Converging Communication, Colliding Cultures: Shifting Boundaries and the Meaning of “Our Field”

1. Converging Communication, Colliding Cultures:Shifting Boundaries and the Meaning of “Our Field” Jeff Wilkinson, PhD Assoc Prof, Journalism Regent University jwilkinson@regent.edu

2. Media Convergence Areas • Convergence occurs at various levels throughout society and institutions • 1. Technological convergence • 2. Organizational convergence • 3. Convergent journalism • 4. Media Use Convergence

3. Diffusion of Convergence • Media convergence spreading to non-media fields • Important to Media Scholars, practitioners because it represents external competition • Social Darwinism at work • To better understand how media should respond, revisit our assumptions

4. SMCR revisited • 50 years ago, media scholars could conceptualize Mass Communication as follows:

5. Old Model Assumptions (Wright, 1959) • 1. It is directed toward relatively large, heterogeneous, and anonymous audiences • 2. Messages transmitted publicly, often timed to reach most audience memberssimultaneously, and are transient in character • 3. The communicator tends to be or operate within a complex organization that may involve great expense

6. New Model Assumptions (McManus, 1994) • 1. Previously distinct technologies are merging (note* “have merged”) • 2. Shift from media scarcity to media abundance • 3. Shift from content-geared-to-mass to content-geared-to-groups or individuals • 4. Shift from one-way to interactive

7. Implications of New Assumptions • The Source (Creator) no longer limited to complex organizations & great expense • Message (Content) is being redefined because we now have an abundance of creators • Channel (www) is open to everyone and is increasingly two-way/interactive • Receiver includes consumers and even media companies!

8. Expanding SMCR

9. Back to the Beginning: Key Constructs, Components • Social Psychology and Neuropsychology consider Cognitions and Affect as basic building blocks for human beings • Cognitions ≈ Information • Cerebral cortex centered, rational thinking • Affect ≈ Entertainment • Mid-brain centered, emotions/feelings

10. Information and Entertainment • Neither either/or, exist on continua • Historically, information (serious) and entertainment (light) have been separate • Only recently are Entertainment and Information being consciously blended, enhancing both

11. Ideal Content Blends Both • Information that entertains is most attended to, remembered • Entertainment that informs teaches skills, values, most benefits society • These principles increasingly practiced by creators in designing CONTENT • Macro-social level this is “Diffusion of Convergence”

12. Modeling the Diffusion of Convergence

13. Examples of Collision 1: Art & Architecture • Full-service architecture firm • http://www.3dworks.com/code/frameset_e.htm?view=/code/info_e.htm • QTVR Photography and imaging • http://www.panoramas.dk/architecture.html • http://www.qtvr.dk/uk/arkitektur.html

14. Examples of Collision 2: Law • http://dmoz.org/Society/Law/Services/Litigation_Support/Evidence_and_Presentations/ • Animation • http://3dcrimescene.com/ • Standard news documentary • http://www.settlementvideo.com/

15. Examples of Collision 3: Medicine • http://www.symmation.com/content/medical-animation.php • Images • http://www.medtecimaging.com/

16. Examples of Collision 4: Education • Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) • Video for cross-cultural communication • http://www.geocities.com/ehansonsmi/video_references.html • NECC podcast demonstrated interviewing & on-air skills of non-media educators

17. Examples of Collision 5: Business • Google search 10/11/05 for “business school multimedia” yielded 32,600,000 hits • Online Design School-Graphic Web MultimediaBusiness Marketing ... Online Design School-Graphic Design, Web Design, Multimedia, Business Marketing Design, Digital Arts accredited certificate programs and courses.www.sessions.edu/ - 10k - Cached - Similar pages • BusinessSchool : Multimedia Development and Business BA (Hons) A Joint Degree in Multimedia Development to provide broad knowledge of the design, technical, social and legal issues that organisations have to ...www.uce.ac.uk/web2/business/multimedia_business.html - 18k - Cached - Similar pages • Harvard BusinessSchool Publishing Corp. Releases First Multimedia... Harvard BusinessSchool announced commercial launch of the first multimedia case ...www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/ 1997/04.24/HarvardBusiness.html - 8k - Cached - Similar pages • Rutgers BusinessSchool : Multimedia Spring 2005 Rutgers BusinessSchool offering undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs.business.rutgers.edu/default.aspx?id=737 - 19k - Cached - Similar pages

18. Examples of Collision 6: Government • Hong Kong • http://www.policyaddress.gov.hk/05-06/eng/webcast.htm • United States • http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/ • http://www.whitehouse.gov/kids/videos/index.html#

19. Revisiting the Diffusion of Convergence Model

20. Implications & Suggestions for Change • Embrace non-media convergence applications • Look for ways to link Journalism & Communication to other fields • Example: Videoconferencing for Journalism students under the rubric of “cross-cultural language learning”

21. Journalism & Cross-cultural communication, Spring 2005 • RU Journalism student met with students from Tamkang University • Discuss perceptions, attitudes of Taiwanese students regarding identity with Mainland China • Topic is political and very sensitive

22. Conclusion • Media convergence extends beyond traditional boundaries • Diverse sectors and fields are embracing and employing the same tools and principles to create content • Journalism and Mass Media and Communication must expand to survive