Final Blog Post

     Throughout this semester in Media Law and Literacy, we have explored technology extensively. We have covered the evolution of technology, technological inventions and advances, as well as how technology has become integrated into our society. Technology today often feels like second nature for many, is this really a good thing?

What are the Positives?

    Technology is incredibly powerful and has many positives. The video of the Futurama ride in 1964, predicted how technology could create a brand new, shiny, society. The ride talks about putting a man on the moon, new interstates, and high tech public transportation. Although American society doesn't necessarily live up to the vision of the ride, we have inherited a lot of the "futuristic" ideals. 

The Planet's Health

The Futurama ride exemplifies the wonderful possibilities of technology and highlights the potential of American society. This video sparked my interest in mentioning the power of electric vehicles. Although electric cars have risen in popularity, it is predicted that they will only become more prevalent. I believe that generation Z will widely benefit from the technological advancements of cars. Sustainability or "going green" has been a large concern for gen-Z. 

    Today, we are able to find the lifecycle carbon analysis of electric vehicles in less than a minute. It is evident that the manufacturing process of electric cars makes up a heavy portion of the vehicle's carbon emissions. However, the vehicles emissions throughout its lifetime outweigh the effect of the creation process. While every new advancement in technology can be beneficial, create new standards, and reshape society's priorities, we should recognize the detrimental effects tech creation has on our planet. 

Our Health

As a society, it is safe to assume our physical relationship with technology is far past unhealthy. The national average screen time in America is seven hours and three minutes, for seven hours a day, most Americans are staring at a blue light screen. Blue light has impacted humans' physical health immensely. Most people develop the habit of scrolling before bed, checking Instagram, or watching a show. A Harvard study was conducted where participants were exposed to blue light, finding that there was a direct correlation to exposure to blue light and a decrease in the production of melatonin. 

    As our physical relationship with technology has gotten out of hand, we should also take note of how our mental relationship with technology has become toxic. A study from the university of Pennsylvania found that there was a large link between social media usage and anxiety and depression. When participants only used social media for 10 mins a day, there was a vast decrease in negative effects. If lowering usage has this much improvement, think about what a week could do.

    While we can make big changes like trading in our traditional cars for electric cars to better our quality of air and physical health, we can also take small steps to ensure our technology has a limited effect on our mental health. Technology has and will continue to own part of our daily lives and creative thinking. With new major advancements like AI, we should continue to be cautious of the effects of overusing technology and strive to keep a healthy relationship with new technological advancments.

EOTO Terms and Concepts Reaction Post

 This EOTO focused on terms and concepts in technology today. A lot of these terms and concepts were happenings in media and what to stay vigilant of in everyday life while using technology. The concept I want to focus my reaction post on is News Deserts, in this post I will go over what I learned and my interpretation of the concept.

What Is a News Desert?

    A news desert is an area or region that has little to no access to credible news sources. These areas receive little coverage and typically have one newspaper. I found the concept of news deserts incredibly surprising because of how widely America has internet access. In today's age, especially in suburban and urban areas, I find it difficult to step away from the internet and news. However, news deserts are still prevalent and happen in areas of the country like parts of Texas, rural parts of California, and a high percentage of counties in Mississippi. 

Why Do They Happen?

    News deserts are caused by a supply issue in the newspaper. Often, the newspapers in parts of the country act as "ghosts". The papers may be owned by a private corporation, hedge fund, or private equity fund, causing high cost cutting and eventually leading to lower quantity and/or quality of the media. Most of the citizens living in a news desert get their information from the radio and social media, this can create bias as the media being consumed is swayed. 

Who Does This Effect?

    Most obviously, news deserts widely effect the citizens living in these areas. News deserts can also be created in elderly communities, low income communities, and local governments. Citizens living in news deserts will cause a sway in voting, they may be voting on misinformation causing local governments to be corrupt. This could also cause marginalized communities to become vulnerable to being taken advantage of, in factors like voting and where their money is going.

    Overall, news deserts are a very large issue America will be forced to face. Funding to local papers and media is vital to ensure all news can be credible. Quantity and quality of news is vital to navigate the problems of America today. I really enjoyed learning about this EOTO!

Diffusion of Inovation

 What is the Diffusion of Innovation?

    The diffusion of innovation is a theory pushed by Everett Rogers; a book published in 1962. Rogers' theory is an innovation on how technologies are thought of, popularized, and spread through different channels. His theory covers how different distribution methods over time, through a social system, can alter creations. 

    During the first EOTO, I talked about the creation of iPhone. I extensively got to dive into the creation, the product, and the impact it had on society. I will use this theory to better explain the creation and popularization of iPhone!

    Roger's theory covers five main components, the first being the innovation itself. The iPhone was one of the first revolutionary smartphones. The iPhone included touch screen ability, internet connection, picture, video, and music. The iPhone used components of a mobile phone and smart device to create an invention that had everything a consumer could possibly want to carry on hand. Roger's talks about a product meeting critical mass, selling as much as it possibly can and reaching a stopping point. However, the iPhone was able to bypass this. The iPhone kept adapting, creating new versions constantly. 

    The second main element of the diffusion of innovation theory is the adopter or customer. The theory states that innovations rely on consumers to be candid about the product. Apple was able to create an invention based off consumer feedback, wanting a device that included a mobile phone and music. As the iPhone progressed in popularity and gained new feedback, Apple was able to create newer and updated innovated versions of the iPhone.

    The third element of the theory is communication channels. Although not explicitly stated in my EOTO, the iPhone became highly popularized due to media coverage. As Apple was rising in popularity, the iPhone was the first version of smartphone during its time causing media coverage to be extremely high. 

    It is evident that all main aspects of the theory work together to cause an invention to become revolutionary. The face of Steve Jobs, timing of the invention, channels of distribution, and the invention itself all are what caused the iPhone to be highly successful. With the right components, any invention can gain immense traction and become larger than life. 

    

EOTO - Cord Cutting

 What is Cord Cutting?

    As streaming services have risen in popularity and cable has become more expensive, consumers are starting to realize that cord cutting may be the best path for them. Cord cutting is the act of canceling regular cable or satellite television, to only have streaming services. 4 million Americans canceled their cable within the first six months of 2024.

Pros

    The main pro of cord cutting is the power of choice it gives consumers. People are able to pick what channels, shows, movies, and content they want to watch. Cable allows less choice causing customers to have limited options in what they want to watch. Streaming services allow a vast array of options along with the ability to pause, rewind, and restart something. 

    The Beginners Guide to Cord Cutting explains how most Americans can get streaming services for a more affordable cost than traditional cable. Most streaming platforms offer a free trial option which can promote consumers to try new platforms while keeping a lower budget than paying for cable. 

Many streaming services also have a live TV option. Services like Hulu and Philo give customers an opportunity to stream live television on the platform. This eliminates cost of cable while also allowing consumers to get a chance to stream a minimal amount of content that is on cable or satellite. 

Cons

    Although cord cutting has many advantages, there are many downsides. For customers who don't want the hassle of picking a show or movie, streaming services force choice. Although some streaming services offer live TV, there are limited options on streaming platforms. Depending on the customer and wants of the consumer, people who purchase streaming services should be aware the live TV options are minimal and not always available on every service.

    Having streaming services instead of cable also requires a high functioning internet connection. This could cause the price of internet to rise and become increasingly more expensive. Along with an increase in price of internet connection, streaming services could have hidden costs. Now, streaming services are requiring a higher subscription to access certain shows or movies.

Who Will Cord Cutting Effect?

    Society has already been largely impacted by cord cutting. Millions of people are moving towards streaming services and steadily away from cable, especially Generation Z. Apps like Tik Tok and YouTube cater to a lower attention span allowing users to flip through videos instantaneously. Generation Z has grown up with shows and networks of their choosing only being streamed on certain platforms. This gives the ability for the younger generations to pick and choose what platforms they feel they need. 

    The rise in cord cutting from younger generations could lead to a massive end in the cable industry causing it to become close to nonexistent and lose relevance. However, streaming services like Hulu and Netflix will gain immense financial benefit from the uproar of cord cutting.

    As younger generations have preferred cord cutting, older generations may suffer. Cable has been a staple in many households which allowed people to easily access it. The uprise of streaming services could cause a learning curve for older generations or prompt their favorite shows to only be available on a streaming service. Although cord cutting essentially hurts older generations, it could cause cable to become less expensive and motivate older generations to keep their subscription. 

    My family has participated in cord cutting for as long as I can remember. My mom decided to lose cable very early on and switch directly to only having Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime. I believe cord cutting will become increasingly more popular and newer generations will want to stick to streaming platforms.