Post. It was distributed weekly and started printing in 1821 and remained until 1969. The magazine got renowned in 1971 and went through alterations to center more around health and medical breakthroughs. Because of this change, it then began to produce 90,000 copies per year. The hit magazine was the first to ever put artwork on the cover. It utilized famous artists work such as Norman Rockwell and famous authors work like F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sinclair Lewis, and Ring Lardner which made the public want to read it more.

Another popular magazine in the U.S. during this time from 1827 to 1929 was Youth’s Companion which was targeted towards younger readers and inspired them to act righteous by advertising religious content. It expanded itself from younger readers to an adult audience by including tame entertainment pieces. 

Most publications back then costed around twenty-five or thirty-five cents per issue which left only a small category of people being able to buy them. In 1893, Samuel Sidney McClure started selling for fifteen cents McClure’s Magazine, a literary and political magazine. Many magazines began to use this affordable tactic. Cosmopolitan sold at around thirteen cents an issue and Munsey Magazine at ten cents. These magazines ultimately increased the number of people buying from 250,000 to 750,000. This cost decrease of magazines eventually led to more successful buying rates. By the 20th century, advertising in magazines became more prominent. Magazines would raise their advertising rates which increased the money they made. 

In 1923, Time became the first newsmagazine which focused on world news. The newsmagazine hit its peak in 1928 and the readership grew from there. Soon after, more newsmagazines began to appear. Business Week was founded in 1929 and was concentrated on the global market. Forbes began in 1917 as a biweekly and is focused on finances. It continues to be one of the most popular news magazines today.

A former Time editor founded Newsweek in 1933 and has over 4 million readers. The two magazines continue to compete for readership today. 

Along with newsmagazines, photojournalism was introduced in the 20th century. The most influential picture magazines by Henry Luce was Life between 1936 and 1972. It gained around 1 million readers in a short few weeks. The publication’s motto was, “to see life; to see the world; to witness great events; to watch the faces of the poor and the gestures of the proud; to see strange things.” Another similar magazine, Look printed between 1937 and 1971 and competed with Life for a bigger audience.

21st Century

Although magazines are continuing to be read and published, the use of technology has made it to where people can get their news and entertainment by the quick tap of a button and in most cases for free. 

Post #2: The History and Workings of the U.S. Supreme Court

"The Supreme Court of the United States remains the most powerful judicial body on earth."

From watching the two videos regarding the U.S. Supreme Court, I became more familiar with what their job specifically entails and the history of the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Summary

The U.S. Supreme Court began to form as a result of the Judiciary Act of 1789 and nine justices are appointed by the current president during the time period. The role of the Supreme Court includes: safeguarding liberty, preserving the union, and upholding the rule of law. The videos state that although they are trained in law, they handle human dilemmas. Many justices serve for sixteen years, or even longer, before switching out for new justices. 

In 1801, the government moved to Washington, D.C. and the Supreme Court was given temporary headquarters in the capitol that wasn't finished yet back then. Around the same time, a young lawyer named John Marshall was appointed as Chief Justice. Under his ruling, the court declared for the first time in history that overturning an act of Congress was unconstitutional. John Marshall left a lasting impact on the Constitution and led the new Supreme Court to be shown more respect to the public. Around approximately twenty years pass by and the Supreme Court ran into a massive slavery problem. Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney ruled that, "Congress had no power to ban slavery, and that blacks could never be citizens." The problem was fixed and the Constitution was altered to abolish slavery, define citizenship, and granted voting privileges. 

In today's world, the Supreme Court receives over 7,000 cases a year. A certiorari, an order in which the court reviews a decision of the lower court, are most of the cases that are sent in to the Supreme Court. The court then meets weekly to decide which cases they are going to accept and which they will not. 

The lawyers on the opposing sides in a case have a thirty minute time slot to make their arguments before the Supreme Court. After hearing both arguments, all nine of the justices meet in their conference area to vote on the case. Once they vote and decide, a justice on the majority side must write an opinion which states the legal reasons for their vote. 

Reflection

The U.S. Supreme Court was something very interesting to learn more about since I wasn't very familiar with it before watching the videos. The most important takeaway from these videos is how the nine justices can uphold laws they find constitutional and decline laws that they don't approve. After watching the videos, I view the Supreme Court in a more positive way as they ensure that our laws that we are supposed to follow are constitutionally correct. Without the U.S. Supreme Court, America wouldn't be as regulated if we didn't have our laws reviewed by the justices. 

Post #3: The Eight Values of Free Expression

The eight values of free expression, which ultimately formed as a result of the First Amendment, gives everyone the opportunity to convey their values and ideas in unique ways, also allowing us to have protected freedoms in our everyday lives. The eight values are:

1. Marketplace of Ideas

2. Participation in Self-Government 

3. Stable Change

4. Individual Self-Fulfillment 

5. Check on Governmental Power

6. Promote Tolerance 

7. Promote Innovation

8. Protect Dissent

Out of the eight values, the two that resonate with me the most are individual self-fulfillment and promote innovation.

Individual Self-Fulfillment

When the First Amendment was signed in 1791, it granted individuals the right to have their speech protected. As mentioned in the description of individual self-fulfillment, it allows everyone to express themselves and be able to form their own identity. It is solely about achieving a sense of purpose and focusing on goals that are meaningful to you in order to live a content life. 

Personally, I have experienced individual-self fulfillment through pursuing my passions and talents. Being an actor and singer, I love sharing my natural gift to the world through performing in plays and musicals and singing at my church. I also am involved in the Collision Worship band at High Point University which performs on the Wednesday and Sunday night chapel services. In addition, I am a Christian with a heart for Christ. By singing in church services, I have found a way to channel my values and beliefs through my passions by being a witness to others about God. 

I find this value to be very significant and crucial when being able to differentiate ourselves amongst other people. Everyone is their own person and to have the opportunity to voice your own opinions and ideas freely is incredible. From my point of view, individual self-fulfillment is also key to developing a sense of autonomy, which is the ability to make your own choices as a human without external control. All in all, without the presence of this notable value, we wouldn't be able to contribute to society which is essential for personal growth. 

Promote Innovation

The second value that stuck out to me the most was promoting innovation. To me, this value holds an equal level of importance as individual self-fulfillment. According to promoting innovation, it states to actively encourage and support the execution of new and improved ideas through free speech to advance society as a whole. 

A most obvious instance of promoting innovation in my life is  here at High Point University. For example, in the student-run newspaper organization called the View Point that I am a part of on campus, we have the freedom to choose what kind of stories are covered. This demonstrates free speech as we are able to report topics that we find interesting, creating a more energized environment where we are enthusiastic about our story topics. To go along with this, the organization fosters a diverse range of story articles written by students since everyone has different interests.  In general, college is a huge place to promote innovation within the students, faculty, and community. Whether an athlete, singer, actor, dancer, musician, cheerleader, and many more, each student has the chance to make a change within their particular area. 

Overall, promoting innovation gives everyone the option to voice their thoughts more creatively, efficiently, and constructively. Society will only continue to benefit with the assistance of the people who care deeply to improve it. Not only will society be positively impacted, but each individual will have a better quality of life and well being as a result of their ambition and hard work. 

With the use of these two values of free expression, let's work to not only make a change, but to be the change in the world. 

Post #1: My Top Five Sources of News and Information

Media and news are ways for people to stay informed about current information that is happening in the world today. For me, I get my news from five different sources ranging from social media platforms to news channels like Tik Tok, Instagram, WXII 12, the Today Show, and Entertainment Tonight.

 1. Tik Tok

In today's generation, Tik Tok has become one of the most popular social media apps in the world and one of my most used. This is not only because of the various trends and videos, but also because of the news produced on it through verified influencers. Tik Tok being a short video platform allows for high amount of information gain in a brief period of time, however the minute-long videos may leave out details and content but that can be remedied by further research after seeing a topic on Tik Tok. 

2. Instagram

Instagram, like Tik Tok, is a great source for me to keep with up with my friends and see what is occurring  in the world, especially via the explore page and reels. Both apps can be referred to as an "eco chamber", meaning that all of the values and ideas of a user are positively reinforced by algorithm. On the other hand, beliefs that a user doesn't agree with are hardly ever shown, thus furthering the concept of an eco chamber. For example, since I love to workout, I regularly watch Instagram reels of workout routines that I could follow in the future. Just from liking one video, a numerous amount of other workout content tend to pop up on my feed since the app knows I have previously viewed something similar before. I like this feature because it essentially customizes the app to make it filled with things you enjoy to watch and believe in rather than showing a post that are contrary to your opinions. 

3. WXII 12

Since I am from Winston Salem, I normally watch WXII 12, mainly when I am at home with my parents. I personally find it important to keep up with your local news to ensure you know what is going on in your hometown. It also helps you learn information about events taking place around your area, decisions about local politics, and issues that could be directly impacting your community.

4. Today Show

My parents have always watched the Today Show, but once I took a girls trip in 2017 to New York City and had the opportunity to go on the Today Show live is when I started to really submerse myself in it too. From the fun talk shows they have to the general news portion, it is so entertaining to watch each morning and also be able to stay informed. The Today Show gets approximately five million viewers each morning, making it one of the most successful morning talk shows in America. 

5.  Entertainment Tonight

Lastly, Entertainment Tonight is another notable channel to include in my top sources of information as it contains some of the latest gossip, celebrity interviews, and behind-the-scenes looks in Hollywood. Being a pop culture fan, ET is unique to that of a regular news station as it provides more film and celebrity coverage rather than stories about politics or economic issues.